Is mastery a redundant stat (for many DPS specs)?

[Nyoken]

Best stat for Ele shamans next patch I believe.

[I Push Buttons]

I like it better than versatility, which is a garbage stat that shouldn't exist. Otherwise, meh.

[Tharkkun]

Icy Veins guides are hilarious now. Some of them haven't even been updated since the expansion launched and they're all written by the same person and "approved" by someone who actually plays the class.

Class discords are infinitely better resources than that drivel.

Individual authors are given access to the authoring tools to edit their own guides. Every class I've played has been updated. The stat weights are individual though so you must run Simc yourself.

[Packinnheat]

tell that to the sad arms warriors lol

[Youn]

Here is why MM mastery is so far ahead.

Crit = ~1% damage increase per 1% crit
Haste = more focus per second and about 1% damage increase per 1% haste
Versatility is 1% per 1% but bad ratio
Mastery = 4% damage increase on 90% of marksman's damaging actions per 1% mastery.

[Raugnaut]

Crit, Haste, and Versa are all bland stats that just directly increases your damage in one way or another a %age at a time - Haste is 1 extra spell every 100 spells per %, Crit is 1 extra crit every 100 crits per %, Versa is just a blank +% damage increase that increases damage less then equivalent stats of Haste or Crit.

Mastery, on the other hand, increases a specific portion of a specs damage, making that portion an even larger portion of damage then before. With a DK, mastery increases magical damage done, leaving phys damage done the same. Feral Druids get more mastery to buff their bleeds, leaving direct damage in the dust. Ect, ect. Any failure of Mastery to not be equivalent to haste/crit for damage throughput is entirely on behalf of blizz failing to balance shit.

[tuesday the paladin]

pretty much this.

didnt understand why blizz removed multistrike while they kept masteyry and versatility which are mostly redundant.

Because multistrike was just minicrits. Mastery is a unique stat to each spec. In that regard it's somewhat interesting, but many classes do have lame masteries. The way I see versatility it's sort of interesting. It's like getting some extra primary stat but it counts towards the secondary stat portion of the items budget. It also allows for players to opt for more defensive builds. The problem is the game is very numbers driven, so if it's not the best playstyle it's the worst.

[rayden54]

It is a nice way to differentiate the specs a bit in terms of flavor, in the very least I consider it the best secondary stat for that reason alone.

Funny. I'd consider "increases damage by %" to be the exact opposite of flavor.

[Sae]

A lot of masteries have interesting effects (WW monk, Havoc DH, Survival hunter) while others get lazy, boring "Increase the damage of X by Y%". It would be nice if every spec could get something interesting - they don't have to reinvent the wheel, but a bit of variety beyond "increase damage" isn't too much to ask I think.

Just to throw out a few ideas for my own class (rogue):

Assassination: Your poisons' effects are increased by up to X% based on the health percentage of your target. Would include the basic damage poisons as well as crippling/wound/leeching.

Outlaw: Increases the chance for Saber Slash to strike an additional time by X%.

Subtlety: Your damaging finishers have an X% chance per combo point to grant you a charge of Shadow Dance instead of activating Deepening Shadows.

[Usernameforforums]

Replace mastery with versatility in the title and you got yourself a solid question. If int/str/agi is a flat dps/hps increase then why do we need another?

[awbaker]

this just occured to me but..

Regarding the specs that include a utility aspect into their mastery (like Marksman ranged distance increasing), when they change how much mastery it takes to increase percentages, will this also effectively reduce the usefulness of the utility components? I dont think that those aspects of mastery (although im not familiar with other specs utilty) are an issue at all and seem just right. Will they be an unintended casualty when blizz changes it in 7.1.5?

[Ferozan]

Playing an enhancement shaman as an alt, i would love to have my mastery affecting Tactician chance to proc as an arms warrior, like enhancement's increased proc to stormbringer. Flat damage increases are boring and versatility is there for this.

[Galaar]

this just occured to me but..

Regarding the specs that include a utility aspect into their mastery (like Marksman ranged distance increasing), when they change how much mastery it takes to increase percentages, will this also effectively reduce the usefulness of the utility components? I dont think that those aspects of mastery (although im not familiar with other specs utilty) are an issue at all and seem just right. Will they be an unintended casualty when blizz changes it in 7.1.5?

Speaking strictly from a MM hunter perspective I don't see the mastery changes in 7.1.5 having much impact on the range portion of our mastery. Right now with 24% mastery I have a 50 yard range. On PTR with 22% mastery it's at 49 yards.

[ryudaraku]

Funny. I'd consider "increases damage by %" to be the exact opposite of flavor.

When those % increases are specifically for what the Spec is supposed to be all about? Yes very much so, the names of them invoke something that is supposed to be at the core concept of the Spec.