Priest Racials

[prochy]

Hello there,

At first I know that many of us are glad that priest racials are gone and perhaps would not like to see them never again. I'm playing night elf priest since vanilla and I have been also quite pissed by "you must be dwarf/draenei to join our group cause we need fear ward!" discrimination, but I feel that concept of having different abilities is quite unique and interesting, just some of the spells needs to be more effective.

With Cata and racials having it's overhaul and addition of new races to priest class, I have been thinking about having these unique once again, they could also fill the gaps created by having just one rank of spells...

I was trying to make most of these spells usable by healing specs and shadow as well and I tried to bring to each race something usable in both PvP and PvE situations, and I would like to mention that I haven't included exact numbers for the most of time (We just know that health pools will go up, no info about increase in damage), I haven't include mana cost - these could be easily adjusted and don't have such big importance, on the other hand, mechanics do.

So there are my ideas:

Alliance

Draenei

Light's Mercy (discipline)
Powers of Light protects a caster, decreases damage taken by 20% and melee attacks done agains caster have 10% chance to incapacitate attacker for 4 seconds. Lasts 10 seconds. 3 min. CD

Naaru's Blessing (holy)
While active, your spells costs 10% less mana and healing done by you is increased by 20%. 3 min CD

Dwarf

Wisdom of the Mountain (discipline)
Allows 20% of your mana regeneration to continue while casting for 15 seconds and you have 100% chance to not miss with your spells. 3 min CD

(note that Blizz stated that hit cap will be much more higher and more difficult to achieve, with higher tiers moving closer to the hit cap)

Mountain's Endurance (discipline)
While active, harmfull effect are decreased by 40% and your armor is increased by 500%. In addition, makes you immune to stuns and incapacitate effects. Lasts 10 seconds, 5 min. CD

Gnomes

In Tinker We Trust (discipline)
While active, your damaging spells have explosive effect, dealing additional 20% damage, and your direct healing spells have revitalizing effect, refreshing Renew on it's target. Lasts 20 seconds, 5 min CD.

Gnominize (Shadow)
2 seconds cast time, 30 yards range
Sends a bolt of negative energy to target, reducing its physical damage done by 30% and reducing it's movement speed by 20%. Also turns target to Leper Gnome. Last 15 seconds, 5 min CD

Humans

Divine Dedication (discipline)
Enhances your spellcasting, decreasing time between casts by 10%. In addition, you don't loose casting time by attacking and you have 25% chance to resist stun and silence effects. Lasts 10 seconds, 5 min CD.

Forfend (holy)
1.5 sec cast time, 40 yard range
Consumes a Renew effect from target, decreasing damage done to the target by 10% and increasing healing taken by 10% for a double duration Renew had before consuming. 5 min CD.

Night Elves

Starshards (discipline)
0 mana cost, instant cast, 30 yards range
Rains starshards down the target's head, dealing X arcane damage and increasing chance target will be critically hit by spells by 5%. Does stack with similar effects. 15 secs duration, 30 secs CD.

(note: damage done by Starshards shouldn't be much high since it's free, other option is to have Starshards with mana cost and increasing it's damage to compensate)

Elune's Grace (discipline)
Reduces chance to be hit by spells and attacks by 20% and restores 20% of your total Health and Mana over 10 seconds. In addition, removes movement imparing effects when used. Lasts 10 seconds, 5 min CD.

Worgen

Dark Light (Shadow)
Infuses you with the powers of the Dark Light, giving your next damaging spell 100% to critically hit or your next healing spell with a base casting time less than 10 sec. becomes an instant cast spell. Last until cancelled or unleashed. 3 min CD.

Balance of Light and Shadow (holy)
Instantly refreshes cooldowns of your shadow and holy spells. 10 min CD

Horde

Blood Elves

Consume Magic (Discipline)
30/40 yards range, instant cast
Consumes one enemy target's helpfull magical effect or consumes one friendly target's harmfull magical or curse effect, instantly restoring 10% of your total mana. 2 min CD

Sunwell's Glory (Discipline)
You taps the powers of the Sunwell itself, making your spells cost no mana and increasing it's effectiveness by 10%. Lasts 15 seconds. 5 min CD

Goblins

In Tinker We Trust
see gnomes

Selfish Faith (Shadow)
While active, mana burn effects used against you are 20% less effective, silence effects lasts 20% less time and your shadow spells have 25% chance to stun the target for 4 seconds. Lasts 15 seconds, 5 min CD.

Tauren

Grace of the Earthmother (Discipline)
While active, your spell critical strikes gives you additional 5% spellpower for 10 seconds, stacking 4 times. Also increases your critical strike chance by 10%. Lasts 20 seconds. 5 min CD.

Call of Ancestors (Discipline)
Summon a spirit of Ancestor to fight by your side. It has exceptional health and following abilities:
War Stomp
Hamstring
Lesser Healing Wave
Intervene (intervenes only priest who summoned it, taking next physical damage)

Spirit disappears after 2 minutes, 10 min CD.

Troll

Shadowguard (Shadow)
Creates three orbs of pure shadow energy which inflicts X shadow damage to enemy attacking you, decreasing it's physical damage done by 5% and slowing it's movement speed by 10% for 6 seconds, stacking 3 times and refreshes each time orb is consumed. 30 seconds CD.

Balance of Light and Shadow
see worgen

Undead

Dark Light
see worgen

Befoul (Shadow)
30 yards range, 1.5 sec cast time
Strikes target with corruptive power, making it's healing spells 10% less effective for 20 seconds and burning X mana when cast, stacking 5 times. Cannot be dispelled, 5 min CD.


Please, don't flame me, I know that the priest racials will likely not be restored, I know that there will be always some displeased people complaining the other race have better spells but I still believe it would be nice addition to a class if done properly.

[AetherMcLoud]

No offense, but:

You recognize the unbalance that priest racials in vanilla created (if you weren't dwarf on alliance side you weren't wanted, and horde screamed alliance is easymode because of fearward) yet your solution would be to make even more horribly unbalanced racials? How come?

Proxy-Shieldwall and Proxy-Last Stand for Draenais?
Proxy-Evocation and Proxy Frost Presence for Dwarfs?
Proxy-Bloodlust and Proxy Hamstring for Gnomes?
Proxy-Bloodlust and Proxy-Swiftmend for Humans?
Proxy-Winters Chill and Proxy-Dispersion for Night Elves?
Proxy-Natures Grace and Proxy-Preparation for Worgen?
Proxy-LOLMacestun for Goblins?
Proxy-Trinket and WTF-I-Got-my-own-Warrior for Tauren?

Really?

Really?

People screamed bloody murder when alliance had fear ward and horde didn't, yet you somehow think that those ideas would even make it past the desk of the person who came up with them?

While I give you that priest racials were _extremly_ flavorful and I too liked having devouring plague as an undead, from a gameplay perspective they were always bad ideas.
Now, if all those things were talents, or achievable through quests (that you could redo to change your spell selection) or through the cata archeology levelup system, then it _maybe_ allright to implement something. But afterall it would still be best to do such things with talents deep in the tree the spell would belong to.

[Elothie]

You seem to have put a lot of effort for these racials gz! I like the concept of unique racials although I dare say some of these are too OP for racials (compared to what goblins/worgens non priests will have as blizz will change the rest).I mean if the racials are so good will force many ppl race/fanction change (pvp or pve).These though are very interesting abilities for mastery.

[Venara]

No. Just no.

First of all, there will NEVER be different racials depending on your spec.
Secondly, most of your racials are vastly overpowered to be racials at all. You're designing abilities, not racials.
Last, you are enforcing something we do not miss from vanilla: Racials that force certain specs to choose a specific race.

[Cåty]

No. Just no.

Sush you. I think he did an awsome job thinking these racials out. I do agree to an extent. The majority is vastly OP to be a racial. But maybe Blizz can get some ideas out of it to be able to provide minor CD abilities so that priest healing becomes abit more interesting. They gave DK's more CD's (majority of it is minor) so I can see more classes get this in Cataclysm. I hope Blizz can get some ideas from it.

All in all.. Nice job bro. There are some good ideas there.

[Revitalize]

No. Just no.

First of all, there will NEVER be different racials depending on your spec.
Secondly, most of your racials are vastly overpowered to be racials at all. You're designing abilities, not racials.
Last, you are enforcing something we do not miss from vanilla: Racials that force certain specs to choose a specific race.

Hmmm, since like Wrath of the Lich king to me.

[Samin]

My first thought was like previous posters.
But these "racials" aren't really comparable to old racial abilities, because they only effect ourself instead of the group. So we won't get invited only because we are a dwarf-priest, otherwise the same could go for worgen tanks (reduced curse duration) and goblin dps (haste-buff, wasn't it?). Yes they are overpowered, but are definitly better thought of then the classic racials (in that they don't largely effect our group).

[tatienne]

I didn't read them all but the ones I did read were all just pvp-abilities.
and most of them were disc or holy. 2 shadow abilities for alliance and 4 for horde doesn't make sense either.

and like aether said, not having fear ward or being undead was the same as being laughed at back then.

so I'm sorry, but if it's just for pvp I'd rather see them as trinkets... and toned down. really toned down.

[Kelesti]

I thought Consume Magic was cool, but then again I would keep Fear Ward up (after Horde was given the nerfed Fear Ward, gg blizz), just to increase the chances I earned a mana gain.

But yes, they're gone. And all of them should stay gone.

[Revitalize]

I thought Consume Magic was cool, but then again I would keep Fear Ward up (after Horde was given the nerfed Fear Ward, gg blizz), just to increase the chances I earned a mana gain.

But yes, they're gone. And all of them should stay gone.

In my opinion, they just make the racials a list and you choose two of them from the list.
Then it doesnt matter what race you are.
Everyone would be viable for the same racials.
Everyone would be happy!

[Kelesti]

But then the only difference is what color skin a race has, or if they have tusks/tentacles/long ears. I don't know, I like the flavor created by racials (not racial-Priest-spells, mind you...). I like that my Blood Elf feels a little different from an Undead/Troll, and I get a couple advantages (like 2% spelldodge, go!).

None of these advantages are required, as my troll and undead friends can get by too, but it does make things a little more fun instead of being the orc with long ears and pink skin as far as racial choices go.

[prochy]

I agree they may be overpowered, but I have been thinking about having them in Cataclysm and with comming of each expansion, majority of talents are redone and seems clearly OP at first, and I think we will see many new OP abilities since removal of passive talents, we don't know what another abilities there will be, but you know, percentages can be always toned down.

The fact that most of them are discipline does not mean that they are not usable for shadow priests, in fact, they have their usage by both specs.

Also most of the abilities are self only, so there should not be these "we want dwarf kick him" situations, also, they could be used both PvP and PvE and bring something little different to chosen race. Blizzard could make them to be equally usable, they changed priest racials several times, and I was quite sattisfied with the changes they have done, but the majority of community was not, since they ignored the most lacking spells and keep boosting the races they already had quite good combinations (dwarves: Fear Ward -> Chastise + Stoneform).

I know that it could not work again, but as I said, I believe that if Blizz would put some effort to it, they could be actually balanced and funny. I don't say my suggestions are best around, I'm sure that developer team would bring better, perhaps the new talent system and path of titans will bring the flavor to the classes, we don't have many info about it.

[Greid]

this list does do something that you may notice. the op is just pointing out (using an overly dramatic method) that priests do lack a few versatility cd's, especially in pve. In pvp, i have enough buttons to push and rarely do i die because i didnt have another "reduces duration of silences" button.
However, in pve, anything that is going to buff damage done will be hotly monitored and nerfed to the ground....because...we are not mages. sadly, we shouldn't get an icy veins, we shouldn't get mirror image. Some kind of CD would be awesome if blizz deigns to give us something to liven up the rotation (not casting MB during a hero/lust doesn't count), but that being said, I would rather have a unique ability that maybe affects dots and situations unique to our class than just another "push this button and do more of X for 10 seconds"

Think, cd that allows SWD to refresh all dots every couple minutes, having inner focus proc a regen buff for healing or something, e.t.c.

As other people have said though, racials aren't going to work that way. Especially with the delicate nature of pvp (undead priests before fotf nerf) (human priests carrying an extra trinket slot) (dwarf priests destroying rogues in 1v1) all of these things are on a hair's edge from massive complaint and backlash just because of anything different. Racials in vanilla were a detriment and we all know it. Even in BC they weren't as bad, they were just annoying (5%spirit was nice though )