WTF Earthquake?

[Pure Lunacy]

I dont get it, all this complaining for a FREE spell. If you are Elemental, you take your current 51 point (Thunderstorm) talent right? So, Blizzard gave us Thunderstorm for free, and gave us an AoE in its place and your whining about it? They could have just as easily left Thunderstorm as our now 31 point talent, as they did with every other class, and not gave us anything. Look at what your your ultimatly saying before posting your cry-baby QQ again.

^ I couldn't have said it better myself.

[TheSauce]

Originally Posted by Kinettik View Post
I dont get it, all this complaining for a FREE spell. If you are Elemental, you take your current 51 point (Thunderstorm) talent right? So, Blizzard gave us Thunderstorm for free, and gave us an AoE in its place and your whining about it? They could have just as easily left Thunderstorm as our now 31 point talent, as they did with every other class, and not gave us anything. Look at what your your ultimately saying before posting your cry-baby QQ again.
^ I couldn't have said it better myself.

A turd freely given is a turd none the less.

Uses for "Free" thunderstorm:

1.) Saurfang's blood beasts in ICC (incase traps, slow, warlocks stun, etc. don't work)
2.) Fight is long and I am low on mana (rarely happens)
3.) PVP
4.) Bad tank tanks are bad, can't hold aggro.
5.) solo leveling?

Honestly, blizz can have it back for free and I would hardly miss it, it is so situational.

Uses for Earthquake:

1.) Trash mobs if they don't have to be CC'd. Marginally useful for CC with knock downs but not so great if it is breaking other people's cc's.
2.) Slowing down adds on Saurfang like fight.
2.) PvP (battlegrounds)


These are both cool tools to have in our tool kit, and I can see getting some use out of them, but having either of them be the end talent is really kinda meh. Neither are used very much. Take a look at other classes / trees and look how useful their spells / abilities are. (feral spirit, riptide, DK's get rune weapon, howling blast, gargoyle etc.) . They are abilities that you want to work into every rotation and generally use as much as possible to max heals / dps.

We aren't QQing because we are getting an interesting new tool. We are QQing because it looks like it's going to be something that is not used very much, just like thunderstorm isn't used much now, AND it is our 31 talent.

[Gestopft]

A turd freely given is a turd none the less.

Uses for "Free" thunderstorm:

1.) Saurfang's blood beasts in ICC (incase traps, slow, warlocks stun, etc. don't work)
2.) Fight is long and I am low on mana (rarely happens)
3.) PVP
4.) Bad tank tanks are bad, can't hold aggro.
5.) solo leveling?

Honestly, blizz can have it back for free and I would hardly miss it, it is so situational.

Uses for Earthquake:

1.) Trash mobs if they don't have to be CC'd. Marginally useful for CC with knock downs but not so great if it is breaking other people's cc's.
2.) Slowing down adds on Saurfang like fight.
2.) PvP (battlegrounds)


These are both cool tools to have in our tool kit, and I can see getting some use out of them, but having either of them be the end talent is really kinda meh. Neither are used very much. Take a look at other classes / trees and look how useful their spells / abilities are. (feral spirit, riptide, DK's get rune weapon, howling blast, gargoyle etc.) . They are abilities that you want to work into every rotation and generally use as much as possible to max heals / dps.

We aren't QQing because we are getting an interesting new tool. We are QQing because it looks like it's going to be something that is not used very much, just like thunderstorm isn't used much now, AND it is our 31 talent.

But do we actually need another rotational spell? I mean, take a look at the new class abilities. Most are situational, not rotational abilities because most classes/specs don't need more dps buttons to push. Would you be happier if earthquake was baseline and LvB was 31pt talent? The end result would be the same. What would you put as our 31 pt talent?

[TheSauce]

But do we actually need another rotational spell? I mean, take a look at the new class abilities. Most are situational, not rotational abilities because most classes/specs don't need more dps buttons to push. Would you be happier if earthquake was baseline and LvB was 31pt talent? The end result would be the same. What would you put as our 31 pt talent?

You have a point. This is the hole that blizz has crafted elemental shammies into. We've got a pretty good rotation and almost everything we need for single target is baseline.

I think most of us feel like we are being forced into taking a situational AoE trash mob spell that could be skipped if it was lower in the tree. The 31 point talent is supposed to be a class defining talent. It's something I would like to use in most fights and especially while I am fighting bosses.


As for making LvB our 31 point talent, that would make a lot of sense. When you think about it, it really is our signature spell right now. The only problem is that you would have to re-design all 3 types of shammies since we all get it. And it wouldn't feel so shiny or new.

(here I am totally ripping off other classes ideas) Why not an air elemental similar to ghost wolves on 3 min. cool down, or turning into some kind of elemental like a lock turns into a demon. I'm sure the think tank at blizz could come up with some even cooler ideas if they put their heads together.

Or maybe we could just chuck a stream of totems at the bosses head for an dps increase.

Anything as long as I will want to use it in 90% of boss fights plz.

[aiden2002]

I'd just like to point out the real problem with this AOE spell. 15 second cooldown. No other AOE channeled spell has a cool down. That's 5 seconds of standing around while everyone else crushes shaman in AOE capability. Also, if we're channeling, we can't hit magma totem and fire nova. It just seems like it doesn't have a place in our current setup.

[TheSauce]

Or how about a talent that lets you cast a devastating 7.0 earthquake once every 2-3 min? slightly Increased damage (or not), and non-channeled. That way normal earthquake could be baseline and channeled, and the improved 31 talent point one could be cast and you could still pew pew the boss.

[Darzhar]

I personally find Earthquake a cool spell, but like most others i question if it should be our 31 point talent...

We could have a lot of other different stuff there that fits just perfectly in with elemental shamans like

a) A summonable "guardian" pet dealing wind (aka nature) damage on a medicore lenght cooldown
b) A new rotation spell with a 12/20 sec cooldown dealing Elemental damage (mix of fire/nature/frost damage) witch applies either a Flame Shock Dot or Slows our target for a few seconds
c) A CC like wind based spell with a 30 second cooldown "You summon up the powers of the nature arround you creating a Windwall within XX range of you dealing nature dmg + reducing movement speed with a chance of knocking down enemies entering it"

Or something like that

//Ebayed

[Kinettik]

I'd just like to point out the real problem with this AOE spell. 15 second cooldown. No other AOE channeled spell has a cool down. That's 5 seconds of standing around while everyone else crushes shaman in AOE capability. Also, if we're channeling, we can't hit magma totem and fire nova. It just seems like it doesn't have a place in our current setup.

I agree about the CD, its pretty stupid to say the least, but no so much about it being a "Set and Forget" spell. Magma/Fire nova AoE is supposed to be the Enhance AoE and i really dont have an issue with EQ being channeled, all ranged AoE (Aside from Seed of Corruption) is a channeled spell/cast so its only fitting.

---------- Post added 2010-07-15 at 04:14 AM ----------

We aren't QQing because we are getting an interesting new tool. We are QQing because it looks like it's going to be something that is not used very much, just like thunderstorm isn't used much now, AND it is our 31 talent.

Shadow Priests got Dispersion, Druids got Starfall (1.5min CD) we got EQ. Seems like the "Hybrid" casters all have end talents that are situational. Id rather not have another spell in my rotation (Not thats its complicated or anything) cause i cant see anything that would fit. Another DoT ability that doesnt share a CD with Shocks? Just doesnt seem right.

On a totally different topic, id like to see Ele get an "Execute Phase" ability to make our DPS more competitive, but i wont hold my breath.

[Jenerena]

To all those whining about it being our bottom spell...as a PvE player, how awesome was Thunderstorm as a bottom talent? Well not that awesome. I used it on the move, and that's it. You cannot be telling me that Earthquake is a waste of a final talent when we had TS before, and now TS is becoming a trained spell, so...what's the problem?

As for the totem thing, it's annoying, and it's a dps loss. So many fights require you to be at range, and require you to drop searing totem 4-5 times a fight. A few steps in to drop it, a GCD to drop it, that's 2-3 GCDs per drop. Imagine how much more dps we would get without having to move in, hmm, drop it at range? Blizzard mentioned that right? Our AoE is clunky and needs a clean finish in the form of a decent channelled aoe spell.

[Calendra12345]

Yeah but when Paladins got Divine Storm they didn't complain about it.

But it's not a channeled... fuck it, im prolly getting trolled anyway.

[ad1337]

It's too bad we're locked in to Elemental for a full 31 points, It'd be fun to run a 30/11 PvP build with Stormstrike!

[Titanz]

I don't know what char I gonna play on Cataclysm... :|

My DK Tank sucks at AoE and Blizzard says: "It's fine. Cataclysm won't have AoE anyway."

And I go for my Shaman and I see a new AoE Spell.

<- Confused. :\

[Kekk]

It's a very nice AoE. Maybe not a 31 points thing, but still very cool.
And animation is awesome

[Awanae]

I'm satisfied to have an AOE talent but i don't understand why it gives physical damage? it's really stupid...that can't scale with our SP.

[Omanley]

well im no elemental but:
fact1: every dps caster class has baseline channeled aoe spells, and some additional spells they can cast at range ( flamestrike, seed of corruption, typhoon )
fact2: ele is the only exception and after 5 long years they finally get one but ofc get a special treatment as shaman ( the usual ) and have talent into it. even better, it´s the ultimate talent.

im enh and goddamn are there many things im not content with as it is atm, but i sure do pity you guys because of that crappy implementation. why not make it baseline at early lvls like other casters? maybe add a minimum range while you´re at it, to have elemental stay at range, and enh not using it.

[Killandra]

i for one am happy to see we finaly get a channelled AoE spell.

[Northy]

But do we actually need another rotational spell? I mean, take a look at the new class abilities. Most are situational, not rotational abilities because most classes/specs don't need more dps buttons to push. Would you be happier if earthquake was baseline and LvB was 31pt talent? The end result would be the same. What would you put as our 31 pt talent?

How about Ele get a defensive CD. Heavens no...that's blasphemy. I love Dispersion on my spriest.

[Xdaja]

Pve this is obviously a targetable aoe which is nice.
PVP you guys realize there is more to a fight then blowing everything up, a random stun does suck, but is an AOE random stun and could come in handy maybe helping that healer get some melee off of them or stopping a group of horde running up the LM hill. There is more to this spell then just damage.

Where I can see a lot of classes excelling past others in Cata wont be the class, but be the use of their utility. (which is pretty much how it is now. In pvp anyways)

[Venziir]

I don't know what char I gonna play on Cataclysm... :|

My DK Tank sucks at AoE and Blizzard says: "It's fine. Cataclysm won't have AoE anyway."

And I go for my Shaman and I see a new AoE Spell.

<- Confused. :\

They never said that.... They said that fights can't be won anymore by having everyone aoe like crazy spinning bunnies on lsd! ... Well maybe not those exact words, but you get the point.

[fadingintofall]

i wanna trade earthquake to druids and we get thunderstorm...

Well, good sir, it will please you to know that you have both earthquake AND thunderstorm.


I agree that the channeled part on your 31 pointer is ass. Especially with the poor scaling. Though the poor scaling/ physical damage sounds more like a bug. As someone mentioned, originally it was a 1.5 second cast. I think that would be fair and provide far more utility for both pve and pvp.
1.5 second cast and a short cd to prevent having two earthquakes up at once.
Or a 1.5 second cast, then a channel. After the channel ends, the earthquake lasts 10 seconds. The longer you let it channel, the more damage it deals per tick - or perhaps it just speeds up the ticks. Either way, I like my idea