Priest PvP Analysis

[Standalone]

So im getting ready to return to wow and ive always been more of a hardcore pvper as opposed to raiding. I'm considering rolling a goblin priest and am not aware of how the game as a whole as well as priests in general are "fitting in" in a sense. My question is simple which spec is currently more viable to pvp with as a priest? disc or shadow? i hear good things about both. An ideal response would be one that entailed good and bad points on both specs as I'm not asking so I can just play whichever one is better or flavor of the month if you will but rather the spec I would be more personally tailored to play. Any help or tips are extremely appreciated. thanks.

[augi01]

What type of PVP combat do you plan on doing most? i.e. 2v2, 3v3, 5v5, rated battlegrounds, or a combination of these?

[Standalone]

for the most part a combo. arena wise looking at 3v3 mainly and ultimate goal is to get geared get in a guild dedicated to pvp and hit the rated bgs.

[Whisperawr]

bad news, rated bg's are hard to put together, not fun because they're the same as normal bg's, take way too long to grind up rating, and no one does them anymore it seems :\

[Sanju]

Shadow is very strong at the moment, but will take a huge hit in 4.1 since they can't do defensive dispelling. (Which was what made them so strong)

Disc is very strong too, and I think they will be even stronger in 4.1 when warriors can't global them, and resto shaman/druid gets nerfed on earth shield / lifebloom.

I'm playing with a disc in 2s, and gonna play 3s with him in 4.1 aswell. <3


Edit: Whisperawr, Reroll on one of the active PvP servers if you want lots of RBG action. Plenty of people do RBG, they're just not searching for people in trade...

[Deleted]

Representation wise Priests are currently the most potent class in Arenas.

This is largely because both Shadow and Discipline are competitive specs whereas most other classes are forced into one spec. That being said, the class is not considered OP in any way and you'll have to work for your rating.

The biggest difference between the two is that obviously Shadow is a DPS caster while Discipline is a healer. Depending on what your prefer, that's what should determine your spec choice. Since both Shadow and Disc opt for Mooncloth gear over Satin gear, switching specs is quite easy.

If you're wondering which has more potential, then I'd say Disc. Disc has always been one of the best performing PvP healers in any Season or Bracket. It is by far the safest bet. Yes, Disc isn't as overpowered as Shamans and not as mana efficient as Druids or Paladins, but they can hold their own in the hands of a good player.

Shadow is a little more limited and much of its current success is due to the double-dispel it brings to a team. This should be over in 4.1 leaving Shadow with little else beyond solid caster damage and limited CC. On top of that, Shadow has serious mana-issues that take a lot of getting used to. It can be a little frustrating at first, especially in bad gear. While I belive Shadow will still remain viable, it will end up in a similar position as the other caster hybrids and be pushed into a very limited number of comps.

[DiscoGhost]

only problem i have with disc atm is that all my stuff can get dispelled. EL OH EL @ earthshield. wtf.

[Standalone]

Thanks for the responses. Tons of help for sure. Disc definately sounds interesting as I want to be able to heal effectively but primarily focus on dpsing. Nw, I like and want to put effort into my toon to be good at it. I'm not after an easy or OP experience in any sense and I'm looking forward to the challenge of perfecting a priest.

[DiscoGhost]

bad news, rated bg's are hard to put together, not fun because they're the same as normal bg's, take way too long to grind up rating, and no one does them anymore it seems :\

ya rated bgs totaly vary from server to server. its dead on my server but there are others that do it all the time. 99% of the time its an all guild event though, i would suggest pugging rated bgs anyway :/

[Spurmwhale]

I see Priests surviving ridiculous focus fire right now, if they're good and geared. probably more often than a lot of the other healers but they all have their well played/geared raid boss players here and there. poorly geared/played are pretty ez tho.

---------- Post added 2011-04-21 at 01:50 PM ----------

bad news, rated bg's are hard to put together, not fun because they're the same as normal bg's, take way too long to grind up rating, and no one does them anymore it seems :\

they're not the same as PUG BG's, they're more clumpy and zergy. PUG BG's you'll get a lot of random skirmish pockets here and there because everyone doesn't always stick together in clumps like in premades. Theres also generally a lot more dictation in RBG's/Premades where as PUG BG's are generally very freeform, do as you please. Honestly the only pro to me about Premade BG's play is the rewards, winning, and thats about it. PUG BG's are generally a lot more enjoyable in terms of class play and type of random fights you get into. theres so much turtle breaking in RBG's i find it surprising people actually find them enjoyable.

[PinkTheUnicorn]

Thanks for the responses. Tons of help for sure. Disc definately sounds interesting as I want to be able to heal effectively but primarily focus on dpsing. Nw, I like and want to put effort into my toon to be good at it. I'm not after an easy or OP experience in any sense and I'm looking forward to the challenge of perfecting a priest.

Being integral in DPSing is a heavy part of being a strong disc priest--they have strong burst potential to aid their partners (and indeed, an offensive priest is sometimes the only way in which you will score the kill), but their own CC ability is very lacking, so timing becomes essential (the right combo of CC to score the kill). The skillcap for a disc priest is, in my opinion, the highest of all the healers.

[Standalone]

Being integral in DPSing is a heavy part of being a strong disc priest--they have strong burst potential to aid their partners (and indeed, an offensive priest is sometimes the only way in which you will score the kill), but their own CC ability is very lacking, so timing becomes essential (the right combo of CC to score the kill). The skillcap for a disc priest is, in my opinion, the highest of all the healers.

also good to know as it is certainly valuable information to know ahead of time how much work/skill will be required to be exceptional at your selected class. Looking forward to developing myself through research and practice into a player worthy of playing such a skill intensive spec.

[prefect]

Disc is very strong too, and I think they will be even stronger in 4.1 when warriors can't global them, and resto shaman/druid gets nerfed on earth shield / lifebloom.

My apologies for derailing the thread, but what the hell does "global" mean when used as a verb like this? I've seen it in other places, and I have no clue what it means.

Thank you.

[exangel]

My apologies for derailing the thread, but what the hell does "global" mean when used as a verb like this? I've seen it in other places, and I have no clue what it means.

Thank you.

It means to either slaughter something before they can use an ability (died before global cooldown finishes) or to actually kill someone from full to dead during the duration of their global cooldown (which is pretty rare except with certain compositions to execute in a live arena match)

OP:
I love Disc, so much that I haven't played any other class alts, just more priests this expansion over all previous content.
If you don't have the luxury of running a standard priest comp or playing with more experienced partner(s) then it's a rather rough grind to get all the pvp epics, and it takes some skill and time/experience to break 2200 without maxing your gear as this class/role (this wasn't totally true a few weeks ago but we're pretty much past the halfway point for the season) the only priest I knew to break 2200 on any team before full vicious this season ran a sick shadow/frost comp to raise his point cap first, then moved on to 3's and 5's.

[HotSauce]

Roll one on the PTR and see how ya like it there

[prefect]

It means to either slaughter something before they can use an ability (died before global cooldown finishes) or to actually kill someone from full to dead during the duration of their global cooldown (which is pretty rare except with certain compositions to execute in a live arena match)

Thanks very much for the explanation. I would love to "global" somebody someday. (It'll never happen, I know.)

[Sanju]

Thanks very much for the explanation. I would love to "global" somebody someday. (It'll never happen, I know.)

Reroll a warrior :P

[Impurath]

Disc priests are very dependent on their team mates. For example if an Arm warrior comes at you, you will die if you don't get any help.

[prefect]

Reroll a warrior :P

My main is a warrior. I must be doing something wrong.

[Omnus]

Remember, shadow priests are keeping Mass Dispel, and so they are not losing defensive dispel - they just won't be able to do it as effectively. Of course, Blizzard may remove MD from SPriests at some point.