Need advice/criticism for Spriest

[Scyusia 0]

Hi everyone! Scyusia-Anachronos, spriesting since end WotLK.

 

So I've been having difficulties trying to determine just how to change my rotation/priorities list on some BRF bosses. 

The fight I'd like help the most on is Operator Tho'gar.

Tonight's kill showed that I'm underperforming, and I'd like to know what I could do to change that.

Here's a log link to the kill:

https://www.warcraftlogs.com/reports/xZzqVbRNrkQ69t7F#type=damage-done&source=11

 

I have since changed my HC Slaughterhouse Spaulders to HC Tierset ones, as indicated on my armory:

http://eu.battle.net/wow/en/character/anachronos/Scyusia/advanced

 

If you take a close look at the logs (tonight was a particularly frustrating night due to, well, stupid deaths) you'll notice I even tried out going with SoD and a CoPlite build/rota in the beginning few tries, just for the sake of experimentation.

 

My general dotweave is:

MB > MS x 3 until 5 shadow orbs > SW:P > VT > DP > MB > MFI (iffy on the GCDs and clipping, never can manage it properly, too much haste?) > DP > MB > MFI (till just after MB off cd/just before DoTs run out) > repeat.

If I have GCDs to correct, it'll be filled by a PW:S or similar.

Halo use for Tho'gar was timed for add waves (at least that shows, thankfully).

 

According to logs, I have performed so far under par (23rd percentile) that I am actually offended. (Although it may be possible that other priests were simple multidotting that fight - I simply dropped halos on CD and Mind seared at 6+ mobs, else single target dotweave, but I am at a loss to see how auspicious spirits is better here.)

 

One part where I acknowledge I failed is keeping up DoTs running on Tho'gar throughout (not possible during split phase, of course, but otherwise as well), though purely because it detracted me from being able to pull off enough DPS on adds. (GCDs limiting and all that).

 

Apart from WA to help me see the duration of Insanity (the buff) and the DoT timers, I don't run anything like HaloPro - generally a good judge of that goldilocks zone. I run the normal Blizz UI, like it a lot.

 

I would sincerely appreciate some (helpful) criticism. I have been tearing my hair out during Highmaul trying to gear/chant properly, shelling out lots of cash basically changing builds, and I would rather not go through that again this raid.

 

If you have any suggestions to my Dotweave I'd love to be able to try those out as well. Having said that, I was previously running a dotweave rotation that did MB > MS x 3 until 4 shadow orbs, when I'd begin MS then dotting. It didn't perform compared to the new one I'm using, but any help is welcome.

 

Thanks everyone for taking the time to help me with this.

[Brutalpriest 60]

Looking only at operator: heroic: kill.  A few notes. 

 

I recommend macroing your haste trinket and Mind Blast together, with the goal of casting as many mind blasts as possible.  Remember, Mind Blast cooldown is affected by haste. 

 

#showtooltip Mind Blast

/use Shards of Nothing

/cast Mind Blast

 

My sympathies on a non-permenant haste trinket though.  Hopefully you don't get stuck with the random haste proc trinket *shudder*

 

Increased Haste should not affect your rotation at all except that you will be pressing buttons faster (VT and Pain play by different rules however.)  Devouring plague lasts less long (without losing damage) and mind blast cooldown shortens in such a way that it makes this happen.  Between the time you cast one mind blast, and the time it comes off cooldown, you have 3 global cooldowns to work with.  (techincally 4, but the first is consumed by the GCD of the Mind Blast you just cast.  Let's say 3.)  All 3 dots, MB, Mind Spike, PW:Shield... all of that needs one GCD to cast, whether or not you're allowed to stand still.  We don't have anything with a long cast time except our two channeled abilities.  Ignoring mind sear, which is terrible and will continue to be terrible until 6.1's Insanity change, that just leaves Mind Flay, which is TWO GCD's if fully cast.  This means that, if you want to clip it properly, you should be clipping it exactly in the middle.  Find a way to track this.  I use the old MFClip and wait for it to reach 1.4 seconds (of the 2.8 seconds it takes to cast).

 

You should always keep Mind Blast and SW:Death on cooldown.  Screw SW:Pain, generating shadow orbs is much more important.  Now, whether you should be casting insanity or SW:Pain on mass adds after you cast Devouring plague, I don't know for sure.  I'd need to think about it.  But shadow orbs are extremely important to generate. 

 

If any of that didn't make sense or you have any other questions I'll be here some time tomorrow =)

[Scyusia 0]

Hey!

 

Thanks for getting back to me so promptly on this, and thanks for the trinket macro pointer. I honestly hadn't considered it before, lol, and I'm feeling slightly stupid for not realizing they don't need to take up separate clicks/presses.

And yeah, I hope I don't get screwed over trinket-wise. *Sigh*

 

So getting back to the multidotting vs shadow orbs issue: if I understood you correctly you're saying to screw wasting more than the absolute minimum GCDs SW:paining (read: 3) and just focus on pumping out MBs, yeah?

I had thought of something similar, that I was simply wasting GCDs doing very little DPS dotting (especially due to mobs being so short-lasting), but I honestly couldn't be sure, considering some stray adds that weren't getting cleaved down.

 

Off-topic slightly, but I remember using a MB > MS x 2 till 5 orbs rota before, purely because MB comes off cd just as the third mind spike is casting/finished casting, but it's still not clear whether doing a x3 rota results in a significant increase anymore. Before, when I had a lot more mastery, it catapulted my mind spike to 2nd-4th most dmging spell, and as such I've kept to it, force of habit.

 

On the issue of Insanity vs. SW:P after a DP when many mobs are up.

From logs, insanity ticks for between 10k to 27k, before multistrikes, depending on crit.

My SW:P is just so far below in comparison that I figure wasting GCDs dotting means I potentially lose out on a lot of DPS.

Especially because SW:P really has no benefits beyond shadowy apparitions, and whatever I dot tends to die a bit too quickly for my liking.

So, hazarding a guess - maybe I ought to make full use of insanity for as long as possible before switching to dotting?

Maybe a definite limiter, e.g. don't dot unless mob(s) will be up for at least 15 seconds?

 

Thank again for taking the time to help out on this. Much appreciated.

 

P.S. what I meant before about mastery is that due to getting new gear I've dropped below 60% mastery while raid buffed.

Edited February 10, 2015 by Scyusia

[Fisperne 3]

Another thing that I'd definitely recommend improvement on would be SW:D sniping off the little adds. That's a lot of orbs that you can generate from this.  Also, when the trains come with all the small adds, all I ever do is just drop a halo as soon as they're all at optimal range, then continue either single target damage on Thogar while looking to snipe SW:D off of adds while classes much better suited at aoe down them, or single target one of the larger adds (Gunnery sergeant I believe) while dotting up Thogar.  Hope this helps, also here's my log of our first kill for comparison.  https://www.warcraftlogs.com/reports/pnMtNazGXf4V2Zcq#fight=19&type=damage-done&source=28

[Scyusia 0]

Hey,

 

Thanks for the heads up about sniping - I do seem to miss out on it quite a bit. Then again, as soon as the first train comes out with the adds, they all get gripped and insta double cataclysm'd downed - I barely have time to coordinate a proper Halo hit before they die.

I was wondering if it would be more beneficial to drop a mind sear in case they don't actually go down quickly enough, or if some of the adds didn't get gripped right.

But I'll definitely try out the pure single targeting.

 

I've noticed I make a lot of unnecessary movements throughout the fight - not big stuff, but any movement means no mind spike - it's quite difficult to time movement around GCD/MB usage, especially due to the prototype grenades on the ground. 

[Brutalpriest 60]

Yo.  Let's look at this more in depth, now that I'm home from work, and my battle pet heal is on cooldown =P 

 

(looking at my figures and assuming Twist of Fate and Insanity)

Pain: 26568 + (6 * critical_chance * 3145) average damage

 

Insanity (1 tick): 16430*2 = 32860 

 

So, I would need two shadowy apparation to both SPAWN and HIT (ie the target not die before the slowass shadowy apparition gets to it from however far away from the add you are) to be EQUAL (32858, close enough) to insanity.

 

Of course, these values will change depending on your critical strike chance and Mastery but...  Yeah stick with Insanity channeling instead of casting Pain or VT.

 

Anyway.  The point I was trying to drive at with my explanation of GCD's and mind blast (I may not have made it as clear as I could have, I was sleepy) was that you should be casting the normal dotweaving rotation BUT replacing every mind spike you can with something more useful.  Self-shields with reflection does more than mind spike.  Pain/VT (on secondary targets only of course) does more damage than mind spike (if the target doesn't die early.) 

 

Hope that helps