5.4 Destruction Tips and Quirks

[Demyndra 6]

Zags, so do you precast anything?  From what you wrote above sounds like you start off with conflag x2 into Immo...Additionally, are you still gaming the 4p on pull or letting it proc on the first filled ember?

 

Dem, do you favor haste or crit more?  When I dropped from a deep crit into more haste (8097) I was finding that my crit RNG was not high enough to reliably get the second ember filled in time.  For this reason I shifted a bit of my haste back into crit and it seems to be more reliable for me.

 

I favor haste more, simply because I use affliction for my main spec and we don't have a crit buff in our raid (no banners either).... we do have three stormlashes though! :)

 

I tested this out on a dummy for quite awhile last night and found that with conflag x2 -> immo, I was able to get both CBs off in time with enough embers much more regularly than immo -> conflag x2.  Which I guess makes sense because of the 2pc crit bonus to Immo & Incin.  Also, I tunneled single target as to not skew/cheese ember generation with RoF or FnB Immo.

[lockscifer 0]

finally decided to play destruction, although not like I think it will be better for raid.
The guides here are already helping me and I hope to be playing the saturday reasonable.
I saw some comments and I was half in doubt about the parts of tier 16 and the bonus, but as I only have 2 parts, chest flex (i can change with a normal) and a glove normal (i can change with a warforged), should I change it?

[vladMTL 1]

hello

 

regarding openers, i'd love to pick your brains about opening on shamans hc as destro since i consider mine to be sub optimal to say the least or so i think but proly because i compare my dps right there with the mage's or the boomer's which might not be so very intelligent ... regardless, please help me out with this !

 

thank you !

 

o/

[Zagam 1,982]

finally decided to play destruction, although not like I think it will be better for raid.

The guides here are already helping me and I hope to be playing the saturday reasonable.

I saw some comments and I was half in doubt about the parts of tier 16 and the bonus, but as I only have 2 parts, chest flex (i can change with a normal) and a glove normal (i can change with a warforged), should I change it?

2pc sucks.  Your decision what you wear.

 

hello

 

regarding openers, i'd love to pick your brains about opening on shamans hc as destro since i consider mine to be sub optimal to say the least or so i think but proly because i compare my dps right there with the mage's or the boomer's which might not be so very intelligent ... regardless, please help me out with this !

 

thank you !

 

o/

Immolate all the things, FnB Conflag, Incinerate spam.  Use Havoc to weave in two CBs when procs are up.  Should be able to open to 1.5-2.0M DPS.

[Soulzar 42]

Alright, analyzed my logs...

 

TL;DR:

Haste is NOT affecting the CB DoT.  YOU CAN CLIP IT, but it doesn't happen often. 

You WILL clip if you consume CB with Backdraft, so don't make a habit of it, but it can still be good to consume it to get the Chaos Bolt damage. 

Chaos Bolt's damage is calculated AT THE END OF THE CAST

Chaos Bolt's DoT damage is calculated WHEN THE CB LANDS

 

This means GoSac may not actually increase CB by 15% but more like 13.5-14.0% with the 1-3 ticks you'll likely lose with lots of Haste effects.

 

Thanks to Soulzar for the find, Locky and Kazi for working through the findings with me in Mumble.

 

 

I just browsed through my logs from this week on fights that are more single target (Malk/Iron Jug) and found my lowest was 13.6% and highest 14.4%.  200-300k per fight, not too huge.  If Destro was not in a good place right now I'd want Blizz to look at how they calculate that dmg, but I am not sure I want them doing a pass over CB coefficients right now lol

 

hello

 

regarding openers, i'd love to pick your brains about opening on shamans hc as destro since i consider mine to be sub optimal to say the least or so i think but proly because i compare my dps right there with the mage's or the boomer's which might not be so very intelligent ... regardless, please help me out with this !

 

thank you !

 

o/

 

I am 10 man

 

I use Glyph of Havoc since we use the split strat.  I do not have a second target to Cleave to throughout the fight, though there is opportunity to cleave shadowburns from slime's.  The idea behind the glyph is being able to cast 4 bully buffed chaos bolts on pull to melt the dogs quickly.  8M dmg in 2 casts is fun!

 

As Zagam mentioned you can F&B conflag to fish 2p, however outside of that with only 4 targets and the F&B modifier IMO your dmg is best focused on the two dogs with Chaos Bolts, and not to all 4 targets with F&B.  I am sure that point could be debatable.

 

In lieu of our discussion yesterday regarding Chaos Bolt dot clipping, more specifically spell power vs when it is applied, I am likely going to be experimenting with my opener a bit this week.  However without hero on pull, casts may not be fast enough to clip... I'll have to check my logs.

 

Last week I Precast Immo, RoF, Immo other 3 targets, Double conflag, incin, havoc, cbx2.

 

My second CB was late for my first trinket proc, primarily because I messed up and tossed in the incin after double conflag, however my emebrs were already at 3 by the time my first CB cast was completed, so I can start that sooner by removing two of the 4 immolates from before the CB casts.  I plan to try Precast Immo, RoF,  conflagx2, Immo second dog, Havoc, CB, RoF, CB and see if that gets my CB's out and their dots up in time.  May not have time to put the RoF between CB's.. and it may not be necessary without hero.

 

I am def open to discussion around optimizing it.

Edited November 5, 2013 by Soulzar

[Zokeh 0]

You are so intent on stats that it's almost scary. Just make mastery your priority. I don't really recommend skipping out on socket bonuses, but sometimes it just doesn't matter. Incinerate without backdraft really isn't that slow of a cast. Haste is basically my lowest stat and I don't feel like I'm slugging around.

 

I'm just trying to min/max, that's all.

 

Don't see how that's scary xP

[Rakupenda 15]

I'm just trying to min/max, that's all.

 

Don't see how that's scary xP

Min max your decision making in the midst of a fight instead of your gear stat weights is what he was implying.

[Zagam 1,982]

http://www.worldoflogs.com/reports/xtvhtmkkeqljm23t/

 

First half of SoO (Protectors through Nazgrim).  Posting because I'm down to 7.45% Haste unbuffed and I'm seeing some crazy awesome numbers.  #11 Heroic Protectors as Destro (460k) and a decent parse on Norushen (top 30).  Analyze away to see some neat stuff.  I won't ruin the spoilers.

[Zagam 1,982]

Stats unbuffed:

 

Stats raid buffed:

 

50k+ SPELL POWER!

 

Also, my Crit should be 5% higher, just had no Crit buff at screenshot time.

[Kazistrasz 216]

If we're celebrating our achievements, tonight was my rank on a boss that isn't Norushen (23rd on Immerseus for Destro). With no weapon or 4-pc, I'm very proud of myself. :D /patback

[Lezzr 0]

Regarding Opener I d like to share my thoughts:

 

Usually it goes like

Prepot

Immo

CoE (if needed)

Doomguard

Dark Soul + Troll + Synapse

2x Conflag

Inci until 2nd Ember is filled up

By now all trinkets + 4 PC + Meta should be up and I refresh my immolate for trolololololo Dot

2x Chaos Bolt

Inci til ember up

Chaos Bolt (still with PBI up)

 

this way I get around 1 M opener which Im quite confident with as Destro

 

However, as Im always trying to min/max I was wondering if there are any suggestions from you pro warlocks to improve this further more ;)

 

p.s.: playing max mastery > haste (10124) > crit

[Zagam 1,982]

Opener will suffer if you're using Haste instead of Crit.  Also, your first Immo isn't being affected by CoE.  You're also limiting your chances to get PBI to proc, but if you're seeing good procs, then keep on keepin' on.

[Cinaede 0]

So now that I'm 536 ilvl should I changemy talent build? I have been using the one noxxic reccomended. Which uses the highest dps cause a 522 kicked my ass & did top dps in my guilds flex lastnigt.. that shouldnt have happened we are a raiding guild!

 

I'm going to go back & look at what yall have been saying about openers BUT Zag after you advise the best talent tree can you give me your prefered rotation? I go with what you posted at the start of this thread & I'm wondering if you changed anything up & found a better rotation since early this year.

 

Thanks so much this is a great thread!!!!!!!

[Cinaede 0]

Also is it still Ctir & Haste at equal percentage?

[Zagam 1,982]

So now that I'm 536 ilvl should I changemy talent build? I have been using the one noxxic reccomended. Which uses the highest dps cause a 522 kicked my ass & did top dps in my guilds flex lastnigt.. that shouldnt have happened we are a raiding guild!

 

I'm going to go back & look at what yall have been saying about openers BUT Zag after you advise the best talent tree can you give me your prefered rotation? I go with what you posted at the start of this thread & I'm wondering if you changed anything up & found a better rotation since early this year.

 

Thanks so much this is a great thread!!!!!!!

He likely didn't use Noxxic.  There is no rotation.  It's all dynamic and should be adjusted to current procs and fight mechanics.  There is no best 'talent tree' for any spec, the talents are largely situational.  The difference between your DPS talent is small, but both Supremacy and Sacrifice are fine.

 

Also is it still Ctir & Haste at equal percentage?

Doesn't matter.  Play with whatever percentages you like with Haste and Crit.  Both are viable.

[Cinaede 0]

will you check out my armory?

http://us.battle.net/wow/en/character/malfurion/Cinaede/simple any advise is welcome

[Cinaede 0]

yours in the pic is so much lower than equal... I really am trying hard to get off the flex teams & secure a spot on a 10 man for better gear... I need to max my dps to show some of the leaders that i earned a spot. playing with my stats has only made it unreliable what I will do in a raid.. the one night i though ti would suck i was top 3 all night, theni got 3 new gear items & havent been able to find the sweet spot since

[Zagam 1,982]

Your armory and stats aren't going to max your DPS...your play ability, knowledge on what spell to cast at the right time, and proper use of your toolkit for each fight will maximize your DPS.  My Haste is low because I don't care about Haste.  I care about big numbers.  If you got gear and your DPS went down, there's a larger issue than what your stats are doing.

[Cinaede 0]

yea I have been keeping a log... even after I lost the sweet spot on the 5th I was 534ilvl

haste 16.30                                                             immolate (1.29) 153,762

hit 13.25 (yes i know it needs to be 15)                  conflag 72,351

crit 15.33                                                                  incinerate (1.72) 74,280

mast 79.30                                                                CB (2.58) 152,243

 

Today my ilvl is 536 (new shoes)

haste 17.03                                                        immolate (1.28) 136,560

hit 14.86                                                             conflag 64,258

crit 16.43                                                           incinerate (1.71) 65,971

mast 81.42                                                          CB 135,963

 

I mean this is a HUGE LOSS I am doing something wrong... I just dotn kwo what it is. Cinaede is my only 90. I kinda only want my 1 90 other than maybe a monk & a mage... But For being a year old I need her to NOT SUCK like this.

So if you dont care about haste, should I try more mastery or crit? Which matters more? SHould I just do what Mr robot tells me to do lol... I want an above average cookie cutter character but I'm apparently failing

[Cinaede 0]

I meant NOT cookie cutter*

[Zagam 1,982]

I don't even know what those numbers mean.  Are those the DPS contributions by each spell?  That still doesn't help anyone figure out what you're doing.  Read my Fix your DPS FAQ and go through each of those questions and self-assess yourself. 

[Cinaede 0]

lol... Did I mention not only am Ia girl but blonde & I kinda suck at this game even though I try terribly hard.. Thats what I see when I click my pic in game at the bottom & thats what I see under my spell section... Just watched your Jimmy falon youtube lol then his gaming with my mom clip... Do you have any vids on you tube of your play style

[Zagam 1,982]

Don't discredit yourself for being blonde or a girl.  Our resident female rockstar, Zanzal, is both of those and she destroys the meters like a boss.  I think the principle here is that you should work smarter, not harder.

 

I don't stream or record videos.  There are a multitude of ways to try to find and correct issues, but nearly all of them come from a World of Logs parse where our resident Warlock allstars can digest and assess your issues.  You couldn't watch someone with 40 item levels ahead of you play because their playstyle is going to differ with procs, stats, and other effects.  We need to work on you and your core, not try to play mimic with someone else's play.

[Cinaede 0]

thats kind & thanks. (not a natural blonde anyways but dont tell anyone )

Maybe I should have said I'm not you're average gamer type. Wow is the only game I play & I've played on & mostly off for about 6 years, but this is my first time really diving in & trying to be the best I can be & learning. Its just not coming easily.

 

How do I put myself into that world of logs parse? & again thanks for all your help

[Cinaede 0]

found it... & registering