Looking for a few quick tips/advice after a long absence

[Tahlee 0]

As the title says, I'm coming back after a long absence and I'm looking at going back the healing route instead of shadow. Based on what I've read thus far it seems as though disc currently is the go to spec whileholy lacks pve wise. The opposite seems true for WoD where it appears holy will be the ideal spec as disc seems to have been gutted. I've healed as both holy and disc in the past and I've always preferred reactive healing over preventive. Does holy have any place in current content or is disc going to be the only viable spec. Basically we have our old guild returning in mass and I'd like to be prepared the best I can in advance. Currently just releveling another priest to remember the basics and get hot keys down as I go.

Any advice or insight into this would be greatly appreciated. I also assume add-ons are generally the same, clique etc and I'm using the ElvUI which seems very nice and easy to use. Thanks in advance.

[Gwenymph 414]

Disc is the go to OP spec for SoO but Holy does have its place.  I prefer a Crit heavy build for both specs and it will save you time/gold if you plan on giving them both a shot, or alternating from week to week to get reacquainted.  Disc has the benefit on a fresh team of being able to DPS while smart healing the raid which might be useful to you and your peeps while knocking off the dust. 

 

As far as addons, WeakAuras are the cover all now aside from your Healing UI of choice.  You can find a WA for almost anything you want to track on or off CD.  AA, Rapture, PoM, Meta, just to name a few.

[Espiee 161]

As the title says, I'm coming back after a long absence and I'm looking at going back the healing route instead of shadow.

Welcome back! Always nice to see old players return.

 

Based on what I've read thus far it seems as though disc currently is the go to spec whileholy lacks pve wise. The opposite seems true for WoD where it appears holy will be the ideal spec as disc seems to have been gutted.

 

Holy is currently the better spec in Warlords beta, but I'd be hesitant to proclaim disc is already the loser here. Discipline is actually doing a decent job, but the healing is markedly different from the play style on live, which necessitates a will to change. Holy is more in line with how it's always been, making the transition easier. Before making a final choice, I'd wait for the tuning passes to get through, we only recently got the first that buffed disc and slightly nerfed holy, while leaving some substantial issues unresolved.

 

I've healed as both holy and disc in the past and I've always preferred reactive healing over preventive. Does holy have any place in current content or is disc going to be the only viable spec. Basically we have our old guild returning in mass and I'd like to be prepared the best I can in advance. Currently just releveling another priest to remember the basics and get hot keys down as I go.

 

 

You can definitely play holy as it is right now. The question is really not whether it's viable, but whether it's the best. Holy is absolutely viable, but the current healing mode where damage taken is bursty and infrequent makes absorbs so much more desirable than reactive healing since it's an effective increase to the raids health making the burst less likely to be fatal.

 

Any advice or insight into this would be greatly appreciated. I also assume add-ons are generally the same, clique etc and I'm using the ElvUI which seems very nice and easy to use. Thanks in advance.

 

 

Addons haven't changed much. Get WeakAuras, or TellMeWhen, they provide a way to easily track your cooldowns the way you prefer it. It can also help deal with certain boss mechanics by setting up auras to alarm you when your boss mods doesn't. In terms of raid frames, most are still around, the most important thing to remember is to get one with a cluster finder for Prayer of Healing so that you can always use it efficiently.