3.1 Paladins

Where to begin... in the current state of things, Paladins are rather well off. Being able to perform in the role we specialize for as well as the other hybrids (anything that isn't a Mage, Rogue, Hunter, or Warlock) has really boosted the number of Retribution, Protection, and Holy (again) Paladins that we see in raids. We bring very powerful blessings and auras to the raid, and are very capable healers, tanks, and DPS.

First, I'll start with Holy and PvP.

In PvP, Holy is absolutely dominating the arena scene. With resillience back in the game, the other healers are starting to catch up, but they're still nowhere near the 35+% numbers that Holy Paladins have. However, as cool as it is that Holy Paladins are so incredibly powerful, such incredibly high numbers simply have to be brought down. If any other spec was as high in representation as the 37/0/34 spec, we'd be up in arms alongside the other classes.

"But Druids domina--"

Stop right there. "They got away with it, why shouldn't we?" is the argument of a four year old. I do not want to play in arenas as an overpowered juggernaut that plows through the ratings effortlessly. I want to play to challenge myself, to become better, to win because I was a better player. Not because my class or spec carried me. Yes, Blizzard screwed up before. But asking them to screw up the game's delicate balance on purpose is absurd.

So, that said, the Holy nerfs are justified, as infuriating as being nerfed is. With the nerf and movement of Infusion of Light deeper into the Holy tree, and the change to Sacred Shield that only allows it to be placed upon one party or raid member at a time, the 37/0/34 build is going to find itself crippled come 3.1. The build took talents from Holy and Retribution to optimize both our offensive and defensive utility from both trees. Between Sacred Shield on the party, Holy Shock crits, instant cast Flash of Lights and near instant Holy Lights, being all but immune to stuns and snares (and for 12 seconds, everything), being incapable of running out of mana... 37/0/34 is an incredibly powerful spec.

The nerf will not kill the spec, but by nerfing Sacred Shield and moving Infusion of Light out of the hybrid build's reach -- it forces a sacrifice in healing, and brings up the need for increased defensive utility (and smarter playing) through Sacred Shield. Thus, 51/20/0 may become more popular once again, and the overall number of Holy Paladins will drop.

As far as PvE goes, though, Paladins will be no less powerful a healer. The change to how Infusion of Light interacts with Holy Light will hurt our ability to react to sudden spikes of damage on our own, but that's only a problem if you're solo healing. Which, unless you're running Naxx10 or Sarth10 0D, you aren't.

Retribution PvP is beginning to see a spike in numbers, as our damage has gone up considerably with higher Judgement damage and Divine Storm being introduced, survivability increased with Divine Purpose and Art of War, and our sustainability has increased dramatically with Divine Plea and Judgements of the Wise. While still struggling with the anti-melee Frost Mage and anti-magic Affliction Warlock without the use of our bubble and/or wings, every other class/spec is still capable of being dropped by us, provided we play perfectly. If the Affliction Warlock or Frost Mage slips up, though, capitalizing on their mistakes can usually lead to a quick win.

Oh, but Death Knights are still a MASSIVE pain in the ass to go toe to toe with. A well played Shadowfrost Knight might as well just tell you to bend over.



Mana is a non-issue in the arenas with a healer behind us, but double DPS comps see us struggling a little more. With the removal of Spiritual Attunement, and the (*crosses his fingers*) buffing of Judgements of the Wise that's coming with 3.1, double DPS Retribution will see a nice buff.

Not to mention... drumroll please...

They've finally decided to fix Sacred Shield's scaling with Sheath of Light! That's right. Our Sacred Shield just doubled in effectiveness. ~♥



As far as PvE, goes, however... while Exorcism is now available on all targets (another PvP buff), will be hitting 20% harder with it's glyph, and 15% harder through talents alongside Crusader Strike, those buffs don't make up for the nerfs that we took elsewhere. Fanaticism is down from 25% to 18% increased chance to crit, Righteous Vengeance is down from 40% to 30% damage, Righteous Vengeance ticks no longer benefits from percentage based damage increases (which is fair, though, as it was double dipping), and Crusade will only provide a 3% increase in damage instead of 6% in Ulduar, as 'Giants' are not included in the talent's secondary benefit.

Also, while the JotW buff has been mentioned, it is not yet implemented. So, as of the time of posting this, Retribution can sustain its DPS for no longer than 3 minutes in the very best case scenario, and the DPS sustained is the lowest of all other classes. Expect buffs.

Current Suggestions to increase DPS:

1. Your Crusader Strikes have an X% chance to cast a free Exorcism/Hammer of Wrath on your target.

2. Your Crusader Strikes critical hits make your next Exorcism/Hammer of Wrath consume no mana and critically hit if cast within X sec.

3. Your Crusader Strikes debuff the target with _______, increasing Holy damage taken by X%.

4. New Skill: __________
Instantly strike your target, dealing XX% weapon damage +YYY. Z% base mana cost, no cooldown. (This attack cannot proc seals.)

5. Allow Crusader Strike critical hits to trigger Righteous Vengeance.

6. Reduce Divine Storm's cooldown to nine seconds. This will GREATLY increase DPS by cleaning up CD's conflicting, and increase the DPS contribution of Divine Storm.

Also, something needs to be done to differentiate Seal of Blood/Martyr and Seal of Command as PvP and PvE seals.

My thoughts:
Keep the damage of Martyr/Blood high.
Lower Seal of Command's damage, make it proc on every attack.
Provide Secondary utility to Seal of Command
-Heal on Hits/Crits
-Snare on Hits/Crits
-Spellbreaker/Snare effect on Judgement of Command
-Mana Drain on Judgement of Command hits/crits


There's not too much else to chat about here, as we're in fairly good condition for the time being as far as Protection goes. Holy's still going to perform well in S6 I predict, as will Retribution, but unlike PvE Holy, PvE Ret is definitely in need of some loving.