__________________________________________________ _________
Table of Contents:
1. Introduction
2. Talents and Glyphs
3. Gearing and Gems
4. Comps and Teams
5. Macro’s and Others
__________________________________________________ _________
1. Introduction
This is the first time a write a guide and with this guide I just want to share my know-how about discipline priests and pvp/arena. Im not a pro player, Im not full wrath so this guide is not 100% perfect or like everybody want to have it.
__________________________________________________ _______
Talents and Glyphs
There are different variations of specs for disc and they all fall under the categories of defensive or offensive but there are a few talents that are a must for playing disc offensively or defensively.
- Unbreakable Will
- Improved Inner Fire
- Inner Focus
- Improved Power Word: Shield
- Mental Agility
- Mental Strength
- Soul Warding
- Focused Power
- Focused Will
- Power Infusion
- Rapture
- Aspiration
- Pain Suppression
- Borrowed Time
- Penance
- Healing Focus
Focused Will is very common but a few priests don't take it, its preference overall but I feel it helps a ton.
__________________________________________________ _______
Offensive - Often called the smite spec, its exactly what you would think. This spec is meant for some more dps and it achieves that by taking talents such as searing light etc. and reducing cast times of smite.
Defensive - Focused more on living/survival. I run this spec because the extra damage is not needed in my 3v3 team. Again, a few things could change in this spec depending on your play style/gear etc. A good base spec is THIS or THIS
Again, take that as a reference. Find out what suits you best.
Glyphs - Glyph of Penance and Pain Suppression are a must. The third glyph can be any one your heart desires. Such as Flash Heal, Dispel, Inner Fire, Smite or Power Word: Shield. Minor glyphs don't matter a whole lot. I have Shadowfiend and Levitate currently.
__________________________________________________ ________
3. Gearing and Gems
The biggest decision here would be Mooncloth or Satin. Again, this is dependent on your play style. Satin would be for shorter games/ an offensive setup and mooncloth for longer games/ a defensive setup. Mixing pieces is acceptable and does work out very well for the extra resilience set bonus (Ex. 3 Piece mooncloth/2 piece satin).
For offset gear I chose haste(Alacrity) as haste can help in those tight moments getting quick heals off. I would run Alacrity/Salvation respectively. The only piece I would change is the cloak and neck.
An easy way to get hit rating is to grab the Ascendancy version of the cloak and neck(6% hit being the cap). Hit helps with mass dispels and such.
Another stat that can be frustrating to get is spell penetration. Having enough spell pen is very hard until you reach 1800 and can get the offhand and wand. Ideally you want both the haste and spell pen offhand and you switch against teams you don't need it for. The general rule for spell pen is have around 120 - 140. People do run lower but I suggest the above.
Now time to talk about resilience. The general rule for priests is you need a lot of resil. Of course this could differ depending on comps you run etc. But you will find out that you are the focus target 90% of the time vs melee teams. 1200 resil is what I currently run and it works out very well. I have gemmed very little resil and run mooncloth/wrathful offset. To sum it up, 1000 is the minimum I'd have before I push for higher ratings.
Gems is difficult to cover.. There is no one gem per say that is the best. Gem for what you need. If your low on spell pen, throw some spell power/spell pen gems in. Or a +20 spell pen. Under no circumstances should you gem straight resil or stam. Not having enough spell pen could result in missing a crucial physic scream. Also, gem for your play style. An offensive player is not going to gem all spirit. The only exception to this rule would be gemming for haste. Haste is great for both sides of the spectrum. Moving on...
Quickly covering enchants:
- 28 spell power to gloves
- eternal belt buckle(extra gem to belt)
- 50 spell power/ 30 stam leg enchant
- 15stam/minor run speed to boots
- 63 spell power to weapon
- 30 spell power to bracers
- 20 resil to chest
- 35 spell pen/haste/darkglow embroidery to cloak
- 23 spell power/15 resil shoulder glyph(from WG)
- 29 spell power/23 resil head glyph(from WG)
These of course are just guidelines. You can use any of your specific professions interchangeably.
__________________________________________________ ________
4. Comps and Teams
Going to break this down into 3 sections, 2v2, 3v3, 5v5.
In 2v2, the most frequently run with partners are:
- Mage
- Rogue
- Feral druid
- Warlock
I like to play with DKs and hunters but the above are what you find more often in higher brackets. You can try any class you want and it will work to a degree most likely. The only class I would avoid is warrior. Priest/Warrior does not work well at all.
In 3v3, the most frequent setups are:
Any combination of warlock/shaman/mage/priest(Called Wizard Cleave)
Rogue/Mage/Priest(RMP)
Warrior/Holy Paladin/Priest(Double healer Warrior or Dispel Cleave)
Warrior/Resto Druid/Priest(Double healer Warrior)
Again, this isn't the only comps you can run. Warrior/DK/Priest or Priest/DK/Hunter works to a degree. The thing is with those comps, they are much better with a holy paladin. I will say one thing about the above comps, RMP is by far the hardest comp to run out of the ones I listed. It requires great synergy and communication.
-----
I haven't played 5v5 at all this season, so I can offer very little in terms of setups for it. I would suggest taking a look at arena junkies 5v5 listings if you are serious about 5s.
__________________________________________________ ________
Macro's and Others
Disc priests have very little macro's. Here are the few I use.
Power Infusion yourself:
Code:
/target (YOURNAME HERE)
/cast Power Infusion
/targetlasttarget
Useful for spam heals.
Shackle Gargoyle:
Code:
/target Ebon Gargoyle
/cast Shackle Undead
/targetlasttarget
Easy way to rid of those annoying gargoyles.
Desperate Prayer:
Code:
/cast Inner Focus
/cast Desperate Prayer
You can add additional things to this macro such as a healthstone or battlemasters trinket. Think of this as your OH SHI- Button.
Divine Hymn:
Code:
/cast Inner Focus
/cast Divine Hymn
Useful for a big group heal for little mana. Make sure your out of interrupt range.
__________________________________________________ _______
Good luck in arena and pvp and thx for reading this.