Elitist Jerks closes smite priest thread
I drop into the Elitist Jerks Holy DPS thread from time-to-time to read about how the, well, elitists are arguing a spec that does not belong in any shape, way, or form in an elite setting. Back when I did my research for “The history of smite” in the middle of October, the thread was still actually active with over two years of posts.
But on October 29, 2009, 283 posts later, the thread finally closed.
I’d like to make mention about a post done by Casey the Retard there:
Shadow: SW:P, DP, VT, MB, MF.
Holy: SW:P, DP, HF, MB, Smite.They differ only in the name of the filler and one of the dot/cooldown abilities – ignoring the fact that Shadow has much better DPS scaling talents. The playstyles are actually quite similar. Holy can switch back and forth between DPS and healing more easily, Shadow provides raid utility, 25-30% more DPS, and can sustain that DPS indefinitely.
There’s really not much theorycrafting to do. SimulationCraft will tell you how to optimize Holy DPS just as it does for Shadow. Dual-spec has eliminated the need for “hybrid” specs almost entirely. There’s no point discussing how Blizzard could make Holy DPS viable, when it is obviously their intent that the ability to put out adequate DPS be mutually exclusive with the ability to heal effectively.
What’s left to discuss?
I liked the point he made about how these specs are startling similar, with slightly different rotations; and yet Shadow does 30% more DPS.
But then, I found it interesting that he included Mind Blast in the rotation, considering it won’t proc Surge of Light and isn’t benefiting from Shadow talents the way the Holy tree supports Smite. On top of that, he mentions that dual-spec has basically eliminated the need to hybrid spec like this, and yet there’s obvious advantages to being able to switch roles mid-fight, which dual-spec doesn’t do. There are some bosses where–in 10-man version, where every head counts a little more–being able to heal one phase and DPS another has its obvious perks.
Again, in an elitist guild that’s pwnzoring anything, this isn’t as much the case. But then, in an elitist guild, wouldn’t you take a mage anyway and let the Discipline or Holy priest handle the buffs? /shrugs. (I realize this statement infuriates Shadow priests, and I don’t agree with it, but I have heard it spoken by elitists before!)
For readers interested in continuing to learn about smite spec on Elitist Jerks, they claim that the discussion continues in their PvP section, where smite spec really shines.
Some extra news: Jessika the Tank has a PvP priest that’s been inspired to smite thanks to the blog. Hurray for another smite priest in our shady community!–wait–the whole point is NOT to be shady… >.>
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