All of the paladin specializations will make use of a new resource called Holy Power. Holy Power accumulates from using Crusader Strike, Holy Shock, and some other talents. Holy Power can be consumed to augment a variety of abilities, including:
An instant mana-free heal: Word of Glory
A buff to increase holy damage done: Inquisition
A massive physical melee attack for Retribution paladins: Templar’s Verdict
Holy Shield’s duration is now extended by Holy Power
Divine Storm’s damage is now increased by Holy Power
Templar’s Verdict: An instant weapon attack that causes a percentage of weapon damage. Consumes all applications of Holy Power to increase damage dealt:
1 Holy Power: 55% Weapon Damage
2 Holy Power: 125% Weapon Damage
3 Holy Power: 225% Weapon Damage
Word of Glory: Consumes all Holy Power to heal a friendly target for a specific amount per application of Holy Power (0 mana cost, 0 cooldown, instant cast).
It looks like the closest mechanic to this is rogue combo points. Certain of our abilities generate Holy Power, and other abilities will consume all of it, and have an effect proportional to the number of points consumed.
However, where the rogue is focused on combo points, and most GCDs are used either generating or consuming combo points, Holy Power looks to be layered over top of our regular abilities. Paladins look to generate a point of Holy Power every 4-6 seconds using our normal rotation, and use a Holy Power finisher roughly every 12-18 seconds.
I guess that this is intended to make paladin gameplay a little more dynamic, and we weave in Holy Power finishers every so often, or maybe even save them for times when we need burst.
On paper, this seems pretty good. We'll have to see how this plays out. There is always the possibility that tactics getting a 3-stack of Holy Power, then running to a new PVP target and unloading a full-power Templar's Verdict will be deemed overpowered. (And naturally, hotfixed 24 hours after Cataclysm's release.)
The other thing I like are the new paladin ability names. Word of Glory, Inquistion, Templar's Verdict, and Light of Dawn (new cone healing spell mentioned in the Dev chat) are very nice paladin names that avoid resorting to the words Holy, Judgment, Light, Righteousness, and Divine.
On the other hand, "Holy Power" is a rather bland name, and could stand to be spiced up. I suggest using a name that paladins have been waiting to see in WoW since Diablo 2: Zeal.
Aww, yeah, Zealadin ahoy!
ReplyDeleteLooks a bit like paladin in Warhammer Online. Also reminds me Reckoning bombs q:
ReplyDeleteI don't like inquisition at all. It doesn't fit the "good light" theme of Paladins. Inquisition is where you torture people to death just for the fun of doing it.
ReplyDelete"I suggest using a name that paladins have been waiting to see in WoW since Diablo 2: Zeal. "
ReplyDeleteOur minds, they are as one.
I'm looking forward to seeing just how Holy Power plays out. It could become something of an irrelevance, falling into using HP dumps rather than having a genuine 'rotation', or it could turn out to be significantly more complicated. Furthermore I'd say that complication is no bad thing, especially if it leads to more overall functionality and an easier balancing process than has gone before.
Roll on the next Beta build.
I predict that once Cat is released with Inquisition aboard, a lot of toons with names referencing Mel Brooks' History of the World Part One will suddenly appear.
ReplyDeleteI created a ret paladin on the Catalyst beta servers and I noticed something odd. Crusader Strike was reducing the cooldown on Holy Light. After two Crusader Strikes, Holy Light was an instant cast. Do you think this is just an early implementation of the Holy Power mechanic or is it something else?
ReplyDelete@doxxxicle
ReplyDeleteProbably not. Check out the new Beta Server implementation of Art of War, which reduces cast time of Holy Light on Crit. ;)
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ReplyDeleteDefinitely, definitely Zeal. I like how the official forums are taking up this cause. Perhaps Blizz will go a step further and rename some of our old abilities as well. I can dream, can't I? :)
ReplyDelete"I don't like inquisition at all. It doesn't fit the "good light" theme of Paladins. Inquisition is where you torture people to death just for the fun of doing it."
I totally know where you're coming from, Kring, but I don't agree. There are certainly good Retribution Paladins in the lore such as the Ashbringer (and some at the very least have a Ret side to them like Tirion), but Ret must also encompass the Scarlet Crusade, Arthas, etc. It walks a thin line between the Light and fanaticism. We do FORCE people to Repent, after all.
The ideal of an Inquisition is to stamp out all wrong doing and wrong thought. In the real world, obviously this is no good thing as we cannot know until death, if then, whether any idea or belief is correct.
ReplyDeleteHowever, in WoW, we know without a doubt that the Light is good and all those who oppose it are evil. An Inquisition is not such a bad thing from this point of view.
For me it depends a little bit on if Inquisition includes forcefully removing peoples skin and body parts just because they believe the wrong thing.
ReplyDeleteInquisition would mean that paladins would have to torture all elfs to death because the believe in Elune and not the light.
The light might be good but it's definitely not the only right thing in WoW.
Inquisition always was about that there is only one religion and not that this religion is good.
Then again, I might be completely wrong and the Spanish Inquisition was just called Inquisition although it wasn't one. I'm not an expert in these things but I don't want my Paladin to get something called Inquisition or Seal of Corruption and I don't want my warlock to get something called Nourish or Happy Coil.
Any idea how this works for holy paladins yet? Any holy paladins out there in Beta testing healing?
ReplyDeleteEidlhe
Inquisition has such a spanishy feel whereas paladins seem very anglo related. Really need to change it up imo. But then again, Hofflerand is right about the scarlet crusade...remember the first miniboss in SM cath? Had name with "Inquisitor" in it if I recall
ReplyDeleteWhat I'm trying to get at is WoW has a lot of shades of grey. If you want to be a more traditional paladin, Prot may be what you're looking for. I personally like that more, too.
ReplyDeleteThere are righteous Retribution Paladins all across Azeroth I'm sure, but the tree has to take into account those who cross the line from justice to vengeance, sound judgement to an inquisition.
Basically, if Inquisition is an important class mechanic, I wouldn't think on it too much. It doesn't mean you're playing a bad guy of all a sudden. On the other hand, if you've always wanted to play that archetype, this is good news for you. :) Just do us all a favor and don't name yourself Anakin Skywalker.
When I read the changes encouraging a melee playstyle for holy paladins and then comments about the Spanish Inquisition I recalled my favourite WoW advertsiement:
ReplyDeletewww.youtube.com/watch?v=11jxKixFCRQ
Body to Body.
If they change HP to Zeal and you guys aren't too happy with Inquisition I'd suggest Zealotry for the same ability. Ties in nicely with the resource mechanic naming convention and from the game you get some grasp of what the buff does.
ReplyDeleteThe inquisition was the church's Witchhunters corps with a dose of Undercover Cop and Internal Affairs thrown in.
ReplyDeleteIt went they way it went because it is what happens when you give a group of people power without accountability. It is hardly something that happens only in the church, albeit they have the benefit of having even the moral angle covered from the word go (God's will, biotch)
If you think about it, the whole Crusader thing we happily use is based on some fellows that went to the arabs to steal their stuff, under a veneer of doing good godly work. God most likely did not ask anybody to raze arabian soil or rape brown booty, right?
Even more, the whole Alliance militaristic attitude smacks of well-meaning fascism (and we all know by now how long the well-meaning part lasts). The Horde is even more forthcoming with their club-to-the-head rulership.
But you miss the big point here: in Azeroth evil is real, everpresent and (mostly) easy to pinpoint. So all the 3 groups above can be the good guys because the enemy is of such a quality that mercy, and even due-process, would be misplaced.
the crusades were started as a response to islamic aggression against the christian empire of byzantine.
ReplyDeleteanyways back on topic
i hope that inquisition is a buff that lasts long enough to keep up long enough to build it up to 3 stack then another 3 stack to use on an ability then building up another 3 stack to refresh inquisition.
Ok now that we got a history lesson...
ReplyDeleteI think that the current changes going on for the Paladin class in Cataclysm is what Blizzard intended from the get go with what Im seeing from all specs and the addition of holy power is something new for us to think about and he weave its uses into our rotations. Mainly because, 96969 is freaking boring and spamming holy light constantly is too. The FCFS rotation of Ret is only partially better - but it keeps you going IMO. I think the addition of Holy Power and its adjoining abilities will add that X factor to make things more interesting.
We'll have to see how this plays out. There is always the possibility that tactics getting a 3-stack of Holy Power, then running to a new PVP target and unloading a full-power Templar's Verdict will be deemed overpowered. (And naturally, hotfixed 24 hours after Cataclysm's release.)
ReplyDeleteQFT
If this goes thru the board will erupt in a storm of qq as pallys destroy everyone wearing LAST season gear or hevens forbid pve gear in these rated battleground
or become the next tree druid nigh unkillable. And I'll get nerfed again before I even get to use it
Doesn't Holy Power sound more like Runic Power than Combo Points?
ReplyDeleteHoly Power was specifically mentioned to be similar to combo points, only it goes to 3 and not 5 in the current build. It looks very promising to adding some flair to playing a Pally.
ReplyDelete