HW vs LHW- the actual numbers.

So I did some number crunching to find the real benefits(or not) of using Healing Wave as opposed to Lesser Healing Wave. I won't bore you with all the actual math, mostly because I don't want to type it out and partly because it is very basic math. The only thing to take into account when looking at numbers like these is that they change with totems, trinkets and buffs, so my numbers will be vastly different from yours.

HW-LHW
+343 in mana use
+5636 in healing done unbuffed-2.25 second cast w/o Tidal Waves
- 1.57 second cast w/ Tidal Waves

+6182 in healing done w/ Totems-2.14 second cast w/o Tidal Waves
-1.5 second cast w/ Tidal Waves
+9362 in healing done with Crit

LHW-HW
-343 in mana use
-5636 in healing done unbuffed- 1.35 second cast

-6182 in healing done w/ Totems- 1.3 second cast

-9362 in healing done with Crit

And there it is, the real numbers between Healing Wave and Lesser Healing Wave. Please take into account buffs, totems, trinkets and the like before saying I'm incorrect.

I myself use the riptide + Healing Wave combo, with Lesser Healing Wave and Chain Heals thrown in if needed. I find myself at around 60-70% mana at the end of a fight unless it was raid damage heavy or just very intense. This method has a very high healing output when you add Glyph of Healing Wave and Ancestral Awakening, and a higher mana return, in most cases, with Improved Water Shield.

Icancer and u!- Cleanliness is key

Icancer and u is a addon specific column that will go over everything from UI's to specific addons to specific features of addons.

When you ask a WoW player what he/she looks at the most, the answer your most likey going to get in, "My screen u nub". What they really mean, is their UI- user interface. There are many addons that modify your UI, and some that are complete replacements to the standard blizzard UI. However, there is a very important problem with some of these addons. People dont know how to organize them on the screen!!!! I've seen some ui's that show raid frames multiple times, have action bars that are huge and in the way, to even having blocks of addons in their main field of vision!

A players ui is supposed to enhance game play, not make it more cumbersome. Take my ui for example. Nothing is my line of sight, my action bars are small but useable, my raid frames are large and easily readable. This is an example of a clean ui. Now i know this isnt perfect, and this is only an example of what a clean ui can be i feel that it shows my point nicely.
There is no information displayed that i dont need, and none of it overtakes anything else, it is small, but big enough that i can easily read everything that i need to. This is a raiders ui, built upon the idea that i need to know who's hurt, whats hurting them, what size heal they need etc. But paralelle to that, it is built upon the idea that i have too look at it for hours on end so it must look nice. I consider myself a minimalist, but i know and even enjoy seeing nice ui's that have a little flare. but honestly, for your sake and the sake of your party, keep it clean, keep it simple, and keep it working.

Why you shouldnt download addon packages.

Addon packages are pre-loaded, pre-configured packages filled with multiple addons. The problem with that is that often times it is hard to configure them to your liking without messing something up or even making the package unusable. More often than not, the package is configured to a specific resolution and screensize, and looks terrible or has wonky errors if you dont have that size screen or resolution. Whats the solution to this problem? Just do it yourself. Its easy. Maybe you like a few specific addons in a package. Just download those and your free to do with them what you will. Dont like an addons once you get it? Toss it out, no worries for the rest of your addons. Take me for example, i used to use a specific UI package( whos name escapes me) for the longest time. I had loads of problems with it. If i changed the setting on one addon, others would change with it or stop working. It wouldnt get updated and when i updated individual addons they no longer worked with the rest of the package. And then, finally, I discovered that in order to make a UI that fit me and how I play, I had to be the one to make it!. Now I have a UI that I love, that shows me everything I need to know, and looks great at the same time. Addon packages dont work, they dont look nice, and they dont account for individuality. Dont use them.

If you want to see my UI, follow the link : My UI, 25m group layout

-10[...WTF does that even mean]

This years blizzcon held many a bombshell for the WoW gamers world(of warcraft) and how he/she sees it. And honestly, i think the effect from that bombshell is going to last a while. With all the changes to SP, AP and the like, changes to things that most people didnt view as broken, people are concerned that stats will drop, and classes changed so much that it will feel like playing a different game. Not so sure this is a good idea. Im sure blizzard has a plan to make it so how we play is the same, and the changes are just so they have less code to write and (possibly) less bitching to hear, but i really am skeptical about all this. On the plus side i think the new races will bring some new experiences to the game and Im looking forward to some level 80 VC and SFK. The one thing i really dont like is the changes to the new zones. I understand that Deathwing is back and causing all kinds of problems, but really? Lava in nearly every zone? I guess when i heard we could go back to the classic zones we leveled it i thought it would be as 80's and there would be a point. Im a little confused on why blizzard is going the way they are (hence the title) but we have at least nine months (probably a lot more) until the expanstion is released and Im surethings will change, but all in all, Im concerned for the future of the world (of warcraft.. lol)

I may have made a mistake.

Disclaimer: This is by no means a rip on shamans, I still love them, but I've found a new love as well.
Most people know about the discipline priest and how great of a healer they are. I personally love having one in my group, and love playing with them. I'll admit I dont know all that much about them but what i do know really impresses me. I was recently in Naxx 25, assigned to tank healing by my guild master because he trusts me (I had the most SP!). I really didnt have much to do, the other main healer we had was a disc priest from the guild. I was stareing at my combat log after fights, just looking at all the number that got absorbed. I love my shaman, but I am now in love with the discipline priest.

Not by choice however.

Chain heal is the iconic shaman spell. With smart jumps it chooses the person that needs the heal the most. It is, by all means a fantastic spell. However, its not the spell. Many resto shamans use chain heal as their primary healing spell, with Riptide and LHW thrown in as needed. I however, have a different approach. With a constant Riptide uptime on the tank along with Earth Shield as well, I am free to use the immense healing power of HW as my primary healing spell. Able to top off a tank, dps, or anyone else with one spell is great, and with High crit AA is proccing all the time, increaseing the healing done. Im not saying that this is the best approach, or even a good one, but its how i play. With more shamans turning aside from CH spamming, you would think that Blizzard would include some totems or set bonuses the dont buff just CH.

Take the new restoration totem, chance on CH to increase spell power by 243. Not a bad totem, and i'll probably get it eventually. But wait, theres more!

The 4 piece set bonus of the Conquerors is a 0.2 second cast reduction on CH. Alright, not great, but not bad either. Still, I havent finished yet.

The 4 piece set bonus of the new t9 restoration set increases the critical strike chance of CH by 5%. That is quite hefty. Right now, as I'm geared I have 30% crit chance. 5% on CH is really quite nice.

My point, in all of this, is that it seems that blizzard really wants shamans to use CH as a main staple in their rotation. And I do, not by choice however.

Back with a vengence

Alrighty, back to business. I have gotten my account back, (all hail the Blizzard Administration Team) and I'm back to do what I did best. After trying out all the new content, and by *new* I mean the new 5 and 10 man instances I have to say, good job blizzard. The patch wasn't extensively broken, realms were playable and most of all, the new shaman bar is godly. As for the changes to restoration shamans, definetly a huge buff. Healing wave is now getting 16-17k crits (thank you H ToC gear) without having to get a measly 9k heal beforehand. CH is now efficent, which means a lot of people will go back to mindless spamming of it (For Shame!) Now I was skeptical at first about to new instances, as were many raiders. "No trash, just bosses?" However, only partly true. There is a semblence of trash in the new 5 player dungeon, and the 10 player is unique enough that I felt it wasnt neccesary. All in all, a great patch. (Loving the fact I can farm about 30 emblems of Conq. a day also, makes me a happy lemur {I like lemurs, deal with it})