This site makes extensive use of JavaScript.
Please enable JavaScript in your browser.
Live
PTR
10.2.7
PTR
10.2.6
Beta
PvE Holy Priest: Beginner's Guide to the Holy Way
Post Reply
Return to board index
Post by
karlusdavius
Please note that this is not a post "telling" you how to spec or gear up a holy priest. There are many different ways depending on play style. This is just a brief guide to those starting or thinking about rolling one.
I. Intro:
II. General Setup
III. Abilities, Spells and Coefficients
IV. Gearing up for Raids
V. Gem and Enchants:
VI. Additional Material
I. Intro:
Holy is classes as the “Jack of all Trades” healing spec. It is a viable single-target healing; however it is mainly classes as a Raid healer. A Holy priest has numerous spells and proc’s that enable them to heal a substantial amount of people quickly and efficiently. These include
Surge of Light
Holy Concentration
Circle of Healing
Guardian Spirit
Prayer of Mending
Serendipity
Test of Faith
Empowered Renew
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
II. Builds
Since 3.1 many builds have popped up for different situations.
------------------------------------
Build 1 -
Typical All Round
Typical holy build that gives the priest the ability to AoE heal and also help with tank healing with
Inspiration
-----------------------------------
Build 2 -
Heavy AoE
Maximizes you AoE healing potential. Inner Focus should be placed in a macro with your Divine Hymn for maximum effect and no mana cost. All spells gain a 12% increase on all targets under 50% health from test of Faith. All spells gain an additional 3% static increase from Blessed Resilience.
-----------------------------------
Build 3 -
Flash Heal heavy
If you find you are using Flash Heal the majority of the time then this build increases through put on that spell. Looses the 12% gain when under 50% HP and also the static 3% gain.
-----------------------------------
Build 4 -
Hybrid Aoe Heal/Shield
This build have cropped up a few times, however i would advise not using it if you have a discipline priest in your raid due the Weakened Soul debuff that is shared by all priests. Boosts intellect and reduces mana costs of instant spell allows this heal to be very mana efficient however, lacks great through put.
-----------------------------------
Build 5 -
OscarDivine
Build thought up by Oscardivine which i thought was worth a mention.
Topic Link
for a description about this build
-----------------------------------
Stats:
With 3.1 Spirit now has a renewed use for holy priests. The new Holy Concentration allows 50% spirit based regen in Combat, giving spirit the same use it did before, just in a different and more fun way.
As a general Rule of thumb, you should stack your stats like so,
SpellPower
Spirit / Intellect (now on a par with each other, both offer Longevity. Spirit many be valued higher as it increases spellpower talented)
Crit
Haste
Mp5
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
III. Spells, Abilities and Coefficients
Spells
Here is a basic list of the main spells you should be using within a raid encounter.
Spell name Base Heal Benefit Disc(talent) Holy(talent)
Binding Heal 80.7% 80.7% 96.68%
Desperate Prayer 80.7% 80.7% 80.7%
Flash Heal 80.7% 80.7% 96.68%
Greater Heal 161.11% 161.11% 225.6%
Holy Nova 40.29% 40.29% 40.29%
Power Word: Shield 80.7% 112.8% 80.7%
Prayer of Healing 80.7% 80.7% 80.7%
Prayer of Mending 80.7% 80.7% 80.7%
Renew 188.0% 188% 216%
Circle of Healing 40.29% 40.29% 40.29%
Penance 35.8% 35.8% 35.8%
The Coefficient’s are listed for those who like to no, but for those who don’t then a Spell power coefficient is an intrinsic property of a spell that determines how much bonus damage or healing it gets from the spell power attribute accumulated from gear, buffs, and talents. However, there are certain talents that make certain abilities stronger than others such as Empowered Healing.
Abilities/ Talents
Surge of Light
With crit levels reaching heights of 25%-30% raid buffed, this talent can proc off every CoH. Enabling you to heal 6 targets (with glyph) and cast a free 5k, instant cast flash heal on the lowest. This talent is the new must have for holy priests. The only down-side to it is that it's still on the GCD, so you have to watch your timers carefully. A good aura mod (like PowerAuras) can help immeasurably in this regard.
Holy Concentration
This is your regeneration. Each crit grants 50% spirit regen for 8 seconds. If enough raid wide damage is going round (which there usually is) it can have an up time of 80%+. A must have for any holy priest.
Circle of Healing
This talent is your bread and butter. This is what most raid leaders ask for in a holy priest as it allows you to raid efficiently and quickly. By not specing this, you loose a massive amount of synergy and throughput with the other talents stated within the tree. The 6 second cooldown has allowed a holy priest to use more spells within that 6 second window. In addition to this, CoH is now a smart heal, healing the lowest 5 targets (6 with glyph) that are lowest on health, giving CoH a very low overheal amount. Do not see the cooldown as a limitation. See it as a challenge to use all the proc’s you may have gotten from using it. CoH is your main tool for raid healing, but also the key to faster, overall healing.
Guardian Spirit
With the introduction of the Guardian Spirit glyph, this talent is now much more flexible in 3.1. If your going deep holy, i recommend taking it with the glyph.
Prayer of Mending
Prayer of Mending is an incredibly useful talent for a holy priest. An Instant cast spell that is pro-active that you can just leave to heal away. 5 charges are almost always used in a raid situation and the majority of 5mans at high gear levels can be healed using this spell almost alone. The Tier 7 2 set bonus is easily obtainable, and should be sought after immediately.
Empowered Renew
The new and improved renew is highly flexible. Many top end guilds are seeing this spell now in their top 3 spells used. See this as a priests version of a reverse Life bloom used by druids. The initial heal can crit, and subsequent ticks are very high in value.
Post by
karlusdavius
IV. Gearing up for Raids
The following gear listed has its location and slot stated. I though it best to just list various items rather than try and get a BiS collection together, as other peoples ideas on gear may vary. A head piece with a meta gem socket should be sought after immediately, as they give large gains. Epic quality items that you are in need of should be priority. The more you do instances, the more badges you have to spend on Tier and various upgrades. As a holy priest, the Teir 7 set is fabulous, and should be sought after as the Set bonuses are brilliant.
Ahn'kahet: The Old Kingdom
Back:
Subterranean Waterfall Shroud
Legs:
Skirt of the Old Kingdom
(Epic)
Head:
Elder Headpiece
Hands:
Silken Bridge Handwraps
(socket: Yellow, Bonus +4 Int)
Wand:
Wand of Ahn'kahet
(Epic)
-----------------------------------
Azjol-Nerub
Waist:
Sash of the Servant
(Epic)
Chest:
Egg Sac Robes
Feet:
Stone-Worn Footwraps
Ring:
Ring of the Traitor King
Wand:
Rod of the Fallen Monarch
(Epic)
---------------------------------------
The Culling of Stratholme
Neck:
Necromancer's Amulet
Head:
Forgotten Shadow Hood
(Meta)
Gloves:
Gloves of Distorted Time
Shoulder:
Mantle of Deceit
Ring:
Band of Guile
(Epic)
---------------------------------------
Drak'Tharon Keep
Hand:
Overlook Handguards
(Epic)
Head:
Cowl of the Dire Troll
Wrist:
Savage Wound Wrap
Off-Hand:
Temple Crystal Fragment
Ring:
Spectral Seal of the Prophet
Trinket:
Talisman of Troll Divinity
---------------------------------------
Gundrak
Back:
Shroud of Moorabi
Chest:
Arcane Flame Altar-Garb
Legs:
Leggings of the Ruins Dweller
---------------------------------------
The Nexus
Hands:
Gloves of Glistening Runes
Feet:
Cleric's Linen Shoes
Hands:
Gloves of the Crystal Gardener
1H Mace:
War Mace of Unrequited Love
(Epic)
---------------------------------------
The Oculus
Wrist:
Cuffs of Winged Levitation
Head:
Crown of Unbridled Magic
(meta)
Waist:
Sash of Phantasmal Images
Chest:
Drakewing Raiments
---------------------------------------
The Violet Hold
Neck:
Zuramat's Necklace
Wrist:
Azure Cloth Bindings
(Epic)
Legs:
Cyanigosa's Leggings
Feet:
Footwraps of Teleportation
---------------------------------------
Halls of Lightning
Legs:
Woven Bracae Leggings
(Epic)
---------------------------------------
Halls of Stone
Trinket:
Forge Ember
Trinket:
Spark of Life
---------------------------------------
Utgarde Keep
Legs:
Breeches of the Caller
Ring:
Annhylde's Ring
(Epic)
---------------------------------------
Utgarde Pinnacle
Wrist:
Cuffs of the Trussed Hall
Legs:
Sorrowgrave's Breeches
Main Hand:
Netherbreath Spellblade
2H :
Staff of Wayward Principles
---------------------------------------
Emblem of Heroism Rewards
Chest:
Heroes' Robe of Faith
(80 Badges)
Waist:
Elegant Temple Gardens' Girdle
(40 badges)
Off-Hand:
Handbook of Obscure Remedies
(25 Badges)
Trinket:
The Egg of Mortal Essence
(40 badges)
Hands:
Heroes' Gloves of Faith
(60 Badges)
---------------------------------------
Tailoring
Back:
Deathchill Cloak
Chest:
Moonshroud Robe
Hands:
Spellweave Gloves
-------------------------------------
Jewel crafting
Ring:
Titanium Spellshock Ring
Neck:
Titanium Spellshock Necklace
Post by
karlusdavius
V. Gems
Metagems
Insightful Earthsiege Diamond
: the most useful, and easiest to equip, metagem. A 45-second ICD proc that restores 600 mana, and 21 intellect to gain crit and regen make this the best metagem available.
Ember Skyflare Diamond
: The second choice to IED. The proc on IED is worth a conservative 50 Mp5 that you do not get back from ESD, making IED significantly stronger in the long run.
Most commonly used (for priests) ones:
Runed Scarlet Ruby
Sparkling Sky Sapphire
Brilliant Autumn's Glow
Quick Autumn's Glow
Royal Twilight Opal
Purified Twilight Opal
Seer's Forest Emerald
Misty Forest Emerald
Intricate Forest Emerald
Reckless Monarch Topaz
Potent Monarch Topaz
Luminous Monarch Topaz
Enchants:
Head:
Arcanum of Burning Mysteries
; available from Kirin Tor (revered)
Arcanum of Blissful Mending
; available from Wyrmrest Accord (revered)
Shoulder: Avaliable from Sons of Hodir at Exatled
Greater Inscription of the Crag
Greater Inscription of the Storm
At honored, there are
Lesser Inscription of the Crag
Lesser Inscription of the Storm
Cloak:
Scroll of Enchant Cloak - Wisdom
Scroll of Enchant Cloak - Haste
Darkglow Embroidery
(tailor only)
Chest:
Scroll of Enchant Chest - Powerful Stats
Bracers:
Scroll of Enchant Bracer - Superior Spellpower
Scroll of Enchant Bracers - Exceptional Intellect
Gloves:
Scroll of Enchant Gloves - Exceptional Spellpower
Pants:
Brilliant Spellthread
(Argent Crusade (exalted) : Recipe)
Sapphire Spellthread
(Kirin Tor (exalted): Recipe)
Boots:
Scroll of Enchant Boots - Tuskarr's Vitality
Scroll of Enchant Boots - Greater Spirit
Rings:
Enchant Ring - Greater Spellpower
(enchanter-only)
Weapon:
Scroll of Enchant Weapon - Mighty Spellpower
Scroll of Enchant Weapon - Exceptional Spirit
VI. Additional Material
Interface Addon - Powerauras
- Exceptional Addon for any priest. Power auras allows you to customize cooldown icons which appear when certain buff's or proc's are detected or an ability is ready, for example
Surge of Light
.
-------------------------------------------------------------
Event Alert
As a small addition, I've actually been suggesting the proc-monitor called "Event Alert" to players as a way to monitor when you proc Holy Concentration or Surge of Light. An icon pops up on your screen and you get a chime to let you know you've had a proc.
Post by
karlusdavius
Now updated for 3.1
Edit's
Took away the Stats soft cap. too much aggro and really not needed with the new talent tree.
Post by
223885
This post was from a user who has deleted their account.
Post by
Blarg
This is a tough issue. Considering the 5SR is now seldom used (simply because at high gear levels, Replenishment returns a high amount of mana per second), the only use high spirit levels are to a holy priest is because of
Spiritual Guidance
. Therefore I am going to post some soft caps to follow.
Unbuffed values
Spellpower - 2100
Intellect – 900
Spirit – 1000
Haste –10%
Crit – 20%
As a general Rule of thumb, you should stack like so,
SpellPower
Intellect
Haste
Crit
Spirit
Mp5
I'm not going to say that there is no good information in your guide cause that would be a false statement. What I will say is some of your numbers are ridiculous and you kind of contradict yourself.
First, 2100 SP unbuffed? My holy priest with 9 item level 213 epics, 2 item level 200 blues, and the rest item level 200 epics rolls with 2155 SP unbuffed and you're asking someone to get 2100 before they raid? You're off in the head with that statement.
Also, you say shoot for 900 int and 1000 spirit, then in the next segment you tell people to stack int over spirit. Which is it? Which is the more important stat?
Post by
Sunius
mate he's saying it's soft cap which every1 holy priest wants to achieve...
Post by
OscarDivine
As a small addition, I've actually been suggesting the proc-monitor called "Event Alert" to players as a way to monitor when you proc Holy Concentration or Surge of Light. An icon pops up on your screen and you get a chime to let you know you've had a proc. Also works fantastically for mages to see when their Fingers of Frost has proc'd. ;-) Excellent guide though! Good skeleton for holy priests
Post by
karlusdavius
Also, you say shoot for 900 int and 1000 spirit, then in the next segment you tell people to stack int over spirit. Which is it? Which is the more important stat?
Again its a tough issue. I feel that pre-raiding intellect at high levels would be enough to carry you through most 5 man heroics while building on your spirit levels and play style. Once you hit raids (or when you get the two teir 7 pieces from badges) you will find that most stats will increase pretty evenly. I will change the stacking priority to reflect that spirit and intellect are even, however i feel that 5 mans have an abundance of int gear with a select few pieces of spirit gear that can actually make a difference. Reflecting the choice i made with stacking priorities.
Post by
razzem
Bumping this for sticky. I disagree with some of the "entry level" numbers on stats, but it's a great guide overall. Good work Karlus.
Post by
karlusdavius
Bumping this for sticky. I disagree with some of the "entry level" numbers on stats, but it's a great guide overall. Good work Karlus.
Added a note before the stats list.
Post by
Incendium
Great job on compiling all of this information. ;)
Post by
faia
am not mainly play a priest but i level one, but is it not better to have Renew,flash heal and circle of healing? i know redemption is good but if you know you stuff, you not suppose to die if you do you stuff right (experience resto druid standpoint)
Post by
karlusdavius
am not mainly play a priest but i level one, but is it not better to have Renew,flash heal and circle of healing? i know redemption is good but if you know you stuff, you not suppose to die if you do you stuff right (experience resto druid standpoint)
This is just a general guide. if you feel that those glyphs would better benefit you in the long run then there is no reason not to take them.
Post by
291866
This post was from a user who has deleted their account.
Post by
karlusdavius
IN terms of crit, you will get 5% from talents. 5% from 900 intellect value as 160 Int converts to 1%critical rating, and the rest from critical rating from gear. its really not that hard to reach.
Post by
razzem
As an fyi to those newbie healers about to head into Naxx, with the stats that are posted above, people can expect to 2 healer Naxx. Just wanted to clear that up for people that are wondering where those numbers put you in terms of healing power.
ps- I also suggest that you change glyph of Flash Heal to mandatory. Holy is often called to raid heal, and Flash Heal is one of our most popular spells after CoH, saving tons of mana. Just my 2 cents.
Post by
Dellah
I'm hearing a lot of people disagreeing with the soft cap stats posted at the top of this document, but I'm not seeing anyone post any alternative numbers. What do you think would be more accurate? With 13 epic items, most of which are from 10 and 25-man Naxx, I have the following stats.
Klayre's Unbuffed values
Spellpower – 1927 (+27 from the suggested softcap of 1900)
Intellect – 1015 (+115 from the suggested softcap of 900)
Spirit – 789 (-211 from the suggested softcap of 1000)
Haste – 6.5% (-3.5% from the suggested softcap of 10%)
Crit – 16.8 (-3.2% from the suggested softcap of 20%)
I've been running Naxx for a few weeks and I'm sure I was relying on the spell power and mana pool of my senior healers when I first started. That said, I now hold my own. Based on my experience I would suggest these numbers
Klayre's
Suggested
Unbuffed values
Spellpower - 1600
Enough to deal some impressive heals. If you're not putting out 4000+ with
Flash Heal
, get some more spell power.
Intellect – 800
As long as you are not the MAIN healer, you can ride the coat tails of senior healers. If you efficiently use you
Shadowfiend
and your
Hymn of Hope
, you can quickly refill your mana pool once per boss.
Spirit – 650
If you're finding that you're running out of mana too quickly during battles, your problem is with intellect. If you're finding you're spending two minutes drinking tea after each fight, you need more spirit. Either way, more is obviously better.
Haste – 5%
The faster you can get spells off, the better. Start worring about haste once you have your epic gear.
Crit – 10%
The more often you crit, the less healing you'll have to do. Not to mention procs like
Surge of Light
,
Holy Concentration
and
Improved Holy Concentration
. The more often these proc, the more efficient of a healer you will be, and the slower you will burn through your mana pool.
Klayre, Holy Priest
Dark Iron
"No, I will not heal your pet."
Post by
180592
This post was from a user who has deleted their account.
Post by
karlusdavius
http://www.chardev.org/?template=130177
I don't see what the problem is with the caps at all. I could re gem that model, or just change a few things (to other things that don't require a raid to get) to easily for fill any of the caps i posted without sacrificing much of either.
Post Reply
You are not logged in. Please
log in
to post a reply or
register
if you don't already have an account.