Last night while doing a H ICC run, I got an extremely nice pair of bracers. Our group decided to take a 10 minute break and I jumped for joy as I could quickly gem and enchant them. While enchanting and socketing them I noticed a huge glare in my gear setup. My Heroic Corrupted Silverplate Leggings weren't even enchanted. AND I'VE HAD THEM FOR OVER 2 WEEKS. Lunarsoul <----- noob. I kinda felt like a hunter that uses Rowan's Rifle of Silver Bullets.
Holy paladins fill one of the most important roles in a raid. They are usually deemed a "tank healer" because they have the highest single target hps in the game through their signature spell, Holy Light, but they lack the powerful AoE healing abilities that druids, shamans, and priests have available to them. They also have extremely powerful "oh-****" abilities when specc'd appropriately. The difference between a good or bad Holy paladin can really make or break a raid, especially with hard modes.
Like Holy priests, Holy paladins have 2 specializations in WotLK that specifically revolve around 2 spells.
Flash of Light Build
http://www.wowhead.com/talent#sxA0gM0sVu0tgdxZVf0x:ibIMcV
Just like the name implies, this build revolves around spamming Flash of Light. It is currently one of the most mana-efficient single target spells in the game. Flash of Light has a wonderful synergy with Sacred Shield and Holy Shock via Infusion of Light by keeping a rolling HoT on the tank and making your Holy Shock critical hits reward an instant cast Flash of Light. By going into the retribution tree, you pick up an extra 5% crit rating which is crucial to this build. Glyph of Flash of Light is also required. This spec is recommended for paladins who have just hit level 80 and don't have a large mana pool.
Holy Light Build
http://www.wowhead.com/talent#sxA0gM0sVu0tgdxGzmbh:dwIMcV
This build is currently the poster child build of Wrath Holy paladins. Flash of Light will still be used, but for larger incoming damage, Holy Light will be your go-to spell. Once your mana pool is over 30k unbuffed, this build is very viable and is currently preferred over FoL builds because of the amazing throughput that Holy Light provides. By utilizing the Protection tree, your Sacred Shield duration increases to 1 min and the amount it absorbs is increased by 20% through Divine Guardian. If you don't run with a Protection paladin, the raid wide healing buff that Improved Devotion Aura provides is a 6% healing increase to all friendly party/raid members that are affected by your auras. Glyph of Holy Light and Glyph of Seal of Wisdom are mandatory.
Things to Come
Blizzard is completely overhauling the paladin way of healing. Gone are the infinite mana and massive single target througput. We are being more streamlined with other healers. The good thing is that we are getting a few new spells to add to our collection, cause lets face it, we really only have 3 healing abilities in game right now. Light of Dawn and Holy Radiance will hopefully rectify our lack of AoE heals. Also, the Holy Power mechanic gives Holy Paladins a unique resource other than mana. I'm hoping this will make us think more before we cast. Blizzard has had us mindlessly casting the same spells for quite some time, and they want to break us of this habit.
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