Healers: Defense first or Willpower first?

[Annaise16]

With only a few exceptions, healing is increased by base_value + (cast_time * [willpower + healing_power]/5). Instant casts have a cast time of 1.5s. That formula is also halved for AoE healing abilities.

Putting points into a mastery tree increases the base value of healing abilities within that tree. That and healing critical chance give far more value than willpower for your average collection of casts.

Your best bet (generalized among all healers, situations vary) is to get healing critical chance, then cap armor, then parry/dodge/disrupt, then toughness/wounds. Then willpower. Tactics should focus on things they give you better AP management, +%healing, large chunks of extra healing/absorbs, and survival.

A heal's current cast-time is rarely used to calculate the heal value. The cast-times from launch are used instead. For example, Boon of Hysh currently has a 2-second cast-time but the value used in the formula is 3-seconds, the original cast-time from when the game was launched. Cloth-healer group-heals use a cast-time factor of 3-seconds instead of the current 2.5 second cast-time of those abilities.

The wp/dok 0.5 second cast-time heal has a multiplier of 5, as should Funnel Essence on the AM.

The benefit from heal-crit comes from proc on ap and other tactics. Once you have enough crit to quickly proc the relevant tactics, you will probably get more healing output by adding willpower/healing power than more heal-crit.

[Marsares]

With only a few exceptions, healing is increased by base_value + (cast_time * [willpower + healing_power]/5). Instant casts have a cast time of 1.5s. That formula is also halved for AoE healing abilities.

Putting points into a mastery tree increases the base value of healing abilities within that tree. That and healing critical chance give far more value than willpower for your average collection of casts.

Your best bet (generalized among all healers, situations vary) is to get healing critical chance, then cap armor, then parry/dodge/disrupt, then toughness/wounds. Then willpower. Tactics should focus on things they give you better AP management, +%healing, large chunks of extra healing/absorbs, and survival.

Spot on. Exactly how I tend to spec.

You win the thread.

[Ramasee]

Annaise16's comments about cast times from launch are correct. I should have specified that. WP/DoK 0.5s heal fall under the few exceptions category. The 15s standard HoT spells also have a coefficient of x3.

He is also correct that you will get more raw output for stacking willpower/healing power over critical chance. 1% healing critical chance roughly equals 8-12 willpower depending on how much willpower versus critical chance you have. The more of one you have, the more valuable the other becomes.

The goal with critical chance (for RPs/Zealots and to a lesser extent shamans, and an even lesser extent AMs) is to try to get high uptime on restorative burst. 10% healing critical chance (which is your base value) when healing 6 targets via group heals leads to ~46.86% uptime.

Crit______________RB Uptime
15%______________62.29%
20%______________73.79%
25%______________82.20%
30%______________88.24%
35%______________92.46%
40%______________95.33%

As you can see the overall value per point of critical chance goes down the more critical chance you have. This would be the same with healing values as well.

To go with my much smaller text in the previous post in this thread. About 20% healing critical chance will suffice before going on to defensive statistics.

[roadkillrobin]

For RP/Zealots theere no point in ever stop specing for crit.
Procs of the Flash heals with RB gains you more AP then you spend, 25% Blessing gives about the same as capping willpower will give you. For Zealots it's also the morale gain.

I'm running a Archmage in t4 right now with really terrible willpower gear. I basicly have 300 willpower when bolstered and it's not that much difference from having 700 willpower like i do on my Shaman. Thats how bad Willpower scales. 1500 crits vs 1650 crits on groupheal.

[bichka]

RVR/PVP - defensive. But my imho, if your healer is not about group heals and always stayed in backlines he can spec healcrit > willpower. Did this on my AM and had 0 death on scs.

PVE (dungeons) - be sure that you have 40% resists, including kobts/choosen aura (usually only spirit required), healcrit, willpower if nothing else to do