Hey, folks!
Just a quick post to let you guys know that I’m going to be out of town for the next few days, so Angry Healers is taking a small break. I’ll be back soon, though, don’t worry about me!
Be safe, and stay angry while I’m gone, healers!
~Pyo
So, Miss Medicina has called for a revisit of the old healer non-meme! Well actually, Saunder over at Non-Squishy Heals requested it, and well, since I was one of the original participants, I figured I’d be a good girl and go ahead and give it a go.
Here, you go, Jessabelle and Saunder!
1. Reread your original answers to the questions. With the benefit of hindsight, score your own work in terms of its cringeworthiness.
Honestly? Not much has really changed. I mean, there have been some changes to the Resto!Druid side of the house, but nothing that really affected my playstyle or my opinions that treekin are full of awesome and win? Though I do laugh at some of my answers because, seriously? I must have been on some sort of caffeine and sugar high when I wrote it. I swear, I don’t know where it comes from sometimes…
2. Has your class’s healing improved in the area you identified as its weakest?
Not really. We still don’t have a ton of direct heals, and I hope we never get them. Playing with HoTs to keep the tanks alive is waaaaaaay too much fun. consequently, I am much more comfortable as a tank healer now than I was before- though I still prefer to spam the raid.
3. Have you changed your “least favoured class to heal with”?
Actually, yes- my opinion of the Holy!Paladin has changed considerably. Then again, my raid rolls with one truly amazing Holy!Paladin (you still owe me $20, Tarro…) and my new hated class to heal with is other Trees, since out HoT ticks keep trying to out tick each other, and if you’re not running Grid + Clique and GridStatusHots/ GridStatusDruidHots like I am, its impossible for you to tell if I’ve already healed someone or not. Love you ladies to death… but stop healing over my HoTs, kthx.
4. Did you read the entries from others in the webring, especially your class?
I did. Its always good to see what other Druids are doing with the cards Blizzard has handed us. Its also nice to see I’m not as crackheaded in my healing as I thought.
5. If Yes to #4, did you learn anything that made you a better healer?
Absolutely. Learning what other Druids call their strengths and weaknesses showed me that I could be a lot more flexible than I already was. That’s invaluable.
6. What tools/resources or information do you think you would need to improve as a healer and how could that help the community at large?
Honestly? Need moar ChainHealSpamming Shammie blogs. Please? I know how to heal with Discopriests (and they are still my favorite class to heal alongside) and Pallies. But… Restoshammies? WHERE ARE YOU GAIS?! We needz u…
7. What did you identify as your worst habit as a healer? Have you improved in this area?
My worst habit as a healer remains the same- healing someone when I see they’ve already gotten a heal. Sometimes, that Rejuv is just half a second too short. And while I’ve improved a lot in this area, it still gets me sometimes.
8. What did you list as your favorite healing spell and your least used healing spell for your class? Are these answers still true? If they have changed, what caused the change (i.e. patch fix, different healing environment, etc)?
Favorite: Rejuv. Yep. Still my favorite. Though I do love me some Wild Growth and Nourish.
Least Used: Healing Touch. I think the last time I actually used that spell was in conjunction with Nature’s Swiftness on our Valithria Dreamwalker attempts… and that’s only because its another heal, and I’m not even sure if I’m going to bother doing more than HoT spamming and chain chasing Nourish the next time.
~
All in all, I can honestly say that not much has really changed, be that for good or for bad. When I first filled out the Circle of Healers non- meme, I had just transferred to the Alliance and I have, since then, become accustomed to how The Grim Covenant does things- which is much differently than Nox Natus Iterim did. I’ve gotten the chance to talk with some amazing healers, and while I might necessarily agree with everything they had to say (I don’t care who you are, you are never going to convince me that an MP5 trinket is ‘amazing’ for a Tree!Druid- I’ll keep holding out for Althor’s Abacus, kthx), they have been immensely helpful, and I am grateful for all of their help. And I hope that my answers to that non- meme, and this one, as well as my posts in this blog, are at least remotely helpful to someone.
Thanks, and stay angry, healers!
~Pyo
Happy Thursday, folks!
I’m taking a page from Ambrosine’s book here. As the ‘fount of druidic knowledge’ in my group of local WoW playing friends, I often get bombarded with questions about playing a Druid:
- What gems should I be using?
- Show should I enchant my gear?
- Should I use a Staff of a MH/OH combination?
- What stats should I be stacking?
- How do you heal, Aanthe/ Koko?
Most of these questions are pretty easy to answer. But recently, one of my close friends was contemplating an alt, and asked me:
‘Pyo, how did you level Aanthe/ Koko?’
And I looked at him and said, ‘That’s a good damn question.’ This post is for that person, and everyone else contemplating walking the Druidic Path, whatever you choose to be- Bear!Tank, Panzerkin, or Tree!Druid.
Levelling a Druid: A Guide
So, you want to level a Druid? Good for you! There’s a few things you need to know about levelling a Druid:
1. If you have an 80 with the Emblems to spare, get the Heirloom Gear. Color me spoiled, but the Heirloom Items are the BEST THING you can give an alt. It makes levelling so much easier with the 20% XP boost, and its 2 pieces of gear that don’t need repaired and won’t need to be replaced until you’re 80. Get the shoulders and chestpiece for sure, the weapon is nice, as well. The trinkets are ok, but you can do without them.
2. Your Forms are going to SUCK ASS when you first get them. I am not kidding. You’re going to hit level 10, do your Bear Form quest, go ‘Oooooo! *poof* RAWR!’ and promptly get your ass kicked by a mob because you have 2 Bear Form abilities. Hit level 20, and its the same thing with Cat Form. Levelling a Druid in the early stages is not easy. You will die a lot if you use your Forms before you hit level 25-26, because they just aren’t that good at this point in time. You would have better luck just staying in Caster Form and Wrathing things to death and tossing the occasional Rejuv on yourself to stay alive. Zones that ‘meh’ for most people will be TERRIBLE for you- I’m looking at you, Hillsbrad Foothills and Redridge Mountains. Mob respawn rate and pack pulling will be responsible for your death at least a dozen times. This discourages a lot of people early on. If you’re thinking of levelling a Druid, you need the mental fortitude to push on through the aggravation of getting your butt kicked all over the zone.
3. Despite all of this, if you’re going to level a Druid, level as Feral. Low level leather gear is itemized more for Feral than it is for anything else- and while levelling Balance may seem like a good idea at the time, levelling Feral will make it a hell of a lot easier. With the introduction of Heirloom Items, going the Balance route is a little more viable, but those pieces that aren’t Heirloom are still not going to be itemized well. And only a real glutton for punishment levels as Resto. Get your ‘of the Wolf’ greens and go go Kitty Form (once it gets some worthwhile abilities.)
4. Upgrade your gear every couple of levels or so. The difference is noticeable. Obviously, this is limited by the amount of money you have and what’s on the AH/ what randomly drops for you. But there’s no reason you shouldn’t be trying to upgrade once every 2- 3 levels or so.
5. Level two gathering professions. Yep. Now, I know what you’re thinking- ‘But what about all of those neat Leatherworking patterns for useful stuff I can actually use?’ Honestly, its better just to get 2 gathering professions. Do it for the money. Set yourself up early for success- the more money you have when you hit 80, the less you’ll have to farm. My suggestions? Herbalism and Skinning, as you can do these in your Animal/ Travel Forms. Alternately, if you’re really good at spotting mines, go Herbalism and Mining, since both of those gathering professions are associated with at least 2 crafting professions (Mining is 3!) Also, consider downloading Auctioneer, and remember to do an AH scan at least once a day the first week you have it, then twice a week after that. It’ll allow you to follow market demands for specific items and lets you maximize your profits. When you hit 80, you can choose to dump a gathering profession for a crafting professi0n and powerlevel it.
6. Don’t be afraid of the LFG tool. Instances, especially with the Heirloom Items, are a quick way to get your levels and better gear. Also, don’t be afraid to click the Tank and Healer options- even as Feral you should be fine in the lower level instances. I wouldn’t recommend this in Outlands and Northrend, however.
7. Don’t be afraid of taking advice from others. Especially other people who play druids- for the most part, we do know what we’re talking about. Alternatively, doing some research- like looking at levelling guides that are more in depth than this one, blogs such as Big Bear Butt, and Armorying your Druid friends- will prove to be quite useful.
8. Don’t worry about Dual- Speccing until you’re at least level 60. Yes, I know the option is available at 40. If you’re doing the ’2 gathering professions’ thing I recommended, you will probably have the 1000g to fork over. SAVE IT. You’ll thank me when you’re higher level and can afford to buy Epic Flight Form and Cold Weather Flight as soon as you get to Northrend (YaY Heirloom Flight Book!)
9. Level First Aid. Bandages can be made- and applied- in your Forms. Honestly, there is no reason that any character you choose to level should not have First Aid. Level it, and make sure you maintain it as you go. When you go to buy the First Aid books, buy them all (if you have the money for it) and stick them in your bank. Whenever the bandage you’re currently working on goes green, go back to a major city and get the next bandage. Don’t forget about the First Aid quest guy in Hammerfall/ Theramore Isle!
10. Have fun! Don’t worry about endgame content until you’re level 80 and rocking your way through Heroics for Emblems of Triumph and Tier 9 armor pieces! After you’ve done that, then you can decide if endgame raiding as one of the most OP classes in WoW to date is what you want.
LOL Druids
Well, that’s all for now, folks! This isn’t an all- inclusive guide to levelling, but I hope these points helped someone. Have a great weekend, and stay angry, healers!
~Pyo
YaY Patch! You get a bonus post this week for the announcement of- *insert dramatic music here*- Frostwing Halls!
Miss Medicina has the patch notes up over at her place. I suggest going there to look at them, because I’m not re-posting them here. However, I will mention this:
Valithria Dreamwalker.
A Boss we need to HEAL.
I’m excited. Here, have some cute Pompom!Trees as proof! (Because, seriously, who doesn’t think cute Pompom!Trees are cute?)
Pompom!Trees Are Happy!
That is all. Until Thursday- stay angry, Healers!
~Pyo
YaY Monday! -gag-
Even in parallel universes, Mondays suck.
Even I’m getting a slow start today. Blah. Anyways. A fluff post because I can, and because its Monday and I don’t feel like being totally serious today. Lets talk about… Lore and RP. (AMG NOT TEH ARPEEZ!)
Yes, I RP. Or, at least, I used to RP pretty heavily. Mock me if you will. Now, as an RPer, I’ve come across a wide variety of stories and playstyles- some good, some bad, some just downright weird. All of my characters have MyRolePlay on, and a story all typed up. I try to be as non- Mary Sue as I possibly can- my Druid, for instance, just woke up from the Emerald Dream (its how I explained the faction transfer), which she had entered after the War of the Shifting Sands. She has a Green Whelpling named Ysidron who likes to sleep on her shoulder, and she had no idea what the hell was going on until recently. That’s pretty tame, right? And its lore- friendly, despite my Druid being female- the War of the Shifting Sands was supposed to have been about 1000 years prior, well within the then immortal lifetime of the Night Elf (if Fandral Staghelm could live that long, then so could I.) She wasn’t born during the first coming of the Burning Legion, she has never seen Queen Azshara in person, nor was she a handmaiden that somehow avoided becoming a Naga, or other such nonsense. She might have seen Malfurion in passing while in the Dream- he was there the same time she would have been- but she had tasks of her own.
My warlock, Nicevenn- started off as a town guard in Andorhol. A good, Light- fearing woman with a husband and a child. Catches the plague of undeath. Dies. Comes back. Serves the Lich King. Breaks free from his power after Sylvanas. Looks at herself, says ‘Fuck the Light’ and starts playing with demons. Not too bad, eh?
Awesome. So somebody tell me where some of these people come up with some of these other stories.
Empress of the Platinum Dragonflight? Yep, seen it.
Forced to be a high-paid prostitute working the streets of Silvermoon City because your evil uncle is holding your kid siblings hostage? Yep, seen that one, too. (And, seriously, if you’re coming up with stories like this, I think you have better things to be spending your money on than WoW- like a visit to the psych.)
Something that is a cross between Arthas and Lady Sylvanas? Good Lord, more times than I can count.
Seriously, there are acceptable deviations from the lore- and then there are just outright and blatant BULLSHIT RP. And, I mean, its not like the lore is that hard to find- wowwiki.com, anyone? Is it really so hard to look at the writeup of your ‘half- dragon lovechild of Kalecgos and Anveena’ you typed up on your MyRolePlay or FlagRSP and go, ‘Meh, that’s a little over the top’?
To all of you RPers out there who are not like this- I salute you!
To all of you RPs out there who ARE like this- go Die In A Fire. You’re making the rest of us look bad.
For you brand new RPers- DON’T BE LIKE THIS. We will shun you. Shuuuuuuuuuuuuun!
And I’m spent. Until Thursday! Be safe, and stay angry, healers!
~Pyo
I know, I KNOW, I said I was going to do posts Mondays and Thursdays. And today is Friday. Sue me- I had stuff to do yesterday tha involved pulling a 12 hour shift at work. Whatever. Time for a post!
Ok, who here is familiar with Recount? -waits for the raised hands- Good. That should be most of you. For those of you not in ‘the know’, Recount is an Add- On that shows DPS/ Damage Done/ HPS/ Healing done/ etc. It is an excellent tool for raid/ class/ healing leaders.
AMG LOOK AT MAH DEEPS THEYRE SO LEET
The image above is the pic that everyone normally sees. However, there are dangers associated with this view- both the DPS and HPS versions. The first thing to rememeber when staring your Recount window in the face is that Recount is rarely- if ever- completely accurate. There are going to be things affecting your numbers that you can’t account for or have any control over- buffs and debuffs, who’s alive, who’s dead, what cooldows you’ve blow, etc. Recount is NEVER EVER going to be a 100% accurate representation of your Heals per Second. All this format can really be used as is as a guideline- it lets you compare yourself to the other healers of your class, and should give you a very masic idea of what you need to work on. Take myself, for example- I’m usually one of 3 trees in the raid. I’ve been either 2nd or 3rd overall- but that is because my two Tree comrades are in at least 2pc T10, while I’m still rocking 4 pc T9. I also have some gems that can stand to be replaced. Do I let myself get discouraged because I’m not #1? No way. Negali and Ellestrela are amazing Trees, and awesome friends. BUT looking at the Healing Done window of Recount shows me that its not skill, but gear, that’s holding me back- because I’m doing as much HPS as they are, but not as much overall Healing. There is absolutely no reason for you to take Recount at face value- definitly don’t let it discourage you. Recount is a tool to help you improve. Figure out what you need to change, and change it.
So you can tell that guy in your guild who constantly links the meters that, in actuality, his DPS sucks, his e-peen strokage is lame, and he just needs to move on with his life.
Now, when dealing with Recount, you want to look at this window:
What is this I don't even-
Now, would ya look at that… a comprehensive breakdown of where all of your damage and healing is coming from, and how that damage/ healing is being dealt. This is what you want to look at- this will tell you if someone is not doing what they’re supposed to be doing. Just click on your name, and this will pop up. This is the window of Recount you should really be giving a good once- over. It is the one that tells you what spells you’re using, how often you’re using them, and what they’re doing in comparison to all of the other spells you’re using in an easy to read pair of pie chart format. The first pie chart shows the spells/abilities you’re using and how much healing/ damage they’re doing in comparison to each other. The second shows what those spells/ abilities are doing- ticking (if applicable), plain hits, and crits.
Druids, for raid healing, your most used spells should be: Wild Growth, Rejuv, and Nourish (the last 2 can be switched around, it depends on you.) Swiftmend can also be up there. I, as a Druid Healer, should NEVER SEE Regrowth, Lifebloom, or Healing Touch in the top 3 spells AT ALL. I rarely use those spells, unless I happen to have picked up a Tank to heal (*waves at Thazz, Banderas, and Aurelius* LOVE YOU GUYS!) Even then, those 3 spells have a hard time getting into the top 3- there is no reason, as a Tree!Druid, that you should ever not cast Wild Growth and Lifebloom- its just criminal if you don’t.
Discopriests! You should NEVER look at the Healing Done section of Recount. Go here! Kivuli, the Troll Priest of Bubble Flinging Awesome, wrote a wonderful Discopriest Guide to Recount that you guys should use.
That’s it for now! Happy Friday, Happy Weekend, and stay angry, Healers!
~Pyo
It’s Monday!
O_o
Yeah, I know. But this Monday is special- this is the Monday I put my ‘Pyo Starts Posting Twice A Week’ plan in effect! (I have been working on this for a while.) Because I believe in quality posting- and posting only one day a week bores me. I bore easily. So, I will be posting Mondays and Thursdays. YaY for us!
But I digress. Let us have a post! Today, I have chosen- from My List of Topics- to discuss-
*cues dramatic music*
Top Mistakes Healers Make.
Say it ain't so!
That’s right, Angry Healers, I said it- this post is about the mistakes WE make! Well, not all of us, I suppose. But I’ll be covering the mistakes we make when we get better- and know it. Not the beginner mistakes. Let’s begin, shall we?
Top Mistakes Healers Make
1. Just because you are the healer, doesn’t mean that they won’t drop you from the group. This is, quite possibly, this biggest problem I have seen with level 80 healers while I play on my Shadow Priest of Doom- especially all of you rolling in full epics. Just because you’re fully epicced out in your shiny ICC/ ToC gear, doesn’t mean your place in a party is guranteed. Yes, that means that if you’re acting like a total asshat, you can expect to be rapidly replaced, because nobody likes dealing with the ‘leetsauce’ attitude. If you colossally fuck up, prepare to be kicked. If you have no clue what you’re doing, prepare to be bounced. This leads me into my next points:
2. If you sign up as a Healer for instances, be specced properly for it. This mainly applies to Heroics and higher level instances. No, Mr. Enhancement Shaman trying to heal Heroic Halls of Lightning, you are NOT A HEALER. Be prepared to be bitched at and/ or Voted to Kicked. I, seriously, don’t know why you bothered- yeah, Healers tend to queue up quickly- but we sign up for the job we are specced and geared for. We can do it- you can’t. Congratulations- you just made yourself look like an ass.
3. Know how your class heals. By the time you hit Heroics, you should have half a clue how to heal with your chosen class- I’m not saying be a pro!healer. I’m saying have some damn sense. Know what spells do what, which spells can proc special abilities, understand which spells are better than others. I habitually smack Druids that use Healing Touch- unless they combine it with Nature’s Swiftness- because we have SO MANY OTHER MORE USEFUL SPELLS. You want a direct heal? Use Nourish! I cringe everytime I see a tree Tank healing with Healing Touch. Yes, Heroics are not SRS BZNS, but that’s no excuse for not understanding the basics of your class.
4. Don’t try healing in gear for another spec. This is slightly (only very slightly) forgivable, especially if you’re trying to gear up for Healing, and your gear could remotely be used for healing (i.e. some Boomkin leather is ok for Treeing it up, as well.) However, if your previous spec has absolutely no stats in common with your Healing spec, DON’T HEAL. That means No, Feral Druid, you CAN’T heal Heroic Halls of Reflection in your Feral leathers. You WILL fail and piss off your party, who are trusting you to not only know what you’re doing by this point in time, but to do it well.
5. Don’t refuse to heal a certain class because you don’t like them. OMG. I don’t care if you don’t like Rogues, if that Rogue is doing their job and not pulling threat, HEAL HIM/ HER. Not healing a person of a certain class persuasion just because you don’t like their class is fucking stupid, and it makes you look like a total jackhole. That being said, if said Rogue keeps pulling threat and pulling mobs, you have my permission to let them die, watch them QQ about not getting heals, then bitch at them for pulling threat.
6. Don’t rez the lazy fuckers who are just chilling out after a wipe. If it’s a wipe, everyone runs back. Not ‘everyone- but- the- lazy- party- member- runs- back- waits- for- the- healer- to- mana- up- then- expects- a rez.’ Let that fucker sit there until he hauls his ass back. On the contrary, if only one or two people die on a pull, REZ THEM. Don’t be a jerk.
7. Don’t constantly post healing meters after every fight. This applies primarily to raids. Yes, Tree!Druid, we know your heals are awesome. That does not mean you need to post the healing meter in the healers channel (or in /say… that’s just tacky.) Incidentally, any and all DPS who might be reading this, its the same for you- we don’t care how leet your DPS is, posting the meters repeatedly to show how badass you are is stupid.
See, I like to think I hate all stupid people equally- just because you’re a healer, doesn’t mean your immune to being bashed. Bad healers are just as bad as bad tanks and bad DPS. Don’t be bad!
Thats it for now, lovelies! Have a decent Monday (Monday is an awful way to spend 1/7th of your life), and stay angry, healers!
~Pyo
Happy Wednesday, Angry Healers!
First, I hope you enjoy the new layout and header! I know everyone liked the buck- toothed Draenei one that was up here before, but as I’m taking more ownership of this blog, I decided to replace it with one of my own devising (not that I don’t appreciate your work, Ambrosine… but you’ve already got a cool header on your blog. Time for some tree love on mine!)
Anyways. Post. Let’s discuss. This post is for you, you ‘taking- boss- hits- in- the- face’ tanks and ‘pewpewLAZORZ’ DPS.
Top Misconceptions About Healers
We know what you guys are thinking- no, really! We do! Chances are, everyone you know that is currently running in your parties/ raids as a healer started off in their WoW life as DPS. Maybe a tank. But usually DPS. And we thought the exact same thing back then that you do right now. I am here to set you guys straight, and clear up some of those common misconceptions about healers.
1. Not all healers are female. Not all people subscribe to this incorrect chain of thought- but enough do to make it annoying. This is along the same lines of ‘not all female toons are played by girls.’ Next time you’re around Dalaran, ask that hot female Blood of Night Elf who’s really sitting behind that toon. Or go watch Gamer- and think of that perverted fat guy in the wheelchair the next time you want to hit on a female toon. Some of the best healers I’ve had the privelage of healing with have been guys- in my old Horde guild, there was this female Blood Elf Priest (of the Holy persuasion) named Iridice who just rocked the healing game like no other- and is a guy, one of the best guys I have ever met. He is the best damn Holy Priest I have ever encountered (props and <3 to you, Iri! I still luv ya!)
2. Not all healers are good. Once again, not an idea all people subscribe to, but enough that it makes it annoying. Its not a matter of class, or spec, or race. Its a matter of knowing enough about your chosen healing class to know what you can and cannot do, not to mention should and should not do. Sure, I, as a tree!druid, can heal a tank with little to no problem- a healthy helping of HoTs and a quick Nourish and Swiftmend finger is plenty. But am I using Healing Touch? HELL NO. Why? It takes too damn long to cast- so long, in fact, that a well geared Tank could DIE before it pops. Not all tree!druids know this- or they think ‘its still a good spell, why shouldn’t I use it?’ There are some trees I’ve encountered out there who- I hope you’re sitting down for this- DON’T USE HOTS. If you think I’m joking, you are wrong. I have been stuck in PuGs with trees who thought it was perfectly acceptable to use HT and Nourish only. As I’ve stated before, the reason I don’t PuG instances all that often is because, frankly, I’m afraid of the bad healers I might end up with. I pride myself on being considered a good healer, despite the occasional oddities in my gear. Now, keep in mind- some of these guys aren’t very good because they’re just now levelling a healer TO heal, and need gear. Cut these guys some slack, and give them the benefit of the doubt- help them out as much as you can. Teaching them to be good healers now will save a lot of people a lot of heartache in the future.
3. Not all healers want to be healers. Seriously. A lot do- take me, for example. I only have an offspec so I can do dailies. But some are healers for several reasons- its the only way they get to raid (since healers seem to be a vast minority) seems to be the answer I get most frequently. I can’t count how many times I’ve seen ‘I didn’t even want to be a healer’ in party chat. Occasionally, I’ll see ‘I heal in Arenas’ or ‘I did it to queue faster for LFG.’ But seriously… if you don’t want to heal, then don’t heal. I find the best healers are the ones who want to heal, not the ones that are forced to.
4. Not all healers care about you. This is especially true in 5- man instances. Remeber the old saying, ‘If the Tank dies, its the Healers fault. If the Healer dies, its the Tank’s fault. If the DPS dies, its their own damn fault’? More people believe this than anything else, and this simply isn’t true in a lot of cases. Sure, I raided in the old ZG 40 man raid days where, if you were in the all- DPS group, you didn’t get heals. You were expected to watch where you were standing, move where you needed to be, and bandage your ass if you took damage, because the healers were too busy keeping the tanks alive. But that’s really not the case anymore- ok, there are instances where it’s still true (if you see Rotface getting ready to Slime Spray, run behind him, pl0x, melee?), but for the most part, keeping the raid or party alive is just as important as keeping the tank alive. And some healers just don’t get that- they keep telling themselves that the DPS doesn’t need to live, as long as they keep the tank alive, they’ll be fine. News flash, kids: you won’t. That’s why Blizzard gave everyone AoE heals. Use them.
5. Not all healers use healing mods. Though, seriously? I can’t say why. I can’t live without Grid and Clique- playing healer whack- a- mole is great. Healbot is good, too, but my first love will always bee Grid + Clique.
And finally, and quite possibly the most important misconception and the whole purpose of this blog…
6. Not all healers are nice. We’re not. We may be all smiles and happiness when things are going right, but when the shit hits the fan, and the ‘blame the healer’ game starts getting played- we get ANGRY. I mean rage-tastically ANGRY. If you’re in a raiding guild, check to see if you’re healers have their own channel. Chances are, they do, and when you wipe and you’re blaming them, they are blaming you right back, and coming up with the facts to prove it- screenshots and cutpastes from the Combat Log, etc. We are yelling at you through our computers when you take avoidable damage, we are cursing at the screen when Stinky Decimates and then immediatly puts out a stinky cloud that kills 4 or 5 people, we are verbally abusing Blizzard and their 6 second Wild Growth/ Circle of Healing cooldowns when the Twin Val’kyr’s damage starts stacking too high. We are NOT VERY NICE AT ALL. The header pretty much says it all- our rage is blue, and we start the fight PISSED. There really is no rage like Healer Rage.
Its' all your fault, Tree!
Oh, and the thing that annoys us (maybe this is just me, but maybe not) the most is saying ‘I NEED HEALS’ in every available channel you have, including Vent. For the love of all that’s holy, WE FUCKING KNOW YOU NEED HEALS. We spend the entire encounter watching your little health bar for any sudden drops that indicate you have taken some form of damage and have a heal ready for you. STOP TELLING US. Those of us who pride ourselves on our healing are good boys and girls who do their research, check gearscores, BiS items, spec and glyph changes, research bossfights, etc. We know what we’re doing. We don’t tell you ‘DPS Harder’ (Ok, maybe we do, but we’re usually not serious about it.) So don’t tell us that you need heals. We’ll get to you. Unless you’re taking avoidable damage- then you’ll just have to wait until we heal up the people who took the unavoidable punch- to- the- face.
That’s it for now, folks! I hope you enjoyed the post! Stay safe, and stay angry, healers!
~Pyo
Catchy title, eh?
I thought this would be a good topic to cover, now that everyone is happily (or maybe, not so happily) fiddling around in the new, shiny, cross- realm LookingForGroup System. I was gonna do some ICC25 bosses and strats, but frankly… it can wait. (Go to Tankspot.com- they have the best strat vids, anyways.)
PuGs. PuG, in case you didn’t know, stands for ‘Pick Up Group,’ which means that you are grouping with people you’ve never seen or heard of before with the intention of killing bosses in instances or, less often, raids. Now, PuGs have a sinister, underlying negative tone to them- and with good reason. How many times have you joined a PuG where The Tank couldn’t hold threat, resulting in your poor, squishie healer butt being pwned thoroughly by a group of mobs? How about Those Huntards who don’t turn their pet’s Growl off, then bitch at you because ‘my pet died?’ Or the Mage Noobs that don’t check their DPS, pull threat from a decent tank, take a couple of whacks, then Ice Block to drop the aggro- which YOU, the squishy healer, promptly pick up? Let’s not forget that hyperactive Warrior- Who- Is- Not- A- Tank that insists on pulling the mobs before the rest of the group is ready, or that Shadow Priest with the happy Psychic Scream finger. And, of course- the shortening- flavored icing on this cake of fail- the ‘leetspeakin’ 12 year olds who are happily LOLing and calling you a noob in /party, when they’re meleeing instead of spellcasting.
If your chat looks like this, you should probably run.
Gee, I haven’t seen all of these things, have I? But there is hope! You can survive a bad PuG! All it takes is a little time and a lot of patience.
Pyoska’s Guide To Surviving PuGs as a Healer
The first thing you need to remember is this- it will, eventually be over, and all you have to do is what you do best. This applies to you at every level, from lowbie instances to Heroic raids.
Things you should do to ensure you survive a PuG with most of your hair still on your head:
1. Bring your ownrefreshments. Seriously. Go and spend the silver on a couple of stacks of level- appropriate water and food and put it somewhere on your action bars, for easy access. If there is a mage in your party, and he/ she is willing to make you some food and water, then take the conjured stuff and use it first- save the stuff you spent your hard earned money on for later. NEVER expect or demand that the mage make you refreshments- they will do it if they want to, and it will save you an argument.
2. Make sure your bags are empty. It sucks having to destroy free money (grey loot items) because you ran out of room. I don’t care if they’re crap- if its an item that can be sold, PICK IT UP. You’ll thank me later. And, while we’re on the subject of bags…
3. Keep your bags organized. Grey items always seem to clog up those random bag slots in an attempt to camoflage that shiny new piece of gear you just picked up, regardless of color, and you always lose that quest item or potion in the mounds of stuff you’ve gathered/ ferretted away in your travels. Don’t be afraid to toss all of that Silk Cloth in your bank to use later for mass bandage crafting. Toss that quest item in there, as well- its just eating up space that could be used for sellables. And don’t let the big, bad price of extra bank slots scare you. They are worth it!
4. Make sure you have (if you want them) all quests available for the instance you are about to run. And don’t be aftraid to share. Everyone wants more experience, and sometimes, a clearly definable goal is the best way to get a PuG moving in the right direction.
5. Make sure your gear is completely repaired. Nothing is worse than having someone die and watching them go, ‘Oh, shit, my gear’s red, I need to repair lol can you guys summon me back?’ Don’t be that person. Most people in PuGs HATE that person (but not as much as we hate the Huntard Who Forgot To Bring Enough Ammunition. We REALLY HATE that guy.)
6. Make sure your bars and hotkeys are set up for HEALING, not DPS. This is especially true in those lower level instances, when you probably aren’t Resto or Holy- unless you’re into self- inflicted torture. In which case, rock on. Either way, when you are healing, your primary hotkeys (the ones your fingers hover over for mashing purposes) should be replaced with whatever heals you posses. Better yet? Get an addon to help- like Grid and Clique or Healbot- and only have it up if you are healing.
7. Expect a certain amount of stupidity from a PuG. After all, we do need to consider Wizard’s First Rule when it comes to dealing with others, no matter what the situation. Expect the worst, and you will be pleasently surprised if you get into a good group with good people, instead of disappointed with being stuck with the dredges of WoW society.
8. Do Your Job. Yep. That means heal to the best of your ability, doing whatever it takes to ensure it can’t be blamed on you. I know, I know, that does mean you have to heal that moronic DPSer who just pulled threat. I’m not saying keep him alive- but you should at least try. The first time, anyways. What kind of Angry Healer would I be if I told you to try more than once. Clearly, if it happens more than once, its him, not you. You can probably deal without his DPS, anyways.
9. Be Patient with the Newbs. I said ‘newbs,’ not ‘noobs.’ There will be people in your PuGs who haven’t played WoW until very recently. We will call them ‘newbs’, short for ‘new player who needs help learning how to be a good player’, NOT ‘noobs’, which is short for ‘fucking idiot who can’t play.’ Give the Newbs your assistance, especially if you’ve played their class at their level- trust me, your help now will mold them into better players you’ll actually want to play with later. And who doesn’t want that?
10. Try to keep an open mind. You’ll be dealing with lots of people from lots of places (even other countries!) Those people have different ways of thinking and communicating that you might not be used to. So if someone says something you find a little off, don’t go flying off the handle and TYPING IN CAPSLOCK to show how mad you are. That doesn’t help anyone- capslock is NOT cruise control for cool. Instead, calmly adress the person and ask them what they meant. If they reply in kind, then its all good. If they answer with, ‘LOL UR STUPID’, slap their ass on /ignore and continue on. If they say something that’s obviously offensive, tell them to knock it off and don’t hesitate to report them. After all, if they’re doing it in your PuG, they’re doing it in Trade, and General, and LookingForGroup, making asses of themselves and, undoubtedly, pissing all sorts of people off. And while a 72 hour ban is unlikely to change their attitude, at least no one will have to deal with them during that time.
All this aside, know when you’ve had enough and don’t be afraid to tell a group of morons that they can jog on. Have fun- isn’t that what playing a game is all about!
Well, thats it from me for now. I hope this helps someone out. Cheers, and stay angry, healers!
Obligatory Tree!Druid Shot.
~Pyo
No, seriously! No snark intended at all.
This blog has been around for, oh, six months or so. In that time, I’ve been through quite a lot- both personally and in game- and it never once occured to me that this blog would be anything but humorous, or snarky, or even remotely readable by the general WoW blog- reading public.
My snarky friends and I started this blog because:
1. We love healing.
2. We are snarky, occasionally snarly, and very angry at the abuse the healers always seem to get.
One by one, those friends who helped me develop this brianchild of a blog have disappeared. Some have blogs of their own to pay attention to. Some have stopped playing (as far as I can tell.) Yet others have just fallen out of the habit of posting, and Angry Healers has swiftly become the Angry Healer. At first, I was bummed. But then I thought, ‘We put so much work into this blog, why not just keep going? I’m still a healer, and I’m still angry! Sally forth and be angry for all the world to see!!!’ Over the weeks, I started posting real, quality information about druids, druid healing, and boss strategies, as well as my opinions on druid changes, gear sets, and nerfs/ buffs.
So I did- and in those months of lone blogging, I have discovered something. You people actually like me and my little angry blog. I’ve found myself being read by Miss Medicina, which made me squee IRL. I found myself linked to by other large WoW- related blogs. I see people viewing my posts from guild forums and blogs across the ‘Web. And, seeing all of this, I realized something.
I’ve never thanked you for helping me get Angry Healers to where it is today. So here it is.
So thank you, WoW players of all roles and races. Thank you fellow angry healers, grumpy tanks, and discontent DPS. THANK YOU ALL for reading my humble little blog. You all are why I keep doing this. I hope we continue to have a very long and angry relationship!
Cheers, and stay angry, healers!
~Pyo
