As a DPSer in a raid guild, I think many people would agree that there is a certain amount of competition. Even the sort of person that doesn’t e-peen about being top of the DPS charts wants to do well, after all, DPS charts are often the only thing standing between a DPSer and a cold, wooden bench that smells slightly of sweat and Lucozade and possibly a hint of blood and tears. Or whatever sports drink that amateur footballers drink these days.
There is more to our role, of course. Interrupts. Positioning. DPSing the right target very quickly. Yet the essence of our measure against our fellow DPSers is the chart, we are slaves to it even when we try to pretend it doesn’t matter. For a while now I’ve been good. Not top 3, certainly, but coming mid chart often enough on individual boss kills, that on total boss kills my cumulative DPS is top 5. Sunday evening we delved into the Frostwyrm Wing of ICC25 and finally healed Valithria Dreamwalker up to full health.
That fight is mad, I tell you. I do not enjoy it as DPS, over all. I find little things to enjoy – kiting Zombies, interrupting Archmagi, dropping Magma totem on Supressors. Yet as an entire experience the fight is somewhat mind numbing, getting more chaotic and annoying as it goes on, depending on us DPS to ‘keep things under control’ while the Healers do their thang.
More power to the healers, but very unnerving and somewhat dispiriting. It is a good lesson to DPSers. You can be top DPS, but it don’t mean jack in this fight, except to keep Zombies away from Valithrias, and the nuke those other casters. It is a great way to teach cooperation and teamwork on a smaller scale as well. You are generally assigned a side, and within that team you work out how to handle each mob, and who to trust with certain tasks, what to do if a certain person dies, how to make their job easier in the first place (FROST SHOCK!)
The other Elemental Shaman kicked my ass on the damage meters tonight, after a long period of regearing and regrouping on her part, due to a break from raiding. I’m extremely pleased, because it means the raid team isn’t being short changed by having us both on rotation. I can’t say I’m not a little disappointed in myself, but I also know I did a good job helping to kite things, and I was the top interrupter for the evening. I played my part in getting the Green Dragon all healed up, and that should be enough.
So, enough rambling, how did I help to heal Valithria Dreamwalker?
1. Frost Shocking Blistering Zombies. Hell, you can even macro it to /tar Blistering Zombie /cast Frost Shock, just for this fight. We used a 2 person buddy team to kite them away from Valithria and nuke them down. I was the gooseberry (i.e. the third person) helping with a little extra dps, and some slowing to aid the imba warlock on my side of the room.
2. Magma Totem and Fire Elemental totem + Earthbind totem on Supressors. The Supressors have to run to a certain spot before they start supressing, so slowing them away from Valithria means that they aren’t slowing down healing on her. Hence, Elemental Earthbind totem. You can also drop Magma and Fire Elemental on their ‘supressing’ spot, to help AOE them down. Magma totem is also ideal to drop on a swarm of rot worms.
3. Interrupting Risen Archmagi. That Frostbolt volley is annoying and potentially lethal, leaving nearly everyone in the raid slowed. Use Wind Shear in combination with something like tidyplates, so you can interrupt without switching from your current target.
4. All out nuke on Blazing Skeletons. This should go without saying, and is your priority (unless you are the current target of a Blistering Zombie.)
5. Use Healing Stream Totem, and throw the occasional heal on Val. If you are in the lucky situation of having nothing to do, throw a heal at the big green dragon.
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