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Why is BM Better?
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Post by
Pharoanx
I'm leveling from 85 to 90 and all I've seen is that BM is LITERALLY the best specc for raids and single-target dps, but I don't like it. How am I supposed to overcome the mental wall I have? I much prefer Survival, but apparently it's not "the best", but that's the specc that I excel in at the moment.
Post by
seasaint7
This is something I can really relate to. While we were playing Cata I swore up and down that my bm spec w/corehound (ancient hysteria/bloodlust) improved the entire raid party's performance at the expense of my dps loss by switching out of sv. People ridiculed and criticized that idea, but it's proven true on more than one occasion.
I definitely recommend getting a recount add-on, visit a target somewhere, turn on your stopwatch, and do your best dps with both specs. Use the stopwatch to get your damage for 1 minute per spec. Write down the total damage for each minute with both specs and get an honest, real back-up for your preferences.
Your playstyle is just as important, though. You say your more comfortable playing sv so when you're soloing, play sv to your heart's content. But in a raid group you have a bunch of people depending on your abilities and dps so you have to be flexible. Your group may be missing a buff that one of your exotic bm pets can provide. I have found wolves with their furious howl/crit buff to be perfect to bring a very important buff to parties while playing in sv spec. I always carry one in my pocket :P
Happy hunting!
Post by
Pharoanx
I have a cat w/ Mastery, a Wolf w/ Crit, and a Wind Serpent with the 5% added Magic Damage. But yeah, I guess I'm gonna have to once I hit 90. I just don't understand why it's so good; spam Arcane Shot and Kill Command, and that's better than ExPS, and Black Arrow? There just seems like I'm doing something wrong or I don't like it. I should probably give it another shot.
Post by
138583
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221451
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Post by
Pharoanx
I forgot about Focus Fire. So now comes the question of talents and rotation. I understand when to dump Focus and when to gain it, but is Lynx Rush better than Blink Strike, and is there any particular pet I need to maximize my Dps? Murder of Crows is hard to work in, I enjoy Blink Strike much more than MoC. It's just that it seems I do more damage with SV, but maybe I am playing favorites and giving BM some pre-judgement.
Post by
Pharoanx
Basically SV is like fire mage - you do costistent damage all the time, with occasional proc burst.
BM is more like arcane mage - you have phases of focus regen and focus dump
Thank you for that reference. That helps a lot in understanding the differences between the two speccs.
Post by
138583
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Post by
Nooska
Just to sum up and echo what the others have said;
If you dislike BM you will perform better with SV which you like and know (assumption there, but I'll go with it).
Anecdotally, I used to beat 90% of MM hunters I came up against last expansion as BM - because I like and know BM, and most hunters went MM because thats what the internet told them to.
Post by
Pharoanx
Lynx Rush does seem much better than Blink in raids. I guess it all depends. If I can ultimately do more Dps in SV than BM, does that mean I'm doing something wrong? Or is that my style of play?
Post by
Saerath
It kind of sounds like you're in the same boat I am in. I was Survival throughout Wrath & Cata. I switched to BM to level, and because it was "the raid spec." I'm 90, and I still have trouble with BM because I was so used to playing as Survival. I'm slowly getting better as I run more heroics, and raids with BM, but the transition is taking much longer than I expected it to.
Post by
Nooska
There are 2 possibilities.
1) You need to learn BM and get used to it, and then you will do more damage in BM than you would in SV.
2) You are significatnly better at SV than BM (I could also say it the other way round, you are significantly worse at BM than SV, take your pick), and will do better damage as SV than as BM.
BM and SV are realtively similar in execution, as long as you learn what to watch for
- in SV its LnL and making sure you can BA and ExS
- in BM its FF and BW and making sure you can KC
(Roughly said)
Edit: So if you can do better dps in SV, you may be doing something wrong, or you may just have a style of play (and muscle memory as well as acclimation) that suits SV better for you.
And that is the key point - play as whatever you perform better with on a given encounter, not what some dudes and dudettes on the internet say performs best - given equal skill and perfect condition - we can tell you the theory, you can tell us which performs better for you.
Post by
Pharoanx
I'm glad that everyone is advocating preference. I will definitely try to learn BM.
Post by
drbosnovich
I say just do what you enjoy. In every expansion there are some specs that out DPS others, but the difference is almost never as game changing as people make out (excepting MM at the moment, which is just flat out broken). Unless you really care about min/maxing or are raiding at a very high level, the difference between SV and BM is not going to make the difference between a successful and non-successful encounter.
Personally I find BM very dull in between FF and BW cooldowns; in fact it's always felt like it's an ability short of keeping you awake, but that's just me. No one's going to care about the ~1kdps drop I might have using SV over BM.
Post by
Nooska
@drbosnovich
"Personally I find BM very dull in between FF and BW cooldowns; in fact it's always felt like it's an ability short of keeping you awake"
Have you tried BM in MoP? if you think there is an ability too few to "keep you awake" I think you've missed some on your bar. BM has a few too many buttons to push for most people. I've been BM for quite a few years, and am glad I invested in a mouse with more buttons or I would have had a hard time fitting everything I need where I need it. The "too many buttons" has even been agreed on by GC over twitter a few months back.
Post by
drbosnovich
Yes, but that's an affliction to all specs at the moment, not just BM, and I totally agree with you on that. I really don't like the way that hunters as a whole have evolved since LK, constantly adding more dull, lazily conceived, 'long CD summon animal to do damage' abilities. And the fact that so much of our DPS output is tied to these abilities.
So yes, I have played BM in MoP, very badly and inefficiently no doubt, just as a personal opinion from someone who has always loved SV and MM, I find the increasingly small 'times between big CD abilities', the KC/AS/CoS rotation makes me yearn for another shot to weave in. In fact I spec blink strike and use it on the same key as ES/Chimera just so I don't get homesick, but of course it means the damn boss I'm soloing is always jumping around....
Actually, as a general point, does anyone else thing the boundaries between the specs is less than it used to be in terms of playstyle? I dunno if it's the simpliciation of the specs or the fact that we spend so much time watching our big talent ablilites cool down now, but I just don't think the specs feel quite as different or distinct as they used to...
Post by
Twizelbang
I'm leveling from 85 to 90 and all I've seen is that BM is LITERALLY the best specc for raids and single-target dps, but I don't like it. How am I supposed to overcome the mental wall I have? I much prefer Survival, but apparently it's not "the best", but that's the specc that I excel in at the moment.
Just play the spec you prefer, forget about what others say. In most cases you will do better with a spec you prefer to play anyways. Every spec & class in this game is meant to be playable. Perhaps some spec's / classes can & will perform better. The margins between them isn't to drastic.
I wouldn't rule out Beast Master till you actually play the class at max level. You might even change your mind. But don't force yourself to keep playing a spec you truly hate. Since you will truly lose all passion to play the class. I burnt myself out doing that on my Paladin, i spent from Vanilla, TBC.. playing a spec i truly didn't wanna play anymore.
Doing something for others is all well & good, but sometimes you have to think whats best for you.
In my case we lacked healers... so i kept healing. I spent Vanilla & all of TBC doing something i didn't want to do... Then i hated raiding, because of it. Today i refuse, blank to do anything i don't want to do.. perhaps harsh, but then sometimes.. raid groups can & will take the piss. Same for any group you happen to be in.
If people don't like the spec you play, then you have many options.. don't let them choose for you. Decide whats more important, being happy & enjoying what you're doing, or being unhappy & still trying to enjoy yourself... the latter doesn't work out in the long run. Short term basis it might be ok. The other option is find a better group to be with, that can cater for your playstyle.
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678294
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