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Comment by Chickat

That is an amazing skill. It sounds to me like it will fix monk cleave and be activated kind of like a combat rogues blade flurry.

Comment by Reebs

Like many people I'm sure, it's really cool to see this ability being implemented. In WC3 this was the Pandaren Brewmaster's signature level 6 ability, in which he split into 3 unique controllable Storm/Earth/Fire themed units, each with their own spells. http://www.wowpedia.org/Pandaren_Brewmaster_%28Warcraft_III%29

On topic, this seems like it will do some crazy damage with chi tornado, but it could also be a decent dps boost on single target fights. With the monk and 2 adds doing 40% less damage each, it would seem like a negative, but since the adds damage equals the damage you do it comes out to around 160%(1split) or 180% (2splits) of your usual damage, presuming the adds have an easy time staying on the boss/target.

This is presuming that the whole 60/60/60 and 80/80 splits stays like during the PTR of course.

So far it isn't showing a cooldown or a chi/energy cost, so I'm guessing this ability will get tweaked in the future, seeing as the ability to constantly keep 1-2 adds that mirror your damage (even if the individual damage of each is reduced) seems like something exploitable. I'm also eager to see if they actually mimic the abilities you use, or just do a generic *clone damage* effect.

Comment by Dumbfoundead

It's kind of obvious the summoned monks will not attack the Monk's own target, this is purely a cleave ability.

Edit:
Guess who was right, the monks will only auto attack your current target and not recreate your specials unless on another target. Cleave ability.

Comment by Reignac

Yessssssssss

Comment by Boulderdash

Official patch note preview:

Windwalker

New Level 75 Ability: Storm, Earth and Fire
The Windwalker can summon up to two elemental duplicates that mirror damaging abilities that the Monk uses while they are active. For each spirit summoned, the Monk's damage is reduced: 1 spirit causes the Monk and the spirit to deal 60% of the Monk's normal damage, while 2 spirits will cause the Monk and both active spirits to deal 40% of the Monk's normal damage. Each spirit lasts until the ability is canceled, or that spirit's target dies or otherwise becomes unavailable.

Considering the 60/60 or 40/40/40 split, this honestly sounds more like Blizzard just throwing us a bone on fights where bosses need to die all at the same time (which I would now expect to see at least one in the 5.2 raid content).

Based on the wording of the actual patch notes, the clones just perform the same abilities we do, at reduced damage % (similar to Dancing Rune Weapon). This seems extremely underwhelming, since it really just lets us split our damage out across different targets. In general it's really just an extra 20% damage on fights with multiple targets. Not bad; I'd take some extra dps, but altogether very bland. If, however, the text above is accurate, and the clones actually copy the damage we do to our targets, that will give monks much better functionality on fights where one target takes extra damage, similar to how Warrior & Rogue cleaves work. Think Garalon's legs; if our 100% buffed damage is copied to the boss, that will be better functionality. I'm also very interested in seeing how these extras are targeted, etc.

I would definitely expect to see some kind of limit on it's functionality from a single-target standpoint. 20% extra damage for free would easily put us at the top of DPS meters on single target fights.

The PVP implications are also interesting. Depending on the clones' mobility, this creates a situation where we could be able to put pressure on multiple targets simultaneously.

Comment by villainae

Storm, Earth and Fire, heed my call!

Comment by Arakara

The monks will have the skill of the Warcraft 3 Pandaren Brewmaster? AWESOME!

Comment by pbartz

Checked it out on the PTR 1/10/2013. Here are some observations that are not inline with previous comments or the patch notes. Looks like it may be broken on the PTR.

1. 40/20% split only applies to ability damage. Meaning that if you hit a target with Jab all your elementals will also hit their targets with it.
2. Your elementals do white dmg at all times. I checked it out on a non-boss dummy and it was about 60k DPS (which I think is broken right now).
3. To achieve max gain from both elementals you will need 3 targets. You engage one, the other two are engaged by the elementals.
4. As of today on the PTR my dummy dps went from about 73kDPS (live) to 125kDPS (ptr). Again I'm thinking this will be tuned before go-live.

Comment by Reignac

So, you can't have both clones on the same target. However, you can attack the same target as one of your clones. When sharing a target they do not copy your yellow damage spells (well, it copied Fists of Fury but nothing else).

However...

The clones do have an autoattack. I believe that if you only summon one and then you and it attack the same guy, it's a DPS increase on single-target fights.

Comment by vindurza

a must use for any orc monk

Comment by perculia

On the aesthetic side of things:

There are three possible spectral disguises you or your images will get.
Orange: Appears to wear Sapfly Helm and images dual-wield Bronzed Sword.
Green: Appears to use Staff of the Hidden Master and a giant keg on your back.
Blue: Appears to wear Replica Shado-Pan Helmet, a robe modeled after Initiate's Robes, and fist weapons.

All disguises can be kept when mounting up, and using them with other abilities like Ring of Peace can be quite colorful.

On a more serious note, Ghostcrawler's description of what he envisions the final version of the ability to be, from 5.2 PTR Class and Set Bonus Issues:

is a new ability for Windwalkers. It’s intended to be fill the role of attacking 2 or 3 targets. It’s a rather complex ability, technically, and you’re seeing a very early version of it that still has some significant bugs (which we’re hoping to hotfix soon). To give you an idea of the design intent here, the spirits should mirror your damaging attacks against targets other than the one they’re on (so that it’s not a single target DPS gain). The spirits auto attack on their own. It should reduce your and your spirits damage while they’re out, but the exact tuning for that is still being iterated on. They’re currently -40% for 1 (total of 120% of normal against 2 targets), and -55% for 2 (total of 135% against 3 targets). Non-damaging attacks (such as Spear Hand Strike) should not be mirrored, but damaging attacks (such as Fists of Fury) should. Feedback very appreciated.

(##RESPBREAK##)2##DELIM##perculia##DELIM##

Comment by kellbyb

Currently, there is an interesting bug. If you open with this spell, there is a chance that instead of functioning normally, it will transform the targeted enemy into a copy of yourself. It's rather hilarious.

Comment by Vladyvag

Warcraft 3 Panda and DotA Brewmaster's ulti. Geegee no re.

Comment by Himallt

This ability has just become available for testing on the PTR and currently it is overpowered; I imagine that it will be scaled down before 5.2 is released. These are the observations I have made so far:
+ One elemental can be summoned per target; you can only have one against a boss which equates to a 20% damage increase.
+ The elementals can be targeted but they can't be attacked, CCed or hit by any AoE.
+ If you have one elemental summoned then it won't copy Chi Wave but if you summon both of them then you'll get an additional Chi Wave; this hits for half damage but heals for the full amount! As this is only the PTR, I'm sure it'll get changed. I haven't tried out Zen Sphere or Chi Burst yet.
+ The elementals have a leap (like Xuen) meaning they can attack enemies that are out of range (or unaccessible because they're on a different platform).
+ The elementals will continue to attack even if you are CCed or out of combat. This means that monks are less likely to be CCed as it will only reduce (33%/50%) of their damage.
+ If you are not in combat then the elementals will deal auto-attack damage but they can proc Tiger Strikes for extra damage. Whilst in combat they will copy the following attacks (they also copy the regular rotation for extra damage but these abilities stand out):
- Fists of Fury - This will be amazing in arena as you can stun up to three enemies at once.
- Rising Sun Kick - This applies the debuff but it doesn't affect your attacks and I don't know if it increases the clones damage (I can't log into the PTR currently).
- Spinning Crane Kick - This will increase the area in which your Spinning Crane Kick does damage - not a huge increase but helps with AoE if enemies are spread out.
- Chi Wave - This will only be replicated if both elementals are summoned but it heals for the full amount.
- They won't copy other special abilities such as Touch of Karma or Zen Meditation.

As this is very early on the PTR, I'm sure that a lot will change (and that I've probably missed a few points about this ability) but it's currently looking like a 20% damage increase in PVE with strong cleave potential although this ability will really shine in PVP. It allows you to pressure a whole 2v2/3v3 team with damage that is hard to prevent (as the clones can't be CCed) and it gives you a guaranteed stun with Fists of Fury on the whole team. As you can choose the target(s) of this ability, the monk can choose between either huge single target burst with Tigereye Brew or good spread damage like an Affliction Warlock/Shadow Priest.

Comment by kintotech

Okay, so the monk splits into three with this, as I understand it. Which one are you? Storm, Earth, or Fire?

~~Or is it effectively three additional units?~~

Comment by Reignac

There's a really cool scene in the Pearl of Pandaria comic where Chen Stormstout uses this ability against a fel orc Blademaster who is using Mirror Image. I wish I had a scanner to show it.

Comment by Lordplatypus

The original

Look at the bottom of the page.

Comment by TGFseb15

This spell has shaman written all over it, from the fact that you summon elemental spirits down to it's very name. I know that Brewmaster had it in Warcraft 3 but I'm calling it like I see it.

Comment by Azavari

The bubble from Colossus will change colors with you and become much, much brighter. You look like a giant glowing ball when it procs! :D

Comment by macko

Please note that if using this solo you need to actually tag the other mobs yourself to get credit for the kill - if this is incorrect please leave a note and I will delete this :)

Comment by preechlol

this ability should place a debuff on the target.

Comment by pauthperu

There are a couple of ways to remove your images at will. One way is to reselect the target your image is attacking and press your Storm, Earth, and Fire button. The image will disappear. Another way is to make a cancelaura macro (it would be: /cancelaura Storm, Earth, and Fire), but this one--as far as I know--will remove all of your images at once (if you have many out). Use the first option if you just want to get rid of one image at a time.

Edit: Another way to remove two images at once is by applying Storm, Earth, and Fire to a new target. (mentioned by Gorta)

Unrelated note:
In PvP, since this ability has a 40 yard range, is low cost (10 energy), and has no cooldown, it could be useful to use these images to quickly destroy shaman totems that are out of your range. That way you don't have to waste Chi Wave or another ranged ability on them.

Comment by kintotech

Similar to Transcendence, these copy and use your *current* form as well. If you're using the Iron Boot Flask, for example, you'll have three technicolor iron dwarves. Anything that can change its gear out (like the blood elf orb) will take on the proper helm/equipment appearances, while stuff like the Boot Flask merely does colors and weapons.

They also retain their appearance as long as they're spawned, even if you revert.

Comment by Gorta

As a warning to anyone who might be searching: the clones won't copy your spells if you're attacking the same one as they, and so this will lower your overall damage.

This spell is only built for AoE and requires management to be used. If you know you're attacking one that your clone is on, recast the spell so the clone on that target get dismissed, this way you'll keep the maximal damage output from the spell. This must not be treated as a cooldown in any cases.

On another note, it is better to set your clones on a basic (Basic as in possessing only damaging spells that cannot be interrupted) enemy with high hp, while you pick on a high priority target (Such as a caster that requires interrupts). Do NOT use this on a boss that do not spawn adds.

Comment by Murlocinataor

The first thing I did when I found out about this ability was create a macro where I cast this spell and /y Storm, Earth, and Fire, heed my call! (cue Power of the Horde Music).

Comment by Griffmstr

For those thinking this should have been a Shaman ability, as Shaman's, not Monks, are the elementalists. monks also gain their power from the elements... In a way. The monks dedicate their lives to the August Celestials. Their fighting style and everything they do is to protect them or inspired by them. Windwalker monks use the way of the tiger. The Mistweavers use the way of the serpent and so on. Well the Celestials seem to be the embodiment of the elements of Pandaria. Yu'lon Is water, Chi-Ji is fire, Niuzao is earth, and Xuen is air.
When thinking of it like that. It makes more sense. At least I think so.

Comment by DG2020

I tend to check sites like Icy veins and Noxxic for information about rotations when new patches hits. This ability isn't listed on either of them for Windwalker Monks. Is this ability worth using?

Comment by norecha

If one of the spirits kills a mob all the way by itself, you don't get loot or quest completion

Comment by Azavari

They will also cast whichever level 30 talent you picked. If you picked Zen Sphere, they will cast it on themselves, which gives them a pretty nice heal for the little health they have. Chi Wave is also nice for keeping them alive, and it's pretty cool to see three waves flying around!

Comment by Sorotia

Kinda makes me sad this is only for AOE to be honest, I don't do much PvE anymore so this is pretty much useless for PvP and me.

Comment by Mumojr

Am I the only one who didn't know you have to target a second enemy to summon the third spirit? This whole time I thought my spell was bugged and wasn't letting me split into three spirits on one target.

Comment by themunge

Been confused about this ability for a while so spent some time testing it on the training dummies in SW. If you are single targeting you can ONLY use 1 split. Most of your attacks aren't duplicated by your split so the 20% increase only applies to your normal melee attacks. The moves which are duplicated on single target are Fists of Fury & Spinning Crane Kick. As such it does provide a small DPS boost single target.

When attacking multiple targets fire the ability then switch to another target and fire it again to get two splits. If you then target a 3rd mob you will have 3 colourful versions of yourself attacking! Almost every move you cast is now duplicated to your 2 closes. The moves which aren't duplicated are your interrupt, Disable, Touch of Death Grapple Weapon and Leg Sweep. Tigereye Brew isn't duplicated in the clones animation but the clones do receive the DPS boost.

My monk is an 80 twink so couldn't test the abilities you learn after 80 but reading their tooltips it seems that none of these would apply. Others have posted that the level 90 talent is duplicated.

Comment by Navystylz

It's simple to understand what abilities your copies will do if you split on a single target.

1. They only mimic damaging abilities.
2. If on a single target they will only use AoE non-targeted abilities.

This means Chi Wave, Chi Burst and Rushing Jade Wind will be useable against a single target. I'm not sure if Chi Torpedo makes the ability now useable by copies.

I like to summon a copy against a single target to use Chi Wave. Since not only does it make the combined damage 120% but heals aren't affected by the split, making all those waves hitting you heal for 100%. Since Chi Wave is a smart heal, if your copy didn't take any damage then all the heal side of the bouncing will hit you for a very strong heal.

Comment by MrJumpingBean

I'm a troll monk. When i click the elementals i get no greetings but when i take on a disguise they give me a greeting clip, like the wizard hat turned me into a goblin monk ( lol ) and one of the elementals had the voice clips of the crazy goblin ( peddlefeet )

Comment by Samaura

Just to add some clarity to this skill as it seems there is alot of confusion and, what strikes me as worse, speculation about this skill causing alot of people to read and believe false information about it.

So here are the facts:

1) This skill will allow you to split yourself into 2 or 3 copies (Yourself included) resulting in, if 2 of you, dealing 30% less damage each or, in the case of 3 of you, 45% less damage each.

2) If you use a clone on a target that you are attacking, it will NOT copy your attacks and will instead only auto attack, resulting in a massive loss of DPS for single target situations and even non single target situations where you may be attacking the same target as you summoned the clone on. This does not impact AoE attacks so AoE in this situation can be used as desired.

3) You cannot have 2 clones on the same target.

4) As you want to make sure you are NOT attacking the same target as your clone, due to #2 above, it would be worth only using this skill in the following situations:

a) You have a good mouse over marco for the skill. An example would be: /cast Storm, Earth and Fire. It would also be worth putting in a shift or alt mod here to use /cancelaura Storm, Earth and Fire as you never know when you may want the copies to go away so you get your full damage output. They can also sometimes lag behind (or in the case it was summoned on a target you were attacking) you'll want to get rid of it straight away

With this marco one does not need to deselect their current target to cast it and as such make it very hard to use on a target you are attacking, this would be worth putting on a mouse button to be most effective like middle mouse or any thumb buttons.

b) Don't be afraid to use it for heavy AoE packs, the skill here proves invaluable imo, simply use the mouse over macro above on 2 different targets to your own target, apply RSK or any other AoE increasing attack and AoE to your hearts content.

I hope this lil guide clears up some of the misconceptions of the skill and allows other monks out there to use it to the maximum potential! :)

***EDIT*** Damage split has been modified as of patch 5.4 and post has been updated to correctly reflect that.
***Further Edit*** For clarity

Comment by themunge

Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!

Comment by Gimroth

This is a specialization ability of Windwalker Monks. The other specs cannot use it.

Comment by Alnair

This ability was originally introduced in the Bonus Rpg included in the Warcraft III expansion.

Chen Stormstout was an optional Hero-class unit included in the the Rexxar RPG and his hero-class ability was Storm, Earth and Fire, allowing him to split into three units at once.

Comment by Lordplatypus

Do not use against shamans in pvp.
You'll have to heed their call.

Comment by Yaofei

Tip: when you use storm, earth and fire, you can use transcendence transfer to swap locations with the summoned spirit.

Comment by Morguean

I have watched literally hundreds of Monks use this ability incorrectly since coming back to wow (over christmas) I will admit that I was just spamming it when I came back, it seemed really cool!

But then I read up on the ability (specifically Samaura's awesome comment), yet I still see monks in early dungeons (lich king, and now Cata Im going to guess) using it on single target fights.

In fact I was in Utgarde Pinnacle last night on my tank (Morguean) and witnessed one monk pretty much spamming it on EVERY fight, sometimes it was the "correct" usage (multiple targets) most times he used it on single target boss fights.

A little strategy goes a long way, I had previously use a mouse over macro , but now on my monk I tend to use both a mouse over macro, and the normal spell on my bar, that way if I need to I can just tab and click randomly. This coupled with Rushing Jade Wind, and a Flurry of Blows has actually led to a rather impressive increase in overall effectiveness, for me anyway, your mileage will likely vary

Comment by Delupi

I don't suppose anyone figured out the exact gear being used by the copies yet, have they?

Would love to copy the Storm set to a transmog.

Comment by MrJumpingBean

Using the Wizard hat from the Azshara quest-line and this spell, you can click on your clone and it will greet you.

Comment by GryzorTheSexy

After playing a Monk for a short while, it struck me:

If:

...then Storm, Earth and Fire is the V-ism Custom Combo from SFA3. It even works in almost the exact same manner (V-ism causes your character to generate afterimages that mimic your attacks after a slight delay).

EDIT: Alternatively, it's a reference to Yang's Sei'ei Enbu super move, which does the same thing (several Capcom characters across different fighters have a similar ability, though V-ism seems the most popular one).

Someone at Blizzard loves Street Fighter waaaay too much. Not that it's a bad thing...

Comment by Ichiirei

It doesn't seem to be mentioned anywhere, but the maximum range from which your copies will despawn is 100 yards, so you can't use it on Dark Shamans (except at the beginning of course) if you use the split bosses tactic, in case anybody wondered :)

Comment by Hydasalaami

Not sure why no actual macro was given yet when there was so much advice for making one. Here's what I use: #showtooltip Storm, Earth, and Fire
/cancelaura Storm, Earth, and Fire
/stopmacro
/cast Storm, Earth, and Fire
It will do the following:

Cancel the aura if you hold alt while activating the macro (useful if you kill your primary target and need to switch)
Cast the spell over an enemy mouseover target
It will NOT cast the spell on the current target if you don't have a valid mouseover target (to prevent single target DPS loss)

Comment by Hydasalaami

Cancel the aura if you hold alt while activating the macro (useful if you kill your primary target and need to switch)
Cast the spell over an enemy mouseover target
It will NOT cast the spell on the current target if you don't have a valid mouseover target (to prevent single target DPS loss)

Comment by tituslord

There is currently a bug that lets you retain your Storm, Earth, or Fire form almost permanently, with the only thing being able to remove it is casting Storm Earth and Fire again, or entering an Arena.

Basically, if you enter a dungeon/raid, and cast Storm Earth and Fire on a mob, you will become one of the Storm Earth or Fire elementals. However, if you cancel the Storm Earth and Fire buff, the clone that is fighting a mob will instead jump back to you. However, if you walk out the dungeon door before it reaches you, you retain the Elemental form that YOU transformed into.

Short and sweet summary on how to do this, is walk into a dungeon, cast Storm Earth and Fire on a mob, then cast it again, and Roll out of the dungeon door.

Lastly, for those who wish to know, this is not considered an exploit or anything similar, according to a Game Master i spoke to. Apparently, it is considered a bug, and due to it being purely aesthetic, it poses no threat to the players or others, thus ranking it very low on their "bug-fix-list", as well as meaning that it is perfectly safe to do this.

Edit: As Admiring stated below, they finally fixed it in 6.1. Now I actually have to transmog my gear..

Comment by Sinangel

I'm not super familiar with how to make macros but is it possible to make one that says roughly

When I hit this button, cast on nearest enemy (Maybe within x yards to avoid horrible accidental pulls.) that isn't my target nor already has this spell cast on it with the ability to cancel it if I hold alt and use it again?

Comment by mikedarling905

Just as a tip other monks, stop hitting the target your clone is on. It will not increase your dps, but hurt it. Just a friendly reminder as I see this all the time in random groups and lfrs.

Not judging, just offering a friendly tip

Comment by jatthey

Edit: Note that this was posted in 6.1

As others have mentioned, it is a DPS loss to use this ability on a single target. You should only use this ability if:

You're facing 2+ enemies of equal priority.
Your enemies will be alive and attackable for at least 10 seconds. According to Icy Veins, the ramp-up time of this ability makes it a DPS loss if the targets die any sooner than that.

A small note: When I first started using this, it almost looked like the spirits remained in one place after you summoned them. After some testing to make sure, I confirmed that each spirit acts similar to a pet or guardian: they will actively move around and follow whatever target they are assigned to until it is dead or the effect is otherwise cancelled, and they always attack from the rear.

Comment by rodalpho

The devs told us exactly how 7.0 Storm, Earth, and Fire works at the link below.

http://us.battle.net/wow/en/forum/topic/20743504316?page=4#69

I'm pasting it here as they typically delete the beta forums after release.

Storm, Earth, and Fire spirits have a list of spells/abilities that they know how to mimic. That list hasn't been updated yet, so they're missing several key things, such as those two abilities, Effuse, a few new talents, etc. We'll get that updated soon, and then you can let us know if we missed anything (the intention is that they can copy as much as possible). The only thing that I can think of offhand that they shouldn't mimic is stuff like consumables that add damage procs, or some trinket effects that do flat damage or summon guardians.

Comment by Sorotia

Made into the primary dps cooldown now...does that mean it works on single target now?

Comment by Phasha

This spell will be invisible/unavailable in your spellbook if you have selected Serenity for your level 100 talent, as Serenity replaces Storm, Earth, and Fire. However, if you try to type command:

/cast Storm, Earth, and Fire

Your char will simply cast Serenity instead.

So if you cannot find this spell in your spellbook, panic not. Try the above command to find out if it's because of your Serenity.

Comment by Duskroot

Anyone else having trouble with these guys running off and pulling?

They constantly run off and pull the boss while clearing the trash in the same room.

Is there a way to fix this or do we have to wait and hope bliz change them back to the 7.0.3 version?

Add to list...Links WeakAuras Export

Storm, Earth, and Fire

Storm, Earth, and Fire

Instant	1.5 min recharge

1 Charges

Split into 3 elemental spirits for 15 sec, each spirit dealing 45% of normal damage and healing.

You directly control the Storm spirit, while Earth and Fire spirits mimic your attacks on nearby enemies.

While active, casting Storm, Earth, and Fire again will cause the spirits to fixate on your target.

Buff

Storm, Earth, and Fire

Elemental spirits summoned, mirroring all of the Monk's attacks.
The Monk and spirits each do 45% of normal damage and healing.
15 seconds remaining

Spell Details

Duration

15 seconds

School

Nature

Mechanic

n/a

Dispel type

n/a

GCD category

n/a

Cost

None

Range

0 yards (Self)

Cast time

Instant

Cooldown

16 seconds

GCD

0 seconds

Aura proc chance

100%

Effect #1

Apply Aura: Modifies Damage/Healing Done
Value: -55%
Affected Spells:

Crackling Jade Lightning	Blackout Kick	Tiger Palm
Chi Burst	Whirling Dragon Punch	Song of Chi-Ji
Rushing Jade Wind	Blackout Strike	Rising Sun Kick
Strike of the Windlord

Effect #2

Apply Aura: Modifies Periodic Damage/Healing Done (22)
Value: -55%
Affected Spells:

Crackling Jade Lightning	Blackout Kick	Tiger Palm
Chi Burst	Whirling Dragon Punch	Song of Chi-Ji
Rushing Jade Wind	Blackout Strike	Rising Sun Kick
Strike of the Windlord