What the Press Tour Means for the Monk Tank (pt. 2)

Well, poo.  The first round of beta invites are out, and I haven't gotten mine yet.  Once I do get one, I obviously intend to play the crap out of monks, tanking in several level ranges.

In the meantime, you can expect me to compile monk information from its scattered sources for your convenience.  And interpret/analyze/review that information for what I hope is your entertainment!  Speaking of which, we're not done with the post-NDA-lifting information!  As Jack Black once said, let's get rockin'!

I swear this is not why I thought of Jack Black.  The quote's from School of Rock.

Spells of Other Specializations
Unfortunately, there isn't a single spell currently shown under the Mistweaver tree that's useful to Brewmasters.  Virtually everything available under that specialization requires Serpent Stance.  I don't know if that means we'll be like the equivalent of a Protection paladin locked out of the Holy tree...we'll have to wait and see.  As for the Windwalker, there are two types of abilities we find of interest.  Some require Tiger or Ox Stance.  At least for the moment, these are available to Brewmasters, without a doubt.

 The other kind don't require any particular stance.  This might mean they're "in" the Windwalker tree but usable by all (for another paladin comparison, think of how Avenging Wrath is in the Retribution tab of the spellbook, but accessible to any pallypants). On the other hand, this might mean that they're one of the bonuses for picking Windwalker, and won't even be learnable by the other two specializations.  For the sake of being thorough, I'll discuss anything we might be able to use as a point of interest to Brewmasters.  Better to overthink than let something important slip by unexamined!

• Exploding Jade Blossom
  

  • Available Level 48
  • 1 Chi
  • 30 yd range
  • Instant
  • Requires Ox Stance, Tiger Stance
  • Deals 11,254 Physical damage to the first enemy target in front of you within 30 yards, rooting them for 2 sec.
  • If Exploding Jade Blossom travels further than 10 yards, the damage is increased by 50%.

We're definitely planned to get Exploding Jade Blossom, because of the Ox Stance disclaimer, and it seems intriguing, at the very least.  Still, I can't think up much use for that root.  I can see some PvP applications, I suppose, but if you're trying to stop a MOB from getting somewhere, there are two possiblities.  A.), It's situational, like the Twilight Sappers in Dragon Soul's Blackhorn fight, or B.) You're stopping them from eating someone's face, in which case a taunt will work just as well.  I guess I won't say no to more utility or a button to press at range, anyway.  Under normal conditions, though, I think we have better ways to spend our Chi.

• Flying Serpent Kick
  

  • Available Level 18
  • Instant
  • 25 sec cooldown
  • Soar through the air forwards at an increased speed.
  • While traveling, use Flying Serpent Kick again to land yourself, dealing 300 damage to all enemies within 8 yards, and slowing them by 70% for 4 sec.

This is Heroic Leap on steroids, and it sounds damn useful to boot.  Increased mobility, damaging entrance, AoE snare effect...yes sir, thank you sir!  I do have questions, though.  First, what's the range on this bad boy?  I'd bet a fair amount of gold that it'll end after some distance whether or not you press the button again.  Second, can you turn while using it?  If it's steerable, and has unlimited range, I will never run anywhere ever again.

• Legacy of the White Tiger
  

  • Available Level 66
  • 40 yd range
  • Instant
  • You honor the White Tiger's legacy, increasing mastery by 5. If target is in your party or raid, all party and raid members will be affected.

Look.  Another buff.  Worth noting, however, is the difference between mastery and mastery rating.  I've seen a few people wondering why this buff is only a measly five.  Well, I just checked.  Right now, on the live servers, my block-capped paladin has 24.64 mastery.  2,984 mastery RATING, but less than 25 MASTERY.  So, yeah.  5 mastery is moderately substantial.  Maybe less so after more stat inflation, but it's worth having if we're expected to have a uniform suite of buffs.

• Muscle Memory
  

  • Available Level 72
  • Your fighting technique improves over time during combat. Anytime you Jab a target from behind, your chance to critically hit with Jab increase by 1% for 30 sec. This effect can stack up to 100 times.
  • Leaving combat or an encounter will clear your muscle memory.

I'd wager that this will only be available to Windwalkers.  Even if it's not, we won't be behind our targets so it'd be worthless to us.

• Rising Sun Kick
  

  • Available Level 56
  • 2 Chi
  • Melee Range
  • Instant 8 sec cooldown
  • You kick upwards, attacking the enemy twice for 888 weapon damage with a 30% chance to perform a third attack.

This one would actually have a use for Brewmasters.  I gotta say, though, this ability screams DPS.  They need to keep some cool abilities for themselves, and I expect this to be one of the places they're dumping their Chi.  In addition, just like the last one, it wouldn't be all that useful to us even if we had it.  We've got better Chi consumers for what we've gotta do.

• Sparring
  

  • Available Level 42
  • Requires Ox Stance, Tiger Stance
  • When you are attacked by a melee enemy in front of you begin to spar their attacks, increasing your chance to parry by 5% for 10 sec. This effect has a 30 sec cooldown.
  • When you attack them back, Sparring is amplified by an additional 5%. Stacks up to 3 times.

Here we go!  Requires Ox Stance!  WHY IS OUR AVOIDANCE SO BLOODY CRAZY.   We discussed in the last column how our dodge is going to be ridiculously high.  For Sparring, we're always going to be melee attacked by boss targets from the front, and typically attacking back pretty rapidly as well.  So for a bit less than a third of the time, we're going to have 20% extra parry, too?  If we need this much avoidance...we're going to be a red smear on the floor if we get hit once, aren't we?

- Summary -
By and large, this section is far less interesting.  It's important to become familiar with your entire toolkit, though.  Not the most compelling stuff in the world, but if our most compelling material WASN'T in the Brewmaster tree, I'd say something was wrong.

Blizzard may not have us on the talent calculator yet, but we have some press tour information!

Monk Talents

Level 15

• Intuition: Your roll ability costs no Chi. This effect becomes inactive for 15 sec, after use.
• Celerity: Your Roll ability will move you at a slightly longer distance, and at a slightly quicker speed.
• Momentum: Everytime you Roll, you gain a stacking 10% movement speed buff. Stacks up to 3 times.

See, I had plans to suggest one that would work for Brewmasters, but...clearly this first tier is still being reworked.  The tooltip we were given suggests that Roll costs energy, not Chi, so Intuition is out.  Momentum gets shot in the foot because Roll costs, at least for now, 50 energy.  That buff would have to last a long time to survive three Rolls without falling off.  So I guess the winner is Celerity, for being the only contestant to make it past the starting line without drooling all over its jersey.

Level 30

• Mystery Talent: Coming Soon?
• Ascendance: Increases the amount of maximum Chi by 1.
• Jiny'u Cider
  

  • Instant
  • 1.5 min cooldown
  • Instantly restores all of your Chi.

Good on you, Blizzard.  I don't see a clear winner here.  That said, neither are particularly great, either.  Blizz professed that the design for Chi was NOT to save it up to spend all at once.  Maxing out at a higher value doesn't mean much when you're not expected to max out at the LOWER boundary in the first place, so Ascendance is a tad misguided.  I guess that gives Jiny'u Cider the edge if you have a dire need to spam a Chi consumer at some point or another on fairly short cooldown.

Level 45

• Deadly Reach: Your Paralysis ability is now usable from 40 yards away.
• Charging Ox Wave
  

  • 1 Chi
  • 40 yd range
  • Instant
  • A mighty Ox effigy rushes towards the target, stunning all enemies within its path for 3 sec. When the Ox reaches the enemy, they and all nearby enemies within 0 yards are knocked back a short distance.
• Leg Sweep
  

  • 1 Chi
  • Instant
  • 25 sec cooldown
  • You knock down all enemies within 5 yards, effectively stunning them for 6 sec.

Earlier this week, I mentioned my displeasure at needing a talent to make our CC useful in PvE.  Deadly Reach is that talent.  This must be the control tier, then.  Charging Ox Wave sounds like something I'd take a couple times just to see it in play.  It's kind of a cool idea, I think.  Still, for my money, Leg Sweep DOMINATES this tier of talents.  When you're taking damage from enough sources to be looking at the AoE part of your toolkit, then you've got a good chunk of enemies on you.  Stunning them all will reduce the damage you're taking by, oh, say, 100 PERCENT.  And when you're in the middle of battle, six seconds feels like an eternity.

Level 60

• Beguile: When attacked, your movement speed is increased by 3% and you cause all nearby enemies to move at 3% reduced speed within 8 yards. This effect can stack up to 6 times. Being attacked from behind causes two stacks of Beguile to be generated instead of one.
• Dematerialize
  

  • Channeled
  • 45 sec cooldown
  • You escape your physical form, dematerializing into the ether avoiding all damage for 3 sec.
• Tiger's Lust
  

  • Melee Range
  • Instant
  • 1 min cooldown
  • Instantly clears the target of all immobilizing and movement impairing effects, and increases their movement speed by 70% for 6 sec.

Presumably, Beguile should see 100% uptime for a tank, unless we're tank swapping.  18% movement speed isn't terrible, that's for sure.  At first glance, however, Dematerialize is the runaway hit for level 60.  Avoid ALL the damage!  I could be wrong on this, but I also think it stands to reason that a given NPC mob won't be able to interrupt that channel if all damage is avoided, as well.  It seems out of place amidst two movement-focused talents, though.  Tiger's Lust actually resonates stronger with me than Beguile, too - I like on-demand boosts to anything (and last time I checked, "speed" is part of "anything").  In related news, Tiger's Lust also sounds like the runaway choice (see what I did there?) for PvP.

Level 75

• Chi Bind
  

  • Instant
  • 1 min cooldown
  • Binds yourself to your targeted statue with a tether of Chi energy, causing any friend or foe caught in its path to take x damage or y healing.
• Chi Sphere
  

  • 1 Chi
  • 60 yd range
  • Instant
  • 2 min cooldown
  • You summon a ball of Chi energy, dealing damage and healing all targets within its path within 60 yards.
  • While its traveling, you can discharge the Sphere, dealing x damage/healing to all targets at its current location and reducing/increasing all targets movement speed by 70% for 3 sec, but canceling the Sphere.

Looks like we've got another mystery talent on our hands.  For the two we see...I'm not sure which one I like.  Chi Bind brings to mind an image of a Scooby Doo chase scene.  Trigger it, and stand still while you watch mob packs and meddling kids run across the hallway over it again and again.  Since we'll be the meddling kid tanking those mobs, though, they won't be running through that tether.  Unless, that is, they can just stand in it and have it continuously tick.  Chi Sphere looks like it'll behave more like a Flame Orb with a remote detonator.  It has something in common with Chi Bind, though, and that is not being terribly useful to tanks.  Whatever our attention's on will be "within its path" for a couple of seconds at best.  Actually, that sentence holds true for either of the non-healing specs.  If this talent remains as-is, I'd expect it to be a ranged healing tool and little more.

Level 90

• Ring of Peace
  

  • Instant
  • 2 min cooldown
  • Forms a sanctuary around you, causing all enemies to be unable to attack or cast harmful spells while within it. Lasts 10 sec.
• Rushing Jade Wind
  

  • 40 yd range
  • Instant
  • 2 min cooldown
  • You encase the friendly or enemy target in a whirling jade tornado, becoming immune to all damage and healing and traveling at a quick speed in a distance in front of you.
• Chi Cocoon
  

  • Channeled
  • 2 min cooldown
  • You encase the friendly or enemy target in a cocoon, shielding them from all outside damage and healing and causing them unable to attack.
  • Deals x damage to enemies and y healing to allies every 1 sec for 8 sec.

Rushing Jade Wind and Chi Cocoon aren't bad, I guess.  The former doesn't seem exceptionally useful to Brewmasters, however.  Chi Cocoon, on the other hand...it actually sounds better than Divine Shield, the most iconic paladin ability.  Shorter cooldown, same duration, heals, usable on other targets - there's just no way that using this on yourself would NOT drop all threat.  If you have any sense of linguistic structure, you can tell that by avoiding the first talent here, I've been building up to it.  Ring of Peace makes things happen in my pants that I'm not at liberty to discuss.  Remember what I said gushed about Leg Sweep three talent tiers ago?  This is functionally the same thing, but without requiring melee range, and you can pull enemies into it.  My only question is the radius, though my gut tells me "10 yards."

- Summary -
I can do this summary pretty easily.  Not great, not bad, still under construction.  I'm pleased with the *ideas* the dev's got in their heads, though.  They're thinking of ways to be creative, and I appreciate this.  Is our tree comparable to the other classes in terms of functionality or uniqueness?  No.  Is it still a work in progress?  Very yes.  There's a reason we're not on the official site's talent calculator yet, after all.

Relevant?  Absolutely not.  But this thing had cherries in it.  For serious.

A Word on Glyphs        
I would like to discuss glyphs in depth, believe you me.  Unfortunately, monks don't have a lot of information on that front yet.  On top of that, not a single one datamined so far looks useful to Brewmasters.  I think we'll be in for a treat when we CAN see them, though.  Minor glyphs are getting a serious overhaul to finally be the cosmetic changes we've wanted.  Just look at the warlock Glyph of Felguard or the warrior Glyph of Burning Anger.  If you don't think that's cool, then I'm afraid you're more jaded than an Aerosmith song.

Also, even though prime glyphs are going away (yes, really), major glyphs look to be quite the game-changers.  Just look at what mages and paladins get.  And we can't forget the reappearance of the coward button.

Anyway, that's all for me this week, mis amigos (unless something in particular catches my fancy; that footnote always applies).

See you Tuesday, folks!
- Stonepalm -