Tried posting this in the class forum already, no responses, so hope for better luck here.
So I am solely a bg player (mostly epics occasionally with random bgs too). This means that I rarely get focused. Initially I decided to go full mastery since it buffs our healing output, and I don’t want to fistweave/get into melee too much as a healer. However, on Murlok, it seems the stat priority for the top rated players in rated bgs is haste/verse.
So my question is, is haste really that good even in battlegrounds? I know haste can buff the ticks of our HoTs, but is that more impactful than stacking mastery? Or are players in rated bgs going haste/verse because they expect to be focused down by the enemy team and not allowed to stand and cast?
Icyveins confirms this line of thought by saying the priority in PVP should be vers/mastery, or haste/verse if you plan on fistweaving. So are all high rated RBG players and arena players pretty much fistweavers only? And if that’s the case, why? Is it really that superior to non fistweaving?
I only use https://www.pvpleaderboard.com/
Then I form my own spec based off ideas from reading a general idea of what most ppl use .
You want to stack haste, not only to shorten your cast times but to also shorten your defensive cooldowns. I know that may sound obvious, but a lot of players in BGs aren’t thinking defensively. Having things like blackout kick and rising sun kick off cooldown more often is going to add to your survivability.
Some people do stack vers/mastery in Arenas, because your individual heals will have more value. But in a BG a big long heal isn’t going to save someone getting jumped on by 5+ people. In a BG you want haste so that your HoT’s are ticking for more often, and it gives your Renewing Mists a chance to jump faster. Your cleave healing is going to be more valuable in a BG and you want those getting out and healing as fast as possible.
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Well shoot, I’ve already optimized mostly for mastery. I guess that’s what I get for listening to icyveins. I should’ve followed murlok from the start, but I didn’t know which source to believe. I had assumed that all the MWs in rated bgs were just fistweaving. I thought mastery would have more value in random bgs/epics when I’m able to just stand and cast most of the time. But you brought up some interesting points about cleave and defensive CDs that I hadn’t really considered.
As of late, Murlok is always my go-to. WoWhead and Icyveins have become slow to update. Halfway through S1 of DF Icyveins still had Best Legendaries and covenants from SL on their PvP pages.
Now a more seasoned Monk may have some better answers for you, but I always try to stick pretty closely to Murlok. Good luck out there!
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Are you on the Monk discord? Lots of information and people in there willing to help.
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You could always craft some gear to drop your vers down a few % and put more into mastery without affecting your haste.
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I havent played MW since WoD but stacking haste let me get out a quick heal during soothing mists, before anyone would kick it.
Hey Wrecklee. Like you I love epic bgs and I have seen you in a few :).
I go for a mix of haste/mastery, more on the haste side for one major reason - the latency we get in epics on oceanic :).
On the rare occasion we get into an oceanic bg it doesnt matter as much, but i do feel personally having the reduced gcd is important for me on the US bg servers.
I wouldnt worry too much if you have already kitted out in mastery gear, you will still pump those big heals from range 
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