Title says it all really, how in demand are Shadow Priests? I know they’re not the best dps which is fine as they bring a lot of extra benefits, but are they in demand throughout TBC in raids and 5 mans?
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You need at least 1, they’re definitely great DPS and a mandatory class to bring.
They go in the Hpally/Healing Priest/Resto Shaman/Mage group.
Edit: In PVP they’re excellent in frozen shadowplay, drain and rot comps.
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They’re just kinda okayish DPS, you are really only brought along to raids to be a mana battery for healers and to put shadow weaving on the boss for the warlocks.
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In raids you will will be able to get away with multiple in your casual raids (likely only 1 in your hardcore meta groups). In 5 mans it’s a different story. Their only hard cc is undead only and have limited AoE options. Your best bet is to start your own groups so no one can deny you
yeah there is a demand, but if I were you I would make a space goat priest for +1% spellhit and a mana regeneration spell. They are mana generator preventing people from going oom, providing some heals off the damage they do, and increasing all damage done by casters especially warlocks.
pvp they are still good with fears, dots, and shields.
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They do dps… great is not a word i would use in most cases compared to the other pure dps specs. That being said probably end up with 1-2 in any mid tier raiding guild since mana battery is going to be useful for healers and magic dps.
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No, shadows DPS isn’t good in raids. They’re at the bottom. You bring one for shadow weaving, and mana battery. That’s it. Shadow priests are definitely expandable. Your group won’t need one to clear content. Shadows raid DPS doesn’t get respectable untill WOTLK.
stop being a meta slave and play whatever you enjoy
other than that SPs are pretty good and wanted on raids for mana battery utility
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the same can be said of anything not a Destro Lock or BM hunter
no one else is even close
Personally i think Mages will do fine. Rogues and War will also pick up towards the end when gearing and fights allow them to.
For most of the expansion it should be hunters and Warlocks though.
And don’t forget misery. And another dispel. And another fear ward. And more shields.
You don’t bring them for their personal DPS, but I think we’ll likely see 1 in every raid.
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Shadow priests are D tier DPS and S tier utility. You have to have at least one in every raid. You could have two if you have a more magic caster heavy comp, but I don’t see that happening for most guilds. Because their dps is so bad in later tiers, more than one in a raid is counterproductive unless you are using it to feed multiple arcane mages, which would be an unusual raid comp.
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They’re bad in the same way that shaman and mages are bad. In T6 they do about 1400-1700 DPS which is in range with the non-lock and hunter DPS.
So def respectable DPS and tons of utility. Factor in that their shadow-weaving buffs lock damage and it’s basically theirs as well. Sure, you could get by without one but it’s only a net negative to the raid.
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Reckoning’s Pre-Nerf M’uru kill used 3 arcane mages. I get what you’re saying about meta, but it’s totally more than viable to stack casters that aren’t locks/hunters.
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That’s why I said it was an usual comp. Most raids will stack warlocks and hunters rather than mages. But if you do stack arcane mages for whatever reason, then a second shadow priest becomes attractive.
1400-1700 dps in T6 is really bad. If other classes were doing that, you wouldn’t meet the enrage timer on Brutallus. Most other classes, particularly the “pure” classes are doing well over 2000. Mages, Rogues, Warriors will do a lot more dps than shadow priests. I don’t know the numbers for the hybrid classes, but I’m pretty sure shaman do quite a bit better than that.
Isn’t there a lot of mobs that can be mind controlled? The downside is that they snap threat hard when mc ends but they can fade.
raiding guilds will take at least 1, some will want 2
I always appreciated a spriest in my 5 man heroics because of the mana regen but that’s just me
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As other have said, they are ok DPS, nothing special. But their main function is to serve as a DPS boost to Warlocks and provide the healers with a Mana Battery. If either of these are not your cup of tea, then you may want to steer clear.
It was always hard to keep Shadow Priest in my old TBC guild simply because people got bored of being a utility spot.
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I plan on playing a blood elf shadow priest, and I don’t even raid. I just like their style.
Strange the people get bored of shadow priests. They have one of the most interesting and fun rotations in tbc.
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