I understand that within the Prot Paladin community there is a lot of discussion between which of the Tier Sets, Tier 1 or Tier 2, is going to be better next phase.
For Tier 1 having an additional 30% avoidance up constantly and holy shield with no charges is fantastic, especially when facing off against lots of adds. It feels thematic and fits into the Prot Paladin gameplay / fantasy incredibly well.
Tier 2 however has tons of single target dmg potential with gaining a stack of reckoning with every block. Though you miss out on mitigation / avoidance, you can theoretically throw out obscene dmg as a compromise.
Now the debate between the different sets I believe is incredibly healthy for the community, it shows a healthy divide of players between the mitigation and TPS crowds with all manor of theory crafting and deep dives into potential gearing and builds people might use to make their proffered tier set superior to the other. Having both sets be roughly equal in power, as far as tier bonuses go, but do very different things mechanically encourages players to want to collect both sets. I’m already fiending for a full T1, T2 and the new ZG Shockadin set, as I’m sure that almost all paladin players are. This is GREAT game design. Players having lots of choices for gameplay also lends itself to horizontal progression in a way that makes all of the tier pieces valuable long after their respective phase ends.
The issue with nerfing the T1 tier set however is that it creates a larger disparity in the strength of the tier sets. If 1 set is objectively better than the other, there is no reason for players to use the weaker of the two options. Its simply shoe horning players into playing one type of gameplay instead of giving players the agency to choose how to play their own character. It takes what is currently the best part about the paladin tier sets, player agency, and replaces it with a linear choice for gameplay.
I hope Blizz that you can reconsider this nerf, and that in the future you continue to design the tier sets in a similar fashion as you have been for the paladins. As a 20 year paladin vet SoD has been such an absolute joy. Hope everyone’s pillow remains forever cold!