#0 - Feb. 6, 2010, 5:30 p.m.
The problems with dispels in general are that they are at the same time unreliable for the caster and crippling for the victim.
Here is what I think needs to happen to make dispels fun and functional in cataclysm:
1. purges (offensive dispels) now remove all beneficial buffs (excepting physical) from the target. Cleanses (defensive dispels) now remove all harmful debuffs (excepting physical) from the target.
2. offensive dispels now place a 1 minute debuff on the target that prevents them from being the victim of an offensive dispel. Defensive dispels now place a 1 minute debuff on the target that prevents them from being the benefactor of defensive dispels.
3. dispel resistance talents removed.
4. Spellsteal redesigned to place a debuff on the target for 10 seconds which causes the next beneficial spell ( with a duration < 10 minutes ) cast on the target to be cast on the mage instead. 30 second cooldown.
This makes dispels more consistently powerful in a focused and controlled way. They are wipes that would need to be timed and used thoughtfully in order to insure that they take out the most important effects at the appropriate point in time. Spellsteal would function more as a steal than a dispel, so that mages can use it in more creative and dynamic ways. Stealing a heal or a predicted Bloodlust / Avenging Wrath could easily turn the tide of a fight.
Most importantly dispels would become something that can be played around. They aren't mindlessly spammed with no counter but are rather an offensive or defensive cooldown to be blown to score a kill or save a life.
