If it is not broken, do not fix it.

#0 - April 28, 2010, 8:47 p.m.

I really hope blizzard does enough testing to have the new hunter focus system in Cataclysm working good. Some of us have been playing hunter since Vanilla WoW and for some of us, it is our only main character.

It would really be frustrating if the new hunter in Cataclysm had focus problems, like being starved constantly or abilities costing too much focus etc. I call it the new hunter because it will change the way you play your hunter completely, having to manage focus in all cirumstances (especially arenas/BGS) and possibly changing your rotation. Using focus will be so different when using it in PVE than using it in arenas, I hope it is tested enough to be great for both.

The idea is nice, but I fear many patches and changes incoming to the class when Cataclysm lauches, because of the class having problems with the new focus system.

Ghostcrawler

#60 - April 29, 2010, 4:12 a.m.

Q u o t e:

I'm thinking its going to be similar to the Feral druid "rotation" where you achieve maximum damage from using all your abilities at the proper times.

Yeah, I would describe the Feral "rotation" as more of a prioritization. Instead of the player just hitting 123123, they have to make the best decision for their resources at that moment. Feral druids are rarely "starved for resources" unless it's an unusual fight like Vezax. There is almost always a button they can push and the decision is whether to push a cheaper button now or wait a sec or two to push a stronger button.

That's more of how we see the hunter playing. If hunters don't use about the same number of shot that they do now, then we've failed. What will feel different is that you won't hit long stretches of being out of mana.

It's definitely possible that the long term cooldown abilities won't cost any focus. You shouldn't have to bank part of your bar for emergencies.

My apologies if you just really liked mana as a mechanic. For us, and for plenty of hunters -- because they told us constantly -- mana just never fit the hunter class. You're firing arrows, not winding up big spells.