World of Warcraft®

Hello,

just out of curiosity, what is the consensus on the best single target (or MT primary healer)? I haven't played in a year or so, and back then supposedly holy paladins had that title.

No utility considered, just raw single target HPS

At level 80? Paladins still, although Shamans and Disc are good as well.

At 85? Every spec is able to deal with single target healing quite well.
Holy Pallies - powerful targeted heals and instant casts
Resto Shamans - Powerful casted heals and mastery that increases their potency on wounded targets, plus ES
Resto Druids - more reliant on HoTs but since their durations were decreased they have more of an effect over shorter periods of time
Holy Priest - Single target Chakra state is great combined with Holy Word: Serenity
Disc Priest - damage absorption is good, two good reduction cooldowns for single targets, Penance is cheap and heals for similar to Flash Heal at 85.

Hello,

just out of curiosity, what is the consensus on the best single target (or MT primary healer)? I haven't played in a year or so, and back then supposedly holy paladins had that title.

No utility considered, just raw single target HPS

Yes holy paladins very much still hold the title for 'best' single target healer.

If a healer and a tank were stuck in front of a boss, you would want a holy paladin. They have extremely potent instant heals as well as a mastery that acts like a disc priest's bubbles.

At the same time, and as is the case at 80, shamans and druids can also successfully tank heal. Healers have been 'homogenized' some but if you were after 1 tank healer and 1 raid healer at 80 you would pick a holy paladin as tank healer but not as raid healer even though they are capable of doing so if you cannot find an alternative.

At 85 with the new buffed priest heals, a disc priest would be the top tank healer with 3 stacks of grace on the target.

Honestly whatever the answer is now is subject to change many times. They've made it so that each spec has the right spells to be able to succeed as an AoE healer and as a tank healer, assuming the numbers are right. It'll be up to to Blizzard balancing the numbers to determine which one actually is highest, and I'm sure it'll change a ton throughout the expansion.

I kinda want to say it's the player, no so much the class, but....

The fact that everyone thinks it's them is a good thing I suppose.

Although imo, the Pally healing model is the most consistent since they can still maintain good healing while moving + chip in raid healing with LoD that transfers for a whopping beacon heal.

I think a Disc Priest is the Best Tank Healer in the game at 85. 24% more Healing, so we have much larger Renews, and PoM's. Also Heals. Throw in our Shields, 2 Damage Reduction Talents, and that we can heal ourselves, while healing them? I think we hold the new title.

With Holy Paladins being slightly behind, if not on par.

I think a Disc Priest is the Best Tank Healer in the game at 85. 24% more Healing, so we have much larger Renews, and PoM's. Also Heals. Throw in our Shields, 2 Damage Reduction Talents, and that we can heal ourselves, while healing them? I think we hold the new title.

With Holy Paladins being slightly behind, if not on par.

Unfortunately for you disc priests this will never be the case. Disc priests are all about damage mitigation. They do it well. If blizzard starts getting numbers telling them that active healing from disc priests is greater than a holy paladins (note: current numbers from beta raids say this is far from true) they will nerf it. It's how healers are made to mesh.

Sorry

I think a Disc Priest is the Best Tank Healer in the game at 85. 24% more Healing, so we have much larger Renews, and PoM's.

A Holy Priest in Heal Chakra generates 15% more throughput via Spiritual Healing, 10%+ more from the Mastery, 39% more via Serendipity and +25% critical (over Discipline, the 10% from Chakra and Renewed Hope cancel out) 50% of the time. Nor is Holy dependent on cooldown effects (although it does have them, including the best 'panic button' in the game) like Discipline is.

Discipline has excellent single target heals. But that doesn't mean it's an excellent single target healer.

Druid mastery is built around tank healing, they'll be very powerful tank healers, if not reluctant ones.

No utility considered,

Is a terrible way to look at things. There is no encounter in the game, including patchwerk, where utility has no value.

Idk what 85 will bring, but I always hated going into a raid and being assigned tank heals as disc.

Really? I really like tank healing as Disc in WotLK. Raid healing was ok, but I much prefered tank healing.

Hello,

just out of curiosity, what is the consensus on the best single target (or MT primary healer)? I haven't played in a year or so, and back then supposedly holy paladins had that title.

No utility considered, just raw single target HPS

It doesn't matter. For what raiding remains to be done the next week, any class and spec can do the job with current gear levels and/or the ICC buff.

After that, at level 85, raw single target HPS is a fairly meaningless metric.

Druid mastery is built around tank healing, they'll be very powerful tank healers, if not reluctant ones.

the druid mastery is built around having *a* hot on a target, that will make them good tank healers but it is also affecting their raid healing as well. wild growth counts as a hot for these purposes. raid healing will consist of well timed wg and a few rejuvs + good use of efflorescence.