Welcome to the long overdue latest installment of my series on BM PvP. This post was actually scratched out in December, but never quite finished. Anyway, I revisited it, added a couple things, groomed it a little bit, and voila! A new post! 🙂
So, without further ado… let’s get to it.
While not as cut and dry as PvE shot priorities for hunters, there are some basic fundamentals to the best PvP shot selection. This of course varies, depending upon the encounter, but there are some basic rules of thumb that I want to go over in this post.
My intention here is just to examine the shots available to us BM hunters, and to demonstrate how important and useful they are in PvP situations. There is no “magic kill rotation”, so decisions on which shots to use need to be made on the fly. Hopefully my post will help shed some light on those choices.
BM PvP Shot Priority & Shot Mechanics
The BM PvP shot priority is pretty simple.
BM PVP Shot Priority Quick Reference Chart
- Kill Shot
- Aimed Shot
- All other shots
Unlike PvE, the PvP shot priority is not an exact science. There are some fundamental guidelines that one can follow, but the Beast Master’s shot priority in PvP is greatly influenced by each type of encounter. That said, let’s examine our arsenal of ranged abilities…
Kill Shot
Just as in PvE, Kill Shot should be used immediately once your target is at or below 20% health. Once I get the notification that Kill Shot is ready, it usually means good night for my enemy, especially if they’re clad in PvE gear trying to glass-cannon me. Those are the best. BOOM! 😉
While not as noticed in PvE, Kill Shot has another incredible advantage for PvP in addition to it’s high damage. This is of course the added 10 yard range of the shot, which makes it a tremendous ability for finishing off flag carriers and fleeing opponents. 😈
Use Kill Shot as often as possible. This obviously isn’t a revelation, but it needs mentioning nonetheless.
Aimed Shot
Any time you engage an enemy this should be the first of your hostile attacks. The reason being, you need to get the healing debuff applied as soon as possible. Aimed Shot makes it more difficult for healers to keep themselves or an affected teammate up.
In addition to the reduced healing effect, Aimed Shot is also on the Beast Master’s short list of ranged instant cast damaging abilities. It is very important that you use this shot every cooldown in order to maintain any kind of offensive pressure. As I’d mentioned in a previous post, make sure your glyphed for it as well.
Arcane Shot
Arcane Shot won’t bring the business like Chimera or Explosive will, but it’s pretty much what we’ve got to work with as Beast Masters. That’s not to say it’s an underpowered shot. It can actually hit pretty hard if you’re properly talented, plus it’s pure non armor mitigated magic damage. The best kind to dish out when it comes to PvP.
Arcane Shot also has a chance to proc Cobra Strikes, which obviously is something you want to get going ASAP. An Arcane Shot crit with an ensuing Cobra Strike proc will get your rumble started on a good note.
Serpent Sting
Since burst damage is the name of the game in PvP, Serpent Sting doesn’t shine quite as brightly as it does in PvE. However, it’s still a useful shot in PvP. It provides a little added DPS, it can be cast on the run, and it keeps Rogues in check. It’s also a good idea to apply it because enemies will try to dispel it, and if they don’t, well that’s good too. 😀 The more debuffs and DoTs the better, as they not only boost your damage, but also cause enemies to blow mana trying to cleanse them.
The caveat with Serpent Sting is that it can break crowd control, which is obviously a huge concern in PvP. The solution to this is to remove it from your target by applying Scorpid Sting or Viper Sting, in the event that you or another player are about to set up the target for CC. Both of those shots cause zero damage and will overwrite the Serpent Sting.
Steady Shot
Steady Shot falls down the priority list in PvP, mainly due to the simple fact that you need to be standing still for a set period of time in order to cast it. However, it’s a fantastic shot for Beast Masters to utilize when we do get the opportunity. It’s fairly easy to settle in and get some steadies off in a a battleground, but in arena, not so much. It’s better to rely upon instant cast shots and auto shot, rather than trying to force a steady only to have your cast interrupted.
A good time to unload some steadies is following an Intimidation, or while your target is creeping through your Frost Trap or slowed by your two headed monster’s frosty breath. In fact, anytime you’re unmolested is a good time to go into steady mode. Steadies have a chance to proc Cobra Strikes as well, so it’s a good shot to use if the situation is right. As I’d said though, don’t stand there trying to force them while an enemy player is kicking your face in and causing your casts to hiccup.
Multi-Shot
Unless you’re going for most damage done in your BG (which you shouldn’t be really), I don’t advise the use of Multi-Shot in PvP. The main reason for this is simply for the fact that it shares a cooldown with Aimed Shot.
Sometimes it may seem like a good way to clear cut a totem forest, or maybe you just want to fire it into a pack of enemies and watch big numbers fly. The problem with that is, you then prevent the use of your Aimed Shot for another 8 seconds. The healing debuff is critical for PvP, so be very cautious about using Multi-Shot if at all.
Note: Volley can be an effective substitution for Multi-Shot when dealing with enemy totems.
Concussive Shot
“Helping hunters kite since level 8”.
For obvious reasons, Concussive Shot is one of the staples in the PvP shot selection. I don’t really think you need me to tell you when to you use it, but just to make sure… fire it when you want to slow someone down. If you don’t need to slow anyone, then use a DPS ability instead. ‘Nuff said.
Tranquilizing Shot
If you’re not using this shot in PvP, then you should be. It’s an important shot to use in order to knock off damage mitigating buffs such as Hand of Sacrifice, Power Word: Shield, Ice Barrier, etc. Since it only “attempts” to remove one magic effect at a time, there’s no guarantee that you’ll knock off an enemy buff, let alone the one you want. That said, I do use the shot quite a bit actually. In order to dispel the key buff, it’s helpful if you can keep the enemy’s buff stacks to a minimum.
Tranq Shot is also nice for clipping a Paladin’s wings and removing Hand of Freedom. It’s not a gimme though, so don’t count on the shot when trying to escape an advancing Ret. It is great when it works though.
The shot does no damage, costs a ton of mana and has only about a 50/50 chance of a random dispel, so use it, but try to use it wisely.
Viper Sting
Double DPS 2v2 isn’t about the drain game, so I seldom use Viper Sting. In fact, most BM hunters are probably not going to rely upon this shot too much. For one, it’s not improved in a proper BM PvP talent build. Second, our success hinges upon killing things quickly. Waiting for the opposition to go oom isn’t usually a tactic that bodes well for us.
I do use it on occasion however. I find that in cases where my partner and I have been ineffective at taking down our focus-fire target, yet have hung in long enough to get the healer near oom, Viper Sting is a good finisher. Same goes with BGs. I very seldom use this shot until I see a caster (mainly healers) between 5-10%. At that point, this shot helps them along and makes it easier for me to dispatch them or their teammate. 😈 Before that however, I prefer to use DPS abilitiess instead, as Viper Sting for BM hunters is just not that effective.
Scorpid Sting
This shot is really only good for overwriting a Serpent Sting when you’re preparing a physical damage dealing class for CC. I hardly ever utilize this shot in PvP.
Volley
About the only time I use Volley in PvP is when I’m trying to pop out a stealthed target. It is useful for checking out certain areas, or as cover for a teammate when they’re venturing out away from your flare.
It can also be somewhat effective for stomping totems, but again, it’s seldom we get an opportunity to free cast. Generally speaking, Volley is pretty gimmicky for us hunters in PvP since it’s a channeled AoE ability. Apart from using it to pop stealthed targets, I wouldn’t strongly recommend it for anything else.
Burst Capability
One of the downfalls of being a Beast Master is that it’s more difficult to maintain serious pressure on your target for any real length of time. Marksmanship and Survival Hunters are both better suited for delivering high damage with regularity. However, the upside is we have the biggest advantage when it comes to delivering high uninterrupted burst, albeit within a small window. The key is to time things properly.
In my opinion, we have three major offensive cooldowns. Bestial Wrath is obviously the first one that comes to mind, as well as being the premier ability for burst damage. Yet, unless I’m in a situation where, “I absolutely need to pop TBW right now or this Rogue is going to own my face” I try to play without it. This allows me to always have the cooldown when I need it most.
Sometimes this can be at the very beginning of an arena match or BG encounter. It’s not necessarily something to always refrain from using right away. Basically if the situation is right, pop it. However, don’t just mash it because the cooldown is up, use it because you need to.
As opposed to PvE, where you want to use every cooldown as soon as it’s ready, in PvP I try to rely upon more of my baseline abilities, leaving TBW as my “Ace in the Hole” so to speak. In other words, I use it very sparingly. I feel this technique not only makes me a more effective BM hunter, but it also gives me the peace of mind knowing that I can cash in on my TBW insurance policy when I need it most.
This style of play will no doubt help anyone get the most out of this spec, while also honing their huntering abilities. It’s so satisfying to dispose of two BG attackers, while still having TBW at the ready for when the 3rd comes at you moments later. 😉
Note: For PvP, whatever you do, do not macro Intimidation with Bestial Wrath. These two abilities are far too powerful independently to just use together without even thinking. Often times they can compliment one another quite well, but make sure you have complete control over that decision. Which brings me to my next bit.
Although Intimidation is a form of CC, I consider it to be one of BM’s offensive cooldowns. Even without Bestial Wrath, a BM Hunter can easily take down a target that’s at say 30-40% while under the effect of an Intimidation. While I do use the ability for hard target switches and peels, I like it best for a kill setup. Having control of this ability independently of Bestial Wrath is a definite advisement.
Lastly, there’s the old hunter standby… Rapid Fire. In BGs I use it whenever I think I’ll be able to stand back and pew pew for at least 8-10 seconds, provided I really need the added burst. In arena however, I usually save this as a backup in case Bestial Wrath wasn’t enough to finish off my target.
I do pop it on occasion while enraged, provided I’m unmolested and not being LoS’d, but usually I try to save it for two reasons:
One, it blows another GCD, which cuts into my burst window of 10 seconds. Two, and more importantly, I don’t like blowing my entire wad all at once. A Beast Master without any cooldowns is one of, if not the weakest DPS spec in the game. If my target’s still standing after Bestial Wrath, at least I know I still have Rapid Fire waiting if I get the opportunity.
Tip: In the event that your target tries to LoS you during TBW, switch to Aspect of the Beast until you can get a clear shot. That way your pet will be dishing out as much DPS as possible while they play ring round the rosies with you.
Defensive Abilities
Managing defensive cooldowns properly is of great importance with any hunter spec, but especially with Beast Mastery. If you can learn to refrain from crutching on the Get out of Jail Free Card (TBW), and instead get by with the lesser tools, you’ll be better able to handle any and all encounters.
So here’s what we got…
Disengage
An awesome ability for obvious reasons. It gets you out of sticky situations, and fast. However, it can also be used as a preemptive strike or a smoke and mirrors type of play. Once you learn to position yourself properly, and provided you have good situational awareness, you can do some cool things with Disengage. You can swing around and launch yourself right behind an enemy target to lay a clutch Wing Clip, zoom yourself right into LoS and range of your healer, etc.
Just like so many other tools, it’s a great ability but one that needs practice. I’ve read many horror stories about hunters disengaging off of the cliff at the Lumber Mill, or the bridge(s) in EotS. In fact, I may have even done something like that at one time or another. 🙄
Anyway, practice and learn to rely upon Disengage. It’s cheap and has only a 20 second cooldown when glyphed. Explore what you can do with it and get familiar with its cooldown. It is one of our extremely useful baseline abilities.
Deterrence
I sometimes pop Deterrence early on in a match in order to escape enemy burst and to better prepare for my assault. Being that it blocks all incoming spells and attacks, it’s very useful when you think you’re about to be Death Gripped, Dismantled, HoJ’ed, etc. It’s a great tool for when you’re in real danger of course, but it’s definitely something to utilize early in a fight if needed.
Enemies will often burn cooldowns right off the start in hopes of a quick kill, or to at least get you on your heels. Utilizing Deterrence right away can help you escape a huge amount of burst damage, not to mention CC.
One practical usage is to run through an opponent or pack of enemies while laying a trap amongst them. Deterrence should be up long enough for you to attain a safe distance, leaving your assailant(s) snared in a fog of frostiness. Resume pew-pew on said slowed target(s) and profit.
Master’s Call
This is a tremendous ability for BM Hunters, as it gives us 10 whole seconds of root and snare immunity. That is huge, especially when used following The Beast Within. If you’re in melee range when TBW is about to wear off, just pop Master’s Call and carry on about your business.
If I pop a Rogue or Feral out of stealth before they have a chance to open on me, I’ll sometimes punch this right off the bat, so as to avoid getting locked down. Just as with Deterrence, Master’s Call is great to use before you get into trouble.
Feign Death
The classic cheap ass hunter pvp move, and a highly valued one at that. I use this all the time, and with the Glyph of Feign Death, we have it available every 25 seconds. This move can save your hide. Usually it’s not going to fool anyone into thinking you’re finished, but once in a blue moon it will. I’ve had opponents switch to my teammate while I’ve snuck around the corner for a few bandage ticks, only to reappear and deliver a fatal assault. 😈
Most important though, is that it causes your enemy to drop you as a target. If you follow this up with a Snake Trap you can set in motion a flurry of cussing for any tab targeters that are after you. By the time they put a bead on you, you’ll probably be 30 yards out with a daze on them. Feign Death is highly useful as a defensive PvP ability.
Intimidation
I referred to this earlier as what I would consider an offensive ability, but it’s also equally as powerful for survival, especially if you’re trying to get distance on a sprinting Rogue. Try to use it for a burst setup, but if need be, don’t hesitate to pop it if you need to create distance quickly.
Intimidation is also a great way to set up for a Freezing Arrow. Unless they’re mouth breathers, most opponents know to avoid Freezing Arrows. The long trap arming time gives players ample time to sidestep them. However, if you preemptively strike with an intimidation, it buys you a few seconds of stun in order to effectively put them on ice.
Another defensive ability I use just about every single cooldown is…
Shadowmeld (Night Elves)
I love this ability for PvP. I also find it amusing that it still catches people off guard. It serves a similar purpose as that of Feign Death. It causes your enemy to drop you as a target, thus avoiding the next melee attack, or cancelling a hostile spell cast against you. It’s gimmicky, but it works.
Another time I use it is at the start of every match in Orgrimmar Arena. Those of you who arena are probably aware of the bugged platform, which causes pets to often become stuck at the start of a match. To combat this BS, I dismiss my pet after he’s been buffed, then Shadowmeld. Once the match begins, I immediately haul ass off the platform, call my pet, then send him in to battle.
This system not only combats the disadvantage we hunters have to deal with in that arena, but it also prevents me from getting CC’d right off the bat. When those walls come down around that elevator, us hunters are sitting ducks for CC in that arena. Shadowmeld buys me a few precious seconds to get positioned, as well as avoid the initial CC and possible follow-up burst. Plus, it also causes our opponents to think my partner has a Rogue with him. 😉 Then out comes Hunter Fury!
Stoneform and Thunderstomp are also outstanding PvP racials, but being that I don’t have any level 80 experience as a Dwarf and have never rolled a Tauren, I’ll leave those comments to someone else. I will say however, that Stoneform seems like it would be invaluable versus Rogues and Thunderstomp is just, well… awesome.
Well that’s it for today. I still have more to discuss, including macros and addons. Not exactly sure when I’ll get to it, but hopefully soon. 🙂
Cheers!
Hey Garwulf! I just versed you in strand of the ancients! kinda got me excited considering u kinda taught me how to play =D
HaHa Yea! Awesome! I was running around that column trying to stay alive. 🙂
You guys pretty much punched us in the mouth in that SotA. 🙁
Thanks for stopping by, and keep up the good work!
first of all. thanks for this awesome site. it’s my hunter wikipedia. my first question is: does a pet keep attacking if I go into deterrence, feign death, or shadowmeld? secondly, i have really noob gear right now and im 60. i just started doing bg’s and im having a lot of fun so i would like to gear up better. i wanted to get the field marshall set but i’ve read in some places that its better to save the honor points and wait for the level 70 set. what is your opinion? again, i have really noob gear right now. also, if you get a chance, could you give me a good talent build(for
bg’s) for level 60? and talent build for chimera pet also? thanks!!!!! I started using your macros and they’re truly amazing, especially against those rogues that used to ruin my fun.
and yes druids are not fun ='{ stacking tranqs on them and interrupting with arcane torrent = a bit of a hard time = /
hey gar – thanks for the quick replys, yes i found the ferocity build by accident haha : )
but aye, ill check it out when i head back into arenas with my mate around 800 atm : D and thanks once again /bow
sorry i forgot one thing
what would you use talents on in ferocity? i can link the talents im using atm : )
I’d go with this: http://www.wowhead.com/petcalc#mqd00csz0hoRb
This build is all about damage and pressure, which is why you’d want to use a ferocity pet for PvP. I don’t use HotP, as you have to sacrifice too much DPS in order to get it. Greater Stamina isn’t a bad option in place of Cobra Reflexes, but personally I like the faster attack speed for the caster interrupts, plus it also gives your pet more chances to crit.
hey i found these articles by accident : ) im loving them, but as a BM hunter i have a few questions
1- i currently use a devilsaur the burst seems tremendous and i barely ever get locked down – thoughts?
2 – i also have in my stables loque’nahak, chimera, core hound. i use my devilsaur allmost 100% in PvP, but i do get loque out if i just want to have people go wow nice pet, but which one is best?
3 – im running with a ret pally freind, where finding the matches ok but any tips?
im sorry i kinda wrote a list ^_^ answer if you like but no biggy : ) ok thanks again
-Huntarolo Turalyon-EU
Hello and welcome Huntarolo,
I use my Devilsaur sometimes for the same reasons. The damage is fantastic, plus I think other players probably underestimate a guy with a Devilsaur, because it’s not really what many consider a PvP pet. That said… in BGs they can be great fun, but if you plan on doing any arena, then I suggest going with either a Core Hound, Chimaera, Silithid or a worm. In BGs you can get away with it, but in arena you need a little added utility to go along with the damage.
The Devilsaur will put out a bit more damage than the Spirit Beast, but the SB has a couple of advantages. For one, the ranged attack is helpful for getting into combat quickly. This is helpful for preventing a Warrior’s charge or a Rogue’s sap, etc. The DoT on the Spirit Strike can be helpful with breaking Vanish. Honestly though, neither pet is really that much more effective than the other for PvP. Use whichever you prefer.
If you want my opinion though, I say use the Chimaera. 😉
I responded to a previous comment with a few suggestions and tips. Scroll up and you’ll see them. In addition to what I noted there, I have to say that I’ve found this season to be a little harder on the combo. In general, I think that healer/dps is generally more powerful in S8 than dps/dps.
At any rate, most of our success of late is a result of usually going straight in and going for the jugular right away. This is because it not only helps to be on the aggressive to catch them off guard, but also because our trinket procs are cooking right at the start. It’s key to try and maximize the combo’s burst potential, especially vs healer/dps. Since we’re most powerful in the first 30sec of the match, we try to come out of the gates with guns blazing, not giving our opponents time to react.
Since this combo is primarily about pure coordinated burst, you just have to make sure you’re both on the same target and that you take care to set up what limited CC you do have. Sometimes we can surprise a healer and nuke their teammate before they know what hit them, but usually we have to CC the heals in order to get a kill.
I find Druids to be a problem for this combo, since their HoTs are still ticking away on their teammate even while they’re CC’d. Not to mention Cyclone. :-\
Gar quick question. If you were just starting out arenas and had mostly furious with the exception of your chest which is still deadly…..what is your first priority as far as arena gear goes? Should I work on a my Relentless set…then work on weapons and such?
The jump in stats from Deadly to Furious is pretty good. If you have a decent team though, I’d work on replacing all of your stuff with Relentless. As long as you’re earning points each week, there’s no sense in going for any gear pcs before S7. Your first upgrade should be deadly to relentless chest.
After that, I’d look to your off-set pieces. If you have any item slots that would benefit from the added health and resilience, go for replacements there.
I try to maintain at least 1K resilience, with a mix of PvP and PvE gear. I equip whatever combination gives me the most bang for the buck.
I think the four most important things to keep in mind when gearing for PvP (as a Beast Master)…
– 5%-6% hit chance
– 1K resilience minimum
– Titanium weapon chain
– PvP trinket
Once those needs are met, just start working on buffing your damage.
I always go for my armor first, because I tend to go with what helps me right now. PvE weapons are fine for arena, so I typically wait until after I’ve got my armor buffed before I start thinking about new weps.
Sadly enough my hunter isn’t part of the team. I am running on my Disc Priest. We are above .500 which I am happy with for now. I just wanted to know what path you would take in the situation.
Thras,
Just try your best to maintain 30+ yards on the Warrior and make sure to Deterrence his Bladestorm. Keep Tranq Shot on him to knock of his buffs – especially his enrage effects.
One of the key ways to beat this team is by exploiting their mistakes. I find often times the Warrior will get tunnel vision on either me or my partner, not being mindful of where his healer is. These cases are the best, as you can sometimes catch them off guard by snaring the druid and focusing the Warrior while he’s unable to get heals.
Like I said though, if the Warrior knows what he’s doing, doesn’t LoS his healer, and is geared… it’s gonna be tough. In those cases, there’s not a heck of a lot you can do, apart from hopefully getting a good CC on the Druid. I’ve seen my Ret partner get torn to shreds within 5-10 seconds by a well geared Warrior.
Practice, practice, practice…
Hey Gar! Ok remember when i said I’ve been 2v2’ing with a Surv/Holy combo? Well, i decided I should try your combo and do BM/Ret. I am LOVING this setup and I thank you so much for it; we got to 1750 with this setup. With Surv/Holy, we only got to 1500. However, we seem to have trouble with some setups, and would be very thankful if you could share your thoughts about them. Here are some of the setups that really frustrate us! >=( Holy pally/Unholy DK, Frost Mage/ Holy pally, Warlock/Shadow priest, and the one that pisses me off the most: Warrior/Resto Druid >.<
Thanks in advance!
-Thras
Thras,
I’m glad to hear you’re enjoying the combo. We’re having a rough go of it this season. I’m not entirely sure as to why, but I’m thinking some of it has to do with the resilience changes. I figured it would help us, but I think it’s actually caused us to have a somewhat tougher time with healer/dps teams.
Anyway, let’s see here…
Holy Pally & Unholy DK
I hate this combo myself. If the team is good, they’ll beat us 9 out of 10 times. DK is the anti-Pally, with all sorts of damage mitigation and tools up their sleeves. It’s hard to put any kind of sustained pressure on them.
They have so many ways to snare, slow, and close the gap, plus their AMS nerfs a Ret’s damage by a considerable amount. Then, even if you are lucky enough to apply enough pressure to get them low, say while the pally’s CC’d, they can just sacrifice their pet and they’re back up again. Meanwhile, one of us is probably down to 20% at this point.
My experience has been that we usually lose to this combo, unless the pally is wearing a lot of PvE gear. In that case, we’ll usually focus him or the DK until the bubble, then get on the Pally and stay on him after the bubble’s blown. Sometimes this works, but often times even if we do drop the Pally, I’m usually dead by then. A Ret 1v1 vs a DK is usually a loss for my partner.
That team’s tough, so you just have to be really good with the CC and hopefully catch them off guard.
Frost Mage & Holy Pally
This is another very tough combo. Mages have so many slows, snares & cc, along with damage mitigation buffs and an ice block. Plus, the Pally has his bubble as well.
You can’t really let the Mage free cast, so we just sit on him unless he’s blocked or bubbled. Against a decent team, the only chance is to survive through the burst long enough for us to hopefully get a repentance/trap on the Pally, then burn the Mage down.
Just like Holy Pally/UhDK, this sort of the rock to our scissors. Don’t feel too bad about losing to these combos. If played well, there’s not a lot you can do. they both have too many ways to keep your Ret partner under control.
Warlock & Shadow Priest
We’ll typically nuke the Shadow Priest right off the bat. I find BM pretty effective vs this combo due to the fear immunity, huge burst, and the fact that my pet can get in and do a lot of the work. I also use Snake Traps against this combo, as they provide a nice spell interrupt and casting slow debuff.
This is one of those matches where we just charge straight in and punch them in the mouth. The S Priest is usually down by the time my BW wears off.
Warrior & Resto Druid
You’ll be happy to know, we usually always win these. There are times when the warrior is geared to the teeth and eats my Pally for breakfast, but often times we come out on top.
Pound the Warrior’s face in from the start. Send your pet in right away to take away his charge, then just kite him around. Eventually the Druid will stop to cast a big heal or to shift out and cast a Cyclone. At this time, you want to try and get him in a Freezing Trap/Arrow. If he shifts out your Pally should try and Repentance him then, allowing for a nice chain CC.
You might be able to burn the Warrior down at this point, but if the Druid was able to HoT him up enough before the CC, then you probably won’t. Once the Druid breaks CC, he’s going to pour a bunch of heals on the Warrior. That’s when you switch.
Once the Druid’s got the warrior all HoT’ed up, switch to the druid and focus fire. Often times we’ll catch the Druid off guard and drop him here. If he survives through that, then the Warrior should be fair game at that point., as the Druid will have all of the HoTs ticking on himself.
The key to winning against this team is synchronized hard switches, along with CC.
As I’d mentioned in an earlier BM PvP post, make sure to use Tranq Shot when facing these teams. It’s often a good one to cast if they pop out while trying to LoS you at the start of a match. The sooner you can get those buffs knocked off, the easier it’ll be to take them down.
Since I’m not exactly Joe Gladiator, I don’t really feel qualified to write any guides or anything like that, but hopefully at least something I said will help. 😉
Ah, Thanks so much for your reply Garwulf! The reason I asked for your strategies wasn’t exactly because you’re a pro, but rather just to know your experiences with those teams; and if you also had a hard time against them.
See, the problem we had against the Warrior/Druid team was that we always seemed to try and nuke the druid right off the bat, because that is how we won every time we faced those teams. I never thought of starting with the warrior so the druid can throw all of the HoTs on him, and secretly ninja switching to the druid. That’s why I rely on you for BM facts hehe….
Thanks again Garwulf!
That’s what they’d like you to do I’m sure. Trying to nuke down a Druid in tree form while a warrior with full rage and health is beating your ass is usually a losing battle. They just don’t go down quick enough.
There are also times where we can last long enough to get the Druid close to oom. That’s when I start laying on the Viper Stings. At that point you definitely got em.
Still can’t beat em!!! I understand what you’re trying to do though. You want us to start off on the warrior so that the druid gets all of his HoTs of on him, then we switch to the druid when he has no more HoTs for himself… but they still manage to kill me =(
I macroed my parachute in to Disengage. That way if I happen to go base jumping at some moment I may survive.
That’s also a really good way to grab some extra distance.
I really wish I was an engineer. 🙁 I’d hate to drop LW given all of the recipes I have, but I suppose I could always drop skinning. Hmmm…
Hey gar, you said something about the pet glitching in Orgrimmar Arena. Not many hunters from what I have seen are aware of this, but there IS a way to defeat this glitch.
What causes the gltich is when you use an offencive ability while your pet is still on the platform. If possable, refrain from attacking until you see your pet go elsewhere. However, I understand that this isn’t always possable, and there is another way to deal with it.
In the event your pet glitches out on this BS arena, start spamming Pet on Passive. This will make your pet appear at your side, ready to kill. Just be aware that this HAS happened to me mid – fight, behind one of the pillars. Same solution there too.
As for the videos, I think it would be a GREAT addition for your site to include videos on PvP, shot rotation, etc. Would really help me understand more of what you have to say, and I’m sure I’m not alone on that one!
@ Nanotrev
The reason I think it will still be a viable talent for BGs is because we typically have more opportunities to cast Steady Shot. Hunters have an environmental advantage in BGs in my opinion, where as in arena we’re confined to a relatively small area that poses many LoS issues. I cast Steadies quite a bit in BGs.
Also, PvP gear possesses little in the way of hit rating, making Focused Aim a good option as opposed to gemming and enchanting. This in turn will allow for more DPS enhancing gems/enchants, plus nearly eliminate any Steady Shot cast interrupts.
Catlike Reflexes is really a BM soloing talent. I wouldn’t recommend it for PvP, especially in place of Spirit Bond. Spirit Bond is amazing for PvP. 10% added benefit from all healing effects, plus a 2% passive heal every 10 seconds.
I’m regenerating about 4K health per minute while in combat. Out of combat, it often saves me time from bandaging or eating. When I do have to do either of those, I’m getting 10% more health regeneration, allowing me to heal up quicker and get back into the fray if needed. Don’t forget your pet is also regenerating and getting more from your Mend Pet.
Seriously, I wouldn’t recommend catlike Reflexes for anything beyond a BM PvE soloing build.
Thx for that nice guide, i used to play BM in arenas but for sure not deeply enough to understand it like you do !
Concerning a video, don’t worry too much about the editing imho, what’s interesting is you, not the special fx 🙂 !
Looking at the 3.3.3 patch notes, it looks like the 9% buff to Arcane Shot from fully-talented Ferocious Inspiration will be replaced with a Steady Shot buff.
I hadn’t caught that yet Boz. Thanks.
My initial reaction to this is that it’s Blizz’s way of buffing BM without increasing its burst capability in PvP. In short, I think this sucks.
It will most likely improve BM DPS in raids, but being that Steady Shot is more of a PvE ability, this is going to further hurt Beast Masters in arena. It’s not a huge nerf like the 10 sec BW/TBW, but it’s a minor one. Maybe they’ll change it again before it goes live… who knows.
This is an interesting change for sure. It might provide some nice results for BM hunters with a lot of armor pen.
What do you think of it? For a PvP build, is Ferocious Inspiration not worth spec’ing into anymore?
Well, I think it’ll certainly still be an effective talent for BGs. Speaking from personal experience, I rarely get a chance to cast Steadies in arena. If I do, we’re probably on our way to a victory anyway.
Since my partner is a Ret, I’m thinking of dropping it myself. In arena, all I gain from the talent is the 9% boost to Arcane Shot, since his buff provides the same 3% boost to damage. I may put those two of the points into Improved Revive Pet and the other point into Improved Mend Pet.
This change does have me curious about BM for raiding though. Hmmm… Might be fun to try it again and bring King Krush into ICC for a week or two. 😉
I’m not sure if I like it for BGs once the change goes through. Will 3% added damage and a buff to concussive shot really be worth it in BGs? If I hold still long enough for Steady Shot I’m dead so I don’t really see any point in either the damage boost for being so small or the buff it gives to Steady Shot. I may just max out Mend Pet and Revive Pet, leaving two points out of Spirit Bond since I haven’t seen it do much for me. The three other points will be put into Catlike Reflexes with a macro put into the shots on my cast bar to proc Kill Command whenever it’s available. What do you think?
As for using my own tamed King Krush in raids, I’m very much looking forwards to that! 🙂
Hey Gar,
Thanks for more useful BM PvP info. Although I’m still trying desperately to gear up despite the fact that Alliance can’t win WG to save their lives on my server, it is always good to put into practice what I can while in a BG in preparation for the eventual forray into arenas.
I took your advice and tamed a chimera (since right now its BGs and WG that make up the bulk of my PvP) and he is soooo bada$$! Between his debuff, freezing traps and Concussive Shot people move sloooooooow for a fairly long period of time when I want them to. I can only imagine their frustrations. >=)
Anyway, keep the goods coming. I can’t put it into practice fast enough. Thanks for all your help.
You should really get Fraps or Sony Vegas and record some of your arena matches. That’d be cool to watch.
If I ever get good I just may do that. 😉
I’m not exactly poetry in motion in arena, but I do alright. I think I could make an entertaining BG video though. Problem is finding the time for those kinds of things. Would be fun though.