5.4 PTR updates Druid

June 29 2013

I wanted to concentrate Ptr notes, because everytime, as new patchs get released on the ptr you lose sight of early changes.

I'll also give you my sight / opinion on those changes.

This post will be kept updated in the future (goes as well for the War and SP ones).

Druid (Forums / Skills / Talent Calculator) -
5.4 PTR Build 17056

General
Innervate now causes the target to gain mana equal to 50% of the casting Druid’s Spirit every second for 10 seconds.
Wild Mushroom Restoration version of the ability now summons a single mushroom at the friendly target’s location. If the mushroom is recast, the mushroom moves to the new location and retains its accumulated bonus healing. A single mushroom now heals for as much as what 3 mushrooms combined healed for previously.
Wrath has its mana cost increased by 50%.
Talents
Dream of Cenarius has been completely redesigned to reduce complexity and increase usability, but maintain the spirit of the effects. Benefits now varies by specialization.
Balance: Increases the amount healed by Healing Touch by 20%. Casting Healing Touch increases the damage bonus of the Druid's next Eclipse by 10%.
Feral: Increases the amount healed by Healing Touch by 20%. Casting Healing Touch causes the Druid's next Rip to deal 15% increased damage.
Guardian: Increases the amount healed by Healing Touch by 20%. Mangle (Bear) critical strikes have a 20% chance to make the next Healing Touch or Rebirth instant, free, and castable in all forms.
Restoration: Causes Wrath to deal 20% more damage and heals a nearby friendly target for 100% of the damage done.
Heart of the Wild when activated, now also provides a 25% bonus to healing for Restoration Druids.
Mass Entanglement no longer has a limit on the number of targets that could be affected, up from 5.
Nature's Swiftness is no longer a talent, and is now an ability learned by Restoration Druids at level 30.
Nature’s Vigil when activated, causes healing spells now trigger an additional heal on a nearby ally for 25% of the amount healed. This is in addition to the existing effect where it damages a nearby enemy target for 25% of the healing done.
Soul of the Forest has been partially redesigned to make it more attractive to Balance, Guardian, and Restoration Druids.
Balance: Wrath, Starfire, and Starsurge casts have a 8% chance to cause the next Astral Communion to instantly advance the Druid to the next Eclipse.
Guardian: Increases Rage generation from Mangle (Bear) by 20% instead of 30%, but the bonus now also applies to Rage generated by Primal Fury.
Restoration: Now causes the Druid to gain 100% haste (up from 75%) on their next spell after casting Swiftmend.
Ysera's Gift, a new talent healing the Druid for 5% of their maximum health every 5 seconds. If the Druid is at full health, it will heal the most injured friendly target nearby instead. This talent fills the spot vacated by Nature's Swiftness.
Glyphs
New Glyph: Glyph of Efflorescence increases the healing done by Swiftmend by 20%, causes the Efflorescence healing effect to be triggered by Wild Mushroom instead of Swiftmend, and lasts as long as the Wild Mushroom is active.
Glyph of Innervate now causes Innervate to give both the Druid and the target 60% of the normal effect of the spell if it's cast on a target other than the Druid.
Balance
Eclipse now energizes the Druid for 50% of their maximum mana when triggered, up from 35%.
Moonkin Form no longer reduces all damage taken by 15%.
Starfire has its mana cost increased by 50%.
Starsurge has its mana cost increased by 50%.
Restoration
Genesis is a new Restoration spell learned at level 88. Genesis targets all party or raid members within 60 yards and accelerates the casting Druid's Rejuvenation effects, causing them to heal and expire at 400% of the normal rate. Costs the same amount of mana to cast as Rejuvenation.
Swiftmend area-of-effect healing effect is now called Efflorescence.
Wild Mushroom: Bloom is no longer capable of critical strikes, and accumulates overhealing done by Rejuvenation by 100%, down from 150%. Overhealing bonus no longer benefits from Naturalist or Mastery: Harmony.

MMO-Champion

Druid (Forums / Skills / Talent Calculator)

General
Cyclone no longer has a 20-second cooldown for Feral Druids.
Faerie Fire now has a duration of 20 seconds while in PvP combat (down from 40 seconds).
Innervate now causes the target to gain mana equal to 50% of the casting Druid’s Spirit every second for 10 seconds. The total mana gained from this ability can never be less than 8% of the casting Druid's maximum mana, and the amount gained is unaffected by Mana Tide Totem.
Talents
Dream of Cenarius has been completely redesigned to reduce complexity and increase usability, but maintain the spirit of the effects. Benefits now vary by specialization.
Feral: Increases the amount healed by Healing Touch by 20%. Casting Healing Touch increases the damage for the Druid's next two melee abilities by 25%. causes the Druid's next Rip to deal 15% increased damage.
Guardian: Increases the amount healed by Healing Touch by 20%. Mangle (Bear) critical strikes have a 20% chance to make the next Healing Touch or Rebirth instant, free, and castable in all forms. Instant cast version of Healing Touch now benefits from Attack Power instead of Spell Power.
Force of Nature Treant summoned by the Feral version of this talent will now cast Entangling Roots instead of Bash.
Soul of the Forest has been partially redesigned to make it more attractive to Balance, Guardian, and Restoration Druids.
Restoration: Now causes the Druid to gain 100% haste (up from 75%) on their next spell after casting Swiftmend.
Glyphs
Glyph of Ferocious Bite now causes Ferocious Bite to heal the Druid for 2% of their maximum health for each 10 Energy used (up from 1%).
Glyph of the Master Shapeshifter now reduces the mana cost of all shapeshifts by 100% (up from 90%).
Glyph of Pounce now increases the range of Pounce by 8 yards (up from 3 yards).
Glyph of Skull Bash now increases the duration of Skull Bash interrupt by 2 seconds, and increasing the cooldown by 5 seconds (down from a 4 second interrupt and 10 second increase to cooldown).
Balance
Moonkin Form now increases the Druid's armor by 60%, but no longer reduces all damage taken by 15%.
Feral
Predatory Swiftness no longer has a chance to make Cyclone instant, free, and castable in all forms.
Restoration
Living Seed effects can now stack, up to 50% of the casting Druid's maximum health.

MMO-Champion

Growl now also increases threat that you generate against the target by 200% for 3 sec.

MMO-Champion

As you can see DoC change was reverted for feral.

Huge change with PS, you now can't use PS procs for cyclone, and as NS is removed for ferals & moonkins, it means you'll be left to cast it.

As I like that the cooldown is removed, I'm not sure about the complete removal of instant cyclone, as you probably never be free to cast them, I already cast a lot of cyclones, I mean try casting them because I'm most of the time getting interrupted in some way (kicks, gouge, stuns...).

Treants nerf seems harsh, with cyclone being off PS, I don't think extra roots are usefull, meaning Incarnation remains the king on that line.

Moonkin Form gets a 60% armor increase instead of the 15% dmg reduction, (as Shadowform, it's nowhere near enough, especially since most classes do mixed damage (Ret, Dk, Rogue), or simply ignore part of armor (Warrior, Rogue, Feral).

Restoration & Balance

Nature's Swiftness is now a Resto and Balance spec spell.

MMO-Champion

Survavibility / utility buff for moonkins, hopefull NS will go baseline for ferals too.