Depending on how long you've been playing WoW, you may or may not have seen the elusive beast known as the Shockadin. This rare creature resists the lure of vengeance and instead fights with the purity of the Light on his side. He also has a bad habit of being a crazy nutso zealot to anyone that tells him he can't play the way he wants, but I digress.
Shockadins have all but disappeared from modern WoW. Sure, you see a few in arenas, and some staunch protectors of the build still out doing their thing (their thing usually being ~2.5k DPS in heroics...), but for the most part the shockadin died with the release of 3.0.1.
Now that we're nearing 4.0.1, some former shockadins - myself included - have wondered if there might be any hope for this rebel build. At first glance, it seems impossible. You can't make hybrid builds anymore, and all of the bonuses granted to the holy tree do nothing to assist your DPS.
Well, there's good news for those of you that like to be the purple kodo chilling in the pack. Yes, you can create a Shockadin build and hold your own in Cataclysm.
Now, that said, here's what you cannot currently do with a Shockadin build:
- Your DPS will not be comparable to Ret. Gear itemization makes it almost impossible to strike a good balance between a spell set and a physical DPS set. You also have no way to expend your Holy Power, which is the biggest crippling factor of this build.
- You probably won't be leveling as quickly. Speed of kills will be slower, and literally, you won't move as fast, as Ret currently has two movement-boosting talents.
- You're not going to get that hybrid feel. One of the best things about the Shockadin, to me, was the ability to spec down into Prot or Ret and have Holy Shock with something else. Post-Cataclysm, you're not getting Holy Shock + Holy Shield or Seal of Command.
But it functions perfectly fine as a leveling build right now. And who knows. Maybe someday some nutter fanatic will exclaim 'Eureka!' in a frenzy of self-enlightened Shockadin discovery, having portioned out the exact balance of melee stats to spell stats.
Still interested in pursuing the Shockadin way of life? Repeat after me: There is no emotion, there is peace. There is no ignorance, there is knowl--oh, right. Wrong mantra. Here's the build I am using at 80: http://cata.wowhead.com/talent#sfhrdbbuhbdMZc
I've played around with different gear and have settled on keeping my ret kit equipped. Be aware that mana can definitely be an issue. You'll feel like you're playing the old style of Ret. Fun times.
As for glyphs, I am using: [Pr] Judgement, Holy Shock, Exorcism [Ma] Ascetic Crusader, Divine Plea, Hammer of Wrath [Mi] Might, Kings, Truth. I am blessing Might and running Ret Aura with Truth as a seal.
My rotation is a priority system that goes as follows: Hammer of Wrath, Holy Shock, Exorcism, Judgement, Crusader Strike, Holy Wrath, Consecration. Exorcism should be used when Denounce procs. Since you have no other way to dump Holy Power, use Word of Glory to heal yourself when needed.
So, what's the verdict? In the end, Ret is going to outpace a Shockadin build. That's only going to increase with the disparity in gear and lack of itemization for this build. And honestly, this is as it should be. But if you're interested in reliving the Shockadin glory days, I say go for it. I'll warn you, though, that it's never going to be like those fond memories of pulling ten mobs in Netherstorm and commencing with the holy dervish of pain.
Oh, and to the shipwrecked buddy in the screenshot above, had I not been AFK my response would likely have been: We have to go back!!!1111one
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