How Do You View Totems? GC Wants to Know
Posted by 
Juggynaut on Thursday, January 15, 2009 - 25 Comments Tags: Shaman, blizzard forums, feedback, gc, ghostcrawler, totems
Juggynaut on Thursday, January 15, 2009 - 25 Comments Tags: Shaman, blizzard forums, feedback, gc, ghostcrawler, totems 
I am a shaman, like William Shatner, so totems are a big part of my in-game identity. Blizzard understands that totems are a class defining feature, but their current implementation is a little... lacking to say the least. Ghostcrawler, class designer and prolific blue poster on the official forums, recently posted a thread soliciting feedback from shamans on how totems should be revamped.To me, there are really two aspects of totems. Firstly, there is PvE, where they have great utility. It takes a minimum of four seconds every five minutes to cast them. Sometimes they can be set it and forget it, but this doesn't take into account fights where being mobile is very important, or where different totems need to be dropped in different phases of the fight. Also, my totems seem to get destroyed in fights quite often, so I have to keep tabs on my totem timer bar even if we aren't moving.
In PvP, dropping all four totems is not a common occurance for me, unless I am defending some type of flag or node. While I am on some sort of offensive rush, using four seconds in a fight against a ret pally or death knight just to drop totems that will either be outranged very quickly or disappear when I die seems pointless. Exceptions to this are when I drop tremor, earthbind, grounding, maybe a stoneclaw to get treants off of me, or a magma totem to flush out rogues (which never seems to work).
On to the actual totems themselves. Some of them have unique, very useful features. Two of my favorite totems in the game are tremor totem and grounding totem. Dispelling fear and absorbing spells, these totems can save fights singlehandedly. Unfortunately, there are also some totems that are not as useful. Sentry totem is the first one that comes to mind. Even things like Strength of Earth and Windfury, while great buffs for melee classes, are immobile and destructible versions of different Death Knight abilities. The original design of totems, as I understand it, was to provide stronger buffs than other classes due to the ease of removing them. With the consolidation of raid buffs and simplification of raid composition, this aspect was removed. I know it's difficult to balance against too many powerful buffs that come from a single class, so I can understand that some of the buffs need to have other sources. Unfortunately, the downside of totems remained while the benefit was reduced.
While I know that totems aren't perfect, I am not a very good class designer. I leave it to those smarter than myself to solve the problems with totems, and it seems like GC and the class designers at Blizzard have come to a point where they need to know how the shaman community views totems. If you are a shaman (or even if you're not), let the developers know your opinions by posting in the thread. Shaman love is always appreciated here on Project Lore.
Reader Comments (25)
Love shamans. THey Rock
And Finaly FIRST XD
too many, too long to drop all of em... QQ
Great mechanic, perhaps if they were taken off the global cooldown....
I have a 80 resto shaman and totems are VERY viable in raids (Windfury FTW). I really enjoy them because it sets our class apart from the others. I have a huge complaint about the time it takes to throw them all down, and the range. If you get out of range, or the tank pulls the boss to another area.. you have to go over there (and being Draenei we don't move that fast) and reset the totems.
In PVP..well.. I have PvP so i just run around AV naked anyways. Unless im getting an acheivement then im a gnome or have the GNERDS buff on me.
Totems rock.. Shamans rock. LOVE the class!
Shamans rock i'd have to say there my fourth fav class so as you can see there not that special to me, but they still rock. My shaman is a troll currently level 69 (in northerend) and he kicks butt. I love my little wolf buddies so much... totems... not so much. Buffs are cool and the idea is sweet but because of the fact that they die easy, dont last long enough, and arnt moblie, and take up for bage slots to summone one of any type it really seems sad. Blizz does need to give some type of buff to this poor things or they're going to winde up on the EPIC fail list.. /cry. I dont dont want my poor totems to end up that way. So my only suggestions that blizz could do is BUFF THEM UP! i mean really make the stats they add now much more better makeing them much more useful and reduces the meaning to crying about how they arnt mobile, thats my one reason that would make alot more totems useful.
I've wondered from time to time if the (trained? talent tree?) ability to THROW a totem some short distance might be a way to deal with some mobility &or group-coverage issues...
Just a thought.
Shaman is the best class!
I'm not a big user of totems, but I always use it when I thinks its necessary (heal my self or group members, beating up non-elite bosses/elites). Elemental Totems are also very cool. Really cool with both Earth and Fire elementals fighting with you. Should reduce cooldowns on some of the totems.
I love using my lvl71 Tauren elem Shaman
Well placed totems can have the impact of pushing from about 2.8kdps into the 4k range. nothing like procing hot streak every 4 of 5 ffb casts to help pop that dps up.
Or take into idea that instead of having to throw them that the range goes up using a talent tree spec with a max point of 5, but the level requirement goes up for each point. Then at 80 instead of having to throw the totems down, they hover around you like the bones do for mages. It'd make a big difference and make people want to be shaman more, especially with a buff that is different from all other classes.
I have a 80 resto shammy, and I love him. I tend to run with the same tank all the time, and he loves them. I have set up several castsequence macros, one for when we have more spellcasters, one for when we have more melee... fire bosses, fear mobs yadda yadda yadda. It doesn't take that much time, and my tank knows to keep the fight close to the totems. I don't have any complaints! I certainly wouldn't complain if they made us more powerful!
Running with resto shamans always makes me wish I hadn't rolled a priest.
I can see how totems are clunky but the utility you bring is unmatched.
This is from a strictly pve basis, I know nothing about how Shamans are fairing in pvp.
@Sidias
My very first toon was a shaman (pre-BC, and still my main). I can tell you that in my long run of playing that class, I have found it to be sub-par in terms of PvP.
If you are enhancement, you're screwed. End of story. Elemental does have decent dps, but Earth Shock isn't quite as good as the mage's Counterspell (and not until Wrath did shamans get any CC). Also, elementals don't have the ability to "hide" like a mage or rogue. Restoration shamans aren't as bad the previous two specs in that a healer is always handy. The two major downsides are a) that resto shamans are more dependent on other classes for their safety than, say, a priest; and b) not until patch 3.0.2 (aka Echoes of Doom) were shamans given a HoT spell.
And remember that as a hybrid class, shamans are VERY gear-dependent. If you don't mind dying a lot and have the patience for it, go ahead and PvP with the shaman class. Otherwise, you'd probably have better luck trying for a 10- or 25-man raid in the hopes of having a PvP gear drop.
-------
Orginally, I rolled a shaman when I first started playing WoW because it was a class that my brothers hadn't rolled. It's been my main ever since then, despite all the frustrations I've had with it on the long journey to where I am now.
That said, I think the totem system is due for an overhaul, particularly where PvP-ing is concerned. One of the major issues is mobility. Four seconds laying down a totem from each element may not sound like much, but a lot of things can and DO happen in that interval. In PvE, mobility isn't so bad. PvP, on the other hand... Not moving equals dead. Period. As such, I hardly ever lay down any totems because there's no point to it.
Another thing is the introduction of the the Death Knight class. How's this relate to a shaman? It relates because if there's a DK in my group, Strength of the Earth becomes useless due to it not being stackable with the DK's Horn of Winter. Strength of Earth used to be one of my bread and butter totems exactly because it provided such an excellent buff. So what am I now left with? Stoneskin totem? Forget it. Earthbind? Useful in PvP, but worthless in dungeons and PvE raids. Stoneclaw? Why the heck would I, the healer, want to draw aggro away from the tank?!
So while I love the totems because they are unique to my class, a lot of stuff has happened since the system was first instituted. It's time for either some heavy makeup, or an entire makeover.
The answer to all class related questions is this-
NERF DK
@Nimrod
If Blizzard nerfed the DK class as much as it seems you're implying, it would no longer be a "hero" class.
Shaman, in my opinion, is one of the most versitile classes in the game. I have played a Resto shaman as my main for several years and have enjoyed it thoroughly. Totems are great buffs tools that are extremely helpful if you know how to rotate them during a raid or while soloing. I can easily last against 5-6 mobs while soloing with my totems. Dropping earth elemental and healing it for 2 minutes will take out all of the mobs or allow me to solo group quest against elites. If blizzard wants to give totems an upgrade, then add a talent tree spec or a gylph that will allow you to pre-set and drop 4 totems all at the same time. This would be most helpful during raids when the tank gets anxious. Another suggestion would be to either increase the range of the totems or to allow them to float and move with the shaman.
HAY JUGGY! :D
I'd love to post in the thread... but I'm form Europe. :x
Anyways, I think most of the post contain issues with Totems and moving. So like everyone is saying, having Totemic Recall just move the totems to your location would be really nice. Also, combining Totems i.e. Poison/Disease cleansing as one?
Faster pulses?
Also Alayea, DK's are only Hero class cause they don't get to level 1-55. If DK's are OP by default then Blizzard made the stupidest move ever.
Love from Europe!
hey juggy glad your posting.
anyway, i have a couple great ideas for totems (and agree that they're a great lackluster in PvP)
1) making them completely off any Cooldown (except for the real cooldown ones like earthbind and stoneclaw).
This is a great idea, because then shammies can set up macros like "raid melee dps" and it casts windfury, strength of earth, magma and healing stream totem in one.
2) another idea i had was combining Poison and Disease cleansing totems. This could be a very powerful but NOT overpowered buff.
3) a big issue is space on actionbars for so many totems; if they could redisign a shammy action bar (sort of like a pet action bar) that had dropdowns from fire - water- earth - air or something.
4) completely removing totems' mana cost is a nice idea, and it isn't overpowered, considering their state.
5) allowing all totems to stack or not stack with eachother is simpler and could be a good idea. currently some do and some don't. this also helps promote of blizzard's idea "don't bring the class bring the player" to the raid. if you had an enhance/ele shammy online and ur ret pally was away, you could grab the shammy to stack with your resto shammy and allow mana spring/strength of earth to stack twice (and ignore blessing of wisdom/might that you lost from the offline pally).
6) Increasing their range is a must. the 20 yard range was a joke, and i'd prefer they at least be on par with Auras' 40 yards talented, of course excluding the pvp 'escape' moves like earthbind (lol 40 yard earthbind)
7) Someone suggested a totem 'launch', like shadowfury/blizzard/flamestrike/etc. Its ineffective because you negate the purpose of totems being on no cooldown to make a 4 totem macro. However, this could be a neat idea, because your 'bringing totems up from the ground' at a distance. It could also be effective to send the melee SoE totem and keep the Mana spring near the casters or something. Limitations can be made on totems like earthbind. You could set up some kind of raid that required this, where a healer was needed at one spot, but dps 25 yards to your left needed poison cleansing, and 25 to your right needed disease cleansing. both the poison/disease totems could effect their required people. AT the moment they can't both be summoned at the same time, but that leads me to my final idea:
8) a new spell (i had the name Biome or Biosphere in mind). Here are 3 suggestions for how the spell could act.
a] Biome
3% of Base Mana
Instant Cast 6 Minute Cooldown
Causes the caster to enter a universal biome, allowing the use of your fire totem, earth totem, water totem and air totem twice. The second totem summoned of each totem type lasts a maximum of 2 minutes. Lasts up to 10 seconds.
(a temporary buff that lets you pull out 2 water totems, etc. Raid fights can be designed around such, elemental can use this to burst their dps, running away from pve mobs can be handy with stoneclaw/earthbind at the same time. The cooldown seems reasonable for its power, and its not overpowered, as totems can be destroyed easily, unless they were buffed in that manner).
Biosphere
12% of Base Mana
3 second cast 10 Minute Cooldown
Summons a biosphere for 30 yards around the target. While party or raid members are in this biosphere, you regain 2% of your maximum health and 4% of your maximum mana each second. Shamans may summon twice the amount of totems, but their second totem lasts a maximum of two minutes. The biosphere lasts 10 seconds.
Here's another cooldown, with similar effects, that can add great graphics and a bonus effect.
Some final idea i thought that doesn't necessarily deal with totems, but can be a great tool for shammies that make up for the lack of totem's power.
Ecosystem of Life
40% of Base Mana
Instant Cast 5 Minute Cooldown.
Summons an aura of life around the shaman. Party and raid members within 30 yards can provide beneficial spells to eachother that would otherwise be selfcasted only, but they last up to 1 minute each.
This spell allows party members to assist eachother more, provides that "much needed mage armor mana regen" that the warlock needed, and shammies could share Shields. There might be a way this could become slightly overpowered, i'll have to look into that.
My shaman actually started out as a level 19 WSG twink....while i never really got out to twinking him out completely he still left his mark in each BG i went into whether i was top healer or saved our flag from being capped with a lucky Earth Shock crit...honestly when i enter a fight the first thing i do once i earth shock is lay down my Searing Totem as well as STR of earth (unless i am fighting a lock then its Tremor FTW) i really like using my Searing totem because while i may be out of range at times my totem is still shooting at anyone nearby and because the dmg is laughable it can start to get irritating being hit by a random fireball....However now that Flametongue was buffed up as soon as i get that it will be my fire totem of choice...usually i try to set my totems in places where they are out of harms way but close enough that i and my group members still recieve their buffs...But whether i was healing and instance pounding out Earth Shocks or just spamming Lightning bolt my shaman has failed to disappoint thus far...and in truth is likely to be my third max level class even if my first two were a rogue and hunter in that order (i am not counting my DK since he started at 58) But hands down i LOVE shamans they are fun to play and definately keep me sane because of how unique they are
hi
i love this post for the reason some good ideas have come up over shamans totems.. me i have a lvl 80 resto shammy . but im in europe :D
the thing is with totems if u need them close by in a fight it sucks becoz the tank has to engage before u can place them for example the fight in HoL heroic with loken u need ur nature resist but u need it ryt in there so every one can benifit....
i think blizz shud take a look at this situation but personally ok the tym it takes to place the totems down is along tym in a fight n sumtimes if ur placing them while the tank is engaging it can cause a wipe if ur a healer as i have often found out :P
but on the other hand if u get them down in time then the raid or group get some great buffs ...
i dnt lyk one of the comments made about if ur in a group with a DK becoz ok u cant stack ur SoE totem with their horn but use a different one.. personally i use stoneskin the armor buff is great .. use just need realise to optamize ur buffs n work around the group or raid ur with..
as every one says thats wot us shaman's r here for utility :D
anyways i think i have rambled on enuff :D
i love my shammy it's great
ope wot i say may help a few people :D
Yea, totems need an overhaul. I thought that shaman were the party/raid buff class for vanilla wow. Now with PVP being so popular, 4 seconds is too long to cast stationary buffs with limited range. If I could design it, I would like to see a way to load four orbs around the shaman that act like the totems . Then make an orbshield castable on others. earth=healing, water= mana regen, air= haste, fire+damage dealt.
Make Stormstrike a move that cannot be blocked dodged or parried...i'm aware that this has nothing to do with totems but when this move doesnt connect to the target....enhancement is screwed dps wise and also pvp wise. Making the WF that may possibly procc after have the same effects would b an awesome addition to Enhancement PvP.
Hope I helped a teency bit. ^_~
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