Turning attention to a DPS spec, let’s take a look at Beastmaster Hunter. The main difference will come in the way the specialization regenerates Focus. Currently, in WoD BM/SV hunters use Cobra Shot while MM utilize Steady Shot, which deals minor damage and regenerates a set amount of Focus. In Legion’s alpha, Blizzard “spices” things up with a bit of RNG: the new way to rebuild Focus is to call upon Dire Beasts (12 sec cooldown, restores 3 Focus per 2 seconds) which you can have more than one of at a time. RNG comes into play in that critical strikes are the only way to reset the cooldown of the ability. Even if you score a crit, there is only a 30% (40% with a talent) chance of reset. Compared to a Marksman, who is able to regenerate Focus constantly and instantaneously through the use of the newly revamped Arcane Shot, BM feels pretty out of control and at times plain boring.
This brings us to one of the main concerns that many testers have brought across nearly every class and spec in WoW: Abilities seem to have been reduced to four or five active ones -- many of which have significant cooldowns -- and three or four others that are used only occasionally or only when proc’d. What many believe is that combat has been reduced to a static way of playing with little or no variety in rotation. Of course, the caveat is that there are talents that are, for the most part, passive and that can change things up slightly, but not with any significant change in the way that skills are used. Players have said that this leads to very dull gameplay.
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The Resurgence of the Trinity
Another of the ways that Blizzard is at least obliquely acknowledging the ‘error of its ways’ over the last couple of expansions is that the holy trinity is making a comeback. Since Cataclysm, WoW has become increasingly solo-friendly with most classes able to survive easily within the game world. With bodyguard companions in Warlords of Draenor, this became even easier; old raids saw mechanics removed to encourage players to take part in older content. Most classes have enough DPS, healing or tanking/movement abilities to take on even current content from mid-expansion forward.
In Legion this will change. Sure, content can be completed alone, but it has become, at least at this point in the alpha, more problematic and more difficult. DPS can easily be overrun by enemies without proper tanks to stand in the gap and without as many healing abilities (i.e. the Hunter ability called Spirit Bond), may have a harder time staying in the world. Tanks and pure healers take an even longer, more agonizing time to kill even a single monster even if not really being hurt.
It is clear from this that Blizzard heard the loud complaints that WoD broke the community with garrisons in particular. Class hall portals have been removed from alpha in favor of everyone having to pass through Dalaran, a neutral city in Legion, on the way to access their class halls with their artifact altars, mission boards, etc. It is one thing, perhaps, for players to want to play together in groups, and another when they feel forced to play together as it seems in the current alpha build.
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Wrapping It Up
All of this come with a caveat: The alpha build has undergone drastic changes from inception to the current version showing that Blizzard is willing to listen to its players. Talents, abilities, artifact traits, and much more have been altered significantly with each successive build as the developers look for ways to keep both current player fantasies in line with their corporate vision. The bottom line is that Legion is in flux and nothing, it seems, is completely set in stone with more changes likely incoming in the next weeks and months.
Have you been playing in the Legion alpha? If you have a class and spec that you really love and you have access to alpha, it would be a good idea to check it out and see what you think. If you do, please let us know what you think.
