Truevision
10-05-2008, 03:20 PM
I've been writing this over the past week and have spent many hours on it. I've done my best to remove as much bias from my analysis as I can in order to let the numbers and results speak for themselves. Much of what has been written was done prior to me having had any experience healing on the M'uru encounter, but I have reviewed my findings and they should be accurate and sound in reason and math. Though most of the problems RA has been having on M'uru have been with execution rather than healing from what I can tell, no changes may be needed; however, from a maximum effectiveness standpoint, two Resto Druids providing the majority of the tank healing may make a slightly better group composition. Thus, this is my analysis on the feasibility of two Resto Druids on M'uru as tank healers in Phase 1, and raid/tank healers in Phase 2.
Positioning and Strategy:
RA's current strategy is to use 3 tanks: 1 Paladin on both the Void Sentinel and Void Spawn and two other tanks of either class of Warrior or Druid on the Humanoid adds. The raid is effectively split up into two groups: one at the entrance and one at the exit; the Warlocks are tasked with killing the Void Sentinels and Void Spawns while most of the rest of the raid is on the Humanoids. 4 Tank healers are typically used with one of them being a Resto Druid: 1 healer on each Humanoid tank, 2 healers on the Void tank plus HoTs from the Druid. I will be basing my analysis on this strategy.
With two Resto Druids, there are two possible way to position them. Either strategy can theoretically be done with only two tank healers in total, but a 3rd is preferable for the occasional and random spikes in damage each tank receives; omitting a 4th tank healer would additionally allow space for an extra raid healer or DPS. I should also note that, from my experience, a single Lifebloom stack and Rejuvenation is able to heal the Humanoid tanks during non-spike damage. Let me first explain each of the positioning strategies before continuing onto the math-side of the analysis.
Positioning 1: One Resto Druid on the entrance side and one Resto Druid on the exit side. Each Resto Druid heals one Humanoid tank and both heal the Void tank. Due to distance, neither druid can reach the other's Humanoid tank. The 3rd tank healer would be on whichever side needs an extra healer the most.
Positioning 2: Both Resto Druids stand in between both raid groups but to the right of the Darkness zone. The 3rd tank healer would also stand there. Both Resto Druids would keep Lifebloom stacks and Rejuvenation on all 3 tanks. The positioning would look as follows:
http://homepage.mac.com/inev/Druid_M'uru_Positions.jpg
Usually, a Druid is limited to a maximum of 3 additional Global Cooldowns plus one more for the initial Lifebloom stack before the first Lifebloom stack must be refreshed. With 10% Haste or more, a Druid can gain an additional Global Cooldown's worth of time; 10% haste is very highly recommended for the second strategy but is not needed on the first except in Phase 2.
Druid HPS vs. Others' HPS:
Druid HPS is limited primarily by two things: the number of spells that can be cast within 1 Lifebloom duration and the number of targets that can be healed simultaneously (fewer people to heal means less overall HPS, and there is a limit to how many can be simultaneously healed as well). Thus, an important distinction to make between Resto Druids and other healing classes is this: Resto Druids' maximum HPS is multiplied by the number of targets to heal, while the other three healing classes' max HPS is linearly divided by the number of targets to heal. The exception to this, of course, are AoE heals such as Chain Heal and Circle of Healing; however, their effectiveness for tank healing during the M'uru encounter is greatly limited by range. I'll include these two spells in my analysis to show the HPS they're capable of to compare to the HPS of Druid HoTs.
Notes on my calculations:
Before I begin, let me point out a few things about my assumptions and formulae. For any spell with a cast time and can crit, I have factored in 40% crit. I believe thats probably a decent bit more than what most Priests, Shaman, and Paladins have (though I factored in 10% more crit for Paladins since its a more imporant stat for them and they have more +crit talents than the other classes). This is partially to combine the variable amounts of haste and crit a character may have into one stat to make calculations more simple. Keep in mind that approximately 1% haste = 2% crit = 1% increase in HPS (not completely accurate, but within an acceptable margin for error). For simplicity and comparisions, I have assumed each class to have the same amount of +Healing, and that the classes are grouped with a Shaman with Wrath of Air totem. I have also factored in Amplify Magic on all the tanks.
Circle of Healing and Chain Heal:
Circle of Healing has a 21.4% healing coefficient. Given 2841 effective +healing (with +240 from Amplify Magic and +101 from Wrath of Air totem), a 40% crit rate, Rank 5, and 5/5 Spiritual Healing, the average HPS of CoH is:
((((2841 * 0.214) + ((409 + 451) / 2)) * (1 + (0.40 * 0.50))) *1.10) / 1.5 = 913.41 average HPS per target
Chain Heal has a base healing coefficient of 71.43%. Given 2841 effective +healing, a 40% crit rate, Rank 5, 5/5 Purification, and 2/2 Improved Chain Heal, the average HPS of CH is:
(((2841 * 0.7143) + ((833 + 930) / 2)) * (1 + (0.40 * 0.50)) * 1.1 * 1.2) / 2.5 = 1844.3 average HPS on the initial target
Druid HoT Healing Breakdown and HPS:
Lifebloom has a base coefficient of 51% for the HoT portion, and can stack 3 times. Given 2841 effective +healing, 5/5 Gift of Nature, and 5/5 Empowered Rejuvenation, the HPS of a triple-stacked Lifebloom is:
((((2841 * (0.51 + 0.20)) + 273) * 1.10) / 7) * 3 = 1079.62 HPS
Rejuvenation has a base coefficient of 80%. Given 2841 effective +healing, 5/5 Gift of Nature, 5/5 Empowered Rejuvenation, and 3/3 Improved Rejuvenation, the HPS of Rejuvenation is:
(((2841 * (0.80 + 0.20)) + 1060) * 1.10 * 1.15) / 12 = 411.23 HPS
Regrowth HoT portion has a base coefficient of 70%. Given 2841 effective +healing, 5/5 Gift of Nature, and 5/5 Empowered Rejuvenation, the HPS of the HoT portion of Regrowth is:
((((2841 * (0.70 + 0.20)) + 1274) * 1.10) / 21) = 200.66 HPS
Regrowth direct-heal has a base coefficient of 30%. Given 2841 effective +healing, 5/5 Gift of Nature, 5/5 Empowered Rejuvenation, and a 58% crit chance with Improved Regrowth, the HPS of the direct-heal portion of Regrowth is:
((((2841 * (0.36)) + ((1253 + 1394) / 2)) * (1 + (0.58 * 0.50)) * 1.10) / 2 = 1664.67 HPS
Now lets look at the HPS capabilities and rotation of the first positioning strategy (Druids on only 2 of the 3 tanks each):
This rotation uses a total of 5.9 seconds per LB refresh cycle with 10% haste, or 6.5 seconds with no haste. Both are doable, so there's no need to gear for haste for this rotation:
LB on Humanoid tank
LB on Void tank
Rejuv on Humanoid Tank
Regrowth on either tank
LB on Humanoid tank
LB on Void tank
Rejuv on Void Tank
Regrowth or Swiftmend on either tank
Lets examine this more in-depth as to what HPS capabilities this rotation can give:
On the Humanoid tank with 1 Druid on him, there will be all 3 HoTs. Combined, this results in 1079.62 + 411.23 + 200.66
= 1691.51 HPS. Regrowth's direct-heal is worth 3155 / 6.5 = 512.2 HPS, bringing the Druid's HPS on the Humanoid tank to a max of 2203.71.
On the Void tank with 2 Druids on him, there will between 4-6 HoTs on him. This provides between 2981.7 HPS and 3383 HPS, excluding any Regrowth direct-heals or Swiftmends (it would take me a great amount of additional time to factor in the HPS gains and losses by factoring these two spells in, so I'll leave it up to the imagination of the reader).
Max HPS of 1 Druid on 2 tanks is: ((1079.62 + 411.23 + 200.66) * 2) + 512.2 = 3895.2 HPS with little to no overheal.
Here's the HPS capabilities and rotation of the second positioning strategy (Druids on all 3 tanks):
This rotation requires a minumum of 8.5% haste, but greater than 10% is recommended to account for lag of various reasons:
LB on Humanoid tank 1
LB on Humanoid tank 2
LB on Void tank
Rejuv on Humanoid tank 1
Rejuv on Humanoid tank 2
LB on Humanoid tank 1
LB on Humanoid tank 2
LB on Void tank
Rejuv on Void tank
Last GCD is free to use Swiftmend or NS->Regrowth if neccessary
Calculating the HPS capabilities of this rotation is a bit easier because of the absence of the ability to use Regrowth except with Nature's Swiftness.
Individual HPS of 1 Druid on any of the 3 tanks is: 1079.62 + 411.23 = 1490.85
Total HPS of 1 Druid on all 3 Tanks is: (1079.62 + 411.23) * 3 = 4472.55
Each tank will be receiving a total of 2981.7 HPS from both druids.
The second strategy produces a 777 - 1491 greater HPS on the Humanoid tanks with a 0 - 402 HPS loss on the Void tank over the first strategy.
Renew and Earth Shield
Since Shamans and Priests should already be used to keeping Renews and Earth Shields on the tank, lets take a look at the HPS gains by having one of each on the Humanoid tanks and 2 renews on the Void tank; this takes into account 2 Priests and 2 Shaman--more of either class will increase the HPS on each target affected by an additional Earth Shield and/or Renew:
Renew has a 100% healing coefficient. Given 2841 effective +healing (with +240 from Amplify Magic and +101 from Wrath of Air totem), 5/5 Spiritual Healing, and 3/3 Improved Renew, the average HPS of Renew is:
((2841 + 1110) * 1.10 * 1.15) / 15 = 333.2 HPS
Earth Shield has a base healing coefficient of 28.6% per charge and can heal at most only once every 3-4 sec. Given 2841 effective +healing and a 5% crit rate the average HPS of Earth Shield is:
((2841 * 0.286) + 260 ) / 3.5 = 306.43
How this adds to incoming tank HPS with Druid HoTs:
Positioning Strategy 1 (Humanoid tank HPS): 2203.71 + 333.2 + 306.43 = 2843.34 total and max HPS on each Humanoid tank
Positioning Strategy 1 (minimum Void tank HPS): 2981.7 + 333.2 + 333.2 = 3648.1 total and minimum HPS on the Void tank
Positioning Strategy 1 (maximum Void tank HPS): 3383 + 333.2 + 333.2 = 4049.4 total and maximum HPS on the Void tank
Positioning Strategy 2 (Humanoid tank HPS): 2981.7 + 333.2 + 306.43 = 3621 total HPS on each Humanoid tank
Positioning Strategy 2 (Void tank HPS): 2981.7 + 333.2 + 333.2 = 3648.1 total HPS on the Void tank
HPS capabilities of HoTs seem to begin to approach the maximum HPS capability of an individual direct-heal tank healer such as a Priest or Paladin. Lets see how well they compare:
Greater Heal and Holy Light:
Greater Heal has a 85.7% +healing coefficient. Given 2841 effective +healing (with +240 from Amplify Magic and +101 from Wrath of Air totem), 40% crit rate, 5/5 Spiritual Healing, and 5/5 Empowered Healing, the average HPS of Renew is:
(((2841 * (0.8571 + 0.20)) + ((2396 + 2784) / 2)) * (1 + (0.40 * 0.50)) * 1.10) / 2.5 = 2953.22 HPS spamming GHeal
Add in Renew, and that increases to 3286.42 HPS.
Holy Light has a 71.43% +healing coefficient. Given 2841 effective +healing, 50% crit rate (Paladins seem to have more +crit talents than priests, so I'm giving them a little more room for error), 3/3 Healing Light, and 3/3 Light's Grace, the average HPS of Holy Light is:
(((2841 * .7143) + ((2196 + 2446) / 2)) * (1 + (0.50 * 0.50)) * 1.12) / 2.0 = 3045.23 HPS spamming Holy Light
Compared to Positioning Strategy 1, Priest and Paladin single-target max HPS on a Humanoid tank is approximately 40% greater than a Druids'. However, Druids' total HPS on two targets is approximately 26% greater than what a Priest or Paladin can output on one. With 4 Priests/Paladins on the 3 tanks, their total combined healing output would be approx 12,400 HPS max. Both Druids' healing output combined with a 3rd healer would be approx 10,890 HPS max (a decrease of only approx 13% of max healing output over 4 Priests/Paladins and no Druids, despite having lost 25% of the tank healers).
Compared to Positioning Strategy 2, Priest and Paladin single-target max HPS on any of the three tanks is approximately 1.08X greater. However, considering that there will be a second Druid on each of the Humanoid tanks while there would be only one Priest or Paladin on each Humanoid tank and 2 on the Void tank if you exclude Druids, the HPS on the Humanoid tanks by the Druids is only 4% less than the single-target capabilities of one Priest or Paladin. Since each Druid is healing 3 tanks, their total HPS is each 44% greater than what a Priest or Paladin can output. To put it in other terms, four Paladins/Priests output a max of approximately 12,400 HPS combined, while just two Druids and 1 Priest/Paladin can output a max of 12,045 HPS combined. This is a decrease of only approx 3% in maximum healing output, despite having lost 25% of the tank healers; effectively, this means that 2 druids can produce very similar output as 3 Priests/Paladins when healing 3 tanks.
It should be noted that I didn't include additional HoTs from raid healers such as Priests and Shamans as part of the HPS on the tanks done by Druids MT healing. To compare the capabilities between Druids doing the MT healing or Priest/Paladins MT healing, refer to the section "How this adds to incoming tank HPS with Druid HoTs" above and compare to the HPS capabilities of individual Priests/Paladins. To summarize the results briefly, in some cases HPS done by HoTs is slightly less and in others it is significantly greater.
M'uru Phase 2:
Phase 2 can be done with or without 10% haste from gear for Druids, but the HPS output is increased by 25% by each Druid who has approximately 10% haste. In Phase 2, each Druid without haste can keep 4 stacks of LB on 4 separate targets; this would provide all 6 healers with an approximately 1,000 HPS heal plus a stack from each Druid on the tank for a constant stream of 2159 HPS on the tank. For each Druid with 10% haste, you can add either 1 additional target to be Lifebloomed (such as a shadow priest, for example) or a Rejuvenation on the tank for an additional 411 HPS from each Druid (2981 HPS total from 2 Druids with 10% haste). Since each Negative Energy ability does 2000 dmg to the primary target, 1000 to the 2nd target, and 500 to the 3rd and adds 1 primary target every 15 sec, raid damage will continue to ramp up the longer the fight lasts; by 90 seconds (the usually accepted de-facto secondary enrage timer), there will be 7 primary targets and 14 other targets hit by each chain. Averaged out, each chain deals 1166.67 dps to 3 targets. the 1000 HPS from Lifeblooms on each healer means that they would not have to concern themselves much with healing themselves or other healers and can focus on keeping the DPS alive. I have once read of a guild who does something similar to this and were able to extend Phase 2 from 1.5 min to several, but, unfortunately, I have been unable to re-locate where I read it, so take that with a grain of salt. But, theoretically, for each additional 30 seconds beyond 90 that Phase 2 lasts, the total averaged amount of DPS needed to down Entropius (2.2 million HP) decreases to:
2,200,000 HP / 90 seconds = 24,445 DPS
2,200,000 HP / (2 * 60 seconds) = 18,333 DPS
2,200,000 HP / (2.5 * 60 seconds) = 14,667 DPS
Mana Consumption:
One other thing of note is that regardless of which strategy is used, both Druids must be in a group with a Shadow Priest; otherwise, the spell rotation won't be sustainable. To put the mana consumption into MP/5 terms:
Strategy 1 rotation is LB, LB, Rejuv, Rerowth: (176 + 176 + 332 + 540) / 7 sec = 174.86 mana per sec on average * 5 = 874.3 mp5 required to keep from running OOM.
Strategy 2 rotation is LB, LB, LB, Rejuv, Rejuv, LB, LB, LB, Rejuv, SM: (176 + 176 + 176 + 332 + 332 + 176 +176 +176+ 332 + 303) / 14 = 168.22 mana per sec on average = 841.1 mp/5 required to keep from running OOM.
My own gear and capabilities::
One thing I should note is that I only have 7% spell haste. I would need at least one of the following to be able to keep Rejuvenation on all 3 tanks with Positioning Strategy 2:
Leather Gauntlets of the Sun (I know the crafter, but I wouldn't be able to afford the remaining 3 Sunmotes)
Brooch of Nature's Mercy from Akil'zon (I haven't had good luck getting this)
Shroud of the Highborne from Illidan (I'm not sure if anyone else needs this)
Blessed Band of Karabor from BT trash (I haven't seen this drop in 2 months)
However, without the 10% haste, I could still keep Lifebloom stacks on all 3 tanks and a Rejuvenation on 2 of the 3, so the strategy is still viable. The main difference between the two strategies are the following: the second maximizes the HPS of the Druids but provides less reactive healing ability; the first results in less overall HPS output but allows for some degree of reactive healing.
Final Words:
Both Positioning Strategy 1 and 2 (or variations thereof) are used by guilds who consistently kill M'uru, and that they've even been used for at least one of the first 20 kills of M'uru world-wide. I could provide sources if you really want, but I'd have to find them again. =/
Again, I'm not advocating change here because no changes may be needed; instead, I simply aim to bring to light additional options. I hope that this analysis will aid the guild with either M'uru or future boss encounters and possibly serve as a reference page. =)
-Truevision
Burning Legion
EDIT1: After learning that 2 tank healers are typically used on the Void tank, I modified my analysis accordingly (I don't know how I missed and didn't notice that...)
Positioning and Strategy:
RA's current strategy is to use 3 tanks: 1 Paladin on both the Void Sentinel and Void Spawn and two other tanks of either class of Warrior or Druid on the Humanoid adds. The raid is effectively split up into two groups: one at the entrance and one at the exit; the Warlocks are tasked with killing the Void Sentinels and Void Spawns while most of the rest of the raid is on the Humanoids. 4 Tank healers are typically used with one of them being a Resto Druid: 1 healer on each Humanoid tank, 2 healers on the Void tank plus HoTs from the Druid. I will be basing my analysis on this strategy.
With two Resto Druids, there are two possible way to position them. Either strategy can theoretically be done with only two tank healers in total, but a 3rd is preferable for the occasional and random spikes in damage each tank receives; omitting a 4th tank healer would additionally allow space for an extra raid healer or DPS. I should also note that, from my experience, a single Lifebloom stack and Rejuvenation is able to heal the Humanoid tanks during non-spike damage. Let me first explain each of the positioning strategies before continuing onto the math-side of the analysis.
Positioning 1: One Resto Druid on the entrance side and one Resto Druid on the exit side. Each Resto Druid heals one Humanoid tank and both heal the Void tank. Due to distance, neither druid can reach the other's Humanoid tank. The 3rd tank healer would be on whichever side needs an extra healer the most.
Positioning 2: Both Resto Druids stand in between both raid groups but to the right of the Darkness zone. The 3rd tank healer would also stand there. Both Resto Druids would keep Lifebloom stacks and Rejuvenation on all 3 tanks. The positioning would look as follows:
http://homepage.mac.com/inev/Druid_M'uru_Positions.jpg
Usually, a Druid is limited to a maximum of 3 additional Global Cooldowns plus one more for the initial Lifebloom stack before the first Lifebloom stack must be refreshed. With 10% Haste or more, a Druid can gain an additional Global Cooldown's worth of time; 10% haste is very highly recommended for the second strategy but is not needed on the first except in Phase 2.
Druid HPS vs. Others' HPS:
Druid HPS is limited primarily by two things: the number of spells that can be cast within 1 Lifebloom duration and the number of targets that can be healed simultaneously (fewer people to heal means less overall HPS, and there is a limit to how many can be simultaneously healed as well). Thus, an important distinction to make between Resto Druids and other healing classes is this: Resto Druids' maximum HPS is multiplied by the number of targets to heal, while the other three healing classes' max HPS is linearly divided by the number of targets to heal. The exception to this, of course, are AoE heals such as Chain Heal and Circle of Healing; however, their effectiveness for tank healing during the M'uru encounter is greatly limited by range. I'll include these two spells in my analysis to show the HPS they're capable of to compare to the HPS of Druid HoTs.
Notes on my calculations:
Before I begin, let me point out a few things about my assumptions and formulae. For any spell with a cast time and can crit, I have factored in 40% crit. I believe thats probably a decent bit more than what most Priests, Shaman, and Paladins have (though I factored in 10% more crit for Paladins since its a more imporant stat for them and they have more +crit talents than the other classes). This is partially to combine the variable amounts of haste and crit a character may have into one stat to make calculations more simple. Keep in mind that approximately 1% haste = 2% crit = 1% increase in HPS (not completely accurate, but within an acceptable margin for error). For simplicity and comparisions, I have assumed each class to have the same amount of +Healing, and that the classes are grouped with a Shaman with Wrath of Air totem. I have also factored in Amplify Magic on all the tanks.
Circle of Healing and Chain Heal:
Circle of Healing has a 21.4% healing coefficient. Given 2841 effective +healing (with +240 from Amplify Magic and +101 from Wrath of Air totem), a 40% crit rate, Rank 5, and 5/5 Spiritual Healing, the average HPS of CoH is:
((((2841 * 0.214) + ((409 + 451) / 2)) * (1 + (0.40 * 0.50))) *1.10) / 1.5 = 913.41 average HPS per target
Chain Heal has a base healing coefficient of 71.43%. Given 2841 effective +healing, a 40% crit rate, Rank 5, 5/5 Purification, and 2/2 Improved Chain Heal, the average HPS of CH is:
(((2841 * 0.7143) + ((833 + 930) / 2)) * (1 + (0.40 * 0.50)) * 1.1 * 1.2) / 2.5 = 1844.3 average HPS on the initial target
Druid HoT Healing Breakdown and HPS:
Lifebloom has a base coefficient of 51% for the HoT portion, and can stack 3 times. Given 2841 effective +healing, 5/5 Gift of Nature, and 5/5 Empowered Rejuvenation, the HPS of a triple-stacked Lifebloom is:
((((2841 * (0.51 + 0.20)) + 273) * 1.10) / 7) * 3 = 1079.62 HPS
Rejuvenation has a base coefficient of 80%. Given 2841 effective +healing, 5/5 Gift of Nature, 5/5 Empowered Rejuvenation, and 3/3 Improved Rejuvenation, the HPS of Rejuvenation is:
(((2841 * (0.80 + 0.20)) + 1060) * 1.10 * 1.15) / 12 = 411.23 HPS
Regrowth HoT portion has a base coefficient of 70%. Given 2841 effective +healing, 5/5 Gift of Nature, and 5/5 Empowered Rejuvenation, the HPS of the HoT portion of Regrowth is:
((((2841 * (0.70 + 0.20)) + 1274) * 1.10) / 21) = 200.66 HPS
Regrowth direct-heal has a base coefficient of 30%. Given 2841 effective +healing, 5/5 Gift of Nature, 5/5 Empowered Rejuvenation, and a 58% crit chance with Improved Regrowth, the HPS of the direct-heal portion of Regrowth is:
((((2841 * (0.36)) + ((1253 + 1394) / 2)) * (1 + (0.58 * 0.50)) * 1.10) / 2 = 1664.67 HPS
Now lets look at the HPS capabilities and rotation of the first positioning strategy (Druids on only 2 of the 3 tanks each):
This rotation uses a total of 5.9 seconds per LB refresh cycle with 10% haste, or 6.5 seconds with no haste. Both are doable, so there's no need to gear for haste for this rotation:
LB on Humanoid tank
LB on Void tank
Rejuv on Humanoid Tank
Regrowth on either tank
LB on Humanoid tank
LB on Void tank
Rejuv on Void Tank
Regrowth or Swiftmend on either tank
Lets examine this more in-depth as to what HPS capabilities this rotation can give:
On the Humanoid tank with 1 Druid on him, there will be all 3 HoTs. Combined, this results in 1079.62 + 411.23 + 200.66
= 1691.51 HPS. Regrowth's direct-heal is worth 3155 / 6.5 = 512.2 HPS, bringing the Druid's HPS on the Humanoid tank to a max of 2203.71.
On the Void tank with 2 Druids on him, there will between 4-6 HoTs on him. This provides between 2981.7 HPS and 3383 HPS, excluding any Regrowth direct-heals or Swiftmends (it would take me a great amount of additional time to factor in the HPS gains and losses by factoring these two spells in, so I'll leave it up to the imagination of the reader).
Max HPS of 1 Druid on 2 tanks is: ((1079.62 + 411.23 + 200.66) * 2) + 512.2 = 3895.2 HPS with little to no overheal.
Here's the HPS capabilities and rotation of the second positioning strategy (Druids on all 3 tanks):
This rotation requires a minumum of 8.5% haste, but greater than 10% is recommended to account for lag of various reasons:
LB on Humanoid tank 1
LB on Humanoid tank 2
LB on Void tank
Rejuv on Humanoid tank 1
Rejuv on Humanoid tank 2
LB on Humanoid tank 1
LB on Humanoid tank 2
LB on Void tank
Rejuv on Void tank
Last GCD is free to use Swiftmend or NS->Regrowth if neccessary
Calculating the HPS capabilities of this rotation is a bit easier because of the absence of the ability to use Regrowth except with Nature's Swiftness.
Individual HPS of 1 Druid on any of the 3 tanks is: 1079.62 + 411.23 = 1490.85
Total HPS of 1 Druid on all 3 Tanks is: (1079.62 + 411.23) * 3 = 4472.55
Each tank will be receiving a total of 2981.7 HPS from both druids.
The second strategy produces a 777 - 1491 greater HPS on the Humanoid tanks with a 0 - 402 HPS loss on the Void tank over the first strategy.
Renew and Earth Shield
Since Shamans and Priests should already be used to keeping Renews and Earth Shields on the tank, lets take a look at the HPS gains by having one of each on the Humanoid tanks and 2 renews on the Void tank; this takes into account 2 Priests and 2 Shaman--more of either class will increase the HPS on each target affected by an additional Earth Shield and/or Renew:
Renew has a 100% healing coefficient. Given 2841 effective +healing (with +240 from Amplify Magic and +101 from Wrath of Air totem), 5/5 Spiritual Healing, and 3/3 Improved Renew, the average HPS of Renew is:
((2841 + 1110) * 1.10 * 1.15) / 15 = 333.2 HPS
Earth Shield has a base healing coefficient of 28.6% per charge and can heal at most only once every 3-4 sec. Given 2841 effective +healing and a 5% crit rate the average HPS of Earth Shield is:
((2841 * 0.286) + 260 ) / 3.5 = 306.43
How this adds to incoming tank HPS with Druid HoTs:
Positioning Strategy 1 (Humanoid tank HPS): 2203.71 + 333.2 + 306.43 = 2843.34 total and max HPS on each Humanoid tank
Positioning Strategy 1 (minimum Void tank HPS): 2981.7 + 333.2 + 333.2 = 3648.1 total and minimum HPS on the Void tank
Positioning Strategy 1 (maximum Void tank HPS): 3383 + 333.2 + 333.2 = 4049.4 total and maximum HPS on the Void tank
Positioning Strategy 2 (Humanoid tank HPS): 2981.7 + 333.2 + 306.43 = 3621 total HPS on each Humanoid tank
Positioning Strategy 2 (Void tank HPS): 2981.7 + 333.2 + 333.2 = 3648.1 total HPS on the Void tank
HPS capabilities of HoTs seem to begin to approach the maximum HPS capability of an individual direct-heal tank healer such as a Priest or Paladin. Lets see how well they compare:
Greater Heal and Holy Light:
Greater Heal has a 85.7% +healing coefficient. Given 2841 effective +healing (with +240 from Amplify Magic and +101 from Wrath of Air totem), 40% crit rate, 5/5 Spiritual Healing, and 5/5 Empowered Healing, the average HPS of Renew is:
(((2841 * (0.8571 + 0.20)) + ((2396 + 2784) / 2)) * (1 + (0.40 * 0.50)) * 1.10) / 2.5 = 2953.22 HPS spamming GHeal
Add in Renew, and that increases to 3286.42 HPS.
Holy Light has a 71.43% +healing coefficient. Given 2841 effective +healing, 50% crit rate (Paladins seem to have more +crit talents than priests, so I'm giving them a little more room for error), 3/3 Healing Light, and 3/3 Light's Grace, the average HPS of Holy Light is:
(((2841 * .7143) + ((2196 + 2446) / 2)) * (1 + (0.50 * 0.50)) * 1.12) / 2.0 = 3045.23 HPS spamming Holy Light
Compared to Positioning Strategy 1, Priest and Paladin single-target max HPS on a Humanoid tank is approximately 40% greater than a Druids'. However, Druids' total HPS on two targets is approximately 26% greater than what a Priest or Paladin can output on one. With 4 Priests/Paladins on the 3 tanks, their total combined healing output would be approx 12,400 HPS max. Both Druids' healing output combined with a 3rd healer would be approx 10,890 HPS max (a decrease of only approx 13% of max healing output over 4 Priests/Paladins and no Druids, despite having lost 25% of the tank healers).
Compared to Positioning Strategy 2, Priest and Paladin single-target max HPS on any of the three tanks is approximately 1.08X greater. However, considering that there will be a second Druid on each of the Humanoid tanks while there would be only one Priest or Paladin on each Humanoid tank and 2 on the Void tank if you exclude Druids, the HPS on the Humanoid tanks by the Druids is only 4% less than the single-target capabilities of one Priest or Paladin. Since each Druid is healing 3 tanks, their total HPS is each 44% greater than what a Priest or Paladin can output. To put it in other terms, four Paladins/Priests output a max of approximately 12,400 HPS combined, while just two Druids and 1 Priest/Paladin can output a max of 12,045 HPS combined. This is a decrease of only approx 3% in maximum healing output, despite having lost 25% of the tank healers; effectively, this means that 2 druids can produce very similar output as 3 Priests/Paladins when healing 3 tanks.
It should be noted that I didn't include additional HoTs from raid healers such as Priests and Shamans as part of the HPS on the tanks done by Druids MT healing. To compare the capabilities between Druids doing the MT healing or Priest/Paladins MT healing, refer to the section "How this adds to incoming tank HPS with Druid HoTs" above and compare to the HPS capabilities of individual Priests/Paladins. To summarize the results briefly, in some cases HPS done by HoTs is slightly less and in others it is significantly greater.
M'uru Phase 2:
Phase 2 can be done with or without 10% haste from gear for Druids, but the HPS output is increased by 25% by each Druid who has approximately 10% haste. In Phase 2, each Druid without haste can keep 4 stacks of LB on 4 separate targets; this would provide all 6 healers with an approximately 1,000 HPS heal plus a stack from each Druid on the tank for a constant stream of 2159 HPS on the tank. For each Druid with 10% haste, you can add either 1 additional target to be Lifebloomed (such as a shadow priest, for example) or a Rejuvenation on the tank for an additional 411 HPS from each Druid (2981 HPS total from 2 Druids with 10% haste). Since each Negative Energy ability does 2000 dmg to the primary target, 1000 to the 2nd target, and 500 to the 3rd and adds 1 primary target every 15 sec, raid damage will continue to ramp up the longer the fight lasts; by 90 seconds (the usually accepted de-facto secondary enrage timer), there will be 7 primary targets and 14 other targets hit by each chain. Averaged out, each chain deals 1166.67 dps to 3 targets. the 1000 HPS from Lifeblooms on each healer means that they would not have to concern themselves much with healing themselves or other healers and can focus on keeping the DPS alive. I have once read of a guild who does something similar to this and were able to extend Phase 2 from 1.5 min to several, but, unfortunately, I have been unable to re-locate where I read it, so take that with a grain of salt. But, theoretically, for each additional 30 seconds beyond 90 that Phase 2 lasts, the total averaged amount of DPS needed to down Entropius (2.2 million HP) decreases to:
2,200,000 HP / 90 seconds = 24,445 DPS
2,200,000 HP / (2 * 60 seconds) = 18,333 DPS
2,200,000 HP / (2.5 * 60 seconds) = 14,667 DPS
Mana Consumption:
One other thing of note is that regardless of which strategy is used, both Druids must be in a group with a Shadow Priest; otherwise, the spell rotation won't be sustainable. To put the mana consumption into MP/5 terms:
Strategy 1 rotation is LB, LB, Rejuv, Rerowth: (176 + 176 + 332 + 540) / 7 sec = 174.86 mana per sec on average * 5 = 874.3 mp5 required to keep from running OOM.
Strategy 2 rotation is LB, LB, LB, Rejuv, Rejuv, LB, LB, LB, Rejuv, SM: (176 + 176 + 176 + 332 + 332 + 176 +176 +176+ 332 + 303) / 14 = 168.22 mana per sec on average = 841.1 mp/5 required to keep from running OOM.
My own gear and capabilities::
One thing I should note is that I only have 7% spell haste. I would need at least one of the following to be able to keep Rejuvenation on all 3 tanks with Positioning Strategy 2:
Leather Gauntlets of the Sun (I know the crafter, but I wouldn't be able to afford the remaining 3 Sunmotes)
Brooch of Nature's Mercy from Akil'zon (I haven't had good luck getting this)
Shroud of the Highborne from Illidan (I'm not sure if anyone else needs this)
Blessed Band of Karabor from BT trash (I haven't seen this drop in 2 months)
However, without the 10% haste, I could still keep Lifebloom stacks on all 3 tanks and a Rejuvenation on 2 of the 3, so the strategy is still viable. The main difference between the two strategies are the following: the second maximizes the HPS of the Druids but provides less reactive healing ability; the first results in less overall HPS output but allows for some degree of reactive healing.
Final Words:
Both Positioning Strategy 1 and 2 (or variations thereof) are used by guilds who consistently kill M'uru, and that they've even been used for at least one of the first 20 kills of M'uru world-wide. I could provide sources if you really want, but I'd have to find them again. =/
Again, I'm not advocating change here because no changes may be needed; instead, I simply aim to bring to light additional options. I hope that this analysis will aid the guild with either M'uru or future boss encounters and possibly serve as a reference page. =)
-Truevision
Burning Legion
EDIT1: After learning that 2 tank healers are typically used on the Void tank, I modified my analysis accordingly (I don't know how I missed and didn't notice that...)