The Spirit Realm

Assuming that every healer has a 20% or better healing focus is more than a little bit presumptuous. Instead of nerfing HoTs for freshman healers, why not suggest applying only half of the healing focus effect to HoTs instead? Besides, haven't the devs basically said that this will never be implemented anyway and that if we want to increase the power of our HoTs, we should just go ahead and buy the Healing Boon AA?

I think HoT's should be affected just as direct cast heals are affected. This wold help restore some healing parity to the classes who rely on HoT's a lot more than others (i.e. shaman)

The problem is that if they introduced foci for HoT's, most likely they wouldn't be lumped into existing foci, but added as a new item. Now assuming this comes true, then you see all the casual players take a 10.5% hit in their effectiveness from HoT's. I'll tell you as a casual shaman, that losing 500hp off the top of my HoT would hurt a lot. I rely on that to keep people up when I'm main healing, and blast heal when DPS is outpacing it too fast. I'm one of those who couldn't take the hit. And getting focus items or new gear is a challenge for me given my play times, style and grouping companions. I'm sure I'm not the only one in this boat.

Also, nerfing HoT's and replacing the nerf with a focus does NOT fix this issue. Because no ground is gained. Ground is lost, because the BASE power is decreased, which is not the point of this. It's to increase the total effectiveness of the HoT lines, not reduce their base and add a focus to bring it back to current level.

How about offering an "Adept" line of AAs for hot's instead? I'm not sure I like the idea of tying hot power to gear. The gap between non-raider healing and raider healing capability is already fairly significant. Hots are sort of balancing as they are today. We all have the same basic capabilities.

That'd be fine in my book. AA's sure, so you have the option of increasing your capability, or choosing not to if you wish to focus elsewhere (for some reason), and you don't have to play the aug/gear shuffle to get your results.

I certainly thought it was clear enough, which is why I objected to it. Your idea will directly impact the up-and-coming casual shaman, who just got the first HoT (good old ), which would be 10.5% weaker than the Stoicism that you and I had at that same level, healing only 143 per tick instead of 160, for a total of 572 instead of 640. I can't think of any justification for nerfing the freshman shaman, just so that the ancient shaman can have a HoT focus.