Patch 3.2: Replenishment nerfed, MP5 buffed
Mana regeneration was a much-discussed area for change in patch 3.1, but when the patch went live, it turned out the changes hadn’t been all that massive; most healers are still not putting a high premium on regen stats or watching their mana bars too closely, fights like Vezax excluded.
A big part of the reason why mana regen has been so extreme in Wrath is Replenishment; as of right now, any of five DPS specs (Shadow Priest, Survival Hunter, Retribution Paladin, Frost Mage, and Destruction Warlock) will provide the ten lowest people in your raid 0.25% of their maximum mana per second. Among other things, this makes Intellect a prime regen stat.
Well, Replenishment is getting a bit of a nerf in patch 3.2: instead of 0.25% max mana per second, it’ll be 1% maximum mana over five seconds. That’s a 20% nerf. This applies to all sources of Replenishment. At the same time, all items with MP5 on them are having the MP5 buffed by about 25%. These two changes will probably even out for the MP5-based healers (Paladin and Shaman), while making them value MP5 gear a bit more. Druids and Priests will feel a regeneration nerf, but I think they can afford it.
Filed under: World of Warcraft