Now that I have Holy, I don't want to cast it.

The learning curve continues.

AoE stun and dmg, and a beautiful animation comes at a very high cost. Roughly 15% of total mana at my level if my math is correct. I am curious if this stays fairly consistent to lv 60?

Divine Seal and SoS really helps MP efficiency, but I am having trouble fitting Holy into my toolkit unless I want the AoE stun. It's DPS contribution is a distant second. Do I have the wrong impression? In short, I am very MP conscious as WHM. I gladly contribute to DPS when HP/MP bars permit it, but I feel there is this expectation of me to cast Holy for DPS contribution, and I'm like "umm, no."

Edit: Oh, and just to be a little more clear. I am casting it, just not often. It's kind of like a mini LB. I kinda had enough of the incoming dmg, and I explode. Giving me a little more time to patch people up.

Holy is love, holy is life. You will come to learn this mantra on WHM.

However, to actually help you, the relative mp cost: max mp ratio on holy is more or less the same at lvl 50 as it is at 60. But with experience, you will learn to not be too bothered about the cost when you get mana management down better.

Holy will let you dps a bit unhindered in dungeons due to the stun. The stun prevents damage, so its healing saved. Used alongside Aero III and Assize, its fantastically scary how much aoe burst dps a healer can do.

The useage of Shroud of Saints sensibly helps offset the mana cost of holy during dungeon pulls. Use it when holy spamming alondside assize for the damage and busrt dps.

You should be spamming Holy whenever you can for the AoE stun and damage. WHM's heals are so ridiculous that you can very easily keep the tank afloat in casual content with sub 20% MP with no problems. Of course, it also doesn't hurt to keep a stock of ether on you for an emergency back up. And yeah, the MP cost very much stays consistent.

Holy is a great skill. Feel free to get a little spammy with it. You can stretch your MP out further than what you might think.

You don't win any awards by staying above 50% MP the entire duty. If you dont use your MP, it just goes to waste.

While the cost does stay about the same as you level up, once you hit 60 and you start to raise your ilvl, you'll find you get more and more PIE on your gear which increases your maximum MP pool and by extension your natural MP regeneration rate, making using Holy more manageable. Even in lower level situations you should find some MP to use and dropping your MP to even sub 40% isn't a detriment to your role if you play properly (which comes with experience).

Holy should be something you should attempt to use at least 3 times in a single pull just for the maximum Stun duration. Remember to buffer some filler spell between the 1st and 2nd Holy (usually Aero III once you acquire that - Blizzard II makes a decent low level substitute) so the diminishing returns don't negate the 2nd Holy.

Also, something to consider as you become more and more comfortable with Holy - be aware that when partied with DRKs that they have an ability called "Blood Price" which allows them to regenerate MP as they take damage. It's a small purple / pink icon with what I believe is a hand facing down (I think???). This ability obviously runs into issues if the entire pack of mobs is stunned. The rate the DRK will activate this ability will depend on their skill level but is something to be aware of as you get better at using the WHM kit.

Happy "SUPER LIGHT SHOW POWER"ing =p

Not having full mana is 100% okay.

I used to be like this with WAR and overpower. Spamming it blows through so much tp that I'd only use it once or twice a pull. Over time though I noticed how much TP I'd have left after a pull and also how much TP I regen between pulls and decided to use Overpower more.

You'll get that way with Holy too. Just get an idea how much MP you've got left over after a pull and figure out how much more Holy you could squeeze in.

Play some solo content (that's challenging to you - maybe an unsynced dungeon) & get used to your toolkit. That's how I learned. I got to lvl50 WHM in ARR (I'm a SCH main) but never felt comfortable until HW came & I could run challenging stuff at my own pace & learn more about the playstyle of WHM & the way it uses mana.

It's worthwhile doing that for any new jobs you learn or for any you feel even the slightest bit uncomfortable with. You can then progress onto party stuff because you'll know when & if you can DPS safely.

Omg, Swiftcast-holy-AeroIII-Assiez-PoM-holy-holy-holy-holy-holy-holy-SoS.... sooooooo goood. Holy is amazing, even in it's nerfed state, you will come to love it eventually.

Thanks for the feedback guys. I heard about Holy spamming, and I KNEW I wasn't casting it enough. I was excited to get it to give me something to cast along with Stone II, and then freaked out when I saw the MP cost. I immediately began having thoughts of being responsible for a wipe because I casted it too much and ran out of MP.

I guess I was also very comfortable with my MP management and DPS output prior to getting Holy. It's like it took 45 levels to finally establish some confidence and stance dance like a champ, and now I just have to adjust to the new ability. I understand this will come with time and experience, and mistakes are going to happen. It's exactly why I prefer to level very slowly. I will definitely begin to cast it more. I feel I can be a little more spammy with it during trash pulls, but really need to be mindful during boss encounters.

Stunned mobs don't deal damage you'd have to spend MP on to cure.

Also for emphasis since it's kind of buried in their post:

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Originally Posted by Ghishlain

be aware that when partied with DRKs that they have an ability called "Blood Price" which allows them to regenerate MP as they take damage.

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Originally Posted by Alistaire

Stunned mobs don't deal damage you'd have to spend MP on to cure.

Also for emphasis since it's kind of buried in their post:

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Mmm, I knew someone would mention this to me, and figured that the stun effect would indeed negate some of the MP cost. Dmg given goes down on subsequent mobs, but I believe the stun effect remains the same for all. I just unlocked lv 45 guildleves so I will be doing some trial and error solo for a bit. I know Aurum Vale is just around the corner, and I heard it is such a big test for healers. Ugh, as if I haven't felt tested already.

As for Blood Price. It is indeed a little purple/pinkish icon. A little ways back I posted a thread in the tank forum asking them for tips on what they like to see from their healers. A very elaborate post was made that included icons to look out for and how to respond to them. TyTy for the reminder ^^. These are things I wouldn't know unless told to me, or I play the class/job.

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Originally Posted by Gemina

but I believe the stun effect remains the same for all.

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It does. The only difference will be if someone else stuns a mob first yours will count as the next stun.

Also keep in mind till lv 50 and 60 dungeons you don't nearly outlevel mobs as much as you do after and your experience will pull sizes and tank durability will change drastically in non-levelling dungeons.

Personally I have found that a quick Divine Seal + Regen, depending on situation covers any heal time needed let's rock the Holy power with near reckless abandon. You'll get 3 average casts before the stun is resisted fully on almost all mobs that are left standing.

Edit: Yes this will draw extra emnity but I have swiftly learned tht as long as the tank realizes the plan it doesn't end up a wash.

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Originally Posted by Gemina

etc.
I know Aurum Vale is just around the corner, and I heard it is such a big test for healers. Ugh, as if I haven't felt tested already.
etc.

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The hardest time I've had in Aurum Vale was positioning for Holy because of the pools during the swarms of morbol(assuming you don't fight at the bottleneck right before it). If you go for full exp from the few times you come across the swarm spot it could get tricky for timing heals and Holy together at the start. Tossing a stoneskin on the tank pre-pull generally buys you the cast time for 1st Holy in my experience.

The boss fight can be a nightmare if people decide to test the fruit barrier as I call it. As long as they are well timed on their numbers to eat at it's a lot less painful on you. Not Mine but Healing Aurum Vale

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Originally Posted by Canadane

Not having full mana is 100% okay.

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I second that 200%

As a whm if you're fighting with more than 30% of your mana then there is something wrong...
I admit that if i'm with à drk i tend to use more blizzard II
Less less less DPS, but no stun and cost less
But still good for 3 target and more

As a speed runner, I explored nearly every option.. I would like to share this.

If you are using swiftcast as your opening on a WHM, you are making a huge mistake. If you honestly want to maximize the efficiency. I'll have a tip: none swiftcast holy followed by immediate swiftcast holy will overwrite 4 sec CD on previous full potential holy. Example: you cast holy then timer begins to tick, 4 sec.. 3 sec.. 2 sec.. swiftcast holy lands, back to 4 sec. Here is the best rotation: Holy - swiftcast holy - assize - (GCD refresh at this point) - Aero 3 (monsters are still stunned) - shroud (it heals lost MP from Aero 3 before spam begins) - SoS - Holy, Holy, Holy.. Remember, it doesn't only rewrite, but the kind of damage you can pull of in short period of time is massive: it's a par with flare, in terms of damage, speed.

At lv 60 I trust my tanks, so with big pulls it's divine seal + regen + medica II. Pop Asylum if needed. I do that a lot with Lost city (hard) butterfly wall. And then I tend to swiftcast first holy only for the stun effect, because the tank will have all the mobs smacking them and the quicker I prevent that the better while regen effects patches tank's HP bar. Next I cast aeroIII with the "down time" of mobs being stunned. Then holy again, assize, holy until full resist and depending on the dps, at that point mobs are below 50% of health and dropping quick. Rest is keeping the tank alive and when there's about 3 mobs left, which usually happens quite quick, it's just stoneIII. Sure I burn MP, and rarely I manage to get full mp before bosses, but at least I'm not bored. :D

Don't worry. In time you will get the feel of when and where to use holy or not. WHM's skills cater to heavy mp consumption anyway.

Holy is so useful not only does it rip through trash mobs and adds it is an extra stun for the party that works great as an emergency utility when somebody forgets to stun or you need another stun on top of one used. On a boss fight with no adds you'll find yourself not needing it over your single target attacks but it has many uses and even pre getting assize you have shroud so just learn to use that a lot. at about 90% MP pop shroud and by the time you need more MP it'll be off CD again. A lot of trash mobs won't last long enough for you to be out of MP.

You don't need to be constantly sat on 100% MP as much as your party doesn't always have to sit on 100% HP. It's about seeing the fight and knowing what you'll need.

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Originally Posted by Ghishlain

dropping your MP to even sub 40% isn't a detriment to your role if you play properly (which comes with experience).

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This so much. You'll have so many tools on level 60 that allow you to keep the group alive (not topped off, but alive) even if you're at literally zero MP. Learn to use Benediction very liberally, once you get it. It's free, it's instant, it saves you a ton of MP - MP you could spend on spamming Holy instead. Don't let it rot in a corner of your hotbar for that "OH SHIT" moment that comes once in a blue moon. Freecure procs are also amazing, use them and fish for them if you're low on MP. All of the Heavensward abilities that aren't purely offensive are also free, instant, and should be on CD most of the time, keeping your MP up for more Holy spam.

But, as Ghishlain also pointed out, much of this comes from experience. You'll gradually learn to gauge the amount of incoming damage on your party in the next X GCDs, how long you can leave your tank alone without healing them, whether or not someone needs a heal right now or whether they can wait until you've (re)applied your DoTs or gotten off another Holy or two. Most importantly: don't be afraid of failure, and take reasonable risks every now and then. You won't learn anything by always perfectly playing it safe.

So many great tips! Thank you guys. I am actually excited to use it now, but I am still lacking abilities you guys have mentioned that really help. I am still a young WHM in training, but I will get there. With 50 around the corner I really want to be worthy of my healer's robe. Bring on Aurum Vale. I'm ready to whack some weeds!

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Originally Posted by Gemina

So many great tips! Thank you guys. I am actually excited to use it now, but I am still lacking abilities you guys have mentioned that really help. I am still a young WHM in training, but I will get there. With 50 around the corner I really want to be worthy of my healer's robe. Bring on Aurum Vale. I'm ready to whack some weeds!

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That's a good attitude to have! It takes a bit of practice but I'm sure you'll do fine.