Warriors: Let's Talk Cool Downs Techniques

[OmegaSinX]

In preparation for all the new content once the patch goes live. I am taking the time to tweak my cool downs. I have a pretty solid rotation but I'm always looking for ways to improve my game. So I wanted to bounce idea off my fellow Warrior Brethren to Discuss our Defensive Cool Downs, because everyone handles their cooldowns differently.

Hopefully I or someone will walk away from this thread learning a new tactics they werent privy to before.

I'll start off by saying I do not use Feather or Awareness. Don't get me wrong, they are great skill (when they work) but the RNG factor make them unreliable to me.

My Cool Downs & How I use Them

Tier 1 ( The Weaker CD)

1. Tomahawk >Steel Cyclone > Storm Path Combo (Opener)

It's common knowledge to try to keep Storm Path Up at all times as soon as you have enough threat. But Instead of opening with Butcher's Block Combo, If I have the wrath for it, I will open with Steel Cyclone even if I'm fighting a single Target. Why ? Because it allows me to put up SP combo quicker(9sec vs 15-22sec). I find that if I use Steel Cyclone as a Opener, It give me enough threat to do Storm Path before DPS Threat Bar starts to creep.

2. Blood Bath + Foresight

These skills have a bad rap, but suprisely makes a pretty decent Defensive Combo when used together. With Storm Path Up, this combo is even better. Whats great about these 2 skills, is that they both have a 90sec cooldown and have long durations (30 and 20sec). They might not be as good as Inner Beast, But This is my first option when i need decent mitigation and dont want to blow one of my Big CD. Turn 4 Spiders is a example.

3.Mega Potion of Vit > Second Wind

Since A HQ Mega Potion of Vit last 15secs is almost like having a 2nd (Slightly weaker) Thrill of Battle without the self heal.Thats where Second Wind comes in. I know alot of people write off Second Wind its often weak. But alot of people dont know Second Wind Can be buffed and can Crit. With Berserk & Internal Release (If Up), I've self-healed 1100ish+ from 2nd wind Second Winds Crits. Unpar with Inner Beast Heal. A Great Combo to absorb blows when you know the attack is coming. Come 2.2, I will start using X-Potion of Vit instead.


Tier 2 ( Big Mitigation)

4. Inner Beast

Warrior Bread & Butter. This is My Go To Move For Mitigation for predictable moves. Since you can essentially use this every 22-25 secs, i rarely have times where I dont have an anwser for mitigation.

5. Infuriate

In Coil and Primals, I Strictly use this for when I need mitigation but I dont have enough wrath for inner beast & Vengence is on cool down. So since most big hits are predictable in this game, i'm rarely in that situations unless something doesnt go as planned.

6. Thrill of Battle

Not much to say about this skill that I didnt say above. This is a superb. Best used prior to a big attack to absorb. Good Alternative for when Vengeance & Inner Beast is down to absorb Wicked Wheels & Death sentences.

7. Vengeance

My Favorite Warrior Skill. Not only is it Warrior's Best Mitigation tool. But it's also a boost to DPS and its only on a 2min CD. Cant ask for more than that. I save this skill for when othere skills wont cut it. (i.e wicked wheels, Double Dreadnaught, Large Pulls)

8. Convalescene

For when S#it hits the fan and I need healing fast. This works well with our already baked in +20% healing from Defiance. I've seen close to 4k Crit heals with this on.

9. Holmgang

Althought I believe this skill needs a buff. It still can be a life saver with a cluthe heal. Its Last Restort. I Pop it and Pray.



That about it. Any ideas on what I should change to be more effective ? What do you guys do differently that you feel works well for you ? Pro Players Preferred (i.e at least cleared Turn 4, Garuda, etc). Thoughts

[Darkholme]

After watching some vids- (one of Mr.Happy's guides in particular), I like pairing Inner Beast for it's 20% reduce damage with Foresight's 20% reduction... or Vengence's 30%. But i use Bloodbath with it's up and i am taking damage- along with Internal Release.

Like you i am trying to work out a good flow, I love playing war and it's important to me to do a decent job.

I just started using Holmgang with Ultima Hard... it does save me at times- gives me enough time to pop a cooldown and get some healing on me.

Like i said- it's a fun job.

If i am doing it wrong, please let me know...

[OmegaSinX]

Depending on how hard the mobs are hitting, I'll either use Vengeance + Bloodbath or Foresight+Bloodbath When AoE Tanking. Works well with Overpower Spam

[whiskeybravo]

After watching some vids- (one of Mr.Happy's guides in particular), I like pairing Inner Beast for it's 20% reduce damage with Foresight's 20% reduction... or Vengence's 30%. But i use Bloodbath with it's up and i am taking damage- along with Internal Release.

Like you i am trying to work out a good flow, I love playing war and it's important to me to do a decent job.

I just started using Holmgang with Ultima Hard... it does save me at times- gives me enough time to pop a cooldown and get some healing on me.

Like i said- it's a fun job.

If i am doing it wrong, please let me know...

Should realize now that Foresight is not Damage Reduction, per say, but a defense boost. Where Vengeance is actually 30% damage reduction (5000 damage reduced to 3500 damage), Foresight just boost physical defense. Yes this does reduce damage, but it's really really weak compared to Inner Beast and Vengeance, in the neighborhood of 3-4% from what I've heard/seen.

[Kitru]

in the neighborhood of 3-4% from what I've heard/seen.

Closer to 10%.

[whiskeybravo]

Closer to 10%.

Sorry.. You would know, Kitru.. But it certainly doesn't feel like 10% lol

[Kitru]

Sorry.. You would know, Kitru.. But it certainly doesn't feel like 10% lol

10% is pretty hard to notice, given the natural variability in damage taken, which is something like +/-5% from average per hit.

[whiskeybravo]

I'm still a fan of Featherfoot. Short CD and if you dodge just one attack it's worth it IMO. I'm also horrible and use Awareness.. I like the PLD version better of course, but I find it's a nice "weaker" CD to rotate with Featherfoot and Foresight. Bloodbath is macro'd with Skull Sunder to use on CD. <3 Vitality potions as well. Had an FC mate dump 30 HQ mega vit potions on me and I will love them forever now.

I've been using SC a lot on T4 now, picking up adds, saves TP and is OP on threat lol

[OmegaSinX]

Foresight is under appreciated. With Stormpath+ Rage Halone Debuff Foresight its quite good actually. I use Foresight for those situations where Vengeance or Inner Beast might be over kill.

I'm no numbers wiz, but how much does foresight mitigate with both Stormpath and RoH Debuff up Kitru ?

[Kitru]

I'm no numbers wiz, but how much does foresight mitigate with both Stormpath and RoH Debuff up Kitru ?

They're all multiplicative effects so it's not like there's a lot of really complicated stuff going on. I could provide a definitive number, but I'm not exactly sure about the conversion to damage reduction for the STR debuff. Assuming it follows much the same path as +def (roughly half as much DR as the effect on stats), it's ~23% DR (.9 * .9 * .95), but that's a somewhat disingenuous number since a WAR should be maintaining Storm's Path anyways, and, if you're paired with a PLD, you should have both effects up all the time most of the time as well.

Personally, I use Foresight and Featherfall with impressive regularity, generally attempting to keep them on CD since they come back so quickly and only really have substantial effects when you look at them over time. I've got a pretty low threshold of use for the WAR CDs in general because they've got low CDs, which means that, a vast majority of the time, even if I'm using a major CD (Conv, ToB, Vengeance) at regular intervals, I'll have at least one of those back before a similar occasion arises.