Some healers make me panic

[Freerider]

As a healer main I just love to watch the tank squirm. When I tank I put complete faith in my healer until they give me a reason not to.

[Katryn]

I main WHM and my priorities look like this:

1) heal
2) dodge aoes and mechanics
3) assist with required mechanics (if applicable)
4) DPS

Now don't get me wrong--I've got nothing against DPS as a healer and I do feel it can help move things quickly provided that everything else is under control. But I'm an old school, longtime healer who has played a lot of MMOs where the 'mah deeps' mentality would have gotten you laughed off your server, so the background I come from likely does influence my priorities.

There is also the facts that I have disabilities (legally blind with cerebral palsy) and that I live in the country and my internet is not the most stellar on the planet. I'd far rather have a smooth run where everything dies reasonably quick, all party members stay alive, all bosses get cleared with no deaths and we go on our merry way than risk having any form of death or a wipe where it could even have a hint of being implied that the death was my fault. Where I come from, gamewise, that's a big, huge no-no.

A healer's job is to be the one thing separating their companions from an instant and unavoidable death. In this game the level of intensity thrown at healers is not always brutal enough to require second to second healing, which does lead to windows for dps to become an option. I am certainly not suggesting we jump around or do the Manderville because we are bored. But assessing the group and figuring out what will work for that group is important.

I'm certainly not trying to knock other healers who successfully keep parties alive and are able to put out more damage than me, either. People have different skill levels and limitations (things I listed above, for example) and learning what those are and working to surpass them is important. My philosophies on how things work are my opinions and apply to me.

There is also the fact that healers are no more mind readers than tanks are. Just like a healer might need to tell the tank, "Hey, I'm new to this dungeon." or "I'm really comfortable in here, feel free to pull big if you'd like.", I do not think there should be shame in a tank going, "Hey, I've had some bad experiences in (dungeon). Mind keeping me at (percent) hp. Thanks.". It's true you can get a bonehead in either position who might throw a hissy fit or someone who does not watch their chat thoroughly (sorry! I try but once we start moving that gets bumped down the list...).

I think a lot of people could be a lot more happy if groups took the time to communicate. Unfortunately, there are a lot more people in a lot bigger hurry than I've seen in most previous mmos and that can make a lot of what I stated above a much bigger problem.

[Asheilin]

I main Ast. (with Drk right next to it, random dps followed) My healer (diurnal mostly) philosophy is:
1: Tank Above 70% & Big Pull -> Aspect Benific/Helios if needed, Malefic III/Combust II (small pulls/Boss) OR Gravity x1 or 2 (depending on tank HP) Benific II; Rinse Repeat
2: Tank Hit 50-60% HP -> Essential Dignity, ensure both Aspect hots on are, Benific II, Combut II and Melefic III, reaply as needed
3: Tank Below 50% HP... Healer Panic and move to Healing with Combust II when able, returning to 1 or 2 if Tank shows smart use of CDs. If tank hits 35% hp besides busters, I stop dpsing at all. because obviously my Job is to Keep him Alive.
If constantly bouncing between 2 and 3 I ease up on DPS anyway because I keep having to spam Benific II and need to manage mana better