[WHA] - The Shaman Preview

[Garthilk]

I'd like to thank community member Casper from the Legion of Steel Guild for helping to provide this in depth preview of the Shaman career. Again, huge thanks to the Legion of Steel for helping to provide this guide. The information contained herein was acquired from the last public showing of the game. Despite it being shown publicly very recently, the version of the game shown to the public is fairly outdated compared to the current development version. So that means that the abilities, tactics and morale abilities in the reply below will very likely have changed dramatically. The list of skills and tactics below are being included just to give people a taste of the concepts and abilities that have existed in the development process. In other words, if you are easily influenced into believing this list may in anyway represent what is to be expected at release, please, stop reading.

Playing as a Shaman

By participating in battle, calling down the wrath of Gork and Mork, or just being up in the fight with the lads, the Shaman taps into the collective frenzy to gain Waaagh! power. This gathered Waaagh! energy drives the strength of his supporting magic to new heights. As a Shaman, you’ll have to walk a careful line in balancing your offensive and support abilities. You can achieve the greatest rate of healing by focusing on that skill exclusively. You can maximize your rate of damage by focusing purely on those abilities. However, focusing on a single talent will lessen your overall impact on the battle. The strength your support skills gain from an ongoing Waaagh! is significant. Using your offensive magic to contribute directly to the fight will increase the power of your support magic, allowing you to better help your group.

Shaman Mechanic

Channeling the WAAAGH! power, Shaman can produce all types of spectacular green magic, which he can unleash as a testament to the might of the Greenskin deities, Gork and Mork. Greenskins are a little unclear on exactly which god it is that they worship at any given moment, however, so the Shaman decide to play it safe and offer up power to both. This constant back-and-forth between Mork and Gork allows a Shaman to greatly improve his magic, making their dimutive figures into unexpectedly powerful forces on the battlefield.

Shaman Masteries

The masteries work give players the opportunity to specialize their playstyles. The path of Mork, Gork and da Green can be advanced in each seperately or collectively. As you gain ranks in each specialty you will unlock specialty specific abilities, tactics and morale abilities unique to each path. In addition abilities belonging to each path will increase in power.

Example. A player specializing in Path of Gork will find that their Life Leaks, Bunch o' Waaagh, and other abilities belonging to that family will be much more effective the more the player specializes in that mastery.

Path Of Gork
By focusing on destroying his enemies first the Shaman can potentially hasten their build-up of Waaagh! and improve their healing magics. Shamans will find this mastery is for individuals wanting to focus on damange.

Path Of Mork
This path is primarily focused on healing and restoring abilities. As the Shaman casts spells from this path, he up the power of Mork's WAAAGH!, which he can then use to fling swift and powerful offensive magic. Shamans will find this mastery is for individuals wanting to focus on healing.

Path Of Da Green
A mix of Gork and Mork the Path of Da Green is a balnce of the two. While not as powerful as specializing in solely Mork or Gork, the Path of Da Green allows greater and more powerful buffs and debuffs.

[Garthilk]

Life Leaks (Path of Gork) - Damaging
AP: 30 Range: 100 Level: 2
Instant Cast - 5s cooldown
Gork's Waaagh! increases effectiveness
You deal Spirit damage to your target over 15 seconds. Each point of Waaagh! will increase the abilities
potency. With 0 Waaagh!, deals X damage.

Ey, Quit Bleedin (Core Ability) - Healing
AP: 30 Range: 150 Level: 3
Instant Cast - No cooldown
Heals your target over 15 seconds. Each point of Waaagh! will increase the abilities potency. With 0
Waaagh!, heals X health

Ere We Go! (Path of da Green) - Buff
AP: 25 Range: None Level: 4
Instant Cast - 15s cooldown
Everyone in your group's next attack deals an additional damage.

Bunch o' Waaagh (Path of Gork) - Damaging
AP: 25 Range: 100 Level: 5
Instant Cast - 8s cooldown
You concentrate on your target for up to 3 seconds, repeating dealing spirit damage to them as long as you
maintain your concentration. Each point of Waaagh! will increase the abilities potency. With 0 Waaagh!,
deals X damage.

Bleed fer Me (Path of Mork) - Damaging
AP: 45 Range: 100 Level: 6
Instant Cast - 10s cooldown
You deal damage to your target over time and your defensive target is healed for the damage done. Each
point of Waaagh! will increase the abilities potency. With 0 Waaagh!, deals X damage.

Mork's Buffer (Path of da Green) - Buff
AP: 60 Range: None Level: 7
Instant Cast - No cooldown
Increases all your resistances of everyone in your group by 6 for 1 hour.

Bigger, Better, An' Greener (Path of Mork) - Healing
AP: 50 Range: 150 Level: 8
3s cast - No cooldown
Heals your target for X health. This is a fragile spell, and will always be set back by a large amount if you are damaged while casting it. Each point of Waaagh! will decrease the casting time.

Divine Favor (Core Ability) - Rank 1 Morale Ability
Range: 150 Level: 8
Instant Cast - No cooldown
A strong heal that will restore X health to your target.

Yer Not So Bad (Core Ability) - Debuff
AP: 45 Range: 100 Level: 9
2s Cast - 20s cooldown
Steals X Action Points from your target over 9 seconds. Each point of Waaagh! will decrease the casting time.

Gedup! (Core Ability) - Healing
AP: 30 Range: 100 Level: 10
Resurrects your target with 20% health. Each point of Waaagh! will decrease the casting time. Must target dead ally.

Too Smart fer Dat (Core Ability) - 1 Slot Career Tactic
Level: 11
Passive - No cooldown
Increases your Spirit resistance.

Get'n Smarter (Path of da Green) - Debuff
AP: 15 Range: 100 Level: 12
Instant Cast - 10s cooldown
Steals 6 Intellegence from your target for 10 seconds.

Rampaging Siphon (Core Ability) - Rank 2 Morale Ability
Range: None Level: 12
Instant cast - No cooldown
Deals 92 damage to all enemies with 30 feet, and heals your entire group for the full amount of the damage delt.

Divine Furty Tactic (Core Ability) - 1 Slot Career Tactic
Level: 13
Passive - No cooldown
You deal 25% more damage, but all of your healing becomes 20% less effective.

Don Feel Nuythin (Path of Mork) - Buff
AP: 40 Range: 150 Level: 14
Instant cast - 20s cooldown
Surrounds an ally with a magical barrior for up to 9 seconds which will absorb damage. Each piont of Waaagh! will increase the effectiveness. With 0 Waaagh!, absorbs up to 75 damage.

Burst O' Waaagh! (Core Ability) - 1 Slot Career Tactic
Level: 15
Passive - No cooldown
Critical hits with damaging spells generate an extra 2 Waaagh!.

Greener 'n Cleaner (Core Ability) - Healing
AP: 20 Range: 150 Level: 15
Instant cast - No cooldown
Removes 1 Hex effect from your target.

Steal Life (Core Ability) - Rank 1 Morale Ability
Range: 100 Level: 16
Instant cast - No cooldown
Your target suffers 128 damage over 9 seconds, and you are healing for half of the damage dealt.

Run Away! (Core Ability) - 1 Slot Career Tactic
Level: 17
Passive - No cooldown
Increases your initiative by +1 per level.

Yer a weaklin (Path of da green) - Debuff
AP: 30 Range: 100 Level: 18
2s cast - No cooldown
Your target takes 30 damage over 10 seconds. Your target's strength is also reduced by 6 for 10 seconds. Each piont of Waaagh! will decrease the casting time.

Restorative Burst (Care Ability) - 1 Slot Career Tactic
Level: 19
Passive - No cooldown
Any time you critically heal an ally, you will regain 50 Action Points.

Focused Mind (Core Ability) - Rank 2 Morale Ability
Range: None Level: 20
Instant cast - No cooldown
For the next 10 seconds, you will remove and ignore any silencing, disarming, root, snaring effects and your abilities will build 50% faster and may not be set back.

Gather Round (Path of Mork) - Healing
AP: 70 Range: None Level: 20
3s cast - No cooldown
Heals your entire group for 83 health. Each piont of Waaagh! will decrease the casting time.

Ain't Done Yet! (Core Ability) - 1 Slot Career Tactic
Level: 21
Passive - No cooldown
Spells that spend Waaagh! have a 10% chance to not expend it when used.

Wasat behind you?1 (Core Ability) - 1 Slot Career Tactic
Level: 23
Passive - No cooldown
When damaged, you have a 10% chance to detaunt the attacker for 5 seconds, making them hate you less and reducing the damage they deal to you.

Divine Protection (Core Ability) - Rank 3 Morale Ability.
Level: 24
Instant cast - No cooldown
Everyone in your group is surrounded by a protective shild which will absorb a large amount of damage from melee abilities.

Eeeek! (Core Ability) - Debuff
AP: 60 Range: None Level: 25
Instant cast - 60s cooldown
You, and all enemies near you are blasted with Waagh!, knocking away players and knocking monsters down.

Subtlety (Core Ability) - 1 Slot Career Tactic
Level: 25
Passive - No cooldown
All of your heals will cause enemy monsters to hate you less than normal.

Extra Special Mushrooms (Core ability) - 1 Slot Career Tactic
Level: 27
Passive - No cooldown
Heals gain an addition 5% chance to critical.

Gork Sez Stop (Core Ability) - Rank 1 Morale Ability
Range: 100 Level: 28
Instant Cast - No cooldown
Your target suffers X damage over 2s. If the target moves the duraction is restarted.

Desperation (Core ability) - 1 Slot Career Tactic
Level: 29
Passive - No cooldown
Your heals will become 20% more effective if your target it critically wounded.

Stop hitting' me! (Path of Gork) - Healing
AP: 45 Range: None Level: 30
Instant cast - 30s cooldown
Your chance to disrupt attacks is increased by 5% and your detaunt all enemies with 30 feet for 10 seconds making them hate you less and causing them to deal 50% less damage to you. If you attack anyone that you have detaunted the effect will immediately end.

Dat Makes me Dizzy (Core Ability) - 1 Slot Career Tactic
Level: 31
Passive - No cooldown
Resurrections are instant cast, but character is stunned for 3 seconds after casting.

Breath of Mork (Core Ability) - Rank 2 Morale Ability
Range: 150 Level: 32
Instant cast - No cooldown
Heals your target for X health every 3 seconds over 9 seconds. Each pulse also heals those around the target within 30 feet.

Mork is Watchin (Core Ability - 1 Slot Career Tactic
Level: 33
Passive - No cooldown
Damaging spells gain and additional 5% chance to critical

Scuse me! (Path of Gork) - Damaging
AP: 55 Range: None Level: 35
2s cast - 10s cooldown
A cone of energy strikes enemies in front of you, up to 65 feet away, dealing X spirit damage and reducing their elemental resistance by 9 for 9 seconds.

Look What I Did (Core Ability) - 1 Slot Career Tactic
Level: 35
Passive - No cooldown
Critical hits on damaging spells grant 5 seconds worth of morale.

You weren't Using Dat (Core Ability) - Rank 3 Morale Ability
Level: 36
Instant cast - No cooldown
Removes 100 AP from each enemey within 30 feet, and gives you 50% of the stolen AP to you.

Get Moving (Core Ability) - 1 Slot Career Tactic
Level: 37
Passive - No cooldown
Heals that critical also give the target 50 Action Points.

Waagh is Heal (Core Ability) - 1 Slot Career Tactic
Level: 39
Passive - No cooldown
All of your healing spells with build up 50% faster when you have 5 points of Waaagh!

Alter Fate (Core ability)- Rank 4 Morale Ability
Level: 40
Instant cast - No cooldown
Resurrects all groupmates within 30 feet. Anyone who is brought back from the dead will also be healed for X over 5 seconds.

You Got Nothin! (Path of da Green) - Damaging
AP: 20 Range: 100 Level: 40
1s cast - 30s cooldown
Deals X Spirit damage and silcences your target, making them unable to use magic for 5 seconds. Each piont of Waaagh! will decrease the casting time.

[Baine]

Thats a pretty amazing review.

Good stuff. Just kinda wished it was the runepriest but then all the surprise would be ruined.

[Vengance]

whoot first page!

good stuff there. lots of abilities.

Me likey

[Adalyn]

loverly, thanks Garth.

[doctaboom]

well done! any chance of seeing a review like this for engineers perhaps?

[Oblivionate]

Thanks to the boys down at the Legion for the review.

Pretty damn detailed.

[XShrike]

I wonder what's the deal with all the X amount of damage or healing.

[Unlucky_Owl]

You just have to love the ability names, "Don Feel Nuythin" and "GedUp" have to be my favourite names so far.

[Higach]

My favorite still goes to Black Orc's "Right in da Jibblies"

[Graven]

So many abilities... me like Great job!

[Requiem]

w00t! Go Legion of Steel!

[Dagoth]

Alter Fate (Core ability)- Rank 4 Morale Ability
Level: 40
Instant cast - No cooldown
Resurrects all groupmates within 30 feet. Anyone who is brought back from the dead will also be healed for X over 5 seconds.

Jesus Christ.

Morale abilities can really turn a battle.

[Aenigma]

Nice review, I'm really starting to like the Shaman. Seems like very powerfull class if you know how to play them.

[The Disciple]

Thanks Garthilk & Legion of Steel. Excellent read.

Especially like:

Originally Posted by Garthilk

Gork Sez Stop (Core Ability) - Rank 1 Morale Ability
Range: 100 Level: 28
Instant Cast - No cooldown
Your target suffers X damage over 2s. If the target moves the duraction is restarted.

very cool =]