Realm: Mistblade Healing Classes - Ranked for PvE

[Tiamek]

I've been main-spec healing since 2007, switching to private servers after Legion. On Mistblade-1 server, I created each healing class, including three different priests (human PvP, Gnome Alliance PvE, Blood Elf Horde PvE) and have cleared Siege of Orgrimmar on all.

6th Place: Holy Paladin

Overall low numbers. Mastery revolves around absorption - giving purpose to overhealing - but Infusion of Light forces reliance on Crit to hasten spells - but Haste ends up being the dominant stat due to the extra tick on Eternal Flame. If you choose this spec, you need to lean hard into one stat, but as a Paladin, you may be more effective with another specialization. Best races are Human for mana regen or Blood Elf for the PvE faction.

5th Place: Holy Priest

Mastery: Echoes of Light is overridden by smaller heals. To compensate for this, many spells like Renew or Circle of Healing must be ignored completely. To fully utilize the Chakra system, each "stance" must be quick-bound in an expansion that provides 5 pages of spells, despite switching Chakras having a 30 second cooldown. The problem with Haste being a universally beneficial healing stat, is its alternative Discipline spec relying on Crit - thus forcing a choice between the two. Holy Specialization is superior on extensive periodic-damage fights such as Norushen, Iron Juggernaut, Ji-Kun, and Tsulong. Recommended races are Human for mana regen or Blood Elf for the PvE Faction.

4th Place: Mistweaver Monk

High mana costs require a linear rotation to generate Mana Tea. Consuming 4 Chi = 1 Mana Tea, which restores 4% Mana over 0.5 seconds channeled, stacks up to 20. These "sips" can crit, making Intellect/Crit your base stats. Rushing Jade Wind will be your main heal which requires proximity to melee champs, making raids easier. The overall numbers of Mistweavers are low, but very fast top-off healers, so long as the player is constantly engaged with mobility and generating Chi. A difficult and strenuous rotation, potentially cheesed by spamming Healing Spheres at the feet of whomever needs attention - which has no cooldown and low mana cost. Ignore mastery, as it relies on players moving to these healing spheres. Recommended Races are Gnome for Alliance for percentage-based mana pool, and Blood Elf for PvE Faction and AOE interruption in proximity to hostiles.

3rd Place: Discipline Priest

Smite-Spam is easy, and crits proc Divine Aegis which turns your crit-bonus into a bubble, which is amplified by Mastery. Your holy-damage spells also heal the lowest-health champion for 90% of the damage. The down-side to this is the requirement of a hostile target and if that target has damage-reduction, the heals are reduced. However, on fights such as Horridon or Elegon, increased damage taken can increase heals. Recommended Races are Human for spirit or Troll for casting speed.

1st & 2nd Place: Resto Druid & Shaman

Restoration Shamans are notorious for being <AFK> healers, in that they can cast Healing Rain, place a totem, then grab a drink. Shamans have the benefit of ignoring their Mastery stat completely, focusing on Haste in order to fully utilize the benefits of single-cast spells. Optimal races are Troll for Horde, or Panda for Alliance. Resto Druids require more activity but produce high numbers with more mana efficiency than Mistweavers. Druids have the benefit of being highly versitile, adapting to every circumstance, whether it be top-off healing, on-the-move bar-filling, or emergency pumps, once the rotation is mastered, they will compete tie with shamans for that #1 spot on the charts. Recommended races are Worgen for crit and Tauren for health.

[Aithne]

Lol, there is no way Disc Priest is 3rd place... Shit's got quadratic scaling on its mastery. Horridon has a cap on the healing increase (which is blizzlike, btw), and "requirement' of a hostile target is just not really a thing when you also have Spirit Shell which inherits the busted fking quadratic scaling from your mastery.

Also, Troll Druids/Shamans have a throughput cooldown which is just better than health, especially if you can hit a Haste breakpoint with it, OR Shamans can go Orc for a flat throughput cooldown OR Goblin for the flat Haste making it easier to hit your breakpoints. Overall, Tauren is the least desirable race for healers. Blood Elf for Disc Priest is also not completely garbage Horde-side, as it allows you to reforge the last drop of Spirit away from your gear and still squeeze in an extra few Smites a fight. Alli side I'd probably go Worgen, not just for the Crit bonus (you reforge away your Spirit, remember?), but the movespeed utility "oh shit" button, but if you're Alliance, why are you tryharding race anyway.

Mastery: Echoes of Light does NOT get overridden by smaller heals, it stacks like Ignite does for Fire Mages. Haste is also by far the worst stat for Holy, Mastery and Crit are of roughly equal value, because HPM is more important with your mana costs than HPS.