The Warlocks Den - WoW Warlock Discussions

Introduction and assumptions
If you've ever been unsure on who to soulstone when, or have ever been involved in a 'debate' between 2 classes wishing to benefit from this wonderful self-res, this is the guide for you.

This guide is written from a strictly PvE experience, for 2 reasons:

1. Soulstone use is as complicated as the environment it is used in, and PvP tends to be reasonable simple in execution.
2. I know almost nothing on PvP

What is a Soulstone?
It is a 30 min duration exclusive buff that allows the target of that buff (who is in your party/raid) to be able to self-res. In this respect, it has 2 primary uses: Wipe recovery and wipe prevention.


Wipe Recovery
This is the ability to soulstone a res-capable class in the team so that when or if you wipe, you are able to continue on where you were without having to run back, or re-clear trash. Pre-The Burning Crusade this was seen as the primary reason for a soulstone use and it was not unfamiliar for inexperienced Molten Core raids to have a set Soulstoning rotation in place to save time. Whilst still partly true, new dungeon and instance designs have negated some of the negative aspects of a full group wipe. Dungeons are generally smaller and often have shortcuts or doors that allow faster recovery. Graveyard's have been located in much more convenient locations as a general rule as well, allowing for quicker access to instance portals.

I recommend suggesting no Wipe recovery SS unless one of the following is true:

• You have an abundance of Warlocks
• Your instance Graveyard is very remote (Coilfang for example)
• You are deep inside an instance with trash respawns behind you

I am more and more reluctant to 'waste' a soulstone on wipe recovery in instances like Karazhan, Gruul or Magtheridon where GY's are close but conversely I will keep one up all the time during a Heroic Slave Pens. SS'ing for Wipe recovery is a bit like insurance, so it is generally wise to soulstone the class/person least likely to die. This will ensure your 30 mins Cooldown isn't wasted on the first bad pull. Paladins have been favourites for Soulstones for this reason.


Wipe Prevention
This is the new and much more interesting reason for the Soulstone. Pre-empting an encounter and providing a key raid member with the ability to self res is often critically important in turning the tide of a tough battle in your favour. There are several factors to consider in general:

• The likelihood that person will die. An unused SS is a waste if others are dead.
• The encounter specific benefit that person brings
• The class benefits i.e. buffs, abilities, debuffs

Likelihood of death

This depends on the encounter and the players skill and gear. Certain fights for example favour ranged classes whilst others put pressure on healers. Karazhan's Prince Malchezzar for example can debuff anyone to 1 hp and can AoE. Losing an inattentive Melee DPS early can cause long term problems so it may be wise to SS rogues, fury Warriors and Druid cats.

You'll often want to experience a fight a few times before using this kind of Soulstone. In a healing intensive fight if your priest keeps dieing then by all means SS them instead of the pally. If the same undergeared rogue has died on three attempts a SS is viable whilst they learn the encounter.

Encounter Specific Ability

Certain encounters can rely heavily on melee, healing, ranged or tanking abilities. Where a fight hinges on one of these, you should consider a tactical soulstone to allow greater success chance. As outlined below, Healers are most often the soulstone of choice due to their role in keeping everyone else alive.

There are some fights where death is assured and can be a problem. Against Kaz'Rogal for example you may want to SS a healer to effectively provide them with an extra few heals after they go oom and explode. On Teron Gorefiend, it's advisable to wait and soulstone whoever is ghosted so you can regain their contribution once they have died.

Class Benefits

In some fights certain classes are essential for success. Rogues against Aran for interrupting, or Warlocks to banish and fear various adds. Protect your success chance by giving these critical players a second chance. Druids for example have the ability to Battle res and as such are a good choice for a general SS. Shamans who can self res without us are a generally bad choice unless you're aware that their Ankh is on Cooldown. Paladins ability to DI can be crucial as well, tactically on the Leo fight to remove lock tank debuffs for example.

Be very careful however of SS'ing a Tank "in case they die". As a general rule, SS's gain importance later on in fights, but by this time a self-res'd tank will have zero chance of regaining aggro to prevent a wipe. If you lose the tank at the start, heal better. If you lose one at the end, kill quicker, or SS a healer to keep them up longer. The exception to the 'no-tanks' rule is where a tank needs to pick up adds that spawn during an encounter, such as the Al'Ar fight. Use caution however and consider this kind of soulstone only if experience suggests it's necessary.


Timing
Your Soulstone has a 30 min Cooldown. It is often a good idea to put one up sooner rather than later, especially if you expect to need multiple tries. Many is a time I've seen 2 of my SS's used in the same attempt on the same boss thanks to good timing on SS cooldown.

Don't be afraid of using multiple soulstones from other Warlocks for that 'one big' attempt. This kind of all out effort is what makes the difference between first kills and 3% wipes. We'll often end with 3 SS's and 3 BR's ready for our last big try and we have no qualms with using them all if needed.


Hints & Tips

1. Craft a soulstone as soon as you have used the last one. This means you'll always have one ready, even if you have forgot.
2. Let the person you've soulstoned know about it. Encourage them to die safe for wipe recovery or rez sensibly for wipe prevention i.e. Not right before a nasty AoE effect like Spout, Death & Decay or in front of a cleaving mob. Many addons support announcements automatically to the raid (Necrosis, Dotimer etc.)
3. Either communicate rotation and soulstoning between warlocks, or consider addons to track soulstones. We use a combination of both, with Grid displaying active Soulstone buffs and Cooldown Monitor displaying available stones.
4. Find out and be aware of graveyard location and the respawn of trash. The raid leader won't always be able to keep up to speed and this is a key factor in recovering from a wipe.

Summary
Your Soulstone is yours to use as you see fit but take advice from the raid leader or party leader if you lack specific experience of an encounter. A well thought out Soulstone can make a truly awful attempt into a truly magnificent one.