Mistweaver Monk Frequently Asked Questions (8.2)

Mistweaver Monk Frequently Asked Questions

Here are the answers to a lot of frequently asked questions in the Mistweaver Monk community, updated for patch 8.2. Grab a coffee and piece of toast and we’ll get you up to date.

How are the new raid traits?

Loyal to the End is really damn good if you’re not using Way of the Crane and fistweaving. If you are then it’s just ok. You’ll likely take one in any case. Arcane Heart was initially mid-tier but they’ve kind of killed it with constant hotfixes. Undulating Tides is bad for healing and just mediocre for damage. You can compare your gear in QE Live which will be updated as the patch goes live.

How strong are the new races? Is it worth swapping to Zandalari or Kul Tiran?

There isn’t a large difference between any of the monk races and you should only race change if you like the aesthetics. You’re not going to be happy with that answer alone, so let’s compare numbers. All values are in HPS.

Stat Line: 5% Vers, 25% Crit, 10% Haste, 9000 intellect

I used my own stat line and weights for these so yours will vary slightly but it should show how close together they all are. The Zandalari Regeneratin’ racial isn’t included but it’s been hit by the nerf bat so many times on the PTR that there are only rare scenarios where you’d get any value from it. Berzerking and Blood Fury are slightly under valued here since in reality you’ll pop them during periods of high damage but they still aren’t particularly good for Mistweaver.

What class changes did we get in 8.2?

There were very few class changes in 8.2 and we didn’t receive any. That isn’t to say it’s a small patch though, Essences can be huge playstyle changers and it also brought with it a ton of content. You can read more about the patch in the 8.2 FAQ.

Which talents should I use?

You can get the full talent breakdown here but those looking for a quick answer will have reasonable success with:

Raid

You can swap out Mana Tea and Chi Burst for Lifecycles and Mist Wrap if your tank is taking a pounding but you need many Enveloping Mists casts before they start to pull equal.

What trinkets should I use?

There is a full trinket tier list here and it’s already up to date for 8.2. The Alchemist Stone is a lock in for one slot and you’ll be hunting Azshara’s Font of Power for the second. As with Azerite you can run your trinkets through QE Live to get a proper assessment.

What raid frame is best? Do I need to update anything for the new raid?

Grid2, Vuhdo and ElvUI are the top 3 raid frames. BDGrid is a newer model that’s starting to gain a little traction if you wanted to check it out. The default blizzard raid frames are usable but inferior in several ways to the four listed above. QE has premade Grid2 profiles here. They are updated for the patch. Make sure your Grid2 is up to date.

What are the current Mistweaver stat weights? Have they changed?

There are actually no default Mistweaver Monk stat weights and I’ll explain to you why before you ask me for a Pawn string.

First of all, we have no dominant stat like some other specs might. Crit, Vers and Mastery are all fantastic stats for us and even Haste isn’t miles behind.
We tend to want more of the stat that we have the least of which is the opposite of what Pawn will try and do for you.
Gear with higher ilvl offers more total stats, and the big slathering of intellect you get from an item level upgrade is almost always enough to push it ahead.

This makes it easy to gear up. You can do very well by just equipping your highest ilvl pieces regardless of secondary stats. On rings you can take a 5-10 item level hit for a big Mastery / Crit allocation but you’re looking at 0.01% difference in throughput. If you are looking to really min-max then the best choice is:

To run a log through WoWAnalyzer.

More on stats here.

Which weapon enchant should I be using?

Machinists Brilliance is our new enchant of choice. The Navigations are still excellent but fall a little behind. You don’t need to hurry to replace them right away but when you get a new weapon you’ll want the 8.2 enchant. Oceanic Restoration is sadly poor. You’ll also want a couple of ring enchants – you’ll probably lean toward Crit or Versatility so that they’re viable in all fights. There are no neck or cape enchants this expansion.

How good is Seabreeze?

Seabreeze exchanges flat secondary stats for a large haste proc. It… isn’t good. The uptime on the proc is poor and unreliable, Haste is our weakest secondary stat and it actually averages to less than a normal weapon. That said, the int scaling on weapons is pretty big and if the staff is a 10 item level or higher upgrade for you then strap it on.

Mistweaver Monk Frequently Asked Questions