Mythic Plus Healing and Tanking Guide

Overview

• Discussion with top Mythic Plus healers and tanks about managing high keys.
• Focus on how healers manage different tank classes.
• Importance of communication between tanks and healers.
• Tools needed to effectively track tank status and cooldowns.

Essential Tools for Healers

1. Unit Frames
   • Track tank defensives, mitigations, debuffs, and buffs.
   • Examples: ElvUI, Grid, VuhDo, etc.
2. OmniCD Addon
   • Track everyone's cooldowns, especially tank's defensive cooldowns.
   • Configuration guides available.

Healing Different Tanks

Blood Death Knight (Blood DK)

• Difficult to heal due to fluctuating health.
• Key Mechanics: Bone Shield Stacks, Runic Power for Death Strike.
  • Bone Shield: Extra armor against melee attacks. Track stacks and duration.
  • Runic Power: Used for Death Strike for self-healing.
• Cooldowns to Track:
  • Icebound Fortitude: Reduces damage taken.
  • Vampiric Blood: Increases health and healing received.
  • Anti-Magic Shell: Mitigates magical damage.
  • Dancing Rune Weapon: Increases parry chance.
  • Purgatory: Cheat death ability – heal through absorb shield.
  • Rune Tap: Reduces damage taken.

Brewmaster Monk

• Easier to heal due to the stagger mechanic.
• Key Mechanics: Stagger, Purifying Brew.
  • Stagger: Delays a portion of damage. Track light (green), medium (yellow), heavy (red) stagger.
  • Purifying Brew: Clears staggered damage.
• Cooldowns to Track:
  • Celestial Brew: Absorb shield, amplified by purified chi.
  • Fortifying Brew: Increases stagger effectiveness and max health.
  • Dampen Harm: Reduces damage taken, more effective against big hits.
  • Diffuse Magic: Reduces magical damage.

Guardian Druid (Bear Tank)

• Simpler due to rage management.
• Key Mechanics: Ironfur, Frenzied Regeneration.
  • Ironfur: Increases armor, track stackable buffs.
  • Frenzied Regeneration: Self-heal over time, not instantaneous.
• Cooldowns to Track:
  • Barkskin: Reduces damage taken.
  • Survival Instincts: Major damage reduction.
  • Incarnation: Guardian of Ursoc: Increases health and rage regeneration.
  • Rage of the Sleeper: Extra defensive cooldown.

Protection Paladin

• High utility but squishy outside cooldowns.
• Key Mechanics: Shield of the Righteous, Consecration.
  • Shield of the Righteous: Increases armor, consumes holy power.
  • Consecration: Reduces damage taken while standing in it.
• Cooldowns to Track:
  • Divine Shield: Complete immunity.
  • Ardent Defender: Reduces damage and provides cheat death.
  • Guardian of Ancient Kings: Major damage reduction.
  • Eye of Tyr: Debuffs enemies, reducing their damage.
  • Sentinel: Temporary strong defensive buff.
  • Word of Glory: Heal ability.
  • Lay on Hands: Full heal on long cooldown.

Protection Warrior

• Effective rage management.
• Key Mechanics: Shield Block, Ignore Pain.
  • Shield Block: Mitigates physical damage, critical to track.
  • Ignore Pain: Absorption shield for all damage types.
• Cooldowns to Track:
  • Spell Reflection: Mitigates magic damage.
  • Spell Block: Blocks magic attacks.
  • Last Stand: Increases max health.
  • Shield Wall: Strong defensive cooldown.
  • Demoralizing Shout: Reduces enemy damage.

Vengeance Demon Hunter

• Mobile but less consistent mitigation.
• Key Mechanics: Demon Spikes, Metamorphosis.
  • Demon Spikes: Increases armor, limited uptime.
  • Metamorphosis: Major defensives, long cooldown.
• Cooldowns to Track:
  • Fiery Brand: Reduces damage from a single target.
  • Soul Barrier: Absorption shield.
  • Last Resort: Cheat death, putting them in Meta form.
  • Sigil of Silence: Silences enemy casters.

General Tips

• Tanks are most vulnerable at the start of pulls.
  • Often lack resources to use main defenses right away.
• Be liberal with healing and external cooldowns at the start.
• Coordinate with tanks about when they will need external help.