Retribution Paladin Patch 4.3 Changes

• Seal of Truth now scales from 13.5% of Attack Power, up from 9.65%. (MMO Champion 10/26/11)
• Seal of Truth, when Judged, now benefits from a multiplier of 20% per stack of Censure, up from 10%.
• Sanctified Retribution now increases the critical hit chance of Hammer of Wrath by 2/4/6%, down from 20/40/60%.
• Two-Handed Weapon Specialization (passive) now increases damage by 25%, up from 20%.

Most of the boosts to our DPS are small ones, which I see as making our DPS more competitive…not top of the charts, but more competitive.

The change to Sanctified Retribution is huge, and I think we are seeing the repercussions of a slightly overpowered PvP talent.  Not a fan of the change, since it will drop DPS during Avenging Wrath, but it shouldn’t be overwhelmingly significant.

Retribution Paladin Patch 4.3 Tier 13

2-Piece Bonus – Your Judgement ability has a 50% chance to generate 1 Holy Power.
4-Piece Bonus –While Zealotry is active your abilities deal 12% more damage.

More RNG for our heavily dependent RNG DPS.

Before I go any more in depth, I highly recommend checking out MMO Champion on the recent Mists of Pandaria information.  There is a wealth of knowledge there, and it’s a good place to start.  I am posting from my desk at work, so I will try to get the Paladin specific changes posted with insight soon, but it may take me a bit since I am at work both days Blizzcon is happening.

Retribution Paladin Talent Tree Changes

I am going to break down the changes in a more simpler form:  Attacks/Abilities and Talent Tree bonuses.  Each Paladin will still choose a spec at level 10.  Retribution, Protection, and Holy.  We will still be in the same basic roles.  However, all attacks and abilities will be ‘given’ to us, throughout the leveling process.

For instance, Hammer of the Righteous will be available to Prot and Ret Paladins, just as Holy Shock could be a universal spell as well.  There will no longer be any abilities or attacks within the talent trees, so you will not have to opt in to obtain them.

What Blizzard has done instead, is to generate tiers of Talents available at certain levels, where you must choose one of three very similar talents.  These are designed to break away from ‘cookie cutter” builds, allowing players to choose more freely a talent that best suits their playstyle.

Retribution Paladin MoP Talents

Level 15
(Choose one)

• Speed of Light – Increases movement speed by 60% for 6 seconds.  During this time, you radiate healing to nearby allies.
• Long Arm of the Law – A successful Judgement increases your movement speed by 45% for 4 seconds.
• Pursuit of Justice – You gain 10% movement speed for each current charge of Holy Power.  Any non-censure damage will awaken target.  Usable against demons, dragonkin, giants, humanoids, and undead.

Level 30
(Choose one)

• Fist of Justice – Stuns the target for 6 seconds.
• Repentance – Puts the enemy in a state of meditation, incapacitating them for up to 1 minute.
• Seal of Justice – Fills the Paladin with Holy Light, causing direct attacks to reduce the target’s movement speed by 50% for 5 seconds and cause 87 additional Holy damage.

Level 45
(Choose one)

• Blessed Life – You have 100% chance to gain a charge of Holy Power whenever you take direct damage, or are stunned, feared, or immobilized.  This effect cannot occur more than once every 8 seconds.
• Sacred Shield – When reduced belowe 30% health, you gain Sacred Shield effect.  The Sacred Shield absorbs 18005 damage and increases healing received by 20%.  Lasts 15 seconds.  Cannot occur more than once every 60 seocnds.
• Ardent Defender – Reduces damage taken by 20% for 10 seconds.While Ardent Defender is active, then ext attack that would otherwise kill you will instead cause you to be healed for 15% ofyour maximum health.

Level 60
(Choose one)

• Selfless Healer – Your successful Judgements reduce the mana cost of your next Flash of Light by 50% and improve its effectiveness by 50% when used to heal others.  Stacks up to 2 times.
• Eternal Glory – Your Word of Glory and Light of Dawn have a 30% chance not to consume Holy Power.
• Holy Shield – Shields a friendly target, absorbing 1507 damage per charge of Holy Power for 10 seconds.

Level 75
(Choose one)

• Veneration – Your Consecration causes the Veneration effect on party or raid members within its area.  Veneration – You are immune to movement impairing effects for 6 seconds.
• Acts of Sacrifice – Reduces the cooldown by 20% and mana cost by 20% of you Hands of Freedom, Protection, and Sacrifice.  In addition, your cleanse will remove one movement impairing effect from yourself.
• Clemency – When activated, immediately refreshes the cooldown of your Hands or Freedom, Protection, and Sacrifice.

Level 90
(Choose one)

• Holy Avenger – Summoning your Guardian of Ancient Kings also imbues you with the Power of Holy Avenger.  Holy Avenger – none of your abilities consume Holy Power and cast as if 3 Holy Power were consumed.  Lasts 10 seconds.
• Sanctified Wrath – You gain more frequent access to one of your abilities during Avenging Wrath.  Holy – Holy Shock has no cooldown.  Protection – Judgement has no cooldown.  Retribution – you can use Hammer of Wrath.
• Divine Purpose – Abilities that cause Holy Power have a 15% chance to cause the Divine Purpose effect.  Divine Purpose – your next Holy Power ability will consume no Holy Power and cast as if 3 Holy Power were consumed.

Questions I still have lingering:

1.  Holy Power still seems to be in the game plan, so what is in the works to help reduce the complete random factor of our DPS?

2.  With talent trees and specs becoming easier to swap in MoP, does Blizzard have any plans to make it easier on us to obtain armor for each spec?  Paladins sometimes must carry three sets of gear, and keeping all those up to date is almost too tedious of a chore.

3.  In the current talent tree builds, Ret appears as more of a support class than an all-out DPS class.  Is this the intention?

Stay Tuned as I continue to update this post!

Retribution Paladin Haste is updated for Patch 4.3.  Haste is a tricky stat for Paladins, and in Cataclysm, it has become our least used stat on gear.  Now, just because I said ‘least’ doesn’t make it bad…rather the other main stats simply all take a higher precedence.

All that said, with Patch 4.3 and its respective gear, haste has increased in value to where it rivals critical strike in terms of priority.  There are several arguments for both crit and haste as the stat to take after mastery, however, my take on it is currently they weigh pretty much the same.  That means it is going to be up to you to figure out which one take priority, and which stat best fits your gameplay style.

Haste Soft Cap

The reason haste is seen as a strong stat is its ability to reduce our Crusader Strike to a cooldown of 3 seconds.  This allows for quicker stacking of Holy Power, and more Templar’s Verdicts.  More Templar’s Verdicts means more damage and more DPS.  The amount of haste required to reach this 3 second goal is referred to as the ‘soft cap’.

Now, the amount of haste required to reduce the Crusader Strike cooldown to 3 seconds is not yet obtainable from gear alone, and may not be reachable even with end-game Cataclysm gear.  Still, the function stil helps, and more haste ultimately leads to more damage.

The argument comes in when debating whether or not the benefit of haste surpasses the benefits of critical strike in terms of stat priority.  As mentioned above, as of Patch 4.3, I am weighing crit and haste relatively the same.  Some spreadsheets found on EJ say haste, and others say crit.  It’s a personal choice.  For me, I’m sticking with crit, but I am not avoiding haste like I used to.  I also am not reforging away from haste, unless it is to reach hit or expertise caps.

To sum up haste for Retribution Paladins:

• Reduces weapon speed, increasing number of normal melee attacks.
• Speeds up Censure damage.
• Lowers cooldowns on other attacks and abilities, resulting in higher damage output.
• Haste Soft Cap not yet reachable through gear alone.
• Haste is roughly equal to Critical Strike in terms of stat priority. 

That said, I do admit that DPS is low compared to other classes in Firelands, so this Censure hotfix is a welcome one.  Is it the cureall?  Probably not.  It doesn’t address the random procs and RNG abilities that frustrate a number of Ret Paladins, but it’s a start.  Let’s take a look at what Blizzard has posted:

Source: Blizzard Patch 4.2 Censure Hotfix Post

After monitoring thousands of Firelands kills, we’ve concluded that Retribution’s damage was not where we wanted it to be, so we’re going to increase Censure damage by roughly 40%. We’ll also be keeping an eye on paladin damage as we move towards patch 4.3. We expect that this hotfix should be applied sometime later today.

We’re also considering shifting some of the damage from Hammer of Wrath into other attacks. While that may not necessarily cure some of the current concerns about proc reliance, it should help smooth out damage a bit.

The first part of this post addresses the 40% buff to Censure.  Forgotten what Censure is?  Censure is what generates from Seal of Truth, and is the damage over time that ticks on your target to a maximum stack of 5 applications.  Obviously, we’re looking at the most benefit from this change happening during boss fights.

The second part of the post is also a slight tease for what we may see in some Patch 4.3 changes, in that the damage from Hammer of Wrath may be directed to other spells.  I’m not against this entirely, but I do feel HoW damage is okay on it’s own.  What I’d like to see is a boost to the DPS generated from Judgement.  It’s still a consistent part of our rotation (minus when Avenging Wrath is active), and I feel the nerf to it’s damage from WotLK to Cataclysm was a bit harsh.  We’ll see what more this brings.

Anyways, curious to see how the Censure change affects overall DPS.  Should be implemented now.

I have been reading numerous articles of late, including interviews with players and Blizzard employees, as well as countless forums and blog comments about frustrations and praises alike.

As I sit down to write this post, which I will actually break into 4 separate posts, I realized at first I was going to just throw out my suggestions.  However, after much thought (and 2 days worth of notes later), I come back to you with a much more structured proposal.

These are my own opinions, and in no way intentionally reflect opinions of others, and any implementation of content stated in this post is purely coincidental.

The Mindset

The very first thoughts through my mind when I start thinking about the future of WoW is, “What is Blizzard’s intent behind each aspect of the game?”  While the obvious objective is to keep the player base happy with new armor, new content, and an enhanced gameplay experience, I try to dig a little deeper than what is stated on the surface.

Here is what I consider the formula of success for World of Warcraft: Create content that engages players for longer durations of time, and create reward based systems that require days, weeks, and months of progression in order to obtain desired rewards.

In following this model, we see that questing, dailies, dungeons, raids, professions, PvP, leveling, and other aspects of gameplay require some form of ‘grind’.  This means that players must perform any of the above in repetition (in some cases, strong repetition), in order to obtain the reward(s) they want.   Throw in an added factor of luck for some of these grinds, and you’ve got a bunch of players doing the same thing day in and day out, week in and week out, and in some cases, month in and month out.

Do this for 6 years like some players have, and you can see how things might be getting a little stale.  What I would like to see, and I have a strong feeling other players would too, is new content.  Not just more raids, more bosses, and more dungeons, but more unique aspects of the game.  Not everything has to be a grind to obtain rewards.

I realize that the agenda of keeping players actively grinding on content every day keeps the revenue flowing, which ultimately allows for funding of more WoW content, but I think it is time to start implementing new features of gameplay, and thinking outside the box.

Easy for me to say, right?  Sure.  Any fool with a blog or website can make statements like that.  But I am going to back up my statement with features and changes I would implement were I helping design future content.

The main objective:  Create content that is new, refreshing, and not only invigorates current players, but entices old players to come back.

The Good

Let’s first take a look at what Blizzard has done that deserves some praise.  From my experience, they have done so many things right, that it’s impossible to keep track of every little thing.  The proof is in the game, and the continued millions of subscribers playing WoW every month.

• Leveling experience is much smoother, more enjoyable (Up through 80)
• Leveling in instances (through 70) is fun and provides a nice change of pace from quest grindng.
• PvP leveling is fun and functions in the same role as dungeons above.
• Heirloom gear has been very successful in keeping players immersed in the game, allowing leveling of multiple alts.
• New content is continuously added in terms of dungeons and raids.
• Goblins and Worgen so far a success.
• Dungeon and Raid content are more challenging than previous expansions.

The Bad

I hesitate to say the ‘bad’, but let’s face it, some features just aren’t having the positive responses Blizzard probably hoped they would.  These are the areas that need an overhaul, or some severe attention in order to reverse some of the damaging perceptions that have arose from certain player populations.

• Leveling in current expansions is a painful grind.  Mass questing, very little experience help from battlegrounds and dungeons.
• 5-man dungeons are challenging, but take too long and are almost too ‘raid-like’ in terms of boss encounters.
• Raiding is much harder, and despite promised nerfs after certain periods of time have passed, there is a strong divide between capable and non-capable raiders, leaving many out of end-game content.
• PvP has become one-dimensional, and battlegrounds feel monotonous.
• Gear rewards are not much better/different in terms of tiers and item level, creating a lack of desire to obtain them.
• Social networking and interaction in-game has become nearly defunct as player grouping has become very selective, since players want to progress and not wipe repetitively.  Dungeon finder has also inadvertently contributed to this as well.
• 10 Classes with 3 very different specs feels like 30 classes at times…a ton to keep up with, and very time consuming in terms of managing dual specs (at times triple specs for some players).

The Proposals

So how does Blizzard go about implementing new, refreshing content, while maintaining their successful formulas?  How does Blizzard revitalize the game, and entice retired players to return?

My answer:  Blizzard has to branch off from it’s grind and time sink approach, and create additional content that allows for rewards through other, maybe more risky and unconventional methods.

In the next several days, I will post my suggestions for the crucial aspects of gameplay that I believe will help revitalize WoW and breathe a new, exciting life back into the game.

1. Leveling
2. Dungeon System
3. Raid System
4. Social Environment (G…H…no, I won’t go there…or will I?)

All of these are staples to WoW gameplay, and should remain so, but I believe they can be drastically enhanced to make gameplay smoother, and more enjoyable.  Stay tuned to hear more on each of these aspects as I go into in-depth detail on each.

Retribution Paladin Justice Point Gear is updated for Patch 4.2 and Firelands.  Justice points are awarded for completing random regular dungeons in Cataclysm, as well as for each heroic dungeon boss kill.  For Retribution Paladins, this means tier gear is available for purchase, including the gloves, legs, and chest pieces.  Also available are some other items that can help fill in some gear gaps.

First, let’s take a look at how a World of Warcraft player can earn Justice points, and how many can be earned per week (yes, there is a cap):

• 140 Justice Points – Normal Dungeons (5-man, 7 times a week)
• 70 Justice Points – Heroic Dungeon Boss (each)
• 12 Justice Points – Normal Dungeons (WotLK, 5-man, 7 times a week)
• 16 Justice Points – Heroic Dungeon Boss (each, WotLK)
• 24 Justice Points – Heroic Dungeons (WotLK, 5-man, 7 times a week)
• 24 Justice Points – Raid Boss (each, WotLK)
• 138 Justice Points – Weekly Raid Quest (WotLK)
• 5 Justice Points – Normal Dungeons (5-man, BC)
• 10 Justice Points – Heroic Dungeons (5-man, 7 times a week, BC)
• 10 Justice Points – Raid Boss (each, BC)

Retribution Paladin Justice Point Gear

• [Pendant of Quiet Breath] – 1,250 Justice Points
• [Floating Web] – 1,250 Justice Points
• [Reinforced Sapphirium Battleplate] – 2,200 Justice Points
• [Reinforced Sapphirium Legplates] – 2,200 Justice Points
• [Reinforced Sapphirium Gauntlets] – 1,650 Justice Points
• [Woe Breeder's Boots] – 1,650 Justice Points
• [Relic of Aggramar] – 700 Justice Points
• [Band of Bees] – 1,250 Justice Points
• [License to Slay] – 1,650 Justice Points

Retribution Paladin Valor Point Gear is updated for Patch 4.2 and Firelands.  Valor points are awarded for killing raid bosses and completing heroic 5-man dungeons.  For Retribution Paladins, this means tier gear is available for purchase, including the gloves, legs, and chest pieces.  Also available are some other items that can help fill in some gear gaps.

First, let’s take a look at how a World of Warcraft player can earn Valor points, and how many can be earned per week (yes, there is a cap):

Valor Point Cap per Week

• 1250 Valor Points per week
• 980 Valor Points exclusively from 5-man dungeons

Valor Points Earned

• 140 Valor Points – Heroic ZA & ZG (5-man, 7 times a week)
• 70 Valor Points – Heroic Dungeons (5-man, 7 times a week)
• 140 Valor Points – T12 Firelands Heroic Boss (each)
• 120 Valor Points – T12 Firelands Boss (each)
• 45 Valor Points – T11 Heroic Raid Bosses (each)
• 35 Valor Points – T11 Raid Bosses (each)
• 140 Valor Points – Heroic Occu’thar
• 120 Valor Points – Occuthar
• 45 Valor Points – Heroic Argaloth
• 35 Valor Points – Argaloth

Spending your Valor points on gear depends entirely on what your needs are.  Are your bracers shoddy and the weakest link in your gear set?  Bypass the tier gear and get those bracers!  Want to fast-track to full tier gear, get your tier pieces first!

Either way, make sure to maintain your hit cap and expertise cap, and don’t short yourself any strength!  Here are the current gear pieces for purchase with Valor points specific to Retribution Paladins.

Retribution Paladin Valor Point Gear

• [Immolation Battleplate] – 2,200 Valor Points
• [Immolation Legplates] – 2,200 Valor Points
• [Immolation Gauntlets] – 1,650 Valor Points
• [Stoneheart Choker] – 1,250 Valor Points
• [Gigantiform Bracers] – 1,250 Valor Points
• [Serrated Brimstone Signet] – 1,250 Valor Points
• [Relic of the Elemental Lords] – 700 Valor Points

If you don’t need anything with your Valor points, don’t forget, you can either trade them for equal amounts of conquest points, or spend them on BoE bracers to be sold in the auction house for some extra gold.

Retribution Paladins Best in Slot Weapons is current for Patch 4.2. The following gear pieces are a ranking of weapons, or weapon slot gear, for Retribution Paladins as of Patch 4.2. This best in slot list is not a true best in slot list, in that it is not a single item for each gear slot. Rather, I am ranking these based on several factors.

It is very important you remember when viewing my rankings that I take the following factors into consideration:

• Assume ZERO hit rating
• Assume ZERO expertise rating
• Assume ZERO stat ratings
• Prime Glyphs are set to Templar’s Verdict, Seal of Truth, and Exorcism.
• Rotation Priority is set to: Inq > CS > HoW > Exo > TV > J > HW > Cons
• PvP gear is NOT included
• Tank gear also not included, but it can be used if necessary.
• Stat priority: Str > Hit > Exp > Mast > Crit > Haste
• Red Gem Slots: +Strength
• Blue Gem Slots: +Strength/+Hit
• Yellow Gem Slots: +Strength/+Mastery

Ret Paladin BiS Shoulders

Zero hit, Zero Expertise

1. [Sulfuras, The Extinguished Hand] – Ragnaros
2. [Zoid's Firelit Greatsword] – All Firelands Bosses
3. [Skullstealer Greataxe] – Shannox
4. [Sulfuras, The Extinguished Hand] – Ragnaros
5. [Zoid's Firelit Greatsword] – All Firelands Bosses
6. [Skullstealer Greataxe] – Shannox
7. [Reclaimed Ashkandi, Greatsword of the Brotherhood] – Nefarian
8. [Akirus the Worm-Breaker] – Magmaw
9. [Shalug'doom, the Axe of Unmaking] – Cho’gall
10. [Masterwork Elementium Deathblade] – Blacksmithing
11. [Reclaimed Ashkandi, Greatsword of the Brotherhood] – Nefarian
12. [Zin'rokh, Destroyer of Worlds] – Archaeology
13. [Shalug'doom, the Axe of Unmaking] – Cho’gall
14. [Akirus the Worm-Breaker] – Magmaw
15. [Reforged Trollbane] – ZA Timed Event
16. [Jeklik's Smasher] – Jin’do the Godbreaker
17. [Foe Reaper] – Foe Reaper 5000
18. [Blade of the Fearless] – Hellscream’s Reach/Baradon’s Wardens (Revered)
19. [Sword of the Bottomless Pit] – Ozruk
20. [Arced War Axe] – Commander Springvale

Final Note: These items are ranked on their base stats in terms of DPS. Hit and Expertise obviously take precedence since getting hit capped and expertise capped are our #1 priorities for gearing up.

PvP weapons do rank on this list, but I have left them out since I am trying to focus on pure PvE content. If you happen upon any of these weapons, weigh the strength, hit, expertise, and mastery ratings on them, and see how they contribute towards your own gear.

You will more than likley NOT follow this list. Why? Because everyone has different gear combinations, and what may be right for you, may not be right for another. For instance, if you are both hit and expertise capped, then those pieces on this list fall drastically in terms of importance. Any hit and expertise above the cap is a wasted stat.

However, this list is here to give you an idea of what you should be looking for in terms of priority. Hope it helps, and comments are always welcome.

Retribution Paladins Best in Slot Trinkets is current for Patch 4.2.  The following gear pieces are a ranking of trinket gear for Retribution Paladins as of Patch 4.2.  This best in slot list is not a true best in slot list, in that it is not a single item for each gear slot.  Rather, I am ranking these based on several factors.

It is very important you remember when viewing my rankings that I take the following factors into consideration:

• Assume ZERO hit rating
• Assume ZERO expertise rating
• Assume ZERO stat ratings
• Prime Glyphs are set to Templar’s Verdict, Seal of Truth, and Exorcism.
• Rotation Priority is set to: Inq > CS > HoW > Exo > TV > J > HW > Cons
• PvP gear is NOT included
• Tank gear also not included, but it can be used if necessary.
• Stat priority: Str > Hit > Exp > Mast  > Crit > Haste
• Red Gem Slots: +Strength
• Blue Gem Slots: +Strength/+Hit
• Yellow Gem Slots: +Strength/+Mastery

Ret Paladin BiS Trinkets

Zero hit, Zero Expertise

1. [Vessel of Acceleration] – Ragnaros
2. [Apparatus of Khaz'garoth] – Firelands Vendor
3. [Darkmoon Card: Hurricane] – Inscription
   
4. [Vessel of Acceleration] – Ragnaros
5. [License to Slay] – Justice Points
6. [Heart of Rage] – Chimaeron
7. [Apparatus of Khaz'garoth] – Firelands Drop
8. [Crushing Weight] – Twilight Ascendant Council
9. [Dwyer's Caber] – Firelands Vendor
10. [Crushing Weight] – Twilight Ascendant Council
11. [Volatile Alchemist Stone] – Alchemy
12. [Fury of Angerforge] – Blackwing Descent Zone Drop
13. [Right Eye of Rajh] – Rajh
14. [Might of the Ocean] – Ozumat
15. [Magnetite Mirror] – High Priestess Azil

Final Note: These items are ranked on their base stats in terms of DPS.  Hit and Expertise obviously take precedence since getting hit capped and expertise capped are our #1 priorities for gearing up.

Tank trinkets and PvP trinkets do rank on this list, but I have left them out since I am trying to focus on pure PvE content, as well as assuming tank trinket pieces fall to tanks first.  If you happen upon any of these trinkets, weigh the strength, hit, expertise, and mastery ratings on them, and see how they contribute towards your own gear.

You will more than likely NOT follow this list.  Why?  Because everyone has different gear combinations, and what may be right for you, may not be right for another.  For instance, if you are both hit and expertise capped, then those pieces on this list fall drastically in terms of importance.  Any hit and expertise above the cap is a wasted stat.

However, this list is here to give you an idea of what you should be looking for in terms of priority.  Hope it helps, and comments are always welcome.

Retribution Paladins Best in Slot Rings is current for Patch 4.2.  The following gear pieces are a ranking of ring gear for Retribution Paladins as of Patch 4.2.  This best in slot list is not a true best in slot list, in that it is not a single item for each gear slot.  Rather, I am ranking these based on several factors.

It is very important you remember when viewing my rankings that I take the following factors into consideration:

• Assume ZERO hit rating
• Assume ZERO expertise rating
• Assume ZERO stat ratings
• Prime Glyphs are set to Templar’s Verdict, Seal of Truth, and Exorcism.
• Rotation Priority is set to: Inq > CS > HoW > Exo > TV > J > HW > Cons
• PvP gear is NOT included
• Tank gear also not included, but it can be used if necessary.
• Stat priority: Str > Hit > Exp > Mast  > Crit > Haste
• Red Gem Slots: +Strength
• Blue Gem Slots: +Strength/+Hit
• Yellow Gem Slots: +Strength/+Mastery

Ret Paladin BiS Rings

Zero hit, Zero Expertise

1. [Alysrazor's Band] – Alysrazor
2. [Obsidian Signet of the Avengers] – Avengers of Hyjal Rep (Exalted)
3. [Alysrazor's Band] – Alysrazor
4. [Serrated Brimstone Signet] – Valor Points & Token
5. [Dargonax's Signet] – Lady Sinestra
6. [Serrated Brimstone Signet] – Valor Points
7. [Ring of Rivalry] – Valiona & Theralion
8. [Moon Blessed Band] – Firelands Vendor
9. [Ring of Rivalry] – Valiona & Theralion
10. [Meteorite Ring] – Firelands Vendor
11. [Band of the Gurubashi Berserker] – ZG Zone Drop
12. [Blauvelt's Family Crest] – World Drop
13. [Band of Bees] – Justice Points
14. [Circle of Bone] – Erudax
15. [Nova Band] – Isiset
16. [Ring of the Numberless Brood] – Jan’alai
17. [Skyshard Ring] – Altairus

Final Note: These items are ranked on their base stats in terms of DPS.  Hit and Expertise obviously take precedence since getting hit capped and expertise capped are our #1 priorities for gearing up.

Tank rings and PvP rings do rank on this list, but I have left them out since I am trying to focus on pure PvE content, as well as assuming tank ring pieces fall to tanks first.  If you happen upon any of these rings, weigh the strength, hit, expertise, and mastery ratings on them, and see how they contribute towards your own gear.

You will more than likely NOT follow this list.  Why?  Because everyone has different gear combinations, and what may be right for you, may not be right for another.  For instance, if you are both hit and expertise capped, then those pieces on this list fall drastically in terms of importance.  Any hit and expertise above the cap is a wasted stat.

However, this list is here to give you an idea of what you should be looking for in terms of priority.  Hope it helps, and comments are always welcome.