Retribution Paladins Haste
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.