Absor responded to this statement on the Rangers Glade regarding a debate over the new enhancemenets to the Cleric, Druid and Shaman classes:

You shouldn't really blame VI for this. It's the screaming and ranting of the cleric community. There is so much jealousy and (power) greed among EQ players that VI has to try and play a zero-sum game: adding power to one class requires a reciprocal addition to other classes.

Actually, you can and should "blame" us for anything that goes into the game. While we certainly listen to player input, in the end the decision about what goes in and what doesn't is ours. We get credit and blame for the whole thing.

And I disagree about the whole 'zero sum' idea. In fact, I think that such thoughts are a huge hinderance. If we add something to one class we immediately get called upon to 'even things up' by giving something to a bunch of other classes. The truth is, if we're adding an ability to one class it's usually because it needed a boost incomparison to other classes. 'Throwing a bone' to the other classes after such a change defeats the purpose of the change.

When it comes to this particular change, I think Rich explained it pretty well. The changes to Druid and Shaman healing are needed to remove a problem in the end game where some things just can't be done if there aren't enough clerics. It's a problem for gameplay when something like that exists.

But the fix itself creates a problem for Clerics, not in the raid situation - where the fix should have the desired effect of actually reducing the absolute need for clerics - but in other portions of the game. We certainly are not planning to make it so that clerics are unwanted in exp groups and similar situations. So we're adding a fix for that issue.

So, in this one case it turned out that giving something to Druids and Shamans also meant giving something to Clerics. But there is no zero sum.

- Alan

To satisfy the clerics out there, some new spells have landed on test server for them also

4 new spells, but the healing ones are the ones that are compareable.


Ethereal Light
Level 58
Mana 525

Target: Increase Hitpoints (1600)

Description: This spell heals a single target for 1600 hitpoints for 525 mana. This is an upgrade to Divine Light which heals 910 for 350 Mana.

Ethereal Elixir
Level 60
Mana 1050

Group: Increase Hitpoitns by 1200 over 24 seconds.

Description: This spell heals each person in the Cleric's group by 300 hitpoints per tick for 4 ticks. This provides a total of 1200 hitpoints healing to each person in the group for only 1050 mana.

I have a 60 druid and a 60 cleric. As someone who plays both, I think a 75% heal is a perfect fix. By no means will my druid be chosen as main healer over a cleric, but I'll now be able to be much more useful on raids.

The only way this negatively effects clerics is now you wont have as many 5-man group sitting around waiting for a cleric to show up so they can group. They'll be able to grab a druid or shaman if there are no clerics available. When groups are forming, and a cleric is available, the cleric is still going to be the preffered healer.

Contrary to what a lot of people are saying, I actually played the Cleric after the druid because the simple fact is, druids at level 60 are not powerful at all. Useful, flexible...yes. Powerful, not really. Clerics with CH are extremely powerful when put in a situation where any real amount of healing is needed. Druids, with the new heal spell, will still be less than half as powerful when it comes to healing.

Druids support clerics awesome healing abilities as best they can. This change makes them a little better at supporting clerics. Druids are never going to replace a cleric in any significant grouping situation with any real efficiency. When I need healing, I'll always use my cleric. When I need other stuff, I'll use my druid.

Clerics will always be the masters of healing--the lifeblood of all raids, the foundation of most high-level groups.

Druids will always be the masters of flexibilty--filler of gaps when the masters of the needed skills are not availble, but never exclusively the masters any skills of their own.

I will make the call right now...

Step #1 - This spell goes live. Tons of clerics start alts, and only raid with their clerics.

Step #2 - Clerics realize that they are still un-replaceable in exp groups in locations such as CT and Ssra.

Step #3 - Druids with the new heal are able to be a substitute for clerics in zones like KC and Velks.

Step #4 - Planes of Power is released with many new zones designed for single group encounters. Much like the revamped CT zone.

Step #5 - All of those clerics that started alts come back to their clerics.

Step #6 - Clerics are all happy about having the main healing role monopoly again. All of a sudden, they realize that these new zones are harder than CT and Ssra, and are happy that druids/shaman have better back-up heals.

Step #7 - Groups try to survive in PoP without a druid back up healer due to prior stigmatisms, so druids find something else to solo.