Fyr'alath Legendary Axe AoE Adjustments - Enhancements & Ongoing Concerns

Greetings, fellow gamers! Today, we have some exciting news for all the fans of Fyr'alath the Dreamrender in the latest hotfix. The legendary axe has received a significant improvement in its AoE capabilities, and we are here to discuss the impact of this change.

Fyr'alath DoT Hotfix Review - Part 2

Before we get into the specifics of the latest hotfix, let's give a brief overview of Fyr'alath the Dreamrender. This legendary axe has been the talk of the town ever since its release, and players have been eager to explore its potential. With its unique ability, Rage of Fyr'alath, the axe grants buffs to both itself and the powerful Explosive Rage spell. However, the previous version of the axe had some limitations that hindered its full potential.

Fyr'alath Buffs... Again

On the weekly reset, Fyr'alath the Dreamrender received yet another hotfix that addressed one of the major issues outlined in a previous article. Initially, the axe's on-use ability, Rage of Fyr'alath, consumed all the Marks of Fyr'alath present on any target within a 50-yard range. This consumption would buff both Rage of Fyr'alath and Explosive Rage by 10% per mark. However, the previous cap of five marks limited the damage potential when facing more than five targets.

The recent hotfix has raised the consumption cap to 50 different Marks of Fyr'alath, resulting in a new maximum damage bonus of +500%. Though this change might not have a significant impact in most dungeon or raid encounters this season, it is still a welcome improvement. It ensures that the legendary axe can reach its full potential when facing a large number of targets.

Additionally, it's worth noting that the previous behaviors of Fyr'alath the Dreamrender still hold true. Casting the axe's enchantment will consume all the marks, even those out of line of sight. You can track how many marks the effect consumes through your logs, as each mark is converted into a stack of Rage of Fyr'alath, providing a 10% buff.

While this increase in the mark consumption cap might not be a game-changer for most encounters, let's explore one interesting use-case that showcases the potential of this buff: Tindral Sageswift.

Tindral Sageswift Revisited

Tindral Sageswift encounter features a significant number of short-lived adds like Fiery Vines and Scorched Treant, depending on the difficulty. These adds have a very brief lifespan, making them ideal targets for the recent hotfix. Previously, marking five targets would provide the maximum bonus. However, with the improved consumption cap, two options open up:

1. If you are still progressing Tindral and the Fiery Vines/Scorched Treant adds are problematic, you can now mark all of them and use Fyr'alath the Dreamrender. While the gain per mark is still 10%, it becomes more beneficial than before.
2. On the other hand, if your objective is to maximize boss damage, you can mark as many Fiery Vines/Scorched Treant as possible and engineer a situation where only Tindral is caught in the frontal attack. This can be achieved by positioning yourself in a way that only Tindral is in front of you or by casting Fyr'alath the Dreamrender right before the marked adds die.

The latter case is particularly crucial for Mythic difficulty raiding, where strategic positioning and timing play a vital role. By spawning a large number of Scorched Treants, players can move the boss slightly, mark all the treants and roots, and deal a substantial amount of boss damage. This tactic can significantly enhance your raid's performance.

• Outstanding Issues

While the recent hotfix brings a substantial improvement to Fyr'alath the Dreamrender, it only addresses the axe's AoE capabilities. The legendary weapon still falls short in terms of single-target damage, especially for specs with quadratic scaling in AoE. This limitation is particularly frustrating for DPS specs that can wield the axe.

One of the main drawbacks of Rage of Fyr'alath is that it's not a hasted channel. Instead of costing two Global Cooldowns (GCDs), it costs a full three seconds, regardless of haste rating or haste-increasing effects. This means that using abilities like Heroism, Timeline Acceleration, or Power Infusion during the channel will result in additional GCDs lost. Players have found ways to mitigate or offset this channel's cost by moving away from the target to extend the travel time of Rage of Fyr'alath, allowing them to cast a single ability during the channel without interruption.

Unfortunately, this issue becomes even more problematic in AoE situations for DPS specializations with quadratic scaling in AoE. Each GCD spent channeling Rage of Fyr'alath could have been used to cast Epidemic, leading to significant damage loss. As a result, Unholy Death Knights, for example, avoid casting Rage of Fyr'alath when facing more than seven targets, as the damage dealt by Epidemic outweighs the benefits of the axe. Hasting this channel would be a game-changer, expanding the number of targets where Fyr'alath the Dreamrender becomes a potent legendary weapon.

It's important to note that increasing the speed of the channel wouldn't alter the damage output of the legendary weapon itself; rather, it would compress the delivery and allow specializations to cast Rage of Fyr'alath within a fixed, two-GCD time interval, regardless of their current haste rating.

Final Thoughts

Fyr'alath the Dreamrender has seen a noticeable improvement with the latest hotfix, making it more viable for AoE encounters. However, the weapon still suffers from limitations in single-target situations and for certain DPS specializations. While the increased mark consumption cap is a step in the right direction, additional adjustments are needed to unlock its full potential across all aspects of gameplay. As players continue to explore the depths of Shadowlands, we hope to see more updates to enhance the versatility and effectiveness of Fyr'alath the Dreamrender.

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