With The War Within beta build now live, players will get to try out the new upcoming expansion and test many of the new features and changes that were added to World of Warcraft. A lot of improvement and quality-of-life updates were added, coupled with some very exciting balance changes that will certainly shake things up both in PvE and PvP content.
Having that in mind, we will take a look at all of the talent changes that were added to all three of the Monk specs so you can decide if you will be rocking a new class in The War Within when it officially launches later this year.
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The War Within Beta: Monk Talents
Monk
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Many talents have moved locations or have had their pathing updated.
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New Talent: Crashing Momentum – Targets you Roll through are snared by 40% for 5 seconds.
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New Talent: Wind’s Reach – The range of Disable is increased by 5 yards. The duration of Crashing Momentum is increased by 3 seconds and its snare now reduces movement speed by an additional 20%.
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New Talent: Ancient Arts – Reduces the cooldown of Paralysis by 8/
15 seconds and the cooldown of Leg Sweep by 5/ 10 seconds. -
New Talent: Jade Walk – While out of combat, your movement speed is increased by 15%.
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New Talent: Pressure Points – Paralysis now removes all Enrage effects from its target.
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New Talent: Energy Transfer – Successfully interrupting an enemy reduces the cooldown of Paralysis and Roll by 5 seconds.
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New Talent: Quick Footed – The duration of snare effects on you is reduced by 20%.
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New Talent: Spirit’s Essence – Transcendence: Transfer snares targets within 10 yards by 70% for 4 seconds when cast.
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New Talent: Peace and Prosperity – Reduces the cooldown of Ring of Peace by 5 seconds and Song of Chi-Ji’s cast time is reduced by 0.5 seconds.
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New Talent: Celestial Determination – While your celestial is active, you cannot be slowed below 90% normal movement speed.
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New Talent: Martial Instincts – Increases your Physical damage done by 2/
4% and Avoidance increased by 2/ 4%. -
New Talent: Healing Winds – Transcendence: Transfer immediately heals you for 15% of your maximum health.
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New Talent: Chi Proficiency – Magical damage done increased by 2/
4% and healing done increased by 2/ 4%. -
New Talent: Lighter Than Air – Roll causes you to become lighter than air, allowing you to double jump to dash forward a short distance once within 5 seconds.
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New Talent: Flow of Chi – You gain a bonus effect based on your current health. Above 90% health: Movement speed increased by 5%. This bonus stacks with similar effects. Between 90% and 35% health: Damage taken reduced by 5%. Below 35% health: Healing received increased by 10%.
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New Talent: Rushing Reflexes – Your heightened reflexes allow you to react swiftly to the presence of enemies, causing you to quickly lunge to the nearest enemy within 10 yards after you Roll.
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New Talent: Transcendence: Linked Spirits – Transcendence now tethers your spirit onto an ally for 1 hour. Use Transcendence: Transfer to teleport to your ally’s location.
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Tiger Tail Sweep has been redesigned – Increases the range of Leg Sweep by 4 yards. Now a 1-point talent.
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Elusive Mists has been redesigned – Reduces all damage taken by you and your target while channeling Soothing Mists by 6%. Now a 1-point talent.
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Chi Wave has been redesigned – Every 15 seconds, your next Rising Sun Kick or Vivify releases a wave of Chi energy that flows through friends and foes, dealing Nature damage or healing. Bounces up to 7 times to targets within 25 yards.
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Summon White Tiger Statue has been redesigned – Invoking Xuen, the White Tiger also spawns a White Tiger Statue at your location that pulses damage to all enemies ever 2 seconds for 10 seconds.
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Ironshell Brew has been redesigned – Increases your maximum health by an additional 10% and your damage taken is reduced by an additional 10% while Fortifying Brew is active.
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Escape from Reality has been redesigned – After you use Transcendence: Transfer, you can use Transcendence: Transfer again within 10 seconds, ignoring its cooldown.
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Fatal Touch has been redesigned – Touch of Death increases your damage by 5% for 30 seconds after being cast and its cooldown is reduced by 90 seconds. Now a 1-point talent.
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Improved Roll is now baseline for all Monk specializations.
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Clash has moved to the Class tree.
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Fortifying Brew cooldown is now 2 minutes for Mistweaver and Windwalker.
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Vivacious Vivification now additionally increases the healing of your next Vivify.
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The following talents are now 1 point:
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The following talents have been removed:
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Dampen Harm and Summon Black Ox Statue have been removed for Windwalker and Mistweaver.
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Summon White Tiger Statue and Summon Jade Serpent Statue have been removed for Brewmaster and Windwalker.
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Brewmaster Monk
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New Talent: Elixir of Determination – When you fall below 40% health, gain an absorb for 100% of recently Purified damage, or a minimum of 20% of your maximum health. Cannot occur more than once every 15 seconds.
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New Talent: One With the Wind – You have a 10% chance to not reset your Elusive Brawler stacks on a successful dodge.
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New Talent: August Blessing – When you would be healed above maximum health, you instead convert an amount equal to 40% of your critical strike chance to a heal over time effect.
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New Talent: Ox Stance – Casting Purifying Brew grants charges/
stacks of Ox Stance, based on Stagger level. When you take damage that is greater than 60% of your current health, a charge is consumed to increase the amount you Stagger. -
New Talent: Heightened Guard – Ox Stance will now trigger when an attack is larger than 50% of your current health.
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Anvil & Stave has been updated – Each time you dodge or an enemy misses, you reduce the remaining cooldown on your Brews by 0.5/
1 second. Effect reduced for each recent melee attacker. Was 3 second internal cooldown. -
Improved Invoke Niuzao, the Black Ox has been updated – While Niuzao is active, Purifying Brew increases the damage of Niuzao’s next Stomp, based on Stagger level. Damage is split between all enemies (was when purifying Stagger).
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Improved Celestial Brew is now baseline for Brewmaster Monks.
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Improved Purifying Brew is now baseline for Brewmaster Monks.
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Elusive Footwork is now 1-point.
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The following talents have been removed:
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Clash (moved to class tree)
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Mistweaver Monk
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New Talent: Crane Style – Rising Sun Kick now kicks up a Gust of Mist to heal 2 allies within 40 yards. Spinning Crane Kick and Blackout Kick have a chance to kick up a Gust of Mist to heal 1 ally within 40 yards.
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New Talent: Deep Clarity – After you fully consume Thunder Focus Tea, your next Vivify triggers Zen Pulse.
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New Talent: Chi Harmony – Renewing Mist increases its target’s healing received from you by 50% for the first 8 seconds of its duration, but cannot jump to a new target during this time.
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New Talent: Lotus Infusion – Allies with Renewing Mist receive 15% more healing from you and Renewing Mist’s duration is increased by 2 seconds. Choice node with Chi Harmony.
Developer’s note: We’d like to offer a more passive option focused on AoE healing against Chi Harmony. Chi Harmony now restricting the movement of Renewing Mist for its duration has its pros and cons and we feel this addition opens up optionality a little more particularly in raid scenarios.
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New Talent: Pool of Mists – Renewing Mist now has 3 charges and reduces the remaining cooldown of Rising Sun Kick by 1 second. Rising Sun Kick now reduces the remaining cooldown of Renewing Mist by 1 second.
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Zen Pulse has been redesigned – Renewing Mist’s heal over time has a chance to cause your next Vivify to also trigger a Zen Pulse on its target and all allies with Renewing Mist, healing them increased by 5% per Renewing Mist active, up to 50%.
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Refreshing Jade Wind has been redesigned – Thunder Focus Tea summons a whirling tornado around you, causing healing over 8 seconds to up to 5 allies within 10 yards.
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Yu’lon’s Whisper has been redesigned – While channeling Mana Tea you exhale the breath of Yu’lon, healing up to 5 allies within 15 yards every 0.5 seconds.
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Teachings of the Monastery is now a baseline effect.
Known Issue: Swapping from Windwalker specialization with Teachings of the Monastery talented to Mistweaver disables Teachings of the Monastery. Relogging or swapping to Brewmaster temporarily resolves this while we work on a fix.
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Jadefire Stomp no longer casts Essence Font, its cooldown is reduced to 15 seconds (was 20 seconds), and now casts Gust of Mists on each ally healed.
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Gust of Mists healing increased by 20%.
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Jade Bond now increases the healing of Yu’lon’s Soothing Breath by 300% (was 40%).
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Invigorating Mist healing increased by 8%.
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Invigorating Mist no longer counts full health allies among its splash cap, but its healing has been decreased.
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Vivify healing increased by 9%.
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Vivify now costs 3% base mana (was 3.4%).
Developer’s note: We are increasing the effectiveness of baseline Vivify with the removal of the Clouded Focus talent.
- Revival now dispels up to 3 magical debuffs off of each target (was uncapped).
Developer’s note: This change is mainly targeted at Battlegrounds, where Revival has been overly oppressive to other specializations that rely on magic debuffs to function. We are not expecting this to impact PvE. This will not change how Revival functions with debuffs that stack multiple times, such as bursting.
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Misty Peaks now has a 4/8% chance to activate and now extends Enveloping Mist on targets if Enveloping Mist is present (previously would not proc).
Developer’s note: We are making some changes to raid healing cooldowns in The War Within to increase their effectiveness in content with less than 20 players. Our goal is to make these spells feel powerful in all forms of content, particularly smaller dungeon, PvP, or raid groups. The healing of these cooldowns will remain equal when healing 20 injured allies as they previously did and only take into account injured allies as contributing to their splash cap. This will be a slight reduction in effectiveness when healing more than 20 players, but this tradeoff has seemed reasonable to us as the availability and strength goes up as group sizes increase.
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Revival healing increased by 400%.
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Revival now decreases its healing beyond 5 targets.
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Burst of Life’s icon has been changed.
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The following talents have been removed:
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Windwalker Monk
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New Talent: Acclamation – Rising Sun Kick increases the damage your target receives from you by 4% for 12 seconds. Multiple instances may overlap.
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New Talent: Flurry of Xuen – Your spells and abilities have a chance to activate Flurry of Xuen, unleashing a barrage of deadly swipes to deal Physical damage in a 10 yard cone. Invoking Xuen, the White Tiger activates Flurry of Xuen.
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New Talent: Martial Mixture – Blackout Kick increases the damage of your next Tiger Palm by 10%, stacking up to 12 times.
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New Talent: Courageous Impulse – The Blackout Kick effect also increases the damage of your next Blackout Kick by 175%.
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New Talent: Energy Burst – When you consume Blackout Kick, you have a 100% chance to generate 1 Chi.
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New Talent: Gale Force – Targets struck by Strike of the Windlord are sent reeling from its impact, causing them to become vulnerable to your attacks for 10 seconds. Your abilities have a 100% chance to affect the target a second time at 10% effectiveness as Nature damage while they are vulnerable.
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New Talent: Dual Threat – Your auto attacks have a 20% chance to instead kick your target dealing Physical damage and increasing your damage dealt by 5% for 5 seconds.
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New Talent: Momentum Boost – Fists of Fury’s damage is increased by 100% of your Haste and Fists of Fury does 10% more damage each time it deals damage, resetting when Fists of Fury ends. Your auto attack speed is increased by 60% for 8 sec after Fists of Fury ends.
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New Talent: Ordered Elements – During Storm, Earth, and Fire, Rising Sun Kick reduces Chi costs by 1 for 7 seconds and Blackout Kick reduces the cooldown of affected abilities by an additional 1 second. Activating Storm, Earth, and Fire resets the remaining cooldown of Rising Sun Kick and grants 2 Chi.
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New Talent: Sequenced Strikes – You have a 100% chance to gain Blackout Kick! after consuming Dance of Chi-Ji.
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New Talent: Revolving Whirl – Whirling Dragon Punch has a 100% chance to activate Dance of Chi-Ji and its cooldown is reduced by 5 seconds.
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New Talent: Knowledge of the Broken Temple – Whirling Dragon Punch grants 4 stacks of Teachings of the Monastery and its damage is increased by 20%. Teachings of the Monastery can now stack up to 8 times.
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New Talent: Singularly Focused Jade – Jadefire Stomp’s initial hit now strikes 1 target, but deals 500% increased damage and healing.
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New Talent: Communion With Wind – Strike of the Windlord’s cooldown is reduced by 10 seconds and its damage is increased by 20%.
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New Talent: Brawler’s Intensity – The cooldown of Rising Sun Kick is reduced by 1 second and the damage of Blackout Kick is increased by 10%.
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New Talent: Combat Wisdom – While out of combat, your Chi balances to 2 instead of depleting to empty. Every 15 seconds, your next Tiger Palm also casts Expel Harm and deals 100% additional damage. Replaces Expel Harm.
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New Talent: Memory of the Monastery – Tiger Palm’s chance to activate Blackout Kick! Is increased by 15% and consuming Teachings of the Monastery grants you 1% Haste for 5 seconds equal to the amount of stacks consumed.
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New Talent: Jadefire Fists – At the end of your Fists of Fury channel, you release a Jadefire Stomp. This can occur once every 20 seconds. Shares a choice node with Jadefire Stomp.
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New Talent: Ferociousness – Critical Strike chance increased by 2%. This effect is increased by 100% while Xuen, the White Tiger is active.
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Glory of the Dawn has been redesigned – Rising Sun Kick has a chance equal to 100% of your Haste to trigger a second time, dealing Physical damage and restoring 1 Chi.
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Rushing Jade Wind has been redesigned – Strike of the Windlord applies Mark of the Crane to all enemies struck and summons a whirling tornado around you, causing Physical damage over 8 seconds to all enemies within 8 yards.
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Jadefire Stomp has been redesigned – Strike the ground fiercely to expose a path of jade for 30 seconds that increases your movement speed by 20% while inside, dealing Nature damage to up to 5 enemies and restores health to up to 5 allies within 30 yards caught in the path. Up to 5 enemies caught in the path suffer additional damage.
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Inner Peace has been redesigned – Increases maximum Energy by 30. Tiger Palm’s energy cost reduced by 5.
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Touch of Karma and Mark of the Crane are now learned baseline.
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Mastery: Combo Strikes is now 20% more effective.
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Whirling Dragon Punch now deals additional damage to the first target struck and its damage is reduced beyond 5 targets.
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Expel Harm and Chi Burst no longer generate Chi.
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Expel Harm and Chi Wave no longer trigger Combo Strikes.
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Storm, Earth, and Fire now triggers Combo Strikes.
Developer’s note: Moving forward, we’d like for Combo Strikes to not trigger from spells that aren’t intuitive to mix into your rotation or aren’t directly under your control, such as Flying Serpent Kick and Chi Wave / Expel Harm procs. Along this line of thinking, we’re also adding Storm, Earth and Fire to the list of spells that can trigger Combo Strikes. We want the initiation of cooldowns to feel as smooth as possible, and we’d like to allow for Ordered Elements to feel easier to play around (also back to back Rising Sun Kicks are fun!).
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Storm, Earth, and Fire clones will now copy your Tiger’s Lust casts.
Developer’s note: With the removal of Serenity in mind, we’re looking to open up counter play options for Windwalkers when their Storm, Earth, and Fire clones are crowd controlled in PvP.
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Flying Serpent Kick no longer deals damage.
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Mark of the Crane now only applies to the primary target of each strike.
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Teachings of the Monastery now stacks up to 4 times (was 3).
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Thunderfist now always generates 4 stacks of Thunderfist and additional stacks of Thunderfist per each additional target struck.
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Transfer the Power no longer stacks from Rushing Jade Wind, but now stacks from Spinning Crane Kick.
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Crane Vortex now increases the damage of Spinning Crane Kick by 15/30% (was 10/20%).
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Spinning Crane Kick now cancels from using other spells or abilities, but no longer prevents auto-attacks for its duration.
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Empowered Tiger Lightning’s effect is now baseline for Xuen, the White Tiger.
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Invoker’s Delight now increases Haste by 20% while active (was 33%).
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Xuen’s Bond now decreases the cooldown of Invoke Xuen, the White Tiger by 0.2 seconds (was 0.1 second) per Combo Strikes activation.
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Dance of Chi-Ji’s chance to trigger reduced by 25%.
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Tiger Palm Energy cost increased to 60 (was 50).
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Jadefire Harmony now increases damage and healing taken by 8% for its duration (was 12%).
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Crane Vortex is now a 1-point talent and increases the radius of Spinning Crane Kick by 15%.
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Vivify healing increased by 30% for Windwalker.
Developer’s note: With the removal of Expel Harm as an active button for Windwalker, we’d like Vivify to better fill the on-demand healing niche for them.
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Skytouch no longer increases the range of Tiger Palm, now increases Critical Strike chance by 15% (was 50%), and its lockout duration is 30 seconds (was 60 seconds).
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Dance of Chi-Ji may now stack up to 2 times.
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Flying Serpent Kick is now a 30 second cooldown (was 20 seconds).
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Shadowboxing Treads' extra Blackout Kick are now 80% effective (was 100%).
Developer’s note: We’re adding a tuning knob to Shadowboxing Treads so we can more easily tune Blackout Kick’s damage between single target and AoE scenarios.
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Fury of Xuen now increases Haste, Mastery, and Critical Strike chance by 3% (was Haste by 5%) and Invokes Xuen, the White Tiger for 10 seconds (was 8 seconds).
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Abilities affected by Ordered Elements, Dance of Chi-Ji, or Blackout Kick! now contribute to Drinking Horn Cover, Spiritual Focus, and Heart of the Jade Serpent as if their full Chi value was spent.
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Fixed an issue that caused Jade Ignition’s damage to be reduced during Storm, Earth, and Fire.
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The following talents are now 1 point:
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The following talents have been removed:
And that covers all of the talent changes to Monks in The War Within beta. Of course, all of these updates are subject to change as players start providing feedback to the devs before the official launch of the expansion later this year.
A lot of interesting design choices this time around, especially with the addition of new talents for players to opt for either increased damage, healing, survivability or utility. The War Within is set to be a very promising expansion what with all of the new features, content and overall quality-of-life changes.
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