Updated Feb 15th: Preliminary Paladin Ability Changes in Mists of Pandaria

Back before last Thanksgiving, I posted a list of Preliminary Paladin Ability Changes in Mists of Pandaria based on the Official Talent Calculator preview. Well, said calculator was updated just today, so let's go back and look at the changes once again to see how things compare. The changes listed herein are in comparison to the current 4.3.2 live game, and many are simply copied over from my previous post on the matter with details unchanged or only slightly tweaked. Note that for the most part, I will not be taking changes to mana costs into consideration unless the change fundamentally affects the purpose or usage of ability (such as turning a cooldown-limited ability into a spammable mana-limited one) because these numbers appear to still be very much in flux.

Level 1:

• Parry (Passive) was conspicuously absent in the previous update, but has now returned and is at level 1 rather than level 10.
• Armor Skills (Passive) remains relatively unchanged. It just removes the reference to training, since classes will automatically learn abilities rather than having to train them.
• Weapon Skills (Passive) is unchanged.
• Crusader Strike deals 100% weapon damage (down from 135%). The new version makes no mention of generating Holy Power, but this is likely an oversight considering the changes to Hammer of the Righteous.

Level 3:

• Seal of Command: a new single-target damage-dealing seal. "Fills the Paladin with Holy Light, causing melee attacks to deal 9 additional Holy damage." Seal of Righteousness is being moved to level 42 and having the AoE component from the Seals of Command talent built in.
• Judgement is being moved to level 5.

Level 5:

• Judgement is being moved here from level 3 and given a 30 yard base range (up from 10 yards) and 6 sec base cooldown (down from 8 sec).
• Devotion Aura is effectively being removed. There is a new Holy specialization ability with the same name at level 60, but the effect is completely different.

Level 7:

• Hammer of Justice is being moved here from level 14, but is otherwise unchanged.
• Holy Light is being changed to a level 33 Holy specialization ability.

Level 9:

• Word of Glory appears to be having the base cooldown changed to 1.5 sec for all Paladins (down from 20 sec for Protection and Retribution, and up from the potential 1 sec minimum global cooldown for Holy Paladins).

Level 10:

• (Holy) Holy Shock remains as-is, though the new calculator seems to imply it now has a full 40 yard range for hostile targets. Not sure if this is an intended change or oversight/tooltip limitation, but considering the change from the previous public talent iteration, it might be intentional.
• (Holy) Walk in the Light is gone.
• (Holy) Holy Insight (Passive) increases your mana pool by 400%. This is likely to compensate for the removal of Intellect's ability to increase maximum mana.
• (Holy) Meditation is back! [See previous post on the topic.]

• (Protection) Avenger's Shield has its cooldown reduced to 9 sec (down from 15 sec).
• (Protection) Touched by the Light renamed to Guarded by the Light.
• (Protection) Guarded by the Light (Passive) is renamed from Touched by the Light, and has only a slim relation to the current Guarded by the Light talent. Compared to Touched by the Light it still increases total stamina by 15%, and increases spell power by an amount equal to 100% of your Strength (up from 60%), but now also reduces your chance to be critically hit by melee attacks by 6%, grants 5% of maximum mana every 2 sec, and removes Word of Glory from the global cooldown (the sole influence of the Guarded by the Light talent). It no longer seems to increase spell hit.
• (Protection) Vengeance seems to be unchanged (though it will probably follow 4.3 mechanics).
• (Protection) Judgements of the Wise is being moved to level 28.

• (Retribution) Templar's Verdict appears to require 3 Holy Power to use, and deals 165% weapon damage (up from 90% with 3 Holy Power currently).
• (Retribution) Sheath of Light renamed to Sword of Light.
• (Retribution) Sword of Light (Passive) is renamed from Sheath of Light and some effects have been changed. It now increases spell power by an amount equal to 100% of your Strength (up from 30% of attack power), no longer increases your chance to hit with spells by 8%, but instead increases the damage you deal with two-handed melee weapons by 25% and grants 5% of maximum mana every 2 sec.
• (Retribution) Judgements of the Bold is being moved to level 28.

Level 12:

• Righteous Fury is unchanged.
• Redemption is being moved to level 13.

Level 13:

• Redemption is being moved here from level 12, and is mostly unchanged from the 4.3 version which increases the range to 40 yards. There's also a fairly hefty mana cost increase to 75% base mana (up from 64%).

Level 14:

• Flash of Light is being moved here from level 16, but is otherwise unchanged.
• Hammer of Justice is being moved to level 7.
• Hand of Reckoning is being moved to level 15 and renamed Reckoning.

Level 15:

• Reckoning is being moved here from level 14, and is being renamed from Hand of Reckoning.

Level 16:

• Lay on Hands is unchanged.
• Flash of Light is being moved to level 14.

Level 18:

• Divine Shield is being moved here from level 48, but is otherwise unchanged.
• Exorcism is being changed to a Retribution specialization ability at level 46.
• Hand of Protection is being moved to level 48.

Level 20:

• No mention is made of the summon mount abilities for Paladins. Not sure if they're being removed or just not mentioned in the new talent calculator.

• (Holy) Holy Wrath is being moved here from level 28 and is now a Holy specialization ability. It only costs 9% of base mana (down from 20%), has no cooldown (down from 15 sec cooldown), takes 1.5 sec to cast (up from instant), and no longer stuns demons and undead, but instead "prevents targets from causing critical effects for the next 6 sec." Additionally, the ability is now centered on an enemy target rather than on the player, and has a 30 yard cast range.

• (Protection) Hammer of the Righteous is moved here from the Protection tier 3 talent position. Damage reduced to 20% weapon damage (down from 30%). Additionally, it now also places a Weakened Blows effect on all affected targets, which reduces their physical damage dealt by 10% for 30 sec. Weakened Blows is likely a debuff applied by multiple classes (similar to the Replenishment buff).

• (Retribution) Also gains the above Hammer of the Righteous ability.

Level 22:

• Supplication (Passive) [see previous post on the topic] has been moved to level 33 and is now a Retribution specialization ability.
• Blessing of Kings is being moved to level 30.

Level 24:

• Consecration is being changed to a Protection specialization ability at level 33.
• Seal of Truth is being moved here from level 44. It now replaces Seal of Command (from level 3), and causes melee attacks (changed from single-target attacks) to deal 10% Holy weapon damage in addition to applying Censure.

Level 26:

• Retribution Aura is being removed, as are all current Paladin Auras. =(
• Divine Protection is being moved here from level 30, and is having the Glyph of Divine Protection effect folded in. It now provides no physical damage reduction (down from base 20%) and instead provides 40% magical damage reduction (up from base 20%).

Level 28:

• Holy Wrath is being changed to a level 20 Holy specialization ability.

• (Holy) Judgements of the Pure (Passive) is being moved here from the Holy tier 1 talent position. It no longer increases haste, but retains the 4.3 function of increasing mana regeneration from Spirit. It now states "Your Judgement increases your mana regeneration from Spirit while in combat by 30% for 1 min".

• (Protection) Judgements of the Wise (Passive) is being moved here from the level 10 Protection specialization. It no longer grants mana, but instead states "Your Judgement hits grant one charge of Holy Power".

• (Retribution)  Judgements of the Bold (Passive) is being moved here from the level 10 Retribution specialization. It no longer grants mana, but instead states "Your Judgement hits grant one charge of Holy Power and cause the Physical Vulnerability effect." Physical Vulnerability appears to be a new debuff which increases the physical damage taken by the target by 4% for 30 sec, and is likely a debuff applied by multiple classes (similar to the Weakened Blows debuff above and the current Replenishment buff).

Level 30:

• Divine Protection is being moved to level 26.
• Blessing of Kings moved here from level 22, but is otherwise unchanged.

Level 32:

• Seal of Insight is no longer being moved to level 33 [see previous post on the topic]. The Glyph of Seal of Insight is being built in, so the seal now improves healing by 5% innately. Additionally, the seal now mentions "melee attacks" rather than "single-target attacks".

Level 33:

• (Holy) Holy Light is being moved here from level 7 and is now a Holy specialization ability with a 2.5 sec cast time (down from 3.0 sec).

• (Protection) Consecration is being moved here from level 24 and is now a Protection specialization ability with a 9 sec cooldown (down from 30 sec).

• (Retribution) Supplication (Passive) is a new passive class ability with an effect similar to the last part of Crusade. "For 15 sec after you kill an enemy that yields experience or honor, your next Flash of Light heals for an additional 300%".

Level 34:

• Cleanse now removes all Poison and Disease effects (up from 1 of each).

• (Holy) Sacred Cleansing (Passive) is being moved here from the Holy tier 4 talent position. It no longer mentions the 1 Magic effect limit so it likely dispels all Magic effects.

• (Retribution) Crusader's Zeal (Passive) [see previous post on the topic] has been moved to level 60.

Level 36:

• Rebuke moved here from level 54, and cooldown has been increased to 15 sec (up from 10 sec).
• Righteous Defense appears to be removed.

Level 38:

• (Retribution) Divine Storm is being moved here from the Retribution tier 3 talent and is changed into an AoE version of Templar's Verdict. It now requires 3 Holy Power to use rather than 5% base mana, no longer generates Holy Power, no longer heals allies, and has no cooldown (down from 4.5 sec). It now states "An area attack that consumes 3 charges of Holy Power to cause 50% weapon damage to all enemies within 8 yards".

Level 39:

• (Holy) Beacon of Light is being moved here from the Holy tier 4 talent position and is unchanged from the 4.3 version, which only transfers 50% of Word of Glory, Holy Shock, Flash of Light, Divine Light, and Light of Dawn heals and 100% of Holy Light heals.

Level 40:

• Again, no mention of the Paladin summon mount abilities.

• (Protection) Shield of the Righteous is being moved here from the Protection tier 4 talent position and now requires 3 Holy Power to cast and has a 1.5 sec cooldown. In addition to dealing damage it causes the next melee attack against you to be blocked and increases the amount your shield blocks by an additional 25% for 6 sec.

• (Retribution) Hammer of Wrath is being moved here from level 46 and is becoming a Retribution specialization ability. Additionally, it will generate a charge of Holy Power when used, but can only be used on targets with 20% or less health or during Avenging Wrath.

Level 42:

• Seal of Righteousness is being moved here from level 3 and now has the AoE component of the Seals of Command talent built in.
• Concentration Aura is being removed, as are all current Paladin Auras. =(

Level 44:

• Heart of the Crusader (Passive) is the always-on passive replacement for Crusader Aura and only affects the Paladin.
• Divine Plea is being changed to a level 46 Holy specialization ability.
• Seal of Truth is being moved to level 24.

Level 46:

• Turn Evil was going to be moved here from level 78 [see previous post on the topic], but now seems to be removed. =(

• (Holy) Divine Plea is being moved here from level 44 and is now a Holy specialization ability, but is otherwise unchanged.

• (Retribution) Exorcism is being moved here from level 18 and is now a Retribution specialization ability. It no longer costs mana, and instead generates a charge of Holy Power and is instant cast (down from 1.5 sec), but has a 20 sec cooldown (up from no cooldown).

Level 48:

• Hand of Protection is being moved here from level 18, but is otherwise unchanged.
• Divine Shield is being moved to level 18.

Level 50:

• Plate Specialization (Passive) is unchanged.

• (Holy) Infusion of Light (Passive) is being moved here from the Holy tier 3 talent and no longer increases Holy Shock critical effect chance, but retains the 4.3 change which includes the option to reduce the cast time of Holy Radiance.

• (Protection) Grand Crusader (Passive) is being moved here from the Protection tier 4 talent and once again includes Hammer of the Righteous [see previous post on the topic]. Proc chance increased to 40% (up from 20%) and primary target requirement removed.

• (Retribution) Art of War (Passive) is being moved here from the Retribution tier 3 talent and now gives autoattacks a 20% chance of resetting the cooldown of Exorcism rather than its previous effects.

Level 52:

• Hand of Freedom is unchanged.

Level 54:

• Rebuke is being moved to level 36.

Level 56:

• Blessing of Might is being moved to level 81.

• (Holy) Divine Light is being moved here from level 62 and is now a Holy specialization ability with a 2.5 sec cast time (down from 3 sec).

• (Retribution) Sanctity of Battle (Passive) is being moved here from the Retribution tier 4 talent and while it continues to affect Crusader Strike, it now also affects Judgement, Hammer of Wrath, and Hammer of the Righteous instead of Divine Storm. Additionally, it affects the global cooldown of the 4 abilities as well as the ability cooldown.

Level 60:

• (Holy) Devotion Aura is effectively the Holy specialization ability designed to replace the Holy tier 5 talent Aura Mastery and its combinations with Concentration Aura and Resistance Aura, and has no real relation to the current Devotion Aura other than reusing the name. It is an instant cast, 2 min cooldown ability which states "Inspire all party and raid members within 40 yards, granting them immunity to Silence and Interrupt effects and reducing all Fire, Frost, and Shadow damage taken by 20%. Lasts 6 sec."

• (Protection) Sanctuary (Passive) is a Protection specialization passive ability that combines the 10% increased armor value from items effect of the Protection tier 2 talent Toughness with the 10% damage reduction effect of the Protection tier 3 talent Sanctuary. It no longer decreases your chance to be critically hit (this effect has been moved to the Guarded by the Light passive at level 10) or restores mana on blocks or dodges.

• (Retribution) Crusader's Zeal (Passive): a new Retribution specialization passive ability. "Your autoattacks have a 20% chance to increase your attack speed by 25% for your next 3 melee swings."

Level 62:

• Crusader Aura is being removed and replaced by Heart of the Crusader at level 44.
• Divine Light is being changed to a Holy specialization ability at level 56.

Level 64:

• Seal of Justice is being changed to a Retribution specialization ability at level 70.

• (Holy) Tower of Radiance (Passive) is being moved here from the Holy tier 6 talent, and no longer generates a charge of Holy Power whenever Holy Radiance is cast (this effect has been built into Holy Radiance instead).

Level 66:

• Hand of Salvation is back [see previous post on the topic] and otherwise unchanged from live.

Level 70:

• (Holy) Light of Dawn is being moved here from the Holy tier 7 talent position and is unchanged from the 4.3 iteration.

• (Protection) Ardent Defender is being moved here from the Protection tier 7 talent position and is otherwise unchanged.

• (Retribution) Seal of Justice is being moved here from level 64 and is now a Retribution specialization ability. Now properly slows instead of capping movement speed, and states "Fills the Paladin with Holy Light, causing melee attacks to deal 4 additional Holy damage and reduce the target's movement speed by 50% for 5 sec." It's unclear how this might work with the level 30 talent Burden of Guilt, which causes Judgement to reduce the target's movement speed by 50% for 12 sec.

Level 72:

• Avenging Wrath is unchanged.

Level 76:

• Resistance Aura is being removed, as are all current Paladin Auras. =(

Level 78:

• Turn Evil was going to be moved to level 46, but now it seems it's being removed. =(

Level 80:

• Hand of Sacrifice is unchanged.
• Mastery (Passive) is gone, likely removed by the Department of Redundancy Department.

• (Holy) Mastery: Illuminated Healing (Passive) is unchanged.

• (Protection) Mastery: Divine Bulwark (Passive) is unchanged.

• (Retribution) Mastery: Hand of Light (Passive) base additional damage increased to 17% (up from 16.8%) and now includes Hammer of the Righteous in addition to Crusader Strike, Templar's Verdict, and Divine Storm.

Level 81:

• Blessing of Might moved here from level 56. No longer increases attack power and mana regeneration, but instead increases mastery by 5.

• (Retribution) Inquisition is being changed to a Retribution specialization ability and as the latter portion of Inquiry of Faith partially baked in so it lasts for 10 sec per charge of Holy Power (up from 4 sec per charge without Inquiry of Faith, but down from 12 sec per charge with Inquiry of Faith).

Level 83:

• (Holy) Holy Radiance is being changed to a Holy specialization ability and is being changed to have a 2.5 sec cast (down from 3 sec) and generate a charge of Holy Power innately (rather than requiring Tower of Radiance).

Level 85:

• Boundless Conviction (Passive) acts as a new buffer zone for extra Holy Power to prevent it from being wasted. It reads, "You may store an additional 2 Holy Power beyond the maximum of 3. No ability ever consumes more than 3 Holy Power."
• Guardian of Ancient Kings cooldown is being reduced to 3 min. Effects are otherwise unchanged.

• (Protection) Shield of the Templar (Passive) is being removed [see previous post on the topic] .

Level 87:

• Blinding Light: a new short-duration crowd control ability that costs 23% of base mana and is instant cast with a 3 min cooldown. "Emits a dazzling light in all directions, blinding enemies within 10 yards, causing them to wander disoriented for 6 sec."