Even with the new more restricting trait system, we got good bunch of skills to make healer and tank's life easier even while in DPS build, at least if you put some points to yellow line. But when we need to be more of support we trait yellow.
Haven't ran actual instances in beta yet, so only suspecting that most difficult ones still need actual support role. Here i repost what i made on previous class thread changing what i know has changed, and highlighting most important changes in red.
Lore-Master in Group
Our role in fellowship or raid is support. That means we help everyone in group to fill their roles better and when situation gets dire help out on whatever role it needs the most. This pretty much requires following entire flow of battle.
With most of these stupid easy 85-end-game instaces i can just hold SI on tank and burn em all though, but still i try to keep track of the rest of team, if things go bad i backup heal or clear stunning diseases or whatever it needs to make the group go further, faster and stronger.
My priority order in instances is as follows:
1. Status effect healing.
We have skill to do it from anyone in group. With HD we can remove any of 4 pottable effects. Tank is easiest one to get these, since he's most under attack. Potions have rather long cooldown or sometimes group members are having enough things to do and don't notice need to pot, so at least keep tank and those taking rather much damage clear of wounds. This helps healer to keep everyone alive. Also some runs have rather annoying timed stuns you can clear away like this.
2. Stun immunity (SI).
SOP: righteousness gives immunity to knockdowns, stuns and dazes for 20sec, and has 18 sec cooldown. In current beta legacy to lengthen this is bugged and does nothing.
All of those effects are very harmful for tank: while stunned he loses much aggro and some mobs might break free during even very short stun if timing is bad.In instances where is chance for stun, SI is good to keep on tank at all times.
Haven't confirmed myself but on official player's guide it says that this skill does not remove any effects when cast: big change to how it used to be.
This skill is available in all trait specs.
3. Debuff and stunning mobs: decreasing incoming damage
Beginning of the pull is hardest part, many enemies attacking tank and maby some other group members at the same time. Incoming damage gets lower once enemies start dying. That's why in beginning of fights I debuff enemy group as best as I can. Use SOP: command before they are even engaged in battle, if you have time use Knowledge of Lore-Master on mob that is first to die to get resistance debuff on it. When enough of melee mobs hit tank I debuff fire-lore and frost-lore on enemy that does inductions or tactical damage.
Stunning and dazing mobs. When tank gets big group of mobs on him, is a good time to hit some stuns to get couple seconds of peace. Big bosses have usually continual state immunity so they cannot be stunned.
Bane-flare is available to use against every type of mobs and Ents Go To War (now bound to red line traits) is always nice skill dealing both damage and stun. When encountered huge amount of enemies, I sometimes do Bane-Flare, Ancient Craft, Storm-Lore (now bound to yellow traitline) and Sticky Gourd (now always aoe in all traits), Ents and Lightning Storm (now in red line only). I make several seconds of stun to reduce amount of damage tank takes at start.
4. Power support: Sharing is caring.
Share Power skills now use LM morale instead of power on use. So with some morale healing on LM we are endless batteries of power. Share the power: Fellowship is bound to yellow tree.
Again, tank and healer must have power thorough the whole instance, and its our job to make it happen. Captains help in this in later part of game though (what about coming changes on cappy? no idea), but still the rest is LM's responsibility. With the powercost of share the power gone, we can just about keep spamming it on anyone. Bleh, boring :p
5. Help healing.
Sometimes bosses trigger large AoE damages or healers have simply too much to do, and morales begin to lower. When someone falls below half morale, its getting critical and you would be nice to help out with Beacon of Hope. As always, tank and healer are main priorities. In levelcap action I sometimes keep water-lore on tank 1 or 2, maby even 3 times stacked depending on how hard time healer is having.
Now since we don't have legacy to make cooldown on beacon of hope shorter and also no fellow flank heals if not wearing armour with such set bonus, Waterlore is primary healing skill. You can trait incoming healing buff to it in yellow line.
6. Do damage.
Wait, check one more time. No one really needs wound/stun removes, power levels, morales and debuffs are checked? Ok, then you can shoot couple dps skills, untill SI needs to be replaced, wounds appear or something else... that will not be long. ;)
Lowest priority doesn't mean that LM can't deal damage: I mean that I do it in-between all other action which is more important for group.
Happy healer and happy tank makes group survive. Help them in what you can. DPS'ing in instances is lowest priority in my opinion.
