Grounding Totem
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| Grounding Totem | |
|---|---|
| |
| Usable by | |
| Class | Shaman |
| Properties | |
| Type | Utility |
| School | Physical |
| Cooldown | None/Global Cooldown |
| Talents | |
| Improvement talents | Mental Quickness, Totemic Focus |
| Other information | |
| Ranks | 1 |
| Related buff | |
| |
Contents |
Functionality
Applies a buff to all party members within range every 10 seconds which effectively makes them immune to the next spell cast on them specifically (not AoE!). This spell will affect the totem instead. Since patch 2.3 the totem is destroyed upon the redirecting any spell.
*Useful both solo and grouped.
*Especially handy solo when attacking things with sleep/stun spells, ie: Basilisks.
Use
- Casting Time: Instant Cast
- Range: Not Applicable
- Duration: 45 seconds
- Cool down: 15 seconds Cool down
Limitations
- Must be within 20 yards of the totem.
- The totem of any rank has only 5 hp; it is easily destroyed by mobs and players.
- Second longest cooldown for a totem (if we exclude the Mana Tide Totem talent spell).
Rank Table
| Rank | Level | Type | Mana Cost | Description | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 30 | Enhancement | 5% of base mana | Summons a Grounding Totem with 5 health at the feet of the caster that will redirect one harmful spell cast on a nearby party member to itself, destroying the totem. Will not redirect area of effect spells. Lasts 45 sec. | 80
|
Talents
Talents that can improve the totem:
| Type | Description | Talent Points | |
|---|---|---|---|
 | Restoration | Totemic Focus | 5 |
 | Enhancement | Mental Quickness | 3 |
 | Restoration | Totemic Mastery | 1 |
Tips
The Grounding Totem is very useful for initially shutting down mages in PVP. Simply Earth Shock to break their first cast, drop the Grounding Totem to absorb their second cast, and Earth Shock should be ready again by the time the mage can cast again.
It is also useful to place a Grounding Totem down when needing to heal as it can redirect spells that prevent you from healing like Earth Shock and Counterspell.
The Grounding Totem is noteworthy when trying to escape a class that has spell based snares, such as a mage's Frostbolt so the shaman doesn't get slowed down when fleeing. Grounding Totems are exceptionally well at absorbing Mana Drains as they will not be harmed from it Mana Drain but still redirects the spell.
It is possible, though rare, for a Grounding Totem to be able to absorb more than one direct damage spell. This typically can happen if the two spells finish casting before the totem is hit by the initial spell. Being as how spells with a travel time (such as Frostbolt) do not damage the target until the projectile hits, the totem will redirect any of these types of spells until it takes damage and summarily gets destroyed (after which the Grounding Totem buff will be removed).
Grounding totems do not tend to work against boss abilities that mind control players (such as those found with Harbinger Skyriss or Baroness Anastari). However, they do work against monster initiated mind controls (such as those found with Spectral Retainer). The same is also true for fear effects, with the Rift Keeper in Black Morass having a fear that can be grounded. Direct damage effects and curses are generally groundable, even if from a boss.
During Patch 1.6.0 the Grounding Totem was not behaving as designed: it occasionally sucked up spells and effects (even those outside the scope of the totem) as often as they could be applied, rather than once every 10 seconds (it was still being destroyed by the first damaging spell that hit it). This was most noticeable when fighting a rogue in melee and seeing "Crippling Poison fails. Grounding Totem is Immune" appear in the combat log for every time you were hit. This has since been fixed.
External links
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