From WoWWiki
- Can't touch this.
Power Word: Shield is a Priest spell in the Holy tree which gives a defensive buff to friendly targets. This buff creates a protective shield around the target which absorbs a set amount of damage. Power Word: Shield also gives the target the Weakened Soul debuff. Power Word: Shield is often referred to as PW:S.
[edit] Rank Table
| Rank | Mana Cost | Damage Absorbed | Level | Cost
|
| 1 | 45 | 44 | 6 | 1
|
| 2 | 80 | 88 | 12 | 8
|
| 3 | 130 | 158 | 18 | 29
|
| 4 | 175 | 234 | 24 | 71
|
| 5 | 210 | 301 | 30 | 85
|
| 6 | 250 | 381 | 36 | 1 50
|
| 7 | 300 | 484 | 42 | 1 98
|
| 8 | 355 | 605 | 48 | 4 20
|
| 9 | 425 | 763 | 54 | 5 80
|
| 10 | 500 | 942 | 60 | 4 70
|
| 11 | 540 | 1147 | 65 | 7 20
|
| 12 | 600 | 1315 | 70 | 12 60
|
- Weakened Soul debuff description: "Cannot be affected by Power Word: Shield."
- The amount of damage absorbed by the shield is calculated after armor is taken into account. This means the shield will last longer on targets with more armor, and benefits from Inner Fire.
- Counterspell effects will pierce the shield. Physical abilities like Shield Bash and Kick still cause interruption.
- Environmental damage, such as fall damage, lava, and fatigue, is not absorbed.
- Receives a 30% bonus from +healing items (as of Patch 2.3; 20% as of Patch 2.0.10, previously 10%)
- Generates about half the threat of normal healing spells.
- Prevents rage generation for warriors and druids in bear form by absorbing damage.
- Cast time will not be affected by damage while PW:S is active. Daze effects are mitigated.
- The shield appears to block suicide damage (from Warlock Hellfire) but does not affect damage from non-damaging spells that directly decrease HP like Life Tap.
- The shield will absorb damage from any harmful attack but does not defend against any debuff an attack may apply. For example, the shield will absorb the damage done by a Mage's Frostbolt, but the snare debuff will still be applied.
[edit] Talent improvement
[edit] Tips and tactics
- Casting it before combat does not cause any threat and reduces the time until the target can be shielded again.
- A major disadvantage of the shield is that it is not a true healing spell, so it may wear off without having any impact. If PW:S is cast on a player who will not be taking damage in the next 30 seconds, it is a waste of mana.
- Warriors (and druids in bear forms) generate rage from taking damage; PW:S prevents this. For this reason, it is usually best to allow warriors to take damage, then heal them, instead of casting PW:S.
- Paladins want to be healed rather than PW:Shield. They receive mana from heals, but not from PW:S. Paladin tanks have tiny mana pools and rely on healing or will go OOM.
- Many players state that PW:S should only be used in case of emergency because of its large mana cost.
- Power Word: Shield can also be seen as a way of pushing a tank's HP beyond its normal limit. It is effective to Power Word: Shield before major attacks that will destroy the shield in one blow. Using it before Patchwork's Hateful Strike or similar devastating attacks reduces the chance that a tank will die to a possible critical hit after such an attack.
- The effectiveness of PW:S is not altered by Mortal Strike and similar healing-reducing debuffs; in these situations it can sometimes be more effective to shield a tank first, rather than spam heals right away.
- This is useful for casters who are receiving damage, as it prevents spell interruption from damage, especially while they are channeling, and even the priest himself can benefit from this (especially in solo combat).
Death knight • 
Druid • 
Hunter • 
Mage • 
Paladin • 
Priest • 
Rogue • 
Shaman • 
Warlock • 
Warrior
