The 5.4 PTR Hunter Class Changes are Half Right and All Wrong

I can see what they are thinking.  But they are completely wrong.  Here are the PTR changes to hunters:

General

• Arcane Shot had its damage and focus cost increased by 50%.

Talents

• Aspect of the Iron Hawk now reduces all damage taken by 10%, down from 15%.
• Silencing Shot is no longer a talent and is now an ability for Marksman Hunters.

Marksman

• Binding Shot is no longer a Marksman Hunter ability and is once again a talent.

At first glance, it looks like a buff, a small nerf, and some shuffling of abilities only some hunters use.  But that is not the case.  I'm not one who goes for hyperbole very often.  It's actually a slow-motion train-wreck.  Let's look further.

Arcane Shot.  Sure we all use arcane shot a lot and hunters are low on damage so you can buff all hunters by a certain amount by buffing their common shot.  Yeah.  No.

Buffing Arcane Shot damage and making it cost more is bad.  Across all specializations, arcane shot is our focus dump.  It shouldn't hit harder.  It shouldn't cost more.  When used, it should take a small bite of our focus.  Good hunters will always prune their focus such that they have enough focus to use their big damage ability when it comes off cool down.  Hunters that shoot arcane shots when they shouldn't, will now continue to do so, but not be penalized as much on the DPS front. They didn't hit as many of their big damage abilities (Explosive Shot, Chimera Shot, Kill Command) as they should have, but now they wont be penalized as much as before.  They're being taught to be bad.

If we're going to get a damage boost, do the harder work and boost all three specialization gold star abilities.  Sorry, that is more work, but it's the right thing to do.  Tweak it up a little bit and leave the focus costs alone.

Iron Hawk.  The raiding talent if there ever was one.  Okay fine, reduce our flat DR.  Why have it at all?  I believe the thinking was that we don't have a way to DPS and pop a defensive CD.  We can only hit Deterrence and at most lob a trap.  Other classes don't have that problem.  (No, not even mages.)  So what number should it be?  IDK.  I do know that I do hit Stoneform as a defensive CD when times are tight on healing.  But I'd be an idiot to do it most of the time because it's only 10%.  It reminds me of the days when we could step and melee a raptor strike to get the damage reduction.

Silencing Shot moves to Marksman-only.   This removes the hunter's interrupt for a majority of hunters.  It leaving us with a pet stun.  And that stun is on a one minute cooldown.  We can't even take down 2K health rares around Pandaria who heal.  I don't think I've ever used profanity in any of my 526 blog posts.  Take this quiz.  a) How many raid bosses can be interrupted?  b) How many raid bosses can be stunned?  The answer key: a) Most. b) None.  WHAT.  THE.  FUCK.

Silencing Shot should be baseline.  I'd love it to have a shorter cooldown, but it must be balanced with other classes.  Yes, make the level 30 talent choices Binding Shot, Wyvern Shot, and Intimidation.  But make Silencing Shot baseline.  That's what you do when almost every hunter takes it!  Give Marksman the ability to increase their crit by standing in place for N seconds.  They're freaking Marksmen.  The ability is already designed and had been in the game.  If they don't want to use it, fine.  Then every hunter specialization can raid and every specialization is on the same footing with regard to PvP.

Binding Shot returns.  Yeah.. didn't call that one.  Or actually, I guess we did.  At least the core of us at the WHU.  But that was quite easy to anticipate.  Welcome back.   For PvE it's a nice special use ability.  For PvP it can be fun and useful