| Power Word: Barrier | |
|---|---|
| |
| Properties | |
| Class | Priest |
| School | Holy |
| Cooldown | 3 minutes |
| Talents | |
| Talent required |
 [Make Amends] or  [Pain Transformation]/ [Protector of the Frail] or  [Dark Indulgence] |
| Related buff | |
| |
Power Word: Barrier
Power Word: Barrier is a Discipline priest talent. It is a Power Word ability that summons a barrier area on the ground, and all friendly players standing inside that area get a damage reduction effect.
It is an exclusive choice node with 
[Luminous Barrier].
Notes[]
- Power Word: Barrier affects a target location; which players it affects depends upon whether they are within the barrier. This may make PW:B far more effective in situations where the players are fairly static, and/or grouped closely together.
- Power Word: Barrier absorbs only 25% of damage; the majority of damage taken (75%) will not be absorbed.
- Power Word: Barrier only lasts for 10 seconds; conversely, it can 'absorb' any amount of damage in that time without consuming itself.
History[]
Power Word: Barrier was originally planned for patch 3.1.0 of Wrath,[1] but was scrapped because other revamps in the patch ended up more extensive than was planned.[2] It was later listed as one of the new Discipline talents in the Cataclysm priest preview in April 2010.[3] Initially it acted as an absorb shield shared by player units inside the area and benefitted from Discipline's original mastery effect, 
[Mastery: Shield Discipline]. However this effect was quickly changed a month later in patch 4.0.3a. As a result, Power Word: Barrier became an effect providing damage reduction instead, which was no longer affected by mastery at all.
Patch changes[]
Patch 10.1.5 (2023-07-11): Now a choice node with [Luminous Barrier]. - Patch 10.1.0 (2023-05-02): Effectiveness increased by 100% in PvP combat.
- Patch 10.0.0 (2022-10-25): Now a row 4 Discipline talent (was a level 44 Discipline ability).
- Patch 9.1.0 (2021-06-29): Fixed an issue with Power Word: Barrier's damage reduction being removed earlier than intended when two Discipline Priests cast Power Word: Barrier.
- Patch 9.0.1 (2020-10-13): Now learned at level 44 (was 70).
- Patch 7.2.5 (2017-06-13): Power Word: Barrier mana cost reduced by 37% and radius increased by 23%.
- Patch 7.1.0 (2016-10-25): Now learned at level 70 (was 65).
- Patch 7.0.3 (2016-07-19): Now learned at level 65 (was 70).
- Hotfix (2013-12-17): Resolved an issue that caused Power Word: Barrier's damage reduction effect to not apply properly to players under various conditions.
- Patch 5.0.4 (2012-08-28): Now a level 70 Discipline specialization ability (was a tier 7 Discipline talent).
- Patch 4.1.0 (2011-04-26):
- Cooldown has been increased to 3 minutes, up from 2, and its effect has been reduced to 25%, down from 30%.
- Now displays different visuals for hostile and friendly players.
- Patch 4.0.3a (2010-11-23): Redesigned. It no longer acts as a shared absorb shield. Instead, all affected friendly targets take 30% reduced damage for the duration of the shield, which is now 10 seconds, down from 25 seconds. Consequently, this spell no longer benefits from the Discipline Mastery Shield Discipline.
- Patch 4.0.1 (2010-10-12): Added.
References[]
- ^ Class Change Highlights (Part 1, 2 & 3) "Discipline has access to a new talent, Power Word: Barrier. (Think of it as Power Word: Shield for your whole group)."
- ^ GC! You promised us TWO ponys! where'r they? "We'd still like to do Barrier, but some of the revamps ended up more extensive than we planned. At this point we'd rather make what we have taste good instead of throwing new ingredients into the stew, but it's an idea we still like."
- ^ Cataclysm Class Preview: Priest "Discipline will finally be getting Power Word: Barrier as a talented ability."
External links[]
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