I Totally Didn't Steal This

With my muse currently on vacation/cheating on me/who knows, my inspiration for blog posts have been at a low.  Thankfully, Rilgon's post gave me an idea to provide some insight into the inner workings of my mind.

What is the name, class, and spec of your primary dps?
Shagrat, Troll Marksmanship (Agi-focused) hunter

What is your primary dpsing environment? (i.e. raids, pvp, 5 mans)
I am most defnitely a 25 man progression raider.  You will RARELY see me in any PvP situation and you NEVER catch me in an arena, ever.

What is your favorite dps spell/ability for your class and why?
If I had to choose one, it would be Chimera Shot.  The initial payload damage is nice, especially in my currently level of gear.  Plus, the additional effect can be changed based on which sting is used, giving you more damage, extra mana, or a disarm effect.

What dps spell do you use least for your class and why?
In terms of sustained DPS, mult-shot by far.  The damage is subpar compared to aimed shot, which shares its cooldown.  Even in AoE situations, we're still better off using single-target DPS on anything less than four targets.  We're not mages after all.

What do you feel is the biggest strength of your dps class and why?
At this point in time, none really.  Our damage output is middle of the pack compared to other DPS classes and specs, our utility has greatly diminished due to things like Tricks of the Trade, and we're too reliant on the presence of other classes to even perform at our peak proficiency.

What do you feel is the biggest weakness of your dps class and why?

Our output compared to other DPS classes.  The way we are now, we're TOO reliant on the presence of various buff and debuffs and if one or two of those are missing our output is greatly diminished.  For example, Sunder Armor (or any equivalent debuff).  According to Shandara's spreadsheet (which is only theoretical and assuming perfect conditions), my DPS is 9075.42.  If I were to take away Sunder Armor I drop down to 8552.12 DPS.  That is a lot of DPS lost for not having the armor reduction on the target whereas a mage or warlock would lose 0 DPS since spells aren't affected by armor.

In a 25 man raiding environment, what do you feel, in general, is the best dps assignment for you?
Stick me on the boss with a full contingent of buffs and debuffs, and you are looking at one happy hunter.

What dps class do you enjoy dpsing with most and why?
A warrior, particularly an Arms Warrior.  They can apply Sunder Armor, they have Trauma to amplify the damage from Piercing Shots, and they have Battle Shout to increase my base attack power.  A close second would be a paladin, espcially a Retribution Paladin.  They give the much needed mana return from Judgement of Wisdom, they have Blessing of Kings and Might, and they provide an extra 3% damage increase from Sanctified Retribution.

What dps class do you enjoy dpsing with least and why?
I would have to say a Frost Death Knight.  They do not provide anything that buffs my damage, as Improved Icy Talons only applies to melee attacks.  At least mages give me more intellect which increases my attack power.

What is your worst habit as a dps?
Until recently, meter watching.  I was always obsessed with watching Recount to make sure I was doing as much DPS as I possibly could, which led me to tunnel visioning and dying to something easily avoidable.  I've disabled Recount during combat and that's becoming much better.  Still working out some kinks though.

What is your biggest pet peeve in a group environment while dpsing?

A toss-up between slacking and hypocrisy.  If you're not giving it your all, then you are wasting your and 24 other people's time.  Do everyone a favor and /raidquit if you're not going to give 110%.  Also, if you're going to call someone out on mistakes, you better make damn sure you're not making the same mistakes and at a greater frequency.  Getting hit by three dark orbs is nothing compared to getting hit by 16 of them throught the course of the night.

Do you feel that your class/spec is well balanced with other dps?
Hell no.  MM and SV are pretty close to each other, but BM lags way behind.  The only reason you should EVER be BM for progression content is if your raid is lacking the 3% increased damage buff that the ret, and soon arcane mage, brings.  That's just the between the three specs.  Compared to other DPS specs, we are definitely not well balanced either.  Various sources shows hunters being middle of the pack and even trailing behind hybrid classes like druids and warriors.  Hybrid classes should NOT do more damage compared to a pure class, barring skill and gear differences.  It doesn't matter if all you want to do is DPS, your class still has the OPTION of putting on another set of gear and change specs and be a tank or a healer.  A pure class cannot.

What tools do you use to evaluate your own performance as a dps?
The same tools that most, if not all, serious progression raiders use: Recount and combat logs such was Wowmeteronline and World of Logs.  I also use Shandara's spreadsheet to figure out gear and spec choices that would give me the most bang for my buck.

What do you think is the biggest misconception people have about your class?
That the class is a facerolling class.  Anyone can roll a hunter and mash buttons, but a great hunter knows how to use all of his or her abilities to their maximum effect as well as managing a pet with the AI of a poorly trained rock.  Also, Marksmanship and Survival rely just as much on their pet as Beast Mastery does.  Fifteen to twenty percent of your DPS is still a lot of damage not to mention the pet's own abilities which aid the hunter.

What do you feel is the most difficult thing for new dpsers of your class to learn?
That the hunter class is not like Legolas in Lord of the Rings.  We are designed to kill from range and our abilities are built around that.  Every time I see a newbie hunter in melee range with his or her pet, I just want to cry.  Also, kiting is one of the most important tools you will ever learn.  You should not be able to go up to a random hunter and ask them how to kite and the only response you get is: "What's kiting?"  /facepalm

What add-ons or macros do you use, if any, to aid you in dps?
I use Parrot combat text, Deadly Boss Mods, and Recount.  I also bound my aspects into one with various modifiers that allow me to change aspects to what the situation warrants.

Agility over other stats or balanced stat allocation, and why?
As a Marksman hunter, having a good balance of Agility, crit, Armor penetration, and Intellect are key.  You don't want to eschew intellect too much in favor of getting that one stat (i.e. leather) because if you wear all leather, you will constantly find yourself in Viper OOM.  Plus, you also lose out on the attack power that intellect provides due to Careful Aim.  As always, being hit capped is important.  And I never want to see a hunter stacking strength.  If you're out there and I see you, I will personally reach through the computer and beat you senseless.