Coiled Altar Windwalker comparison

Mákí, Mïlo, and Doomlocke, all Shado-Pan Windwalker, on Heroic Venomous Abyss. Built from the full Warcraft Logs report and Method's patch 12.1 Windwalker guide.

On the kill, Mákí out-damaged both other monks while wearing gear 12 item levels lower than theirs.

Mákíilvl 308

150k

Mïloilvl 320

126k

Doomlockeilvl 320

123k

Kill pull, 8:22. Compared against players at the same item level, Mákí parsed in the 57th percentile. Mïlo parsed in the 8th and Doomlocke in the 7th.

There's one important nuance. On the six pulls where all three stayed alive, Mïlo and Mákí were effectively tied (136k and 134k), with Doomlocke at 117k. Mákí's lead on the kill comes from playing the full 8:22 alive, using every cooldown, and doing it on weaker gear. Mïlo's damage holds up because of his higher item level, even with some clear misses described below.

Quick wins

The short version for each player. Details are further down the page.

Mïlo

Rotation
Press Zenith Stomp. You cast it 0 times all night. For Mákí it was 6.5% of his damage.
Rotation
Use Zenith more often. You used 21 Zeniths to Mákí's 28 over the same 22 minutes.
Rotation
Cut the Vivify casts. You cast 38 in 22 minutes, about 3 times as many as the others. Each one is a global cooldown with no damage.
Survival
Stay behind Zul'jan. Sever killed you 60 seconds into pull 6.
Gear
Enchant your chest (Mark of the Worldsoul) and swap your weapon to Arcane Mastery.

Doomlocke

Gear
Enchant five empty slots: helm, shoulders, chest, legs, and both weapons. Add gems to your neck and rings too, which currently have none.
Gear
Use a damage potion. You used none all night. Method recommends Potion of Recklessness alongside Zenith.
Rotation
Spend energy with Tiger Palm. You cast 158 to Mákí's 251 in the same time, which likely means energy sitting at cap.
Rotation
More Whirling Dragon Punch. You cast 19, compared with 31 for Mákí and 36 for Mïlo.
Survival
Watch Venom Rupture and Coalesced Venom. They killed you early on pulls 3, 5, and 7.

Mákí

Gear
Upgrade the weakest pieces: bracers at 285, cloak at 292, helm and gloves at 295.
Gear
Match Method's enchants: Lynx's Dexterity on boots, Eyes of the Eagle on rings, and Arcane Mastery on your weapon.
Stats
Trade Versatility for Haste. You have 662 Versatility, which Method ranks as the weakest stat. Haste ranks highest after Agility.

Every pull

DPS and raid rank among about 22 players. Struck-through numbers mean that player was dead or inactive for more than 15% of the pull.

Pull	Boss	Length	Mákí	Mïlo	Doomlocke
2	Coiled Altar	5:07	66k #18	89k #15	84k #16
3	Coiled Altar	6:36	135k #8	115k #13	103k #14
4	Coiled Altar	3:24	119k #10	116k #11	93k #16
5	Coiled Altar	7:31	158k #12	164k #11	141k #14
6	Coiled Altar	1:25	136k #10	105k #16	108k #15
7	Coiled Altar	5:13	154k #13	94k #16	44k #19
9	Coiled Altar	2:41	97k #10	97k #11	89k #14
10	Coiled Altar	5:43	131k #13	137k #11	133k #12
11	Coiled Altar	7:17	140k #14	154k #13	96k #17
12	Coiled Altar (kill)	8:22	150k #10	126k #13	123k #14
13	Ula'tek	1:36	82k #15	76k #17	92k #13
15	Ula'tek	2:02	120k #9	127k #7	88k #17
16	Ula'tek	2:05	123k #8	105k #15	80k #18
17	Ula'tek	2:04	124k #11	124k #10	84k #17

Mákí led the three monks on 7 of 14 pulls, including the kill, where he was the only monk alive at the end.

Where the damage comes from

Totals from the six pulls where all three stayed alive (pulls 5, 9, 10, 15, 16, and 17), 22.1 minutes each, unless noted.

Zenith and Zenith Stomp

Zenith is the main cooldown, and Zenith Stomp is the button you press during it. Mákí used both the most. Mïlo never pressed Zenith Stomp all night, so the 1.9% of his damage it shows likely came only from passive triggers.

Six pulls, 22.1 min	Mákí	Mïlo	Doomlocke
Zenith casts	28	21	26
Zenith Stomp casts	54	0	50
Zenith Stomp share of damage	6.5%	1.9%	6.0%
Fists of Fury	96	82	100

The ruleUse Zenith on cooldown with your potion and trinkets. During Zenith, cast Zenith Stomp when you're low on Chi, and again before Zenith ends.

Spending energy and using the rest of the kit

Six pulls, 22.1 min	Mákí	Mïlo	Doomlocke
Tiger Palm	251	201	158
Whirling Dragon Punch	31	36	19
Rushing Wind Kick	40	38	32
Touch of Death	7	6	4

Tiger Palm is how Windwalker turns energy into Chi. Method says to cast it before energy caps. Doomlocke cast 37% fewer than Mákí in the same time, so it's likely his energy sat at cap. That means fewer Chi, which means fewer of everything else. Whirling Dragon Punch is only available while Rising Sun Kick and Fists of Fury are both on cooldown, so a low count usually means those two weren't being pressed on cooldown either.

Global cooldowns spent healing

Six pulls, 22.1 min	Mákí	Mïlo	Doomlocke
Vivify casts	13	38	14

On pull 10 alone, Mïlo cast 17 Vivifies in 5:43. Healers can usually cover this damage. Using Fortifying Brew and Touch of Karma instead (Mïlo used them the least of the three) saves global cooldowns for damage.

Potions and trinkets

Mákí and Mïlo used potions and their on-use trinkets throughout the night. Doomlocke used his Freightrunner's Flask trinket but no damage potion on any pull.

Deaths that cost the most

Player	Pull	Died at	Main damage taken
Mïlo	12, kill	7:18 of 8:22	Gravebound, a single hit of about 24M
Mïlo	6	1:00 of 1:25	Sever, which hits whoever is in front of Zul'jan
Mïlo	7	3:41 of 5:13	Dreadful Presence (constant raid damage)
Doomlocke	7	1:59 of 5:13	Venom Rupture and Coalesced Venom
Doomlocke	11 (3.1% wipe)	4:56 of 7:17	Volatile Venom, Coalesced Venom, Death's Whisper
Doomlocke	2	4:13 of 5:07	Spirit Erasure, about 1.05M
Mákí and Mïlo	13	0:58 of 1:36	Caustic Waves

Mákí's only early deaths were on pulls 2 and 13, and he was the only monk to survive the whole kill. Most of his other deaths came in the last seconds of a wipe, when everyone dies.

Gear and setup

Compared with Method's 12.1 recommendations. A sim of your own gear can change some of these picks.

	Mákí	Mïlo	Doomlocke	Method
Item level	308	320	320
Tier pieces	5	5	5	4 for full bonus
Chest	Worldsoul	None	None	Mark of the Worldsoul
Legs	Armor kit	Armor kit	None	Forest Hunter's Armor Kit
Helm	Blessing of Speed	Rune of Avoidance	None	Rune of Avoidance
Shoulders	Akil'zon's Swiftness	Akil'zon's Swiftness	None	Amirdrassil's Grace
Boots	Farstrider's Hunt	Lynx's Dexterity	Lynx's Dexterity	Lynx's Dexterity
Rings	Silvermoon's Alacrity	Eyes of the Eagle	Eyes of the Eagle	Eyes of the Eagle
Weapon	Acuity of the Ren'dorei	Acuity of the Ren'dorei	None (both)	Arcane Mastery
Gems	Diamond + 2	Diamond + 3	None	Eversong Diamond + Peridot
DPS potion	Light's Potential, 18 uses	Recklessness, 10 uses	None all night	Potion of Recklessness
Versatility	662	203	150	Lowest priority

Method's stat priority is Agility, then Haste, then Mastery and Crit equally, with Versatility far behind. All three had a flask, food, and Vantus Runes.

Shado-Pan single-target cheat sheet

This is Method's 12.1 priority in short form. Start at the top and cast the first ability that's ready. Don't let Combo Breaker or Dance of Chi-Ji procs expire.

Whirling Dragon Punch
Zenith Stomp when low on Chi, or when Zenith is about to end
Tiger Palm if energy is about to cap (outside Zenith and Bloodlust), or if you need Chi for Fists
Fists of Fury
Rushing Wind Kick
Spinning Crane Kick with Dance of Chi-Ji and Unbroken Rhythm active
Rising Sun Kick
Blackout Kick with Combo Breaker
Tiger Palm if under 2 Chi, then Spinning Crane Kick with Dance of Chi-Ji
Tiger Palm without overcapping Chi, then Blackout Kick

Opener: Tiger Palm, then Zenith with potion and trinkets (use the stat buffs before Zenith), then Fists of Fury, Rising Sun Kick, and Whirling Dragon Punch. 12.1 change: with the 4-piece tier bonus, cast Spinning Crane Kick right after Fists of Fury whenever 2 or more targets are in range.