Welcome to this guide on the latest patch 10.1.7, which brings exciting class tuning changes to Restoration Druid, Mistweaver Monk, Shadow Priest, and Holy Paladin. In this patch, we'll explore the talents being removed, the new ones being introduced, and one significant nerf that may shake up the meta. We delve into the details and implications of these changes, preparing you for the upcoming gameplay adjustments, making informed decisions on your character builds, and optimizing your performance in both Mythic+ and raid environments. 

• Restoration Druid
• Mistweaver Monk
• Holy Paladin
• Shadow Priest

↖ Restoration Druid

Restoration Druid has yet to be dominating the meta, so Blizzard is making some adjustments to bring it up. The primary change for Restoration Druid is the addition of 2 new talents in their talent tree. However, they will be replacing two existing talents.

The first talent to be removed is Forest's Flow,which extended the duration of Hots when using Nourish. It was not commonly used by Druids, so Blizzard decided to replace it. The second talent being removed is Deep Focus, which provides benefits to single-target damage and healing with DoTs.

The replacements for these talents are Master Shapeshifter and Grove Guardians. Master Shapeshifter provides bonuses to different forms' abilities, such as more armour and mana in Bear Form, more damage and mana in Moonkin Form, and more damage with Cat Form abilities. It offers extra utility and healing through increased mana regeneration.

Grove Guardians allows you to spawn a Treant that will instantly cast Swiftmend on your target. For the next 15 seconds, the Treant will also target a nearby ally and use Nourish to heal them. Additionally, when paired with Wild Growth, the Treant will cast it as well, making it useful in party and raid scenarios.

Overall, the changes to Restoration Druid provide alternative utility and healing options, but it remains to be seen whether they will outperform existing popular talent choices. Additionally, all of their healing output will be reduced by 2%, indicating that Blizzard expects the new talents to be quite potent.

↖ Mistweaver Monk

Mistweaver Monks are receiving changes to their Manatee talent. Previously, Spirit of the Crane provided mana restoration upon using Blackout Kick, but it will be replaced by Manatee. Manatee used to be a one-time click talent, reducing the mana cost of abilities by 50% for 10 seconds with a 90-second cooldown.

With the new changes, Mistweaver Monks will gain stacks of Manatee every time they spend 25,000 mana. Each stack has a chance to grant an extra stack based on critical strike chance. These stacks can then be consumed to provide mana regeneration over time, and at the end of the channel, Mistweaver Monks gain a reduction in mana cost based on the number of stacks consumed.

This change pushes Mistweaver Monks towards more caster-style gameplay, but it may clash with the current playstyle of some Monks who use Yu'lon and cooldown reduction. Nevertheless, the change adds depth to the gameplay and allows for more flexible mana management.

↖ Holy Paladin

Holy Paladins are receiving a straight buff to the Tower of Radiance talent. Previously, this talent gave back one holy power when casting Flash of Light or Holy Light on targets with Beacon. Now, it will always generate one holy power when using these abilities, making it more effective and a straightforward buff.

It is worth noting that Holy Paladins are already considered strong healers, and this change may have been optional. However, the talent itself could have been stronger and rarely used, so this change aims to make it more appealing without necessarily overpowering the spec.

↖ Shadow Priest

The biggest change in this patch is the nerf to the Angels Mercy talent for Shadow Priests. Previously, this talent reduced the cooldown of Desperate Prayer based on the amount of damage taken. Now, it has a flat cooldown reduction of 20 seconds, bringing "Desperate Prayer" to a 70-second cooldown.

This change hits the defensiveness of Shadow Priests hard, as they won't be able to reduce the cooldown as significantly as before. It may affect their survivability in Mythic Plus and raid encounters, especially on Tyrannical weeks where heavy damage is prevalent.

Conclusion:

The 10.1.7 patch brings a mix of positive utility changes, buffs, and notable nerf. Restoration Druid receives potential utility improvements, Mistweaver Monk gets a buff to mana regeneration, Holy Paladin gains a straightforward buff, while Shadow Priest faces a significant nerf to their defensive cooldown. Keep in mind that these changes are subject to testing and feedback before the final release. Stay tuned for further updates and adjustments as the patch gets closer to release. Happy gaming!