I was playing my warden the other day and on two separate occasions I saw, in one case, a group specifically ask for a chain healer and on another they wanted a Mystic. Is there something that those classes can do that no other healer can? I kinda thought a healer was a healer, but I must be mistaken on that.
Yes, there wouldn't be a point in having six healnig classes if they were all the same. I don't play a healer, but the general differences are: Chain healers: Mystics or Defilers use Wards to mitigate damage. Once a ward is thrown up, they have a window of time to heal any damage or throw in dps or debuffs. Plate Healers: Templars and Inquisitors use heals that are reactive to taking damage. Leather healers: Wardens and Furies use HoT (heal of time) spells which heal you ever few seconds with a very fast cast time. It's not too detailed, but that's a basic break down. Each class has other class defining abilities that are often sought after.
There are certainly differences between the healer classes, not only based on healing/curing ability, but also on utility/dps potential. Most often if someone specifies that they are looking for a specific type of healer, they probably already have one of the other types in their group. If they already had a leather healer in their group it would be preferable to have a different type (since ST HoT's) don't stack for instance. If they were flat out asking for a mystic, perhaps they were a melee-heavy group and they wanted some of the buffs that mystics can provide. Most groups prefer to run with one healer, so if you're comfortable/able to fill that role you'll be desired regardless of class. I've seen a surprising number of Templars in PUGs lately, which is a pretty big change from the last expac.
Mirrian wrote: Often you'll see a group that needs 2 healers ask for the kind they don't already have. Since it seemse like there are more druids in the game than any other kind of healer, you'll most often see a request for a chain or plate healer specifically because they already have a leather one - for example. If they asked specifically for a Mystic, they were looking for buffs - and it was probably the Tank requesting it. It was just a preference, and it was probably a group that could do a lot already without a healer (or they all had mercs). You could take 2 of the same kind of healer, but most groups don't. It's all about gear and loot now. You want to maximize your chances to get whatever drops. If you have 2 of the same kind of healer (gearwise), they have to roll on it vs. just getting it when it drops for thm. The only time the group leader won't try to maximize buffs and group make-up to get out of the instance as soon as possible is when it's friends. Then you just make due with whomever showed up.
that and there is a very limited number of druids that have the gear and skill to heal harder zones without the assistance of a warder... lets be honest wards > all
