Talk:Debuff

Debuff Clarification
Exactly what a debuff is made confusing. In particular, a debuff is the opposite of a buff. For each buff, it is possible to imagine a reverse that would be a debuff. More of a stat is a buff, less is a debuff. This article claims that damage-over-time (DOT) effects are in fact debuffs. This is not true as the counter to damage is not a buff, but healing. In the long run damage, be it direct or "over time", has the exact same contribution to a battle. Debuffs, however, limit the target in some fashion, ideally degrading their performance in some way that is beneficial to the debuffer.

As a side note, changed the Priest example debuff from SW:P to Misery and Rogue from Deadly Poison to Wound Poison. Also fixed the limitation to note the "new" 40 debuff limit. -Hearteater 21:30, 8 March 2007 (EST)
 * IMO HoTs are buffs and DoTs are debuffs. -- Gordon Ecker (talk) 02:43, 19 April 2009 (UTC)

Warlock Removal
While I realize Blizzard's two-year-old web page describes warlock as "Type: Debuffer" they hardly qualify currently, and didn't then either. Blizzard has admitted (mainly in warlock and mage forums) that those pages should not be used as the basis of arguments about class abilities. To claim the warlock is a debuffer fails because the warlock has five debuffs that are mutually exclusive: Curse of Shadows, Curse of Elements, Curse of Tongues, Curse of Weakness and Curse of Recklessness. Fear, Banish and Seduce are all crowd controls, not debuffs. DOTs are just that: damage. For comparison, consider a Hunter using Scorpid Sting and Hunter's Mark has at least the same if not greater debuffing abilities than the warlock. Even Shadow Priests out-debuff a Warlock with Shadow Vulnerability and Misery. If anything, attempting to claim warlocks as debuffers brings in to question whether paladins should be classified as such given their judgements. -Hearteater 21:30, 8 March 2007 (EST)

Stacking
Is Shattering Throw considered a minor armor debuff, or does it belong to its' own category which stacks with both major and minor armor debuffs? Also, do general critical strike chance increase debuffs (Heart of the Crusader and Totem of Wrath) stack with spell critical strike chance debuffs (Enduring Winter, Improved Scorch and Improved Shadow Bolt)? -- Gordon Ecker (talk) 02:40, 19 April 2009 (UTC)