Mists of Pandaria - Blizzcon 2011 - Talents

Another talent overhaul...
Another attempt to make talents less cookie cutter builds.
I don't exactly know how they came up with the idea of reducing the amount of talents points gives you less cookie cutter builds. (Talking about the current talent tree's, 31 points, vs the old ones, 61 points.)

I do think this time they did a better job. I think with Talents 2.0 there will be some more choice now.
But they're still be some cookie cutter elements in it.
If you have 3 damaging attacks you'll naturally want the strongest one?

The New Class Talent SystemPerhaps the most exciting of these changes is the removal of the old talent tree system. Rather than each class having three separate trees, one for each specialization, players will now choose talents from individual sets which are awarded every 15 levels. Each class will have its own selection of talents, and the entire list will be available to all characters of that class regardless of  specialization.
Each talent set is comprised of three talents which fall into a clear "theme." Some sets will offer utility such as movement speed increases and boosts to survivability, while others will reduce the costs of certain situational abilities. Currently, the goal is to avoid making any particular talent mandatory or to have them play a role in ability rotations directly. Instead, they're intended to give players interesting ways to customize their characters according to their preferred playstyle.
In total, there will be six talent sets, with players unlocking a new set every 15 levels. This means that there will be fewer talents overall, but each talent you choose has the potential to have a much more dramatic effect on your gameplay.

Examples of possible talents for paladins in Mists of Pandaria

Class Talents vs. Specialization AbilitiesSo what does this mean for important spec-based spells and abilities like Hammer of the Righteous and Circle of Healing?
At level 10, players will still select a specialization and unlock an iconic class specialization ability. As players level up, they will then automatically learn both class-based and specialization-specific abilities at set intervals. The specialization abilities you learn will be largely comprised of old talents we feel players should have, as well as core class abilities that not every spec needs.
For example, for a level 25 Protection paladin, his or her training list may look a little something like this:

Level 10:	Avenger's Shield	(Protection ability)
	Judgments of the Wise	(Protection ability)
Level 12:	Rightous Fury	(Class ability)
Level 13:	Redemption	(Class ability)
Level 14:	Flash of Light	(Class ability)
Level 15:	Hand of Reckoning	(Class ability)
Level 16:	Lay on Hands	(Class ability)
Level 18:	Divine Shield	(Class ability)
Level 20:	Hammer of the Righteous	(Protection ability)
Level 22:	Supplication	(Class ability)
Level 24:	Consecration	(Class ability)

These spells and abilities will be trained in the field, appearing immediately in players' spellbooks once they reach the appropriate level. As a result, there will no longer be a need to visit class trainers save to re-spec or purchase Dual Specialization, keeping players engaged and doing what they enjoy.

 Some interesting notes:

• Class Abilities are available to all specs in the class. All warriors learn heroic strike for example.
• Spec Abilities are available to certain specs. Only Arms warriors learn Slam. Retribution and Protection paladin get Hammer of the Righteous, etc .
• Talents are optional skills/bonuses available to all specs. Any warrior can choose Throwdown, and you will have to pick between 3 different crowd control abilities on this level of talent.
• Level 15 - You pick your first talent. For example, warriors have to pick between Juggernaut / Double Time / Warbringer and players will have to pick which mobility ability they want to pick depending on their playstyle.
• Access to stuff you never could before. If you were a subtlety rogue you knew you weren't going to get something like Killing Spree. And because talents are going to be all in the same tree, you're going to be able to combine them in a way that you never could before. For example, any rogue can have Shadowstep!
• If you don't see a beloved talent in your new talents list, don't worry, it's probably something we gave your spec as a baseline. For example all Holy priests now have Circle of Healing.

It is nice they split talent abilities from specialization. Giving indeed more options to choose from.

I do like the idea that some abilities will be always usable then no matter what spec.

Talent recap for all classes: