WoW 8.2 Heart of Azeroth Guide - some Essences are really OP!

Heart of Azeroth in 8.2

One of the biggest changes in Rise of Azshara is the new Heart of Azeroth system. It will give players some possibilities of progression in the endgame. Fully unlocked Heart of Azeroth is going to have one major and two minor slots. This is where players can place their Essences – lootable items that can provide various different effects and bonuses.

To start using Heart of Azeroth, you’re going to have to unlock them via Magni’s questline. It consists of nine quests that you can unlock at the beginning of Nazjatar storyline.

If you put an Essence in the major slot, you’ll get an extra active ability. Placing it in the minor slot provides you with another passive effect. The Essences will come in four tiers: Uncommon, Rare, Epic and Legendary. Higher tiers provide more powerful effects and sometimes some extra bonuses too. And Legendary Essences will have unique visuals!

Getting the exact Legendary Essences you want will definitely be very time-consuming. The higher tiers will be gated behind completing different kinds of the game content. To get them all you’ll have to successfully complete main and side quests, Islands Expeditions, Mythic+ Dungeons, Raids, gain reputation, as well as take part in PvP modes like Battlegrounds, Warmode and Rated PvP. Some Legendaries require completing achievements related to this game content. Check out all the Essences added in WoW 8.2!

Heart of Azeroth Essences Guide

There are 21 types of Essences going to be introduced in the game. Six of them are considered all-around good for every class, while each basic role (healer, tank and DPS) will get five dedicated ones.

Versatile Essences

Crucible of Flame – the first Essence you’re going to get, because it’s a reward for “MOTHER Knows Best” quest. Higher ranks are also unlocked by completing quests – respectively In Darkness I Dream, Investigating Highlands and A Bolt from the Blue.

In a major slot, Crucible of Flame provides you with a fireball spell that can either deal damage to an enemy or heal your ally. In minor slot, it gives all of your spells a chance to deal fire damage over time to your enemies, or healing over time to your teammates.

Conflict and Strife – its major power will allow you to use a specific PvP talent in the entirety of the Azeroth content. Higher ranks provide extra defensive Versatility buffs in certain situations. Minor power gives all of your spells in your kit a small chance of temporarily increasing your Versatility. You can acquire this Essence from a PvP War Chest.

Memory of Lucid Dreams – this Essence can be unlocked through questing in Nazjatar. Rank 1 quests are “A Brief Respite” (Alliance) and “Down into Nazjatar” (Horde). For Rank 2 you have to complete “Friends in Need” (Alliance) or “Down But Not Out” (Horde). Rank 3 and 4 are respectively “Nautical Battlefield Training” and “Aqua Team Murder Force”.

Placed in a major slot, it gives you an ability that temporarily increases your spec resource generation by 100%. The minor power gives you a chance to instantly refund 50% of the spec resource spent using an ability. It also heals you for a good amount.

Ripple in Space – you can unlock this Essence through various warmode activities in Nazjatar and Mechagon. For the highest Rank you’ll need to complete “Supplying the Assassins” achievement.

Its major power gives you an ability to create an Azerite Beacon and teleport to it after four seconds (Rank 1) or two seconds (higher Ranks) the relocation will also deal damage to nearby enemies. The minor power grants you bonus to your primary stat when you’re moving.

Vision of Perfection – you can get the first Rank of this Essence by finishing the Operation: Mechagon dungeon. To get higher Ranks you’ll have to complete the dungeon multiple times and Rank 4 is a reward for the Hertz Locker achievement.

The major power provides you with a chance of activating your predetermined spec spell  25% of the time (Rank 1) or 35% (Rank 2). It doesn’t put a spell on cooldown, so it just randomly proccs the extra power. As a minor power it decreases your spec cooldown by a fixed amount (the percentage varies for different classes). On higher ranks it also provides a heal and Versatility boost.

Worldvein Boon - this Essence is based on the Lifeblood Shards mechanic. Major power gives you an active ability to summon 2 (Rank 1) or 3 (higher Ranks) Lifeblood Shards. Each one of them can boost your and your teammate’s primary stat by 50 points. Minor power makes those shards passively spawn around you from time to time. This Essence is unlocked through Island Expeditions.  

DPS Essences

Blood of the Enemy – you can unlock subsequent ranks of this Essence by completing achievements for Battlegrounds. Its major power gives you a powerful Area of Effect attack that then increases your chance of dealing critical strikes to the targets. When it comes to minor slot you can get a Blood-Soaked stacking mechanic that can provide you with 548 Haste and for Rank 3 and 4 also Critical Strike.

Condensed Life Force – in major slot, this Essence gives you an ability to summon Guardian of Azeroth for 30 seconds. He will impale target enemy every two seconds. At Rank 2 he gets an AoE damage spell and at Rank 3 he provides you with extra Haste (up to 10%). In minor slot, it gives all of your spells a chance to impale your target, dealing extra damage. This Essence is unlocked by raiding the Eternal Palace. To get rank 4 you will have to defeat Queen Azshara on Mythic mode.

Essence of the Focusing Iris – you unlock subsequent Ranks of this Essence by completing Mythic+ Season 3 Battle for Azeroth dungeons. Its major power provides you with a powerful spell that creates an energy surge, dealing powerful AoE damage over 2.5 seconds. Its minor power makes it so your succeeding spells on a single target provide you with a stacking Haste bonus. It makes this Essence really good for killing durable bosses.

Purification Protocol – in major slot, it lets you cast a powerful beam that damages enemies in targeted area for 6 seconds, it also stuns for every Aberration hit for three seconds. From Rank 2 in has a chance to instantly annihilate certain species and from Rank 3, every enemy that dies within the beam, increases the  power of said beam by 10%.

In minor slot, it gives your spells a chance to deal extra damage (increased by 50% against Aberrations). This Essence is obtained through the Rustbolt Resistance reputation.

The Unbound Force – this Essence is geared towards the critical strike users. In major slot it gives you an access to the spell that hits your target with Azerite shards. They deal 300% damage on critical hit and from Rank 3, every critical hit creates an additional shard.

In minor slot it brings a stacking mechanic called Reckless Force, getting 20 stacks provides you with a powerful temporary critical strike boost. This Essence is unlocked through Nazjatar Reputation, but it also requires some Prismatic Manapearls.

Tank Essences

Aegis of the Deep – major power provides the possessor with 1499 damage reduction for every incoming attack for the next 15 seconds. Higher Ranks reduce its cooldown and provide extra Avoidance after the effect ends – great for tanking huge packs of weak enemies.

Minor power gives you extra Versatility for up to 10 nearby enemies. On higher Ranks it also doubles the bonus when you’re at low hp and it provides healing. It’s yet another Essence that’s unlocked by Nazjatar Reputation and Prismatic Manapearls.

Anima of Life and Death – this Essence can be unlocked through clearing Myhtic+ Battle for Azeroth Season 3 dungeons. Its major power is an active ability that deals 10% of your max HP as damage to nearby enemies and heals you for up to 25% (50% for Rank 3 and 4) of your maximum HP. Minor power gives you a stacking mechanism that increases your max HP and provides healing.

Azeroth’s Undying Gift – major power of this Essence provides you with an active 20% damage reduction for four seconds on 60s (Rank 1) or 45s (higher Ranks) cooldown. Rank 3 instead provides 2s of 40% reduction and then 2s of 20% reduction.

Minor power gives you an auto-triggering powerful armor boost that activates when you drop under 35% HP. It has a 150s cooldown on Rank 1 and 120s cooldown on higher ranks. The Essence is unlocked by raiding the Eternal Palace.

Nullification Dynamo – in a major slot, it provides you with an active anti-magic barrier that absorbs 113,717 magic damage over 10 seconds. At Rank 3 it also cleanses you from negative effects such as curses, poisons and diseases. Minor slot provides you with a smaller Null Barrier that procs automatically every 20 seconds on Rank 1 and every 15 seconds on higher Ranks. This Essence is earned through Rustbolt Resistance reputation.

Sphere of Suppression – Its major power provides the possessor with an active ability that reduces movement speed and attack speed of nearby enemies. The minor power is a passive that slows every enemy that hits you, while providing you with extra Haste. You can get access to it through Battlegrounds.

Healer Essences

Artifice of Time – this Essence is unlocked through Battlegrounds. Its major power absorbs all the damage and healing dealt to a friendly target over 4 seconds at Rank 1 and 6 seconds at higher Ranks. Then both damage and healing are delivered over 10 seconds. Rank 3 also provides 20% reduction for the delivered damage. Minor power grants your healing spells a chance to temporarily increase your target’s Haste and on Rank 3 also movement speed.  

Life Binder’s Invocation – in a major slot, the Essence provides you with an ability to plant Seeds of Eonar into nearby allies (30 on Rank 1, 40 on higher Ranks). These seeds will then pop when target takes damage, healing them for a fixed amount. The minor power provides you with a high chance of implanting an Eonar Seed into your target with every healing spell. This Essence is unlocked by completing Mythic+ dungeons.

The Ever-Rising Tide – to unlock this Essence you have to gain Nazjatar reputation and collect Prismatic Manapearls. The major power allows you to overcharge your mana for 10 seconds and increase your healing by 3% (Rank 1) or 4% (higher Ranks) with every healing spell you cast. Minor power grants you a passive ability that grants you a chance to get bonus Intellect or to restore a fixed amount of mana while casting a healing spell.

The Well of Existence – this Essence stores 15% of your overhealing. If you put it in a major slot, you will be able to decide when to access this resource and heal your ally for the stored amount. The healing will be amplified by 20% at Rank 1 and 50% at higher Ranks. This spell has a 15s cooldown.

Minor power of this Essence will passively release up to 5184 of stored healing every time you heal a target that’s below 40% or 50% HP, depending on Rank. The Well of Existence is unlocked through Rustbolt Resistance reputation.

Vitality Conduit – this Essence can be obtained through raiding The Eternal Palace. Its major power lets you direct the Vitality Conduit towards a chosen ally. Every 0.5 seconds for 6s duration they will get 2561 HP transferred from the nearby ally with the highest amount of HP. Higher Ranks give the healing a 120% multiplier and the ability to switch targets when your original target has full HP. Minor power works similarly, but the health transfer has a high chance of occurring when you’re casting a heal.

Get hyped for patch 8.2!

These are all the available Essences for the Heart of Azeroth. What do you think about this system? Which ones are overpowered? Which ones seem to be on the weak side? Let us know in the comments! If you want to learn about other stuff introduced in 8.2, check out our Rise of Azshara Content Guide. If you want to quickly improve your gaming experience in WoW, take a look at the World of Warcraft category at MMOAuctions!