As Hunters, we’ve been overwhelmed by all the changes in 3.0. Our pets got new talent trees, we got new pets, more stable slots, whole new talents, old talents were changed, shots were changed, shots were added. It’s easy to get lost. Here’s a list of three things you should know about patch 3.0.

1. Your Shot Rotation Hasn’t Changed

For better or worse, at the moment, your shot rotation hasn’t changed–much. Regardless of spec, much of your shot rotation will remain the same, despite changes to Aimed Shot, for example. The only thing about your shot rotation that has changed is that Serpent Sting, as well as your other stings, should now be featured more prominently. For Beast Mastery and Survival Hunters, this will require some adjustment. Previously, Serpent Sting’s damage output was not worth the mana you would expend to keep the Sting refreshed. That’s changed. Make sure that you’re refreshing your stings! For Marksmanship Hunters who have gone down the tree far enough to pick up the new 51-point talent, Chimera Shot, this will be a much simpler proposition, as Chimera Shot will refresh your stings automatically for you.

2. Your Pet Has Less Talent Points

With the transition from the Training interface we were used to to the new Talent interface we’ve got now, the system of point acquisition has changed as well. For one, the number of points available to your pet is no longer dependent on it’s Loyalty level. Instead, pet talent points are determined by the pet’s level, just as our talent points are. Furthermore, pets don’t receive their first talent point until Level 20, even though we get our first talent point at Level 10. After Level 20, pet’s receive 1 talent point every 4 levels. They do not receive points every level like we do.

Of course, WoWHead has a pet talent calculator up to help you plan your pet’s path to glory.

3. Aimed Shot and Multi-Shot Share a Cooldown

With the recent changes to Aimed Shot, Blizzard has seen fit to tie Aimed Shot and Multi-Shot together. This is something I’ve noticed is particularly bothersome in PvP. In PvE, this change is hardly noticed as Aimed Shot has changed very little for the purposes of PvE.

For PvP, however, Aimed Shot has changed a great deal, and become a much more prominent “finisher”. As such, the quick transition between finishing one opponent and moving onto another, or multiple others, is hindered somewhat by the shared cooldown between Aimed Shot and Multi-Shot. The reason these shots were tied together was to prevent Hunters from becomming overpowered in PvP. However, with the reduction in damage applied to Aimed Shot with the change, this seems like an unnecessary “nerf”. Hopefully Blizzard will untie these shots, but if not, you’ll need to get used to deciding which shot to use and when.