Those seeking some insight into the mind of Obama’s FCC transition co-chair might want to take a look at his chosen profession in World of Warcraft. Fortunately, his shaman healer just happens to be the next role in our continuing series of explaining MMOs to the MMO-less, and hopefully teaching a few incompetent players how to do their jobs.

Unlike the tank, the healer’s role is absolutely self-explanatory. He or she heals. Simple. At least in theory.

In practice, healers are the other members of the group who have to be absolutely on point for a difficult fight, along with the tank. If the tank dies, it’s probably the healer’s fault. And if the tank dies, everyone else is going to die in pretty short order as a pissed-off monster rampages through the ranks of squishy players. If the healer dies, it’s the tank’s fault, but if the tank dies, it’s the healer’s fault.

In a simple fight with a single enemy, commonly referred to as a “tank n’ spank,” the healer’s job isn’t tough. He or she just just has to keep those heals coming, and everything’s fine. But advanced fights are rarely that simple.

Glance at the tactics for this fairly advanced World of Warcraft raid. I don’t expect you to understand it, just to come away with the idea that it’s complex. There’s multiple stages, different people are getting hit at different times. The healer has to know what’s going on in all the chaos and who’s about to need their limbs magically unbroken.

So, if through pop psychology you were to try to get a read on Kevin Werbach via his WoW character, what would you conclude?

Well, he’s got an organized an analytical mind. That’s probably true, being a professor and all.

He’s also not the sort of guy who’s at the forefront of an effort, giving commands. He prefers to play a vital role, but in the background. Sounds like a transition team chair to me.

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