Snowstars Guide to Arcane Knowledge

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Snowstars Guide to Arcane Knowledge

PostPosted: Fri Jul 01, 2005 6:30 pm

SSX-Andy
Posts: 374
Joined: Sun Feb 27, 2005 2:28 am
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Welcome to my guide, or the start of it. For those of you who have no idea who I am and why I am qualified to write a guide, here comes a rundown.

Im Snowstar, or so Im called. A frost mage who aspire to become a mage Master. This has not happened yet, but someday it will. Im a frost mage but at the start of my career I dabbled some in the arts of fire, most likely due to the influence of my master of the time who I soon hope to pass in skill just as I have in knowledge.

I do not claim to know everything there is to know, nor to I claim to have the perfect build for a mage. I do have a little understanding about the talents that the different builds consist of and I can give the mage who are in search of greater knowledge some glimpse of what I have found out about them. You may or may not share my opinions of the different talents, but this is my experience about them. Feel free to argue them all you want.

I hope that you will find something new here, maybe just a confirmation to why your build is the best or maybe find talents useful that you had never considered before. There is no ultimate build and it is only by trying different builds that you can find the one perfect for you. After all, its only a matter of gold to try out new things.

Enjoy the read.

xxx

Snowstar
Aspiring Master Frost Mage of SSX.

PS. This guide is by no means complete and may be/will be altered during the course of its existence. DS.

PPS. I have not proof read this guide so it may not be totally accurate. DDS.

PPPS. Be sure to look out for Snowstars Complete Guide to the Arcane, to be published within a mages (un)natural lifetime. DDDS.

PostPosted: Fri Jul 01, 2005 6:31 pm

SSX-Andy
Posts: 374
Joined: Sun Feb 27, 2005 2:28 am
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The Talents

Like all classes the mage have three different trees to choose from when it comes to talents. I havent tried all talents that exist, but have an idea of how most works by either using them myself or watching/talking to others who have used them. My view is a bit biased since I consider the main purpose of a mage to deliver DPS and fast take down the enemy. With that in mind, here is a quick rundown of the different talents, what they do and my thought about them.

PostPosted: Fri Jul 01, 2005 6:34 pm

SSX-Andy
Posts: 374
Joined: Sun Feb 27, 2005 2:28 am
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Arcane

The arcane tree consists of support talents along with some powerful damage spells. Most mages spent at least 15-16 points here to get some support for their main tree which they put the rest of their points in.

Arcane Subtlety, tier one.
Three ranks. Reduces threat generated by offensive arcane spells by 20%/30%/40%.
Not really a very useful talent since the arcane tree mainly is there for support. Worth getting if you rely heavily on the two arcane damage spells. There is one exception to this. In the higher instances many mobs are immune to fire. Unless you are a frost mage, you will find yourself relying heavily on Arcane Missile in the high end instances. In this case a lower threat generation might be the difference between life and death. When fighting Horde it is always useless. Which even further makes it rather worthless. Sure, take it if you like, but dont come crying to me when you find an orc spear through your chest.

Arcane Focus, tier one.
Five ranks. Reduces the chance that the opponent can resist your arcane spells by 2% per rank.
Might be worth getting if you focus heavily on arcane for damage, which most doesnt. Even with this maxed out most high level mages doesnt really see a huge difference in resist when fighting high level enemies. If you are in dire need of resist reduction, have your warlock friend cast Curse of Shadow instead. That is if you have a warlock friends. They normally dont seem as the friendly kind.

Improved Arcane Missile, tier one.
Five ranks. Gives you 20% chance per rank to avoid interruption caused by damage while channelling Arcane Missiles.
A very good talent to get. Spell interruption is a serious hassle for any mage and a 100% chance to avoid it while casting a spell that does damage each second can prove invaluable. All mages worth the name should at least consider this one. Even if arcane missile isnt used that often, it is the best talent of tier one to get since you still want to get deeper into the tree and the other two (arcane subtlety and arcane focus) just arent as good. This is a talent you either put five points in or none at all. So to wrap it up, put five in it unless you decide to completely ignore the arcane tree. You wouldnt be a real mage if you did, you elementalist you. I did try that, but saw the error of my way.

Wand Specialisation, tier two.
Five ranks Increases your damage with Wands by 5% per rank.
More damage is nice, but a real mage focus on her spells in order to do damage, not a fancy toothpick. Sure wands are nice when you are low on mana or just want to save some for later, but not really worth focusing in. Ill just toss this talent on the useless pile.

Arcane Concentration, tier two.
Five ranks. Gives 2% chance per point of entering a Clearcasting state after any damage spell. This reduces the cost for the next damage spell by 100%.
One of the two reasons why most mages choose to put points in the arcane tree. Effectively lowering the cost of all damage spells by 10% and it can prove a lifesaver when the mana is low and Lady Luck chooses to favour her bellowed mage. Unless you are an elementalist, a talent you cannot live without.

The effect fades after 15 seconds, so you better be fast with your next spell, but since mages most of the time throw around spells all the time that shouldnt be a problem. There are some mages that use spells at low mana cost and fast cast time just so that they can get the clearcast and get the mana expensive spell (such as Blizzard) for free.

Improved Dampen Magic, tier three.
Two ranks. Increases the effect of Dampen Magic by 25% per rank.
I see no use for this one. Dampen Magic isnt used very often. I mainly use it when fighting warlocks and even then the two points can be spent on much better things. Unless you focus on fighting spellcasters a lot, avoid this one.

Improved Arcane Explosion, tier three.
Five ranks. Reduces the casting time of your Arcane Explosion by up to 0.3 seconds per rank.
Spending one to four points in this talent is useless. The last 0.3 seconds is what makes the difference. New mages and non-mages might ask the question what the difference is since 0.3 seconds is very fast. The difference is that the last point makes Arcane Explosion an instant spell, popularly known as IAE. This means that you can run while casting it and it becomes uninterruptible. Nothing beats the feeling of running around a crowd of dirty enemies while damaging all of them all the time. The second reason why most mages spend points in the arcane tree. You are simply not a mage if you dont have this one. No elementalists, you arent mages.

Evocation, tier three
One rank. While active increases your mana regeneration by 1500%. Lasts 8 seconds.
The reason some mages chose to spend 16 points in arcane instead of just 15 (for Arcane Concentration and IAE). Since most mages chose to ignore spirit and thus have a rather low mana regeneration (why have a high when you can create your own drinks) this talent might seem useless. It isnt. Far from it. With 15 times higher mana regeneration while in combat you can get back a substantial amount of your mana. If you, for example, get 100 mana per tick regularly with this talent active you would get 1500 mana per tick. That is roughly 4500 mana during the duration. 4500 extra mana in a combat can really make a difference when fighting hordes of enemies. The only drawback is the 10 minute timer.

Improved Mana Shield, tier four.
Two ranks. Reduces the mana lost per point of damage by 10% per rank.
I find this rather useless since I dont fancy Mana Shield much. Many mages, however, seem to love Mana Shield and have it active all the time. If you focus heavily in the arcane tree or find yourself using Mana Shield all the time, this might be for you.

Improved Counterspell, tier four.
Two ranks. Gives your Counterspell a 50% chance per rank to silence the target for 4 seconds.
Can prove very useful while fighting the pesky Horde. To not be able to cast any spell for 4 seconds can be an eternity. A counterspelled priest while find himself unable to cast any healing spell for 10 seconds and no spell at all for 4 seconds.

Arcane Meditation, tier four.
Five ranks. Allows 3% Mana regeneration per rank while casting.
Doesnt work with spells that are channelled (such as Arcane Missile). I find it of limited usefulness. Might be good if you have a lot of spirit and rely heavily on damaging spells with long cast times. For the rest of us, this talent just isnt worth it.

Presence of Mind, tier five.
One rank. When active your next spell with a cast time less than 10 seconds will be instant.
If you are going heavily into the arcane tree (which you obviously have if you end up this deep into the tree) this spell is a really good one. It is on a 3 minute timer so most of the time you will find yourself using this in the beginning of the fight and if you are good/lucky enough not again. An instant polymorph at the very start before your opponent has the chance to do anything can really give you the upper hand. It is also needed for the two highest tiers in the arcane tree so if you go all out for arcane you will have to take this no matter what.

Arcane mind, tier five.
Four ranks. Increases your maximum mana with 2% per rank.
A total of 8% more mana when maxed out. With 6000 mana this means 480 more mana. Not that much, but still better than nothing. If you find yourself this deep into the tree its worth considering. More mana is always nice, but at what cost in this case.

Arcane Instability, tier six.
Three ranks. Increases your spell damage and critical strike chance by 1% per rank.
There arent many ways for a mage to increase the chance of a critical strike. There are very few weapons that does this, as opposed to the melee guys who get this all the time. You could try to become more intelligent, but this isnt always that easy. A maxed out Arcane Instability gives as much chance for a critical strike as 300 intellect. A talent well worth the points if you are deeply into the arcane tree.

Arcane Power, tier seven.
One rank. Increases spell damage by 35% and spell cost by 35% when active. The effect lasts 15 seconds.
If youve already spent the 30 points into arcane to get this far, it would be a waste not to get this one. Note that this talent is dispellable.

PostPosted: Fri Jul 01, 2005 6:39 pm

SSX-Andy
Posts: 374
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Fire

The fire tree has the most damaging spells there is. When fighting just one enemy there are very few that can match the damaging power of the fire mage.

Improved Fireball, tier one.
Five ranks. Reduces the casting time of Fireball by 0.1 seconds per rank.
A 3 second cast time instead of 3.5 is a noticeable difference, at least when fighting mobs. When fighting Horde instant spells are more often used so this one is of limited use there. But, since it is a prerequisite for Pyroblast (that all fire mages seem to love) it is a very good talent to spend points in if you decide to take the dark path down the fire tree.

Impact, tier one.
Five ranks. Gives your fire spells a 2% chance per rank to stun the target for 2 seconds.
This one can be a bit tricky. A stun is very nice since it not only stops the target for 2 seconds, it also interrupt spells and breaks the rhythm. A 10% chance for it to happen isnt that large so its not something you can plan a tactic around. Works best with the AoE spells Flamestrike and Blastwave.

Ignite, tier two.
Five ranks. The critical strikes from fire damage cause the target to burn for an additional 8% damage per rank over 4 seconds.
When maxed out gives 40% more damage to your crit, which means your crits will now do 110% of base damage instead of 50%. A very good talent if you focus on a critibuild and even if you dont it is well worth considering. Note that this is a DoT and as such it can be dispelled.

Improved Fire Blast, tier two.
Five ranks. Reduces the cooldown of Fire Blast by 0.5/0.8/1.0/1.2/1.5 seconds.
When fighting Horde, instant spells are used very often and the reduced cooldown from 8 seconds to 6.5 seconds is noticeable. The question is if it is worth getting at this price. If you find yourself relying heavily on Fire Blast and cant find a better use for the points go for it, but most will find talents that are more worth getting than this one.

Flame Throwing, their two.
Two ranks. Increases the range of fire spells with 3 yards per rank.
With 6 more yards Fireball and Pyroblast get a range of 41 yards, the longest of any except marksmanship hunters. Since fire mages typically are sniper kinds who only focus at one target at a time, the ability to be able to hit your target long before they can hit you can prove invaluable. A very useful spell for the fire mage.

Incinerate, tier three.
Two ranks. Increases the critical strike chance of Fire Blast and Scorch by 2% per rank.
Since Fire Blast is instant it is a core spell when fighting Horde. Scorch is also very nice since its fast to cast. If you have a crit build this is a talent well worth investing some points in.

Pyroblast, tier three.
One rank. Gives you the ability to learn the spell Pyroblast.
If youve ever fought an undead mage you will know this spell. Sheep, Pyroblast, Fire Blast and lo and behold most of your health is gone. It is useful combined with Presence of Mind since high level opponents break out of the Sheep before you have the opportunity to back of and take the 6 seconds it take to get a Pyroblast on the way. Has limited uses when fighting mobs. A combusted Pyroblast cast with Presence of Mind can be a very fun thing, but apart from that I dont really find it useful. Had it, but hardly ever used it.

Improved Flamestrike, tier three.
Three ranks. Increases the critical strike chance of Flamestrike by 5% per rank.
Useful in getting if you plan on getting Blast Wave since you need this for it. A 15% improved crit chance of an AoE is very nice and combined with Presence of Mind and followed by Blast Wave (or a combusted Blast Wave) this can do some serious AoE damage, and also draw some serious AoE aggro.

Burning Soul, tier three.
Three ranks. Gives your fire spells a 25%/50%/65% chance not to lose casting time when you take damage.
Fire mages rely on distance. They snipe their victims from faaaar away where they are out of harms way. If you find yourself standing close to the enemies you should either switch to a frost build and/or invest five points in Improved Arcane Missile since it gives a 100% chance to avoid interruption. Still 65% chance of avoiding interruption is better than 0% and sometimes you do get hit, no matter how snipey you are. Its not a bad talent, just that Improved Arcane Missile is better.

Improved Scorch, tier four.
Five ranks. Gives Scorch 20% chance per rank to cause the target to become vulnerable to fire which increase fire damage by 2% for 15 seconds. Can stack up to 5 times.
Not really worth it. You will rarely have the opportunity to get in 5 Scorches at the same enemy, unless its a boss. There are much better places for your points than here.

Improved Fire Ward, tier four.
Two ranks. Cause Fire Ward to reflect 20%/35% of the fire damage back to the caster. [/I]
Sounds nice. Hurting them when they hurt you. Isnt as nice. The maximum damage you can reflect back is around 204 damage, at a cost of 320 mana. Sure, you have Fire Ward active for the protection not the damage so its just bonus, but still. There are better ways to spend your points than here.

The good thing with the fire tree is that you can completely skip the two tier four talents since none are needed to get deeper into it. This is nice, since both of them suck.

Critical Mass, tier five.
Three ranks. Increases the critical strike chance of your fire spells by 2% per rank.
More crits mean more damage. Enough said. If you are a fire mage, you cant ignore this one. Especially since its needed in order to get further into the tree.

Blast Wave, tier five.
One rank. Gives you the ability to learn the spell Blast Wave.
An AoE attack that daze the targets for 6 seconds. Is on a 45 second cooldown, so only usable once or so per fight. Can do a lot of damage.

Fire Power, tier six.
Five ranks. Increase the damage done by fire spells with 2% per rank.
Mo damage. Dont think this one needs any further description. A great talent for the fire mage.

Combustion, tier seven.
One rank. When activated gives the next fire spell a 100% chance of a crit.
Useful as an opener in combination with Pyroblast or Flamestrike/Blast Wave when fighting mobs or Blast Wave or Fire Blast when fighting Horde. Its a nice spell and essential if you focus on crits. If not it is worth thinking if you should go deeper into the arcane tree instead of this deep into the fire tree.

PostPosted: Fri Jul 01, 2005 6:40 pm

SSX-Andy
Posts: 374
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Frost

Frost has a lot of crowd control and some devastating AoEs. It is a tree more focused on party/raid fights than 1on1.

Improved Frostbolt, tier one.
Five ranks. Reduced the cast time of Frostbold by 0.1 second per rank.
A lot like Improved Fireball. A lower cast time means higher DPS, at least when fighting mobs. A rank 1 Frostbolt will have a cast time of only 1 second and can be useful to slow down fleeing enemies. I dont really think its worth spending points in, but might be if you find yourself spamming Frostbolts a lot.

Permafrost, tier one.
Five ranks. Increases the duration of your chill effects by 1/1.5/2/2.5/3 seconds.
If you spam Frostbolt a lot this might not be worth it. If you arent this one is a bit better than Improved Frostbolt. Makes a huge difference in combination with Improved Blizzard.

Ice Shards, tier two.
Five ranks. Increases the critical strike bonus of your frost spells by 20% per rank.
100% extra damage from crit instead of 50% is very nice. Combined with Shatter and Frostbite this can be really nasty. A core talent for a frost mage.

Winters Chill, tier two.
Five ranks. Increases the power of your chill effect by slowing the target for an additional 4%/7%/10%.
Very useful when fighting in groups. Makes the enemies seem as if they arent moving, especially with a Blizzard. Not as useful when soloing, but since a frost mage is all about group play it is well worth getting.

Improved Frost Nova, tier two.
Two ranks. Reduced the cooldown time of Frost Nova with 2 seconds per rank.
Reduced cooldowns are nice, but are 21 seconds instead of 25 seconds worth it? In my opinion this talent is worth getting since it is needed for Shatter. If its worth it for the cooldown I will leave without discussion, but it sure is nicer the more often you can get a Frost Nova off.

Piercing Ice, tier three.
Three ranks. Increases the damage done by frost spells by 2% per rank.
6% extra damage may or may not be worth it. Frost is more about control than damage, but if you like a little extra damage it might be worth getting, depending on what you sacrifice to get there.

Cold Snap, tier three.
One rank. When activated finishes the cooldown of all frost spells.
Very useful spell that allows you to get away twice the number of cooldown frost spells than usually. Its instant cast which is nice, but also on a 10 minute timer which isnt as nice. Still, its a very nice spell that all frost mages should have.

Improved Blizzard, tier three.
Three ranks. Adds a chill effect to your Blizzard that slows the targets movement to 70%/50%/35% of normal for 1.5 seconds.
The ultimate zerg AoE. The chill effect is reapplied with each wave which in combination with Frostbite gives a 15% chance each second that the target will freeze. The 1.5 second chill might seem low, but with Permafrost this is increased to 4.5 seconds. A very useful skill to have when fighting in Battlegrounds or generally when fighting many enemies.

Arctic Reach, tier four.
Two ranks. Increases the range of Frost Bolt and the radius of Frost Nova and Cone of Cold by 10% per rank.
Longer range is nice, but unlike the fire mage a frost mage doesnt rely heavily on distance. Once you get Frostbite it isnt so bad to have the mobs close to you since they will spend a lot of time frozen in place. Can be useful when fighting Horde and when in the Molten Core since it allows you to throw Frost Bolts from outside the 30 yard AoE range.

Frost Channeling, tier four.
Three ranks. Reduced the mana cost of your frost spells by 5% per rank.
Its nice. Lower mana cost means that more spells can be thrown. In my opinion the three points is better spent on Improved Cone of Cold.

Shatter, tier four.
Five ranks. Increases the critical strike chance of your frost spells against frozen targets by 10% per rank.
A core talent for a frost mage. Combined with Frostbite the crit chance increases dramatically.

Improved Frost Ward, tier four.
One rank. 50% of the damage absorbed by your Frost Ward is added to your mana.
Unlike fire, very few enemies use frost. The best Frost Ward absorbs 430 damage at a cost of 255 mana, giving 215 mana back. Reduces the cost of Frost Ward to just 40 mana, but still, you will rarely find need for Frost Ward so even with a cost of just one point it is still a waste.

Ice Block, tier five.
One rank. You become encased in a block of ice, protecting you from all physical attacks and spells for 10 seconds, but during that time you cannot attack, move or cast spells.
One of the best skills there is for the group frost mage. The risk of drawing aggro when spamming AoEs is huge and sometimes you find yourself surrounded. Just hit Ice Block and you are invulnerable for 10 seconds. Enough time for someone else to draw aggro or for the healer to get to you. There is a short lag before the spell is cast when you hit it, so dont wait too long.

Improved Cone of Cold, tier five.
Three ranks. Increases the damage dealt by your Cone of Cold spell by 15%/25%/35%.
35% extra damage to an instant spell that can hit several enemies at once. This means that a Cone of Cold can crit for around 1000 damage with Ice Shards. Not bad for an instant spell and since Shatter adds that extra 50% crit chance to frozen enemies, a Frost Nova followed by a Cone of Cold can do some serious damage.

Frost Bite, tier six.
Five ranks. Gives your chill effects a 3% chance per rank to freeze the target for 5 seconds.
Another core frost talent. 15% chance to freeze when chilled can be a lot of fun. Especially combined with an Improved Blizzard.

Ice Barrier, tier seven.
One rank. Instantly shields you, absorbing 438 damage. Lasts 60 seconds. While the shield holds, spells will not be interrupted.
Good to have when solo AoEing, but a bit disappointing otherwise. Doesnt absorb that much and for those pulls that get out of hand Ice Block provides a much better shield.

PostPosted: Fri Jul 01, 2005 6:41 pm

SSX-Andy
Posts: 374
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The Mages

There are many different kinds of mages out there. I will not try to list them all since the combinations are far to many, but will try to give some of the more popular builds. There are variations to these, but Ive found these to be the most common base builds.

PostPosted: Fri Jul 01, 2005 6:41 pm

SSX-Andy
Posts: 374
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The Frost Mage

A frost mages is specialised in group fights, providing AoEs, crowd control and a decent DPS. Has a strong survivability with Ice Block and the slowing effects of chill and freeze.

Arcane Talents (18 points)
Improved Arcane Missiles - 5/5 points
Arcane Concentration - 5/5 points
Improved Arcane Explosion - 5/5 points
Evocation - 1/1 point
Improved Counterspell - 2/2 points

Frost Talents (33 points)

Permafrost - 5/5 points
Improved Frost Nova - 2/2 points
Ice Shards - 5/5 points
Winter's Chill - 2/3 points
Improved Blizzard - 3/3 points
Cold Snap - 1/1 point
Shatter - 5/5 points
Ice Block - 1/1 point
Improved Cone of Cold - 3/3 points
Frostbite - 5/5 points
Ice Barrier - 1/1 point

Variations: Remove Ice Barrier for an addiontal point in Winters Chill. Remove Exchange the two points in Improved Counterspell for Piercing Ice, Frost Channeling or Arctic Reach.

Conclusion: Since Im a frost mage I feel a bit biased here. This build is great in groups but not as good as the fire mage in 1on1 or solo play. The frost talents really work well together making Frostbite, Shatter and Ice Shards a very lethal combination. Has the highest survivability of all mage builds, but not as much DPS. A supportive build.

PostPosted: Fri Jul 01, 2005 6:42 pm

SSX-Andy
Posts: 374
Joined: Sun Feb 27, 2005 2:28 am
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The Cookie Cutter

The strongest for 1on1 PvP and therefore the main choice for many mages (at least it seems to be in the Horde side), hence the name Cookie Cutter.

Arcane Talents (31 points)

Improved Arcane Missiles - 5/5 points
Arcane Subtlety - 3/3 points
Arcane Concentration - 5/5 points
Evocation - 1/1 point
Improved Arcane Explosion - 5/5 points
Improved Counterspell - 2/2 points
Arcane Meditation - 1/5 point
Arcane Mind - 4/4 points
Presence of Mind - 1/1 point
Arcane Instability - 3/3 points
Arcane Power - 1/1 point

Fire Talents (20 points)

Improved Fireball - 5/5 points
Impact - 5/5 points
Ignite - 5/5 points
Flame Throwing - 2/2 points
Pyroblast - 1/1 point
Incinerate - 2/2 points

Variations: The points in Arcane Subtlety, Arcane Mediation and Arcane Mind are just put there in order to get enough points in arcane to get deeper into the tree. They can be switched with any other arcane skill if that fits your style better. There are many ways to build the cookie cutter mage. One other build would be to ditch Arcane Power in order to get Blast Wave instead. While this does a little less damage the AoE of Blast Wave is rightfully dreaded.

Conclusion: The most deadly 1on1 mage build there is. Presence of Mind allows for an instant Pyroblast and the extra damage from Arcane Power gives the already deadly fire spells and extra edge.

PostPosted: Fri Jul 01, 2005 6:43 pm

SSX-Andy
Posts: 374
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The Critical Mage

A mage build that focuses more into fire and less into arcane. Is build around increasing the critical strike chance and thus getting more DPS in the long run.

Arcane Talents (28 points)

Improved Arcane Missiles - 5/5 points
Arcane Subtlety - 2/3 points
Arcane Concentration - 5/5 points
Improved Arcane Explosion - 5/5 points
Evocation - 1/1 point
Improved Counterspell - 2/2 points
Arcane Mind - 4/4 points
Presence of Mind - 1/1 point
Arcane Instability - 3/3 points

Fire Talents (23 points)

Improved Fireball - 5/5 points
Impact - 2/5 points
Flame Throwing - 2/2 points
Ignite - 5/5 points
Incinerate - 2/2 points
Pyroblast - 1/1 point
Improved Flamestrike - 3/3 points
Critical Mass - 3/3 points

Variations: Also many variations to this. Arcane Mind and Arcane Subtletly are just fillouts to reach Arcane Instability. As is Impact in order to reach Critical Mass. Improved Fireball could be switched with Impact. The points in Impact could just as well have been spent on Improved Fire Blast. The points in Improved Flamestrike can be spent on other talents if you find that you dont use Flamestrike very often.

Conclusion: 3% extra crit chance with all spells, 9% extra with all fire spells and 12% extra with Fire Blast and Scorch makes this very deadly. Especially with the 40% extra DoT damage from Ignite.

PostPosted: Fri Jul 01, 2005 6:44 pm

SSX-Andy
Posts: 374
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The Fire Mage

So what is this you ask? Arent the two previous also fire mages? Yes they are, but this build relies more heavily on fire than on arcane. The critical mage has a lot of extra points (12 to be exact) in arcane just to get an extra 3% crit. By putting those 12% into the fire tree the total DPS output can be increased and the crit chance still be very high.

Arcane Talents (18 points)

Improved Arcane Missiles - 5/5 points
Arcane Concentration - 5/5 points
Improved Arcane Explosion - 5/5 points
Evocation - 1/1 point
Improved Counterspell - 2/2 points

Fire Talents (33 points)

Improved Fireball - 5/5 points
Flame Throwing - 2/2 points
Ignite - 5/5 points
Improved Fire Blast - 5/5 points
Incinerate - 2/2 points
Pyroblast - 1/1 point
Improved Flamestrike - 3/3 points
Critical Mass - 3/3 points
Blast Wave - 1/1 point
Fire Power - 5/5 points
Combustion - 1/1 point

Variations: The points in Improved Fire Blast could be put into Impact or Burning Soul.

Conclusion: This build has 3% less critical strike chance than the Critical Mage, but with Fire Powers 10% extra total damage and Combustions 100% crit chance the total DPS outcome might be higher than on the Critical build. The fire build I would use if I went for fire (which I dont). You dont get Presence of Mind so no instant Pyroblasts, but the waste points that arcane requires to get high into it just isnt worth it. The arcane tree has some nice things in it, but too many that are just waste of points. This build has fewer waste points and feels like a more solid build. But what do I know, Im not a fire mage.

PostPosted: Fri Jul 01, 2005 6:45 pm

SSX-Andy
Posts: 374
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*dual post*
Last edited by SSX-Andy on Fri Jul 01, 2005 6:46 pm, edited 1 time in total.

PostPosted: Fri Jul 01, 2005 6:45 pm

SSX-Andy
Posts: 374
Joined: Sun Feb 27, 2005 2:28 am
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The Elementalist

A build that completely ignores the arcane tree and specialise in both frost and fire. Was the first build I tried out, but later abandoned. The idea with this build is to combine the DPS from the fire tree with the crowd control capabilities of the frost tree. The question is if you can call yourself a mage if you arent arcane? I think not, at least not considering this is a Guide to Arcane Knowledge. Ah well, they still use our spells so here comes the Elementalist for all to enjoy.

Frost Talents (27 points)

Permafrost - 5/5 points
Ice Shards - 5/5 points
Improved Frost Nova - 2/2 points
Cold Snap - 1/1 point
Improved Blizzard - 3/3 points
Shatter - 5/5 points
Arctic Reach - 2/2 points
Ice Block - 1/1 point
Improved Cone of Cold - 3/3 points

Fire Talents (24 points)
Impact - 5/5 points
Ignite - 5/5 points
Flame Throwing - 2/2 points
Improved Fire Blast - 3/5 points
Improved Flamestrike - 3/3 points
Incinerate - 2/2 points
Blast Wave - 1/1 point
Critical Mass - 3/3 points

Variations: Impact could be switched for Improver Fireball. Critical Mass could be removed entirely and those points put into the frost tree instead, making it possible to get 3 points in Frostbite and by also ditching Arctic Reach getting Frostbite maxed at 5. This might prove to be even more deadly since it gets the added crowd control from freeze and also an increased crit chance for the frost spells.

Conclusion: A decent build that combines crowd control with DPS. I tried it out, but it has a few major drawbacks that made me ditch it. It doesnt have Improved Arcane Missile and Improved Arcane Explosion! These two are most likely the best skills a mage has and it just isnt worth missing them.

PostPosted: Sat Jul 02, 2005 7:46 am

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QuantumDelta
Posts: 1051
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Location: Bristol, England.
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A more general pvp mage

Arcane Talents (21 points)

# Improved Arcane Missiles - 5/5 points
Gives you a 100% chance to avoid interruption caused by damage while channeling Arcane Missiles.

# Arcane Concentration - 5/5 points
Gives you a 10% chance of entering a Clearcasting state after any damage spell hits a target. The Clearcasting state reduces the mana cost of your next damage spell by 100%.

# Evocation - 1/1 point
While channeling this spell, your mana regeneration is active and increased by 1500%. Lasts 8 seconds.

# Improved Arcane Explosion - 5/5 points
Reduces the casting time of your Arcane Explosion by 1.5 seconds.

# Improved Counterspell - 2/2 points
Gives your Counterspell a 100% chance to silence the target for 4 seconds.

# Improved Mana Shield - 2/2 points
Decreases the mana lost per point of damage taken when Mana Shield is active by 20%.

# Presence of Mind - 1/1 point
When activated, your next Mage spell with a casting time less than 10 seconds becomes an instant cast spell.



Frost Talents (0 points)

# None


Fire Talents (30 points)

# Improved Fireball - 5/5 points
Reduces the casting time of your Fireball by 0.5 seconds.

# Impact - 5/5 points
Gives your fire spells a 10% chance to stun the taget for 2 seconds.

# Ignite - 5/5 points
Your critical strikes from fire damage spells cause the target to burn for an additional 40% of your spell's damage over 4 seconds.

# Flame Throwing - 2/2 points
Increases the range of your fire spells by 6 yards.

# Improved Flamestrike - 3/3 points
Increases the critical strike chance of your Flamestrike spell by 15%.

# Pyroblast - 1/1 point
Hurls an immense fiery boulder that causes 148 to 195 fire damage and an additional 56 damage over 12 seconds.

# Critical Mass - 3/3 points
Increases the critical strike chance of your fire spells by 6%.

# Blast Wave - 1/1 point
A wave of flame radiates outward from the caster, damaging all enemies caught within the blast for 160 to 192 fire damage, and dazing them for 6 seconds.

# Fire Power - 5/5 points
Increases the damage done by your fire spells by 10%.
"Then, to hide their frailty, they hurt those who are kind.
I whisper farewell to this ugly world and dance nimbly with brilliant wings of red."

Ty

PostPosted: Mon Jul 04, 2005 3:52 am

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jaz
Posts: 11
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Location: Hillsboro, Tx USA
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ty ty ty ty ty I needed some mage builds :D I capped IAE at 25 and have been working in fire now. My mage is lvl 30 now so im sure this will save him from having to unlearn a bunch so thx for this -.-
This is my signiture.

PostPosted: Mon Jul 04, 2005 5:41 pm

Scorpius
Posts: 673
Joined: Thu Sep 16, 2004 12:19 pm
Location: Ass End of the Universe
Talk to Xaneda of Union she/he got a damn good setup and possibly the best mage I've ever done an instance with (Sorry Curnir, Behind).
Power Corrupts, Ultimate Power is Fun.

PostPosted: Tue Jul 05, 2005 10:58 am

SSX-Andy
Posts: 374
Joined: Sun Feb 27, 2005 2:28 am
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Scorpius wrote:Talk to Xaneda of Union she/he got a damn good setup and possibly the best mage I've ever done an instance with (Sorry Curnir, Behind).
Frost/Arcane then I guess (my build :) ).

Aye, Curnir sucks. = j/k

PostPosted: Sat Jul 09, 2005 7:33 pm

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Curnir
Posts: 198
Joined: Thu Mar 03, 2005 10:02 pm
Andy wrote:
Scorpius wrote:Talk to Xaneda of Union she/he got a damn good setup and possibly the best mage I've ever done an instance with (Sorry Curnir, Behind).
Frost/Arcane then I guess (my build :) ).

Aye, Curnir sucks. = j/k
No he doesn't. ;)
Curnir the Terrible Human level 60 Mage
Ariavel the Puny level 60 Druid
Dalectus the Pure Human level 60 Shadow Priest
Samulor the Sneaky Dwarf level 50? Hunter
Gendry the Bastard warrior 18?
Durinlon the Evil Dwarf level 17 Priest

PostPosted: Sat Jul 23, 2005 8:45 pm

SSX-Andy
Posts: 374
Joined: Sun Feb 27, 2005 2:28 am
Contact:
Have played around some more with the frost talents (spending hard earned cash) and have figured out a new set that fits my playing style (and instance playing) better. Will post it as soon as I test it out some more.

PostPosted: Sat Jul 23, 2005 11:44 pm

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M.Steiner
Posts: 6114
Joined: Wed Sep 01, 2004 5:57 pm
Location: UK
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Have added a link to this on our WoW website on the useful links page btw. :thumb:
"My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings:
Look on my works, ye mighty, and despair!"
Nothing beside remains. Round the decay
Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare,
The lone and level sands stretch far away.

PostPosted: Sun Jul 24, 2005 12:00 am

SSX-Andy
Posts: 374
Joined: Sun Feb 27, 2005 2:28 am
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Hehe, thanks. Will rewrite it once Ive played some hi-level instances and gotten a better feel for it all.

PostPosted: Mon Jul 25, 2005 11:57 pm

SSX-Andy
Posts: 374
Joined: Sun Feb 27, 2005 2:28 am
Contact:
Scorpius wrote:Talk to Xaneda of Union she/he got a damn good setup and possibly the best mage I've ever done an instance with (Sorry Curnir, Behind).
Have checked out Xaneda's eq on thottbot (unfortunately they dont list the talents as allhakazam does). Give me eq like that and I'll be happy. :)

Have yet to get a hold of Xaneda in game. Playing around with a new frost build that I think will work, but want to see what he/she is using since it seems to be working great.

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