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Introduction to Arcane Mages in Wrath of the Lich King Classic
Arcane Mages perform fairly well in Player vs Environment encounters, especially in the earlier phases ofWrath of the Lich King Classic. The play style is very simple, as single target encounters largely involve using only 2 abilities, managing mana, and cooldown usage. This specialization is suited for players who enjoy focusing on the game and not overly complicated class mechanics.
This guide is specifically intended for level 80 players focusing on PvE end-game content inWoW WotLK: Classic.
Best Race To Choose For Arcane Mages In Wrath Classic
For Horde, the only race that provides any significant advantage is Trolls for their Haste buff:Berserking. Arcane Mages damage benefits greatly from Haste, so much so that it is often the case that they will becomeHaste Capped, requiring them to alternate On-Use cooldowns.
For the Alliance, Draenei provide the best benefit with a 1% increased Hit Chance fromHeroic Presence. Humans haveThe Human Spiritwhich helps withMolten ArmorandGlyph of Molten Armor. They also haveWill to Survivewhile very strong in PvP has limited uses in PvE. Gnomes haveExpansive Mindfor an increase in Intellect andEscape Artist, which is less useful than the Human Racial.
Best Professions for Arcane Mages in WotLK
The top professions for Mages to have areEngineering and Tailoring. Engineeringprovides many tools and buffs that will increase damage. Tailoring providesthe best in slot back piece enchantmentand can also create some decent cloth armor pieces.
Here is a table that shows the benefits that each profession provides that are specific to Mages. Each of these recipes can be learned from the respective profession trainer.
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Best Talent Build For Arcane Mages In WoW Classic Wrath
This is the standard talent build for Level 80 Arcane Mages. The talent choices are made with the intent to maximize the damage of a simplified burst skill rotation.
There is not a lot to highlight or stray away from when choosing talents for Arcane Mages. One of the major drawbacks for most Arcane Mage builds is that their damage suffers from encounters with a lot of movement. The primary sources of damage areArcane BlastandArcane Missilesand they both require the player to be stationary for casting. ChoosingArcane Barrageand using it to spend stacks ofArcane Blastis an option for those heavy movement encounters.
Variations:
Depending on the encounter you are facing there are a couple of changes to take into consideration.
Cold Snap Burst Build
The addition ofCold Snaphas the potential to be a very strong cooldown to useIcy Veinsagain. This is only advisable for encounters that are very short, under a minute at most. There are too many sacrifices in mana efficiency to get that far down the Frost Talent tree. The Cold Snap talent build is shown in the image below.
Best Major Glyphs for Arcane Mage
The Major Glyphs that provide Arcane Mages the biggest increase in damage are as follows:
Best Minor Glyphs for Arcane Mage
There are only two Minor Glyphs that have any impact on performance in PvE content. Note that if players intend on usingIncanter’s Absorptionin their talent build, a reflected spell provided byGlyph of Frost WardandGlyph of Fire Wardwill not apply the buff
Arcane Mage Skill Rotation For Wrath of the Lich King Classic
The Skill Rotation for Arcane Mages is very simple; castArcane Blastand ifMissile Barrageoccurs, castArcane Missilesafter the 4th Arcane Blast. Should you be unlucky and not have a Missile Barrage occur until the 6th Arcane Blast, cast Arcane Missiles to clear the stacks.
Mana Efficiency is key with Arcane Mages; as a general rule of thumb, casting 3 Arcane Blasts followed by 1 Arcane Missiles is considered to be very mana efficient.
UseEvocationif you run out of mana, ideally timed during moments of downtime or before burst damage is required.
Arcane Mage Single Target Rotation
Mages should always haveMolten Armoractive as it increases Critical Strike Rating. At the beginning of a long encounter use aPotion of SpeedorPotion of Wild Magicjust before combat begins.
Arcane Mage AoE Rotation
For the Area of Effect DPS rotation in encounters with multiple targets(more than 2), the skill rotation will vary depending on the length of the encounter and whether or not you need to be mobile.
Useful Macros For Arcane Mages In Wrath Classic
The use of macros improves the quality of life by performing certain actions automatically. Players can activate trinkets and cooldowns with a single button press, saving time and ensuring they all get pressed in the right order. This is built into the game through the Macro menu (type “/m” and hitin the text chat bar).
and
or
Cancel Current Cast to Counterspell
Use Mana Potion or Runic Mana Injector and Cast Arcane Blast
