Out of all the available Mage specializations, Arcane is the most deeply connected to the lore of World of Warcraft, making it a rich and immersive experience.
The development of the latest expansion has brought a lot of focus on the Arcane talent specialization, resulting in a complete overhaul of the entire tree. This has ushered in a new and impressive era for the spec, and it is expected to continue growing in strength throughout The War Within.
While the fundamental gameplay loop remains centered around queuing up spells for optimal performance, there are exciting new possibilities to explore in maximizing the spec’s potential. This expansion places a stronger focus on Magic and spellcasting, making Arcane a highly appealing choice.
Taking that into consideration, we present our comprehensive guide to mastering the spec in The War Within.
Changes for Arcane Mages in The War Within
The main alteration for Arcane Mages in The War Within is that Arcane Missiles can now only be cast when Clearcasting is triggered. Moreover, the probability of this occurrence is now a fixed rate linked to each ability used, instead of being based on the total amount of mana expended.
The spec’s overall rotation has been made more efficient and straightforward compared to the rotations used in the past few expansion cycles. The elimination of Nether Spark and Radiant Tempest has greatly contributed to this change, resulting in a shorter buildup towards powerful damage bursts. Additionally, the talent tree has undergone significant changes, introducing new abilities for players to utilize in the spec’s arsenal.
Arcane Mage Talents, Hero Talents, and Build
Despite the overall improvements to the Mage talent tree, it is important to steer clear of the various dead-end nodes that still remain.
The Mage tree is equipped with many useful tools that are essential for the class to stay competitive. These include Ice Block, Prismatic Barrier, Remove Curse, Spellsteal, and Ring of Frost, all of which offer additional defensive choices and crucial crowd control abilities to alleviate the reliance on Polymorph.
Time alteration offers Mages an intriguing opportunity to “mulligan,”and skillfully utilizing this ability is highly gratifying, making it one of the most beneficial tools available to any class. The class tree also offers strong options for direct damage, such as Shifting Power, Blast Wave, and Supernova, all of which are valuable assets, even if they are not essential.
The tree boasts impressive capabilities such as Mass Barrier and Greater Invisibility, both of which are particularly valuable for group activities. Additionally, the inclusion of crucial passive abilities, notably Time Anomaly, provides us with increased opportunities to trigger the Clearcasting effect necessary for successful use of Arcane Barrage.
The Arcane specialization tree aims to maximize our options and enhance our spellcasting efficiency. The current version of the tree primarily consists of passive abilities, with only a handful of nodes that actively contribute to our rotation.
The starting point of this build is Arcane Missiles, followed by other key active abilities in the central column such as Arcane Surge and Touch of the Magi. The most important talent to select in this build is Evocation, which not only provides an alternative way to trigger Clearcasting without relying on procs, but also grants a significant but temporary boost in mana regeneration to balance out our high Haste stat.
The majority of the tree is designed to heavily support our chances of triggering Clearcasting and enhancing its potency when activated. Additionally, there are multiple nodes that directly strengthen the damage of other abilities during Clearcasting, such as Nether Precision, Concentrated Power, and Eureka.
We have incorporated enhancements to Improved Touch of the Magi and Arcane Echo, which not only increase damage but also provide an AoE burst. Furthermore, the final talents in the tree, such as Arcane Bombardment, Arcane Harmony, and Orb Barrage, greatly enhance the power of Arcane Barrage.
With all of those aspects in place, playing as an Arcane Mage should prove to be relatively straightforward in terms of rotation. This will allow you to concentrate on positioning, managing resources, and the overall mechanics of the game during battles.
Talents for Heroes
Despite the choice of whether to enter a Mythic+ dungeon, the latest raid, or other PvE activities, Sunfury is currently the preferred option for Arcane Mages. This is not due to any significant flaw in the design of Spellslinger, which is still performing well in comparison to other Hero Talent choices, but rather because Sunfury has been slightly overtuned.
Just like the other Hero Talent trees in WoW, Sunfury also offers three different choice nodes for players to utilize. The initial choice is dependent on the expected threat, so it is important to carefully consider before choosing. We have opted for Gravity Lapse for the added CC, but Lessons in Debilitation is also a viable option if you need more Spellsteal capabilities.
Our next node is most effective when paired with Sunfury Execution. This increases the damage of Arcane Bombardment, the execution variant of Arcane Barrage, by 30% against enemies with less than 35% health.
The optimal option for the last choice node is Rondurmancy. This path enables us to accumulate Spellfire Spheres up to five times, rather than the standard three. While Ignite the Future may seem appealing for those who are skilled at keeping their Phoenix active, it introduces unnecessary complexity with minimal potential gain.
If you choose to use Spellslinger or if it is eventually adjusted to be more effective, all three choices within the node will be available in the same tier of the tree. The first choice is Slippery Slinging, which increases movement speed by 40% during Alter Time and Evocation.
For our second slot, we opted for Reactive Barrier due to its exceptional survivability. However, in group situations, Phantasmal Image may prove to be the superior option, as you will likely be casting Mirror Image frequently to initiate fights.
Whichever option you choose, the last choice node is still a viable choice. Unerring Proficiency was selected (since it is already integrated into Supernova), although Volatile Magic is also a strong AoE option that does not require much player intervention.
Class Stat Priority
Just like in previous expansions, Intellect continues to be the main Cloth gear stat for Mages and other spellcasters. Prioritizing this stat will not only increase damage output, but also enhance the effectiveness of specific abilities and spells. It is worth noting that for Arcane Mages, the secondary stat priority varies depending on the chosen Hero Talent tree. If you opt for Sunfury, as suggested earlier, the ideal weightage is as follows:
The five attributes listed are intellect, haste, mastery, critical strike, and versatility.
If you do choose to pursue Spellslinger, the following changes will occur.
1. Intelligence2. Swiftness3. Critical Hit4. Proficiency5. Adaptability
For Mages, it is crucial to prioritize haste as it significantly boosts spellcasting speed when the stat is properly stacked. This allows us to effectively increase our damage output with minimal breaks in between bursts. However, proper management of resources is crucial (except for Arcane Barrage) to avoid quickly running out of Mana.
One of the major advantages of Mastery is its ability to enhance the effectiveness of Mastery: Savant. This results in a nearly 10% increase in maximum mana and a significant increase in mana regeneration. In terms of stats, it serves as the ideal solution for mitigating any potential problems caused by our increased Haste stat. Additionally, the Prodigious Savant talent further amplifies the potency of Mastery when casting Arcane Barrage or Arcane Blast.
Critical Strike and Versatility are both valuable stats to have as they increase our damage and healing abilities. While Critical Strike has the potential to significantly boost our damage output, Versatility offers a more well-rounded benefit by improving both outgoing damage and healing as well as reducing incoming damage. However, it may not have as much impact as the other available options, making it a secondary priority.
Rotation
No matter which method you decide to utilize for playing the specialization, it is simple to become immersed in the intricacies of the Arcane Mage and mistakenly believe it is more complicated than it truly is. Utilizing the fundamental mechanics effectively and paying attention to visual cues in the game will result in exceptional damage output in a short period.
The Arcane Mage rotation is split into two parts. The first is the initial phase of burst damage after pulling, followed by a cycle of high-damage periods and less active moments for reducing cooldowns. With this in consideration, our suggested opening strategy is as follows:
- Mirror Image
- Evocation
- Arcane Missiles
- Arcane Orb
- Time Warp
- Arcane Surge
- Arcane Barrage
- Touch of the Magi
Once you reach this point, it is important to establish a consistent rotation that can be sustained without depleting your Mana or being hindered by cooldowns. To achieve this, utilize Evocation, Touch of the Magi, and Arcane Surge simultaneously to inflict massive damage within a brief time frame.
From there, utilize Shifting Power to reduce major cooldown time by 12 seconds (within a span of 4 seconds). Afterwards, activate Touch of the Magi once more before reverting back to Arcane Surge and Barrage whenever possible.
Arcane Mage: Analysis of Tier Set Breakdown
In the initial season of The War Within, Mages have the opportunity to acquire the Sparks of Violet Rebirth set, which is a one-of-a-kind collection of armor that grants additional advantages to certain classes. These benefits are activated when players equip either 2 or 4 pieces of the set, and the effects are combined. The combined bonuses of this set are as follows:
- The damage of Arcane Blast and Arcane Barrage has been raised by 6% in the 2-Piece Set.
- This 4-piece set grants a 5% chance for Arcane Blast or Arcane Barrage to enhance your next Arcane Barrage by 20% damage and generate 4 Arcane Charges.
The set bonuses reinforce the main concept of utilizing Arcane Barrage to replenish casting resources when they are depleted. The increase in damage for both Arcane Blast and Arcane Barrage will certainly be beneficial, even though it may not offer anything particularly thrilling.
The true enhancement lies in the Intuition proc of the 4-piece bonus, which provides the opportunity to generate 4 Arcane Charges. Despite its low proc chance of 5%, you will frequently use the associated abilities, making the proc feel consistent. When activated, you will have greater control over your rotation and resource management.
Gems and Enchants
In the world of WoW, the Enchantment system consistently presents us with necessary decisions to optimize our spec. In The War Within, it is highly recommended to select the following choices in each slot in order to maximize its potential.
| Slot | Best Enchant |
| Weapon | Enchant Weapon – Authority of the Depths |
| Cloak | Enchant Cloak – Chant of Winged Grace |
| Chest | Enchant Chest – Crystalline Radiance |
| Bracers | Formula: Enchant Bracers – Chant of Armored Avoidance |
| Legs | Daybreak Spellthread |
| Boots | Enchant Boots – Defender’s March |
| Ring – Regular | Enchant Ring – Radiant Haste |
| Ring – Cursed | Enchant Ring – Cursed Haste |
The Enchant known as Authority of the Depths is incredibly powerful, granting a chance to activate Suffocating Darkness whenever you inflict damage on an enemy. This results in a substantial increase in damage and can accumulate up to three times, proving to be a significant advantage during lengthy boss battles.
In addition, we have also made essential investments in our Primary stat and provided additional assistance with rarely utilized stats such as Avoidance. These improvements have resulted in a more balanced and durable Mage character.
This is all the information you need to know about playing as an Arcane Mage in WoW: The War Within. If you’re interested in staying updated on its performance in PvE content, we have compiled a comprehensive tier list for all DPS specs. Considering a role change? We’ve also created a similar list for Tanks and Healers.
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