Mage Guide (Elysium - Patch 1.7)

Hello everyone and welcome to my mage guide. In this guide I will cover everything from selecting a race, to the best professions and builds. To allow you to gain a deeper insight into this I will furthermore also display the various talents, how they work and how they interact with each other. 

In the later parts of the guide I will delve deeper into the mage class uncovering our stat priority and Best in Slot list. The guide will conclude with some useful macros, addons and tips and tricks beneficial to you and your mage.

I have reserved the top comment slot in which you can track the progress and updates of the guide. Please leave a comment if you have any questions or suggestions for improvement. I try my best to answer within 24-hours. Alternatively you are welcome to contact me in-game, I play Horde on the Elysium PvP realm, and like the guide suggests my name is Zaasu.

Thank you for taking the time to read my guide.

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This section will cover the available races to the mage class, as well as the individual benefits each race brings to the table.

This section will cover the various professions and how they can benefit your mage.

This section will cover all the talents available to the mage class.

This section will cover the most viable raiding builds available to the mage class.

This section will cover the stat priority of a mage. Note that this section will be aimed at the most viable for the current content, as such the current stat priority is designed around Frost mages.

(Coming soon)

This section will cover the current pre-raid bis list. This is similar to the stat priority designed around the Frost mage.

This section will cover the relevant enchants for your mage.

This section will cover the relevant consumables for your mage in a raid setting.

This section will cover the most notable and important macros that will assist you in your PvE and PvP endeavours alike.

This section will cover the relevant addons specific to a mage.

(Coming soon)

This section will cover various helpful tips and tricks, this includes AoE farming various instances, smart spell usage etc.

(Coming soon)

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Before we get down to the nitty gritty I'd like to say that choosing a race should be entirely decided upon your visual preference, the racial traits are so small that they are negligible.

 Human

Base stats: 22 Stamina, 20 Intellect, 21 Spirit

Racial traits:

• Perception (active): Activate to increase stealth detection radius by 10 yards - lasts 20 sec - 3 min cooldown
• The Human Spirit (passive): Increase Spirit by 5%
• Diplomacy (passive): 10% bonus to faction point gain

 Gnome

Base stats: 21 Stamina, 24 Intellect, 20 Spirit

Racial traits:

• Escape Artist (active): Activate to break out of a Root or Snare effect - 1.5 sec cast - 1 min cooldown
• Expansive Mind (passive): Increase Intelligence by 5%
• Arcane Resistance (passive): All Gnomes get +10 Arcane Resistance
• Technologist (passive): 15 skill bonus to Engineering

 Troll

Base stats: 23 Stamina, 16 Intellect, 21 Spirit

Racial traits:

• Berserking (active): Activate when "Wounded" to increase melee and spellcasting speed by 25% - lasts 20 sec - 2 min cooldown
• Regeneration (passive): 10% health regen bonus, 10% active in combat
• Beast Slaying (passive): 5% damage bonus to Beasts

 Undead 

Base stats: 23 Stamina, 18 Intellect, 25 Spirit

Racial traits:

• Will of the Forsaken (active): Activate to become immune to fear, sleep, and charm effects - lasts 20 sec - 3 min cooldown
• Cannibalize (active): Increase health regeneration by 200% while consuming a corpse - lasts 15 sec - 3 min cooldown
• Underwater Breathing (passive): Underwater breath increased by 4x
• Shadow Resistance (passive): All Undead get +10 Shadow Resistance

In conclusion, the most effective race for Alliance is Gnome for both PvE and PvP, whereas for Horde, the most effective race is Troll for PvE and Undead for PvP.

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 Alchemy

"Alchemists use herbs to create strange, magical brews that heal, empower, and produce a variety of positive effects - invisibility, elemental resistance, mana restoration, and much, much more."

• Perks: None.
• Purpose: To craft flasks, potions and transmutations. For personal use and/or selling at a profit.
• Goes well with: Herbalism
• Mage relevance: Taking Alchemy allows for some level of self-sufficiency with regards to potions and flasks, but if you do not plan to pair it with Herbalism, you might as well get a guildie to craft them for you.

 Blacksmithing

"Blacksmiths utilise their expertise with hammer and anvil to craft deadly weapons, heavy suits of mail and plate armour, and other, more specialised items."

• Perks: Skeleton Keys, used to open chests.
• Purpose: Crafting mail and plate armour and various weapons, however, Blacksmithing does not offer BiS items reserved to blacksmiths like as tailoring does to tailors. For a mage this profession is redundant.
• Goes well with: Mining
• Mage relevance: None.

 Enchanting

"Enchanters disenchant surplus magical items - and use the residue to permanently augment equipment of their choosing."

• Perks: None.
• Purpose: To enchant and disenchant gear, often at a high profit.
• Goes well with: Tailoring. Tailoring doesn't require a gathering profession, so you will be able to collect cloths, craft items, disenchant items and in turn skill up your Enchanting.
• Mage relevance: Given that Tailoring is a must-have profession, and that Enchanting goes very well with Tailoring, I'd rate this as highly relevant.

 Engineering

"Engineers take advantage of their inventiveness to create an immense (and occasionally random) variety of helpful items."

• Perks: Various gadgets and items reserved to the engineer. Some of which are considered invaluable to PvP.
• Purpose: The purpose of Engineering is quite simply to craft various gadgets that are hugely beneficial for PvP. Some even consider it a must for PvP enthusiasts.
• Goes well with: Mining. To collect the necessary materials.
• Mage relevance: Must-have for PvP, occasionally beneficial to PvE.

 Herbalism

"Herbalists carefully harvest the helpful and potent herbs found throughout the world."

• Perks: None.
• Purpose: Herbalism is a gathering profession. As such the purpose is to gather herbs to either sell for a profit or to channel into potions and flasks in combination with alchemy.
• Goes well with: Alchemy for crafting purposes and Skinning/Mining for gathering purposes.
• Mage relevance: Can significantly improve gold income from instance AoE farming.

 Leatherworking

"Leatherworkers take the rough, spiny or sturdy hides of beasts everywhere and turn them into useful products."

• Perks: Primal Batskin set bonus: Minor increase to running and swimming speed, and Blood Tiger set bonus: +1% critical strike chance.
• Purpose: Crafting leather and mail armour, cloaks and armour kits.
• Goes well with: Skinning. To collect the necessary materials.
• Mage relevance: None.

 Mining

"Miners pursue valuable and useful ores, extracting them straight from the earth with their picks."

• Perks: None.
• Purpose: A gathering profession used to gather ores to either funnel into your Blacksmithing or to sell in the Auction House at a profit.
• Goes well with: Blacksmithing or Engineering for crafting purposes and skinning or herbalism for gathering purposes.
• Mage relevance: None.

 Skinning

"Skinners ensure that nothing goes to waste by removing the hides of dead beasts and amassing piles of fur and leather."

• Perks: None.
• Purpose: Skinning is like Herbalism and Mining a gathering profession and is, as such, used to collect skins and furs to either sell for a profit or to craft various items with Leatherworking.
• Goes well with: Leatherworking.
• Mage relevance: Can significantly improve gold income from instance AoE farming.

 Tailoring

"Tailors take simple cloth and weave wonders out of it; cloth armour and robes, shirts, bags and other creations are the purview of the tailor."

• Perks: Tailoring grants 300 skill level tailors a 2% critical strike bonus on the Bloodvine set, which will be your best in slot set until AQ40. As such Tailoring is by many considered to be the "must-have" profession of any serious raiding mage. In addition to this, tailoring allows you to craft yourself upgrades as you level, quickening the process.
• Purpose: Boosts your raiding performance and allows you to sell bags and crafted items at a profit.
• Goes well with: As cloth drops from random mobs, there is no need for a paring profession. As such my recommendation would stand between the following: Enchanting for the pure raider, Engineering for the occasional PvPer and Herbalism/skinning for gold making.
• Mage relevance: Must-have for raiding.

In conclusion I would recommend going with Tailoring paired with either Enchanting or Engineering, or Tailoring paired with Herbalism or Skinning for gold purposes.

 Cooking

"Cooks experiment with strange and wondrous ingredients gathered from the far corners of Azeroth."

• Perks: Self-sufficiency with food and transformations.
• Purpose: Some cooking recipes, especially the Savory Deviate Delight, that transforms you into either a ninja or a pirate, can be sold a quite a profit if you are willing to both fish them and cook them yourself.

 First Aid

"Physicians save lives in the dangerous world of Azeroth by using bandages and antidotes to heal injuries and remove poisons."

• Perks: Enables you to use bandages to get out of sticky situations.
• Purpose: Various PvP, leveling and world content.

 Fishing

Fishers relax and feed themselves by catching the bounty of Azeroth's lakes and seas.

• Perks: None.
• Purpose: Fishing fish to be used with cooking or sold at the Auction House.

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Students gifted with a keen intellect and unwavering discipline may walk the path of the mage. The arcane magic available to magi is both great and dangerous, and thus is revealed only to the most devoted practitioners. Choose to manipulate the arcane, destroying enemies with overwhelming power, ignite enemies with balls of fire and combustive flames, or freeze enemies in their tracks and shatter them with Frost Magic.

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This build will be your standard go to build for frost raiding, and will most likely be how your talents will be arranged until you've become a well geared, established member of a guild, to which you can transition into the 'Arcane Instability' spec listed below. Note that in this build you can switch out one point from 'Improved Blizzard' to either 'Cold Snap' or 'Magic Absorption'. I have personally chosen to go with 3 points in 'Improved Blizzard' as it allows me to AoE farm.

Whilst this spec does offer more in terms of damage output, a silence and a bigger mana pool, it does remove a great deal of utility that is gained with the deep frost tree. Especially with regards to the AoE slow through 'Improved Blizzard' and immunity to interruptions through 'Ice Barrier'. Finally you will no longer be applying 'Winter's Chill', and will be relying entirely on another mage in your raid or dungeon group providing it.

This spec is a variation of the above shown Arcane Instability spec. The only difference being that this spec sacrifices Ice Block and the 2nd rank of Arctic Reach to obtain Arcane Power, the final talent of the Arcane tree. Note that this spec will be hard on poorly geared mages as Arcane Power, whilst providing a DPS boost, will oom you. I would suggest to go with the Arcane Instability until you reach a point of which you kill bosses and have "plenty" of mana to spare.

With the arrival of AQ and a fond farewell to the fire resistant content of BWL and MC, we can finally spec into Fire. This is the classic Fire spec providing you with Improved Scorch, which works much like the above mentioned Winter's Chill spec, in improving the DPS of every fire spell user in the raid.

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 Crimson Felt Hat                                                           

• Dropped by: Magistrate Barthilas, Stratholme (13,42% chance to drop)
• Stats: +8 Stamina, +8 Intellect, +8 Spirit, +30 Spell Damage

Alternative(s): 

 Spellpower Goggles Xtreme Plus

• Crafted Item: Engineering (requires 270 Engineering)
• Stats: +27 Spell Damage

 Orb of the Darkmoon

• Darkmoon Faire reward: 1200 tickets
• Stats: +7 Stamina, +21 Spell Damage

Alternative(s): 

 Tempest Talisman

• Dropped by: Hydropspawn, Dire Maul East (16,03% chance to drop)
• Stats: +7 Intellect, +6 Spirit, +1% Critical Strike Chance

 Boreal Mantle

• Dropped by: Warder Stilgiss, Blackrock Depths (17,45% chance to drop)
• Stats: +10 Frost Resistance, +29 Frost Damage

 Amplifying Cloak

• Dropped by: Magister Kalendris, Dire Maul West (21,75% chance to drop)
• Stats: +18 Spell Damage

Alternative(s): 

 Frostwolf Advisor's Cloak

• PvP Reward: Frostwolf Clan - Honored
• Stats: +11 Stamina, +5 Frost Resistance, +14 Spell Damage

 Heliotrope Cloak

• Dropped by: Guard Mok'dar & Guard Slip'kik, Dire Maul North (4,32% chance to drop)
• Stats: +10 Intellect, +1% Critical Strike Chance

 Bloodvine Vest

• Crafted item: Tailoring
• Stats: +13 Intellect, +2% Hit Chance, +27 Spell Damage (+ Tailor 300/300: 3 set = +2% Critical Strike Chance)

Alternative(s):

 Robe of Winter Night

• Crafted item: Tailoring
• Stats: +12 Intellect, +40 Frost Damage, +40 Shadow Damage

 Robe of the Archmage

• Crafted item: Tailoring
• Stats: +12 Intellect, +40 Spell Damage, +1% Critical Strike Chance, +Use 375-625 Mana

 Dryad's Wrist Bindings

• PvP Reward: Warsong Outriders (H) / Silverwing Sentinels (A) - Exalted
• Stats: +8 Intellect, +7 Spirit, +8 Stamina, +22 Spell damage

Alternative(s):

 Sublime Wristguards

• Dropped by: Guard Mok'dar & Guard Slip'kik, Dire Maul North (4,32% chance to drop)
• Stats: +10 Intellect, +6 Spirit, +6 Stamina, +12 Spell Damage

 Hands of Power

• Dropped by: Quartermaster Zigris, Lower Blackrock Spire (14,24% chance to drop)
• Stats: +6 Spirit, +6 Intellect, +26 Spell Damage

Alternative(s):

 Blood Guard's Silk Gloves (H) /  Knight-Lieutenant's Silk Gloves (A)

• PvP reward: Rank 7
• Stats: +11 Stamina, +21 Spell Damage (+ gloves: 2 set = +23 Spell Damage)
• NOTE! Only pursue this if you cannot afford the Bloodvine set

 Frostweave Gloves

• Quest reward: Tailoring
• Stats: +6 Intellect, +21 Frost Damage

 Frostwolf Cloth Belt (H) /  Stormpike Cloth Girdle (A)

• PvP reward: Frostwolf Clan / Stormpike Guard - Honored
• Stats: +11 Stamina, +10 Intellect, +5 Frost Resistance, +18 Spell Damage

Alternative(s): 

 Oddly Magical Belt

• Dropped by: Gordok Tribute, Dire Maul North (19,15% chance to drop)
• Stats: +13 Stamina, +16 Spell Damage

 Bloodvine Leggings

• Crafted item: Tailoring
• Stats: +6 Intellect, +1% Hit Chance, +37 Spell Damage (+ Tailor 300/300: 3 set = +2% Critical Strike Chance)

Alternative(s): 

 Skyshroud Leggings

• Dropped by: Highlord Omokk, Lower Blackrock Spire (10,02% chance to drop)
• Stats: +8 Stamina, +8 Intellect, +34 Spell Damage

 Bloodvine Boots

• Crafted item: Tailoring
• Stats: +16 Intellect, +1% Hit Chance, +19 Spell Damage, +40 (+ Tailor 300/300: 3 set = +2% Critical Strike Chance)

Alternative(s): 

 Blood Guard's Silk Footwraps (H) /  Knight-Lieutenant's Silk Boots (A)

• PvP reward: Rank 7
• Stats: +16 Stamina, + 15 Intellect, + 15 Spell Damage (+ gloves: 2 set = +23 Spell Damage)
• NOTE! Only pursue this if you cannot afford the Bloodvine set

 Riptide Shoes

• Dropped by: Hyrdrospawn, Dire Maul East (23,45% chance to drop)
• Stats: +12 Intellect, + 19 Frost Damage

 Eye of Orgrimmar (H) / Songstone of Ironforge (A)

• Quest reward: The Princess Saved? (H) / The Princess's Surprise (A)
• Stats: +7 Intellect, +4 Spirit, +18 Spell Damage

 Frigid Ring

• Dropped by: World BoE - Visit the Auction House (30-35g)
• Stats: +10 Intellect, +14 Frost Damage

Alternative(s):

 Band of the Unicorn

• Dropped by: World BoE - Visit the Auction House (15-20g)
• Stats: +13 Spell Damage

 Advisor's Ring (H) /  Lorekeeper's Ring (A)

• PvP reward: Warsong Outriders / Silverwing Sentinels - Honored
• Stats: +8 Stamina, +14 Spell Damage, + 4 mp5

 Freezing Band

• Dropped by: World BoE - Visit the Auction House (850g)
• Stats: +10 Frost Resistance, +21 Frost Damage

 Maiden's Circle

• Dropped by: Molten Core BoE - Visit the Auction House (225g)
• Stats: +7 Intellect, +6 Spirit, +18 Spell Damage

 Briarwood Reed

• Dropped by: Jed Runewatcher, Upper Blackrock Spire (25,67% chance to drop)
• Stats: +29 Spell Damage

 Eye of the Beast

• Quest reward: For The Horde! (H) & General Drakkisath's Demise (A)
• Stats: +2% Critical Strike Chance

 Mind Carver

• Dropped by: Prince Tortheldrin, Dire Maul West (14,62% change to drop)
• Stats: +8 Intellect, + 12 Spell Damage

Combined with:

 Tome of the Ice Lord

• PvP reward: Frostwolf Clan / Stormpike Guard - Exalted
• Stats: +9 Intellect, +34 Frost Damage

Alternative(s): 

 Inventor's Focal Sword

• Dropped by: Tinkerer Gizlock, Maraudon (26,52% change to drop)
• Stats: +6 Intellect, + 1% Critical Strike Chance

 Spirit of Aquementas

• Quest reward: It's Dangerous to Go Alone (Elite)
• Stats: +20 Spell Damage

 Rod of the Ogre Magi

• Dropped by: Gordok Tribute, Dire Maul North (7,13% chance to drop)
• Stats: +11 Stamina, +14 Intellect, +7 Spirit, + 1% Critical Strike Chance, +23 Spell Damage

 Elemental Mage Staff

• Dropped by: World BoE - Visit the Auction House (200g)
• Stats: +20 Fire Resistance, +20 Frost Resistance, + 36 Frost Damage, +36 Fire Damage

 Wand of Biting Cold

• Quest Reward: The Legend of Korrak
• Stats: +16 Frost Damage

Alternative(s):

 Bonecreeper Stylus

• Dropped by: Darkmaster Gandling, Scholomance (11,11% chance to drop)
• Stats: +4 Intellect, +11 Spell Damage

 Lethtendris's Wand

• Dropped by: Lethtendris, Dire Maul East (25,56% chance to drop)
• Stats: +9 Spell Damage

 Freezing Shard

• Dropped by: Razerfen Down BoE - Visit the Auction House (100g)
• Stats: +10 Spell Damage

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 Arcanum of Focus

• Stats: +8 Spell Damage
• Materials: 1 Libram of Focus, 1 Pristine Black Diamond, 4 Large Brilliant Shard, 2 Skin of Shadow

 Chromatic Mantle of the Dawn

• Stats: +5 All Resistance
• Reputation reward: Argent Dawn - Exalted

 Flame Mantle of the Dawn

• Stats: +5 Fire Resistance
• Reputation reward: Argent Dawn - Revered

 Enchant Cloak - Lesser Fire Resistance

• Stats: +5 Fire Resistance
• Materials: 1 Lesser Astral Essence, 1 Fire Oil

 Enchant Chest - Greater Stats

• Stats: +4 to each of the five attributes.
• Materials: 4 Large Brilliant Shard, 15 Illusion Dust, 10 Greater Eternal Essence

 Enchant Chest - Major Mana

• Stats: +100 mana
• Materials: 3 Greater Eternal Essence, 1 Small Brilliant Shard

 Enchant Chest - Major Health

• Stats: +100 health
• Materials: 6 Illusion Dust, 1 Small Brilliant Shard

 Enchant Bracer - Greater Intellect

• Stats: +7 Intellect
• Materials: 3 Lesser Eternal Essence

 Enchant Gloves - Riding Skill

• Stats: +Minor movement bonus while mounted
• Materials: 2 Large Radiant Shard, 3 Dream Dust

 Arcanum of Focus

• Stats: +8 Spell Damage
• Materials: 1 Libram of Focus, 1 Pristine Black Diamond, 4 Large Brilliant Shard, 2 Skin of Shadow

 Enchant Boots - Minor Speed

• Stats: +Slight Movement Speed Increase
• Materials: 1 Small Radiant Shard, 1 Aquamarine, 1 Lesser Nether Essence

 Enchant Boots - Greater Stamina

• Stats: +7 Stamina
• Materials: 10 Dream Dust

 Enchant Boots - Spirit

• Stats: +5 Spirit
• Materials: 2 Greater Eternal Essence, 1 Lesser Eternal Essence

 Enchant Weapon - Spell Power

• Stats: +30 Spell Damage
• Materials: 4 Large Brilliant Shard, 12 Greater Eternal Essence, 4 Essence of Fire, 4 Essence of Water, 4 Essence of Air, 2 Golden Pearl

 Enchant 2H Weapon - Major Intellect

• Stats: +9 Intellect
• Materials: 12 Greater Eternal Essence, 2 Large Brilliant Shard

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 Flask of Supreme Power

• Stats: +150 Spell Damage
• Duration: 2 hours (persists through death)

 Brilliant Wizard Oil

• Stats: +36 Spell Damage, +1% Critical Strike Chance
• Duration: 30 minutes (persists through death)

 Greater Arcane Elixir

• Stats: +35 Spell Damage
• Duration: 1 hour

 Elixir of Greater Firepower

• Stats: +40 Fire Damage
• Duration: 30 minutes

 Mageblood Potion

• Stats: +12 Mp5
• Duration: 1 hour

 Nightfin Soup

• Stats: +162 Mp5
• Duration: 10 minutes

 Major Mana Potion

• Stats: +Restores 1350 to 2251 Mana
• Duration: 2 minutes cooldown

 Limited Invulnerability Potion

• Stats: Drops all aggro (works like Ice Block)
• Duration: 6 seconds (2 minutes cooldown)

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