control magic as well as a Mage. Their magical affinity
allows them to control both the arcane and the elements to hurl magical
death at their enemies, lock their foes down with magical binds, or
summon forth relief during respite for their allies. If
you’re looking for something that can deal a good bit of
damage from afar but isn’t limited to just that than the Mage
is for you.
This ranged DPS and utility class focuses mostly on ranged singletarget
and area of effect spells with fire, ice, or arcane magic. They
offer high levels of utility (especially at later levels) with their
various utility spells like Polymorph which can turn an enemy into a
critter removing them from battle. They can also summon food and water,
steal the spells of their enemies, lock their enemies’
magical abilities down, and have the option of summoning a temporary
pet to aid them in battle. There is a lot more than just hurling fiery
death at enemies to explore for the Mage.
Flavor
The Mage is much like the proverbial glass cannon.
They have some of
the highest damage output in the game and contain many necessary
abilities that high level raiding absolutely needs. If anything needs
to be AoE’d down then a Mage is the one you’d want
to call. To balance this out they have little defense like the rest of
the casters. They’re restricted to cloth armor only and rely
on their magic to beef up their defense and help them gain distance.
Not only that, but their damage is restricted to a resource known as
mana which means they need mana in order to do damage, defend
themselves, and provide the much needed utility that groups need.
Overall the Mage is a very fun and exciting class with a lot of
flexibility that really shines to someone who likes to fight from a
distance.
Mage Strengths
- Capable of doing massive
damage from afar. Strong single target damage and insane amounts of AoE
damage. - Can open portals to every
major city in the game greatly saving on travel time. - Food and water summoning
abilities can save money and downtime with free food and water for
themselves and the group. - Utility spells like Polymorph,
Spellsteal, Counterspell, and Remove Curse are requirements for high
leveling raiding and a great asset in smaller groups. Highly desired in
most group configurations.
Mage Weaknesses
- Very low defense. Relies on
magical abilities and distance to protect them. - Mana dependent. Without mana
the Mage is incapable of doing anything. - Certain debuffs that lower
casting speed or apply a silence affect can hinder a Mage severely. - Can be slow to level.
PvE vs. PvP
The Mage is highly desired in both PvE and PvP play. In PvE the Mage
supplies many highly needed crowd control abilities that no other class
has access too along with a very high amount of damage. Even solo
they’re a powerful force being able to often slay their
enemies before even reaching the Mage’s fringe on their
robes.
In PvP the Mage offers the greatest asset of all which is crowd
control. Many Arena games are decided by how fast Mages can get their
Polymorph spells off and in the battlegrounds you won’t find
a better source of AoE damage than the Mage. They do have issues with
defense, but with abilities like Frost Nova, Cone of Cold, Ice Block,
and Blink they’re able to escape many situations unscathed.
Defining Spells and
Abilities
Mages utilize a large toolbox of options in order to
destroy their
enemies and aid their allies. The abilities are split up into three
categories: direct damage, area of effect, and utility. Direct damage
is comprised mainly of burst damage spells like Fireball, Frostbolt,
and Arcane Missiles. Area of Affect includes Arcane Explosion,
Blizzard, and Frost Nova. Finally, utility includes Polymorph,
Spellsteal, Counterspell, and Summon Food and Water.
The most prominent direct damage abilities that they have is their main
damage spells, Fireball and Frostbolt. These two abilities are the
primary source of damage and provide additional affects such as a DoT
with Fireball and a snare with Frostbolt. At higher levels they can get
Frostfire Bolt which allows them to mix the elements into one attack.
Blizzard often claims their specialty is within the area of effect
damage spells and Mages are loaded with them. You have Arcane Explosion
which is an instant PBAoE ability (damages around the caster), Frost
Nova which roots all enemies around the Mage, Blizzard which is a
ground targeted channeled AoE ability, and Flamestrike which is like
Frost Nova but does massive damage and only snares.
For utility spells you can find abilities like Polymorph which can
transform any enemy into a cuddly critter (usually a sheep, but other
options are available at higher levels) effectively taking them out of
battle. This ability is important for both PvE and PvP by decreasing
the effective amount of active combatants in battle putting the numbers
in favor for your side. Other abilities like Spellsteal will allow you
to steal an enemy’s spell for a short duration and
Counterspell which can silence the enemy. Conjure Food and Water can
summon refreshments for the Mage and its allies.
They also have some very fun spells in their toolbox. Mirror Image will
summon multiple copies of the Mage to fight in battle. Invisibility
will allow the Mage to phase out of reality for a short distance.
Summon Water Elemental can summon a temporary Water Elemental to fight.
Not only that but they also have many unique defensive spells like Ice
Barrier and Ice Block which directly absorb damage.
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