Mage Leveling Guide

Hey everyone, hope this day finds you well.  With any luck, your mage is happily leveling his way towards 80, and you’re even more excited than I am to see him get there, I’m sure!  I’m sure that some of you have probably been following my mage leveling build, and I promise I’m not trying to throw a curveball your way with this post, because I still feel that using that build is the fastest way to level your mage to 80.

That said, there have been some inquiries about how to spec if Fire is really just not your thing, and since I don’t like to leave anyone empty handed, I’ve gone ahead and created a whole page outlining a spec for each Mage talent tree.  Make sure to check it out if you’re bored of leveling as a Fire mage or if you just want to try out some different Mage leveling specs.

In any case, make sure to bookmark the main page of Mage Leveling Guide and keep checking back for further updates, or subscribe to the feed by clicking the RSS icon in the top-right of the page.  We’ve got plenty of quality content lined up for the coming weeks.

Technorati Tags: arcane spec, fire spec, frost spec, mage leveling guide, mage leveling specs, mage talent builds

Well, I just finished reading over the new changes for patch 3.2 and even though they haven’t been finalized, I’m pretty stoked. IMO leveling through PVP should have been in the game since release, I mean, it’s WARCRAFT, right? But regardless, nearly 5 years later, I’m still pretty excited about it.  From the PTR notes:

Battlegrounds

• Battleground experience has arrived!
  • Players will now be awarded experience for completing objectives and actions that yield honor in Battlegrounds (honorable kills not included).
  • Players who do not wish to gain experience through PvP can visit Behsten in Stormwind or Slahtz in Orgrimmar – both located near the Battlemasters in either city – and turn off all experience accumulation for the cost of 10 gold.
  • Disabling experience gains will prevent a player from gaining experience through any means available in the game.
  • Players with experience gains turned off who compete in Battlegrounds will face off only against other players with experience gains turned off.
  • Behsten and Slahtz can reinstate experience gains for players, for a 10 gold fee of course. Any experience that would’ve been accumulated if experience gains were enabled cannot be recovered.

So what does this mean for us as Mages? Well, it could change a few things. In a WoW where PVP leveling is on par with PVE, is Fire still the best Mage leveling build?  Not necessarily.  If Frost builds lead to more clutch plays, which lead to more wins, giving faster XP, it becomes quite likely that leveling Mages may end up ditching the pewpew in favor of causing a little more QQ.

Let me be clear though:  I think this is a good thing.  Diversity in leveling builds, leveling paths, and playstyles can only make for a stronger game.  It’s pretty crazy to see that WoW is still going so strong after nearly 5 years, even with hungry, motivated competition chomping at the bits to steal little slices of the pie from them.  Good to know that all of you little leveling Mages right now will have a long time to enjoy your new characters when you hit the top!

PS – If you haven’t read it yet, make sure you check out my Mage leveling guide review on the homepage!

Technorati Tags: 3.2 bg changes, battleground leveling, bg leveling, mage leveling specs, patch 3.2

So I’m thinking about starting up a Mage AOE grinding guide…  As much as I am a huge proponent of leveling Fire, this video kind of makes me wish I had done some AoE leveling as Frost.  No one beats Mages at AOE grinding.

Seriously.  It’s just a tad ridiculous, in a good way.  I’m thinking I might need to start leveling another Mage.  Why not right?  Level one for Frost, one for Fire, and one for Arcane.  Sounds good to me!  Anyway, if you’re looking for a solid Mage AoE grinding guide, you can find one over at WoWWiki.  It only lists the areas and mobs, but it should hold you over until I cook something up.

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Now that the Alliance race choices are all laid out on a silver platter, it’s only fair to give my Horde buddies the same treatment.  In continuation of the Mage Leveling Guide, here’s your guide to making the best Horde mage.

Horde Mage Races

Troll - Their racials are mediocre, but they win the handsome contest every day of the week.  Also, male Trolls win the award for “Best Casting Animation” by a long shot.  Can you say “Hadouken”?

Verdict: Racials aren’t even worth mentioning, but they are definitely my race of choice for looks and animations.  Unfortunately, from a pure stat cruncher’s perspective, they’re far behind the rest of the pack.

Undead - In terms of useful racials, probably the best choice Horde-side.  Cannibalize is great for handling an unexpected (soon to be Polymorphed) add when you’re fighting humanoids.  Will of the Forsaken is still one of the best PVP racials in the game, even after a few nerfs.  Plus, the whole wiggly fingers animation for Arcane Missiles is awesome.

Verdict: Best choice for Horde Mages who aren’t necessarily concerned with looks.  Definitely the best racials for a Horde Mage.

Blood Elf - The pretty race.  Arcane Torrent is slightly better than the Troll racials, but not too great for a Mage.  They’re a good transition race for Alliance players who can’t stand playing an “ugly” race though!

Verdict: If you like the look of them, roll one.  Otherwise they’re basically like Trolls in terms of benefits, but less cool.  Not a terrible choice, but definitely not the best.

Conclusion: The quick and dirty answer is roll Undead if you want the best Horde Mage.  If you’re going for looks, pick whatever floats your boat.  Horde racials aren’t exactly game-saving for Mages.  In the end, go with what works for you.

Technorati Tags: horde mage guide, horde mage races, mage leveling guide

At this point you’ve probably had a chance to get your Mage started, and if you’ve hit level 10, you may be scratching your head trying to decide on the best Mage leveling build.  Thankfully for you, the next chapter of the Mage Leveling Guide is here, and it focuses on choosing the best leveling spec possible for your Mage.  In my experience, the best leveling spec for Mages is a Fire build.  Here is my personal talent choices for leveling, broken down into blocks of 5 levels.

10-14:  Improved Fireball.  Lower cast time on your main spell = more damage in a shorter time.  Easy choice.

15-19:  Ignite.  Free Damage over Time from crits?  It doesn’t take a rocket surgeon to figure out how this is a beneficial talent to pick up, especially later on when we start boosting our crit to obscene levels.

20-24:  Pyroblast, Burning Soul, and Flame Throwing.  The gigantic ball of fiery death is kind of a no-brainer.  Being able to start your casts from farther away means that a lot of the time, the mob will be dead before it gets a chance to hit you, and in the even that it does, 70% pushback resistance will help you put it down for good.

25-29:  Improved Scorch and 2 points in Master of Elements.  Again with the crits, and now they give mana back!  This is what I call talent synergy!

30-34:  Blast Wave, Critical Mass, and finish up Master of Elements.  By now there should be a bit of a pattern visible here.  More crits, more mileage from your crits, and more things to crit with.

35-39:  Fire Power.  10% more damage from 90% of the spells you’ll be casting is pure win.

40-44:  Combustion, Pyromaniac, and 1/3 Incineration.  Blah blah crits and mana generation.  You get it by now.  This is the good stuff for leveling.

45-49:  Empowered Fire and fill out Incineration.  Bigger numbers more frequently, for your pyroclastic amusement.

50-54:  Dragon’s Breath, Hot Streak, and 1 point Firestarter.  Dragon’s Breath is awesome, Hot Streak is ridiculously powerful when it procs, and Firestarter is decent filler.

55-59:  Burnout.  Big numbers for the win.

60 plus:  Living Bomb is a bit debatable.  Some players may like it, others may hate it.  Whether or not you choose to grab it, you have to decide whether or not to fill out the rest of the Fire tree or start moving down Arcane.

Either choice is perfectly valid, and is really more dependent on playstyle than anything.  Arcane and Frost are both fun trees as well, and some may even prefer them for leveling.  In my experience though, Fire is the most efficient leveling build.

Make sure to check back for more updates on the Mage Leveling Guide!

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Hi everyone, and welcome to my World of Warcraft Mage Leveling Guide! We’ll be exploring a variety of leveling-related topics here, and the one that’s on the menu for today is choosing a race for your Alliance Mage.  We’ll go over the pluses and minuses of each race with regard to both PVE and PVP.  I think it is worth mentioning that you’re going to have to look at this character for the rest of his or her existence, so above all you should make sure that you are building a character that you like to look at.  If you are relatively indifferent, then my guide will point you in the right direction for making the most powerful Alliance Mage possible.

Alliance Mage Races

Human - Humans have received significant buffs to their racial abilities since Wrath of the Lich King came out.  Alliance-side, they are pretty much the perfect choice for PVP for any class, and Mages are no exception to this.  Humans get a free ability that mimics the PVP trinket (on a shared cooldown with the trinket) leaving them a free slot for another offensive trinket, increased passive stealth detection, a bonus to all reputation gains earned, and a slight Spirit boost.

Verdict: Humans are completely and totally dominant as far as racials go.  Their racial abilities are great for both PVP and solo / small group PVE.  If you’re looking to roll a Mage with stacked racials, Human is the way to go.

Gnome - Gnomes get a decent bag of tricks as well.  They are able to escape roots and snares on demand with Escape Artist, which, unlike the human racial, is on a separate cooldown from the PVP trinket.  They get a bonus to Intellect, as well as a bonus to Engineering, which is an awesome profession for a Mage.  They’re not quite as awesome as humans are, but there’s definitely something about playing a Gnome Mage that shoots fireballs bigger than him.

Verdict: Gnomes are a solid choice, but not necessarily the best of the pack.  They make a good choice overall, and if you like the look of them, then the decent racials are just icing on the cake.

Draenei - Draenei are pretty much a tie with Gnomes in terms of the benefit that their racials provide.  The big one is obviously Gift of the Naaru.  Given that the only major drawback that a Mage has is their inability to heal themselves, it’s hard to say no to this.  I’d say it’s got a much larger benefit in PVE than PVP, but it is definitely handy.  In addition, you get a bonus to Jewelcrafting and some Shadow Resist, plus a 1% hit aura, which comes in handy.

Verdict: Also a good choice.  The blueberries do very decently in the racials department, and look awesome as mages to boot.

Conclusion: It’s pretty hard to go wrong with any of the Alliance races as far as Mages are concerned.  As far as I am concerned, Humans are the best choice, but the difference is not to the point that I would choose them over a race that I liked the look of better.  Draenei and Gnomes both make very good Mages as well, so if you’re not a min/maxer I’d say go with whatever you like best.  For those of you who are straight-up number crunchers, the clear cut answer you are looking for is simple:  Roll a Human.

In the next Mage Leveling Guide post, we’ll cover choosing a race for Horde players.  If you’re a die-hard Alliance player, don’t worry, we’ll be back to content that helps both sides shortly.

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