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Mage, once a pure DPS class, now have access to healing in WoW Classic Season of Discovery. While we’re still in Phase 1 of the current seasonal content, and the Talent Points we’re afforded are quite limited, every single one of those matters. Picking the right Runes and Talents is the difference between potentially topping meters or wiping in Blackfathom Deeps. So we’re going to highlight what we think are your best options going forward right now.
However, like all things in MMOs, WoW Classic Season of Discovery’s Mages could change. If that should occur, we’ll come back to this and update it accordingly. For now though, these are the best options for all major caster builds in this popular class.
What Runes and Talent Point loadouts do you need for Mages in WoW Classic Season of Discovery?
1) Arcane Mage (Healer and DPS)
Arcane Mages are going to be the healing spec going forward into WoW Classic Season of Discovery. This is mostly thanks to the Regeneration/Mass Regeneration Runes requiring Arcane damage to pump valuable healing into other players.
However, whether you’re going DPS or healing, you want to have the same Talent Points. The goal is to reduce the chance that your spells are resisted, while also occasionally reducing your spellcasting cost to 0% - as one of the Mage’s biggest weakness is mana consumption.
The two WoW Classic Season of Discovery builds - Healer and DPS - require starkly different runes, however. DPS Mages won’t need Regeneration, preferring to run Burnout, for example. I can see a case for Living Flame instead of Mass Regeneration on healers, but personally, I’d rather have the AoE heal unless I really need to focus on one person. Here’s what you need for your class.
Talent Points
- Arcane Focus: 5/5
- Arcane Subtlety: 2/2
- Arcane Concentration: 5/5
- Improved Arcane Explosion: 3/3
- Arcane Meditation: 1/3
Runes (Healer)
- Enchant Gloves: Arcane Blast
- Enchant Pants: Mass Regeneration
- Enchant Chest: Regeneration
Runes (DPS)
- Enchant Gloves: Arcane Blast
- Enchant Pants: Living Flame
- Enchant Chest: Burnout
2) Fire Mage
If you aren’t going to be a healing Mage in WoW Classic Season of Discovery, I think going Fire Mage could be significantly powerful. This is mostly thanks to the power of their Living Bomb Rune. It allows them access to a devastating AoE attack no matter what you do with your Talent Points.
You want to reduce your spellcasting speed of Fireball, and since this is a high-crit spec, you want Ignite to deal additional damage each time you crit. At some point, dipping into frost for Elemental Precision is key, since it reduces the chance that opponents will resist Fire/Frost spells.
This build uses two of the most powerful Runes: Living Bomb and Burnout. I CAN see a case for Icy Veins occasionally, especially in single target fights.
Talents
- Improved Fireball: 5/5
- Ignite: 5/5
- Flame Throwing: 1/2
- Burning Soul: 2/2
- Elemental Precision: 3/3
Runes
- Enchant Gloves: Living Bomb
- Enchant Pants: Living Flame
- Enchant Chest: Burnout
3) Frost Mage
Throughout my time in Warcraft, not just WoW Classic Season of Discovery, a large chunk of time was as a Frost Mage. I love being able to slow down and stall enemies, and just hurl magic at them.
This early Frost spec is no different. You increase the chill effects, reduce the cast time of Frostbolt, and add that same Chill effect to your Blizzard. It’s also the build that you go to AoE farm enemies, which, while dangerous in Hardcore, isn’t so bad here.
Our Runes for Frost are going to feel similar, too. Living Bomb is still one of the best DPS Runes, and so is Living Flame. However, you’re also going to want to grab Enlightenment to increase your damage while having over 70% mana, and 10% mana regeneration while casting under 30% mana.
Talents
- Elemental Precision: 3/3
- Improved Frostbolt: 5/5
- Permafrost: 3/3
- Cold Snap: 1/1
- Improved Blizzard: 3/3
- Frost Channeling: 1/3
Runes
- Enchant Gloves: Living Bomb
- Enchant Pants: Living Flame
- Enchant Chest: Enlightenment
Mages are pretty interesting in WoW Classic Season of Discovery. They might not be the best healers in the game yet, but they show a lot of potential going forward into this seasonal content.
