Mage, General

Arcane Guide:
Do please take the time to:
- Visit www.elitistjerks.com
-Download Rawr at http://www.codeplex.com/Rawr
-Watch this Arcane Rotation(t10) Video by Anomolism:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S2I8g4NNekQ
-Download the mod Quartz

This mod can help you determine the optimal time to cast because of server lag in milliseconds(ms).
It also helps with a GCD timer, swing timer, and etc..
Most of us have noticed that casting before a spell is finished, it puts another in the queue.
Quartz can you help you time when to press your spells.

AB=Arcane Blast
Abar/Arcbar=Arcane Barrage
Mbam=Missle Barrage Arcane Missles
AM=Arcane Missles
IV=icy veins
POM=Presence of Mind
AP=Arcane power
MPS=mana (usage) per second
BIS=Best in Slot


The currently optimal, default, and accepted Arcane spec is 57/3/11

Use ONLY Molten Armor. There are only 3 accepted glyphs for arcane: Arcane Blast, Molten Armor, and Arcane Missles. The best profession perk right now is from tailoring: the Lightweave Embroidery(the proc is worth around 75 average spellpower).

-Gemming:
The Chaotic Skyflare Diamond meta-gem(no other metas accepted; they are 200 dps behind), use Runed Cardinal Rubies until around 3k spellpower(then haste starts pulling ahead).

Reckless Ametrines always go in yellows. However, you must use 2 Purified Dreadstones to accomodate your meta gem, and also use them on any single slot with a 6-9 sp/haste socket bonus.

Always compare your gemming to full runed or color matching gems, meaning find the differences in spell power, (you can convert haste to spellpower as a comparison), add 1 or 2 more spirit to the purified from kings/student, and change spirit into crit(65% of spirit converted into crit w/ t9)

IE: Merlin's robe has a (9 sp bonus) so when you compare full runed to run/reck/purif robe it will be 69 sp to (56sp +10haste +10 spirit) Subtracting haste and sp(and adding add. spirit) from each makes it
3sp compared to 12 spirit. 12 spirit is about 8 crit rating so now you have to choose 3 sp or 8 crit.

-Spell hit:
Boss level Npcs current resist our spells at a rate of 17%, therefore your need 17% spell hit to cap. Arcane Focus provides 3%, Precision 3%, Misery(shadowpriest) or Improved Fairie Fire(specced Moonkin) provide another 3%, and if you're alliance being in the same group(not raid) with a Draenei gives you 1% hit. So in a stacked raid as alliance you only need 7% hit rating(8% as horde). However, it is a good idea to have some spare hit gear(pref weapon or offhand) if someone happens to die or you dont get into the best raid setup. If you find you are way over the hit cap and you dont have any other gear, you can spec out of a few hit talents if you wish.

-Boss level NPCs:
Skull (83) npcs also seem to have 12 resists to all magic that cannot be reduced by penetration (or curse of elements). this 12 resist to all calculates to about a 4% mitigation from spells.
NB: Some bosses have extra resists but the last time ive experienced this is Sapphiron and it can be reduced by penetraton/elements. If you think this is a nerf for casters, melee have a small chance for a glancing blow as well.
Also, these lvl 83 npcs have crit reduction(it's similar to resil but not affecting your crit bonus dmg), and it subtracts about 1.9% from casters.

-Mods: My suggested mods you should use for arcane pve

Recount

Quartz

Deadly Boss Mods

Omen Threat Meter

Scorchio2

Magealert

Power Auras



-Haste Cap:
There seems to be a haste cap when you combine cooldowns; meaning since your Global Cooldown cannot go below 1 second, any spell proceding would have to wait the GCD before the next cast.


With Bloodlust/Heroism + icyveins: ~1305 haste; w/T10: ~814 haste

With Bloodlust/Heroism + icy veins + speed potion: ~ 805 haste; w/ T10:~ 314 haste

With Bloodlust/Heroism + icy veins + Black magic(3.3): ~1055 haste; w/T10:~ 564 haste

With Bloodlust/Heroism + icy veins + Black magic(3.3) + speed potion: ~555 haste; w/T10:~64 haste

With Bloodlust/Heroism + Black magic(3.3) + speed potion: ~1472 haste w/ T10:~981 haste

With Icy veins + Black magic(3.3)+ speed potion: ~2210 haste w/T10:~1820 haste

The Algorithms for solving Haste Caps are posted here :http://forums.worldofwarcraft.com/thread.html?topicId=22748757527&postId=227466912516&sid=1#0
by Magealexis

Power Infusion does not currently stack with BL/Hero, nor does it stack wth Arcane Power.


5 minutes on a boss in a raid Rawr 2.3.11 has me at 9620dps
(1 innervate, MT totem) not including revitalize or hymn of hope, excluding any sp increase from incanter's absorbtion

Rotations:


Default High Dps rotation(ABspam34Mbam): Spam AB and Mbam(4) <<<at least 4 stacks; this rotation becomes better than just Spamming AB once you have your tier 10, 2 set bonus (8313dps,125.9mps)
Mana Burning Xtreme(Non tier 10): For 5x the mana cost per second and 2% dps increase of ABspam34Mbam, just spam AB
(7894 dps, 652mps)


Default efficient rotation: ABx4AM ignore proccs~8k dps, 50mps (you will get Mbam at 4 stacks most of the time) (more dps than ABspam024Mbam, less efficient)


Mana Saving: Use MBAM at lower stacks, stop using ArcBar, Reduce your Arcane Blasts per rotation. IE: ABspam0234Mbam(same as ABMbam(8263dps, 109mps), ABspam024Mbam(8290dps, 128mps) The numbers after Abspam means you do Mbam at those stacks. AB4AM(MBAM) (7930dps, 35mps)


Expert rotations: If you have 0-1 seconds left on a non haste buff, then use ArcBar at 4 stacks. (This is so you can benefit from the last second of this buff with your Abar) If you have a haste buff or 1-2 seconds left on a non-haste buff, use AM at 4 stacks(With 1 or 2 seconds left on a haste, spellpower, or crit buff your Mbam or AM can certainly benefit, if you dont want to lose your stacks, hopefully you have enough time for another Arcane Blast).


4 piece t8: Use the Mbam(0), if you got haste cap use Mbam(1)


Abar: only use it when u have to move and your arcane blast stacks are almost gone

FAQS

Why shouldnt you use ArcBar to to break stacks and save mana?

It is simple because you can just use AM at 4 stacks to save even more mana. Abar will only use more mana per second. Even if you were to use AM on the 4th stack, Mbam will most likely procc on your 4th Ab anyways (87.04% chance)


Arcane Potency + AM

-For some reason, the arcane potency(30% crit buff)from clearcast is disappearing on the 1st missle of arcane missles. So, if you happen to interrupt your AB casts by moving and have Clearcasting or Arcane Potency, then use another AB; otherwise, if stacks are going to fall off, then Abar...

Best use of POM AB

-Dps wise the best use of POM AB is on your 5th AB right after you cast your 4th. I may also suggest that you use it during movement to keep your arcane blast stacks up. If a fight goes go on long enough however, a POM mana gem also is a good idea if you need it. Concerning ranged aoe, continuing with a POM Flamestrike after your lower rank Flamestrike (hopefully, your tanks have aggro or you have Mirror Image up) then continuing with cooldowns and rotating that with a blizzard.

POM + AM?

-I have heard from a few mages that they use their POM on arcane missles. I have tried it myself, and POM doesn't get used up, however the critrical buff of POM seems to get used up on the missles. I've read and tested it and the crit buff from POM only affects the 1st missle.

Boot enchants: Icewalker, Spirit, or Tuskarr's Vitality?

-Currently, if you are not hit capped, Icewalker is your best bet. If you are hit capped, get spirit. But, during a fight, if you are moving at least 4 seconds out of every minute, (because of the time it takes to get in range or getting out of "fires") it is worth it to get Tuskar's Vitality. This calculation has been done on EJ, and getting this enchant is similar to haste as that you are able to start your spells much sooner. But of course, the runspeed or stam can't really affect you on Patchwerk-like fights.

Not hit capped: IceWalker
Most fights: Tuskarr's Vitality
Few fights, hit capped: Spirit

Improved Frost warding or Ice shards?

-IFW seems to be best for TOC(and possibly ICC), as the mana gained can help much more than adding to Blizzard dps(arcane does fine with Arcane Explosion anyways because of the constant Clearcasting, ie, very low Mana usage); along with the spellpower gained with combining this talent with Incanter's Absorbtion incorporates good talent synergy, assuming you are using Frost ward and Fire ward.
For trash, I would still keep Ice Shards; as that each point in ice shards adds about 100 dps or more per target while channeling Blizzard.

Student of Mind, Arcane Attunement, Arcane stability?

-With all 3 points, Student seems to give about 20mp5, 2% crit, and 50 mp5 while not casting. Arcane Attunement, if you do have to move a lot, seems to be more of a damage/dps upgrade. Especcially, considering you would be dpsing sooner (positioning yourself correctly reduces the need for this talent in most fights). Arcane stability is marginally needed as that a holy paladin specced into improved Concentration aura(55%).
NB: If you are feeling that you do need the pushback protection, it is very easy to decide if you do have a surplus of spell hit via Arcane Focus.



Why spec into Incanter's Absorbtion?
As long as you absorb damage from Frost ward, Fire ward, Mana shield, you will gain spellpower.
In many fights you will absorb some type of damage. If the amount of spellpower gained on average over the duration of the fight is over 60sp, it is better than student of mind.
This talent is useful In about every fight in TOC and most of ICC. The problem is which talents to rid for it? I would say... Magic Absorbtion and Student of Mind at first, and Magic Attunement last. Also, in some cases you don't need to max out IA ; check to see how much you're absorbing. In this way, it does seems to make stamina numerically add to dps. Remember: the more spells you resist, the less spellpower you will absorb over time. It's not a big deal, but it is worth noting.
NB: I am currently using an Incanter's Absorbtion/Frost warding spec for ICC. Also, take the time to put up your wards before battle or during movement. Potentially, you can use Mana Shield (rank 1) to keep your spellpower up.

How does Torment the Weak work in raids?
All tanks keep up an attack speed(slowing affect) on bosses: Druid- Infected Wounds, Paladin-Judgement of the Just, DK- Icy touch, Warrior- Thunderclap (even Enhance Shaman too: Earth Shock). In raids, this is working as intended as a 12% damage boost to the listed spells.

About Tier 10-2 Set Bonus:
With full buffs it requires 716 haste(1034 without) in order to have 4 consecutive Arcane Blasts increased by the haste buff, solved by Magealexis.
Also, I believe AB34MBAM is more dps than AB4MBAM or ABSPAM when you have the 2 set.


Helpful Macros
Here's a few macros I use to save time and basically "hit 2 birds with one stone"
13 and 14 are trinket slots
I believe using mirror image after the cooldowns are best because of the reduced global cooldown from icy veins. Stop casting and then counterspell is helpful to interupt your cast in pve or pvp to shut down one of the target's schools of magic for a moment.

POWER MACRO
/cast arcane power
/cast icy veins
/use 13
/use 14
/cast mirror image

Counterspell
/stopcasting
/cast counterspell


**Source: Samae.

Addons


First off, I speak a lot of watching for procs and debuffs. The debuffs are simple enough, because they are right on boss and can be seen quite clearly, but in a raid where you can have over 30 buffs/auras/debuffs on you the procs are a real hassle to try and spot.

There are a few mods out there to try and make this much easier for all mages, new and old. Which one you want to use is personal preference.
Mage Fever - http://wow.curse.com/downloads/wow-addons/details/mfever.aspx
This mod is preconfigured and very easy to use. Just put the warnings where you want them and go for it.
NeedToKnow - http://wow.curse.com/downloads/wow-addons/details/need-to-know.aspx
TellMeWhen - http://wow.curse.com/downloads/wow-addons/details/tellmewhen.aspx
These addons work together very well and with a little time you can have a very personalized way to check any and all debuffs/buffs/cooldown/etc. I personally use this addon because it's easy to use, is used on ALL on my characters and gets me the customizability I want without a lot of extra stuff.
Power Auras - http://wow.curse.com/downloads/wow-addons/details/powerauras-classic.aspx
This is the most customizable mod I've found for checking conditions. It has so much customizability that it can be a little overwhelming. If you are someone who likes very nice looking UIs and is willing to take the time to configure everything, then this is probably the mod for you.

Mage NUggets - http://wow.curse.com/downloads/wow-addons/details/mage-nuggets.aspx.
This is an all in one mage addon. I've tried others and found this to be the easiest to use, has the most useful monitors and is pre configured very well.


General numbers useful to a mage


166.66 Intellect yields 1% crit.
26.23 Hit Rating yields 1% hit.
45.91 Crit Rating yields 1% crit.
32.79 Haste Rating yields 1% haste.
Any other numbers wanted, such as all coefficients, can be found on the Elitist Jerks Mage Forum: http://elitistjerks.com/f75/


The haste "cap"

Disclaimer: This is to be used to determine proper cooldown staggering during heavy cooldown usage, NOT points at which you should stop gearing for haste.


Fire: With every haste increasing buff I could find (besides things like Hodir) active at one time (Normal raid buffs, Bloodlust, 2pc T10, BM, Engineering Gloves, Speed Potion) it would take 1878.25 haste rating to GCD cap a fireball. Completely impossible. There are NO haste caps for fire.

Frost: With every haste buff fire had + Icy Veins, you would be 30.63 Haste Rating past the GCD cap with Frostbolt. I think very few people are actually at this point however, and if you actually cared enough to pop all of these cooldowns simultaneously, then you probably aren't raiding Frost.

Arcane: With every haste buff Frost used, you would be 276.16 Haste Rating past the GCD cap with Arcane Blast. That means that with zero Haste Rating, you would already need to stagger cooldown usage. Here is some helpful math to let you adjust your cooldown usage based on your current gear/available cooldowns.

Table of common haste modifiers:

ABILITY | haste % | haste rating
Bloodlust | 30 |
IV / PI | 20 |
Speed pot | | 500
2 piece T10| 12 |
Engin Glovs| | 340
Black Magic| | 250
Passive | 1 | 32.79

To find the haste required to cap Arcane Blast, use the formula (7151/x-3279); for Frostbolt, use (7580/x-3279); for fireball, use (9096/x-3279). If an ability adds haste rating just adjust the final number, if it gives haste %, place it at the x. Examples, using arcane:
Just normal raid buffs: 7151-3279=3872
Just IV/BL: 7151/(1.2*1.3)-3279=1305
IV/BL + SoF(432 haste): (7151/(1.2*1.3)-3279)-432=873
IV/BL + 2pc T10 + EngGlovs: (7151/(1.2*1.3*1.12)-3279)-340=473.8
IV/BL + 2pc T10 + EngGlovs + BlckMgc: (7151/(1.2*1.3*1.12)-3279)-340-250=224

The hard cap is unattainable, but many soft caps exist in perfectly attainable situations with heavy CD usage. I had 872 haste, and incidentally that gets my Abl cast time to exactly 1 second(lol) with Scale of Fates and IV/Bl: 2.5/1.1464/1.2/1.3/(1+(432+872)/3279)=1.00016 second cast time. Once I get 2pc T10 I'll save SoF until IV drops, because of the haste cap.


The hit cap


For all mage specs hit is the most valuable stat you can have, period. It can not be stacked indefinitely like Spell Power however and is capped at a very specific value for each spec. For a full and detailed explanation on hit (including how the Draenie racial effects you alliance folk), you can visit this sticky: http://forums.worldofwarcraft.com/thread.html?topicId=7475660772&sid=1.

Reaching the hit cap should be the first thing on all new mages minds, which spec you choose determines what value of hit you need. Arcane has the lowest requirement at 210, followed by FFB at 289 and taking up the rear is the all mighty TtW-fb spec that requires 368. Actually, to be exact its 367.24, but because that last point of hit is only covers up a final .24, the effectiveness of the hit rating is essentially cut in a quarter, so point for point, at 367 hit, it would be more beneficial to get some other stat.

It is recommended that you have two gear sets; one gear set has the above numbers which assume that you have a Moonkin or Shadow Priest to supply the necessary 3% hit debuff to the boss; the second gear set doesn't assume this and can be used on some trash pulls(most trash aren't level 83, so the hit cap vs them is only 6%, not the bosses 17% ) and/or if you don't have a Moonkin or Shadow Priest in the raid or group, usually happens in a 10 man, shouldn't be a problem in a 25 man raid.

As a side note, the hit cap for heroics is only 6%, not 17%, because the bosses are only level 82, not 83. Because of this, a gear-less arcane mage is already hit capped and a FFB mage can be hit capped by the mere presence of a Moonkin or Shadow Priest and/or with only 79 Hit Rating.


Enchants


While many things change between specs, enchants are not one of them. Each slot that can be enchanted has fairly obvious enchants. Haste for cloak, spell power for weapon/wrist/gloves/etc, stats for chest, the various reputation enchants for helm and shoulders. Not much info to give on this topic. There are three exceptions.

Legs: The leg enchant has 50 SP and 30 spr or 30 stm, dps or survivability, most mages will choose DPS as a we are a DPS class.

Feet: Tuskars Vitality vs Icewalker; the added run speed can be amazing in even moderately movement intensive fights which there are plenty of in Ulduar/ICC. Pre Ulduar/TOC and/or under the hit cap always use Icewalker though.

Weapon: Black Magic vs +SP; for a staff, +81 SP almost always comes out ahead. For a 1H'er, it can change based on your current haste rating. Check rawr to see if you should use BM vs +SP.

Gems


Gems are another example of something about the mage class that is quite straight forward to all specs. Which are the best gems to use depends a lot on the spec, and sometimes even more on the gear level. The following is a general guide on mage geming in PvE. Note that you can use the rare quality gem or the epic quality depending on your need.

META
Chaotic Skyflare Diamond (The currently accepted BiS mage Meta gem)

RED
Runed (19/23 Spell Power)

YELLOW
Rigid (16/20 Hit Rating). (If you are short on hit)
Veiled (9/12 Spell Power, 8/10 Hit Rating) (If you only need ~8/10 for the hit cap)
Potent (9/12 Spell Power, 8/10 Crit Rating)
Reckless (9/12 Spell Power, 8/10 Haste Rating)

BLUE
Purified (9/12 Spell Power, 8/10 Spirit) (Generally, only use these for the meta requirement)

Notes on geming:
There are critical points where which gem is best for a socket swaps dramatically. Like going from crit to haste, or going from Runed's in blue, to Purified's. Creating a list of "general rules" to gemming is just more confusing then helpful, because there would be 30 exceptions. I advise simply plugging your char into rawr and having it spit out your gemming.


Threat Management


Like all DPS classes you should always be watchful of your threat vs any mob that you are attacking. For this purpose I highly recommend (read: must have) a threat meter, normally Omen ( http://wow.curse.com/downloads/wow-addons/details/omen-threat-meter.aspx ). The in game threat meter works just as well, but has limited features and can be, from the few times I tried it, hard to see or use. You should normally be at ranged when fighting creatures so if you are watching Omen, you will pull agro at 130%, as it shows you. If you hop into melee for whatever reason you will suddenly only need to be at 110% threat to pull agro and if you were sitting between 110% and 130% he will happily turn, one shot you, and continue on his marry little way.

Threat capping. Your tanks threat is an ever increasing number, but some tanks are better at generating threat then others. In 5 man settings threat should be insanely easy to generate for any tank while at higher gear levels DPS scales better then threat and you can start becoming limited in your DPS because to DPS any more would cause you to pull agro. If there are any adds in the fight you can swap to that mob for a while and back to the boss to continue to dps but still lose relative threat on the boss. If there is no other mob to attack you can use Invisibility or Mirror Image.

Invisibly. Once this spell is used you lose 10% threat per second until after 3 seconds you instantly loose all threat on all mobs, where you should then use a spell or macro to drop out of the Invis effect.

Mirror Image. A lot of mages use MI as a DPS boost(and with 4pcT10 that becomes everybody), but one of it's most important mechanics is it's Fade ability. Upon use you lose 90 million threat (literally) on all mobs you have threat with. At the end of 30 seconds you gain back that 90 million threat you lost. I use this mainly for when I actually do pull agro I can pop it and the boss runs back to the tank, or sometimes one shotting some of the MI's before getting taunted. Or if you are threat capped you can pop MI, go balls out for 25 seconds and then pop Invis to lose any and all threat, nice combo. There are a couple ways to judge MI's duration. I use the following macro that I believe only works if you have an Ace addon installed. (Don't spam the macro though or in 25 seconds you'll spam party chat)


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Q u o t e:
#showtooltip
/cast Mirror Image
/in 25 /p Mirror Ending in 5 seconds.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


You can also use

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Q u o t e:
/dbm timer 30 Mirror Image
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

but this can be hard to spot on some bosses(rarely).



Which spec should I be?


To a fresh 80 mage, what spec you should go depends on what you are going to be doing exactly. If you don't plan to raid much then going TtW-frost is a nice way go as it not only is actually good at that gear level but is amazing for heroics. If you want to raid and gear up asap going Arcane or FFB would probably be better. If you go FFB make sure you get the hit cap quickly and really work on your crit so that Hot Streaks are not few and far between, later on getting some more haste. If you go Arcane don't be put out if your numbers aren't that great right off the bat. Arcane takes a little getting used to, but once you figure it out I find it a really rewarding spec. Only try TtW-fb once you have the crit and the hit to support it.

When should I go TtW-fb, or should I ever? 3.3.3 buffed fire to be a competitive spec with Arcane. With the way the game is right now, if you are gearing properly (T9 with triumph, T10 with frost, etc etc) by the time you have enough hit you will be geared enough (a few pieces of T9 and some offset PvP pieces and you are at an Ulduar gear level) to pull off TtW-fire. If you do go this spec, know that it's only use is PvE raiding. Arcane is, at all gear levels, higher or equal to TtW-fire in single target. LB does give more AoE options though, along with when given two targets to DPS, LB makes fire better than arcane. LB and HS procs give fire substantially more movement capabilities than arcane.

Try each of the specs and see what your playstyle is. One may appeal to you more even if other people say you can do better as a different spec, but do not limit yourself on preconceptions. Each of the three main spec, even if one is theoretically better then the other, can perform well when played correctly and geared properly. However, to reiterate, using any frost spec to DPS in anything but 5 mans is not the greatest idea except with a few minor exceptions, sorry all you Frosties out there, the truth hurts .


Final Thoughts


Most of this information I learned from browsing these same forums. When possible I added my own experience, having played each of the specs a bit myself, and my own theories/thoughts that are mostly backed on my experience and that of others. If you disagree with something or want more information on a topic, whether it's in this guide or not, as long as it revolves around raiding, I will try and answer your questions and update my guide accordingly. This guide is not set in stone, and nothing that I've said is necessarily the gospel truth, much is open for debate and I'll try and show both sides of an issue if possible, letting you decide for yourself. I am just hoping that this information helps raiders new and old be the best they can be. This is also my first real in depth guide I've written, so if you have any suggestions on format or style, don't be afraid to bring it up. Enjoy


The rest of this guide goes into more detail about the three main(and one kind-of) raiding specs for a mage; Frostfire Bolt(FFB), Torment the Weak - Fireball(TtW-fb) and Arcane(Arc).

Arcane [Arc] spec. (53/3/11 +4)


The default/cookie cutter spec for Arcane: http://www.wowhead.com/?talent#of0Vsz0fzxGuMxedcZbhf0o:Nzio

Variables of the spec: you can get 1/2 Arcane Subtlety if threat is never an issue. 3/5 Arcane Stability (With imp conc aura, that puts you at 100% interrupt reduction). Magic Attunement (extra range is handy). Student of the Mind (spirit = more mana = more crit). Slow (just generally a fun/good talent for one point, its often avoided in a purely raid spec, but I like to grab it.). Incanters Absorption was just recently nerfed into oblivion for 3.3.3. I won't ever grab it again for a pure raiding spec.

For a guide (and 25+ page thread) dedicated to everything Arcane(Thanks Samae): http://forums.worldofwarcraft.com/thread.html?topicId=19820881780

The Key talents/points to this build:


Precision + Arcane Focus. These two talents with the MK/SP buff gives Arc mages the lowest hit cap of all the specs at 8%. Will be talked about more in the Hit Cap section.
Icy Veins + Arcane Power. These two talents used in tandem during a Bloodlust/Heroism is an insane amount of damage and if you watch the meter you can normally see your place jump up, especially if you get a few Mbarr procs during it.
Arcane Flows. This talent is what let Arc mages succeed in PvE. Giving evocation a 2 minute cooldown allows the Arcane mage to keep his mana up, even when going full out.


Arcane is a very interesting spec and played quite differently then TtW-fb or FFB. You need to watch your mana and how the fight progresses and use your mana in the best way possible, making constant judgment calls, however all the work is worth it, once you get it down your DPS is amazing.

Threat. If you specced 2/2 Arcane Subtlety you should almost never pull agro unless you get a lot of chain crits/Mbarr procs at the very beginning of a fight and the tank doesn't crit with you. A lot of mages drop one point in AS because agro is so little of a problem that can spare that point somewhere else in the bloated Arcane tree, it's still good to have for fights like Twin Valkyr's.

Mobility. Many people think that Arcane has the best mobility of the specs because of Abarr, but in the highest DPS rotations Abarr isn't even used, so you are left with zero mobility. However, when you do need to move you have plenty of options with Abarr and Fire Blast to maximize your damage done. Not even Mimi hard mode requires enough movement that a well timed blink and some Abarrs can't let you be on the GCD at all times as Arc when played well.

AoE. When it comes to AoE, Arcane is definitely not left behind. If you pop Arcane Power + Icy Veins + other cooldowns, blizzard will normally dip below 4 seconds and under great conditions under 3 seconds for the entire channel, on top of that, Arcane has the most Spell Power of the three specs and with Arcane Power amping up blizzard even more, you can double the next person in damage in any AoE pull for the duration of the cooldowns. Without the cooldowns the AoE is lackluster, but AP has such a low cooldown, it's up almost whenever you want it. Keeping the ground dots from Flamestrike ranks 8 and 9 rolling is an aoe DPS increase. You need to make sure the mobs are close together (small radius) and won't move for the duration, or I would say that blizzard would still be better.


Gearing


Reach the hit cap of 210 Hit Rating. If you are below the hit cap, gem, eat hit food, whatever is needed to reach the cap. After that you mainly want Spell Power. Choosing between crit and haste is more delicate. At all gear levels, Haste Rating will be better for you then Crit Rating, Spirit or Intellect, point for point. The hard part is finding the gear with only Spell Power and Haste on it. Neither Intellect or Spirit are very good, but neither are very bad either.


The Rotation


Arcane has a very intricate rotation depending on the fight, your current mana and mana regening cooldowns. Abilities: Evocation(Evo), Arcane Blast(Abl), Arcane Missiles(AM), Missile Barrage(Mbarr), Arcane Barrage(Abarr).

Abl has a very distinct mechanic which is what gives Arcane such an interesting rotation. As you cast Abl you receive a stacking debuff which increases all Arcane spells damage by 15% (18% glyphed) and Abl's mana cost by 175%. What starts as a 5000 nuke for 215 mana, quickly turns into an 8600 nuke costing 1720 mana. Once any other Arcane spell BESIDES Abl is cast the debuff is reset and Abl is instantly turned from the worst damage/mana ratio spell in the game to the best. The problem with the Arcane rotation is finding the happy medium between stacking the debuff for more damage and removing the debuff for more mana efficiency. As an important thing to note, you should never clear the debuff using Abarr unless movement or some phase transition requires it. If you have to clear the debuff to save your mana pool, use a none hasted AM.

The various rotations and their ups and downs, going from most mana intensive and highest DPS to least are as follows. The format is "Rotation; in words: info on the rotation"

Abl x[Infinity]; Just spam Abl: this is purely a burn rotation. Can be used at the end of a fight to burn mana, or a lot during heroic bosses because the fight lasts 20 seconds.

Abl x[Low Mana / Mbarr]; You simply spam Abl until Mbarr procs, where you use AM and then repeat: this is your standard rotation. If while spamming Abl you realize your mana is dipping too low and your mana CD's are taking too long, then clear it with a none hasted AM and repeat.

Abl x[number less then 4] -> AM; Casting Abl two to three times before using AM to clear the debuff: The Abl x2 + AM rotation is as low as you should go in your mana saving endeavor, in a proper raid environment you should actually gain mana following this rotation.

2pc T10 makes Abl spam not worth it, ever. MBAM increasing your haste by 12% puts using MBAM ahead of just using Abl.


Cooldowns


Damage. Bloodlust is considered a once a fight cooldown for the sake of this guide. You want to take the most advantage as possible with your CD usage. Almost all boss fights have a time when they take increased damage or where you get a buff, even if it's only a trinket proc; you want to try and time your CD usage to line up with this moment. While your CDs are popped it is advisable to go to Abl spam to maximize your damage output. This is often times not possible because of bad evo's, bad luck or just a low gear level, but it's a goal. As for Presence of Mind, once it's off CD, wait for the next time you are casting your 4th Abl (you have 3 stacks), then PoM the next Abl, which will be a 4 stacker. This gives the extra crit chance to the single attack that does the most damage. If you need to create your mana gem during a fight, using PoM then is recommended.

Mana. A key point to being able to pull off Arcane spec in a raid is proper mana management. You should use your mana gem as soon as you hit the popper deficient so that none of the mana gets wasted. Evo is a trickier subject though. While Mana Gem costs you zero dps time, you must stop outputting damage to use evocation, so if possible you want to try and avoid it. Pre 3.2.2 you would need to use Evo on CD, but now it is much more flexible. I find myself using evo on cooldown anyways, just following the basic rotation, but don't worry about it, using evo is definitely better then backing off to some lower MPS rotation, due in part to my next tip:

You want to try and use evo at the very end of a haste affect(BL / IV / 2pcT10 / etc). Whether you are casting damaging spells or evocation in the middle of the haste boost doesn't mater, but using evo at the very end essentially increases the haste buff's duration, giving you a net increase in DPS. If possible, it's good to pop IV when your evo has ~18 seconds left on CD and then just evo as soon as it comes up. This is often not possible however just because of when CDs are blown or not blown, your current mana issues, etc.


Hit Cap


One of the best things about arcane is it's amazingly low hit cap. With both Elemental Precision and Arcane Focus on your side each giving you a free 6% hit and with an assumed Moonkin or Shadow Priest, you only need 8% hit to reach the cap, which is 8% * 26.23 hit per % = 209.84 hit rating. This low hit cap is a god send for many beginning mages as it's fairly easy to get even in just heroic gear. Without a MK/SP you need 289 hit rating to be capped. With a Dranny, you need 184 Hit Rating.

In heroics however, an arcane mage needs zero Hit Rating to be hit capped on all creatures, very handy. But this also means that any gear with hit on it is just wasted itemization for a heroic; but this is a raiding guide, and in raids you still need your Hit Rating above all else.


Glyphs


I could write a bit more on this subject probably, but the nuts and bolts is that the three glyphs any raiding Arc mage will use are Glyph of Arcane Blast, Glyph of Arcane Missiles and Glyph of Molten Armor. Using the Glyph of Molten Armor also means that you will be using Molten Armor as well. As far as I can tell, there are no exceptions, you really should not run out of mana as a well played Arc mage.

**Source: http://forums.worldofwarcraft.com/thread.html?topicId=18031238370&sid=1&pageNo=1

Significant Raid Buffs:
Buffs in the same group cannot be combined to provide any extra affect.
(Note that about 56% of a mage's DPS in a raid relies on the raid buffs!)



+13% Magic Damage Taken
Curse of Elements (Warlock)
Earth and Moon (Balance Druid)
Ebon Plaguebringer (Unholy DK)


+5% Spell Critical Strike Chance Taken
Improved Shadowbolt(Destruction Warlock) (only aff specs into it now...maybe)
Winter's Chill (Frost Mage)
Improved Scorch(Fire Mage)


+3% Critical Strike Taken
Heart of the Crusader(Retribution Paladin)
Master Poisoner(Assassination Rogue)
Totem of Wrath(Elemental Shaman)


+3% Spell Hit Chance Taken
Misery(Shadow Priest)
Improved Fairie Fire(Balance Druid)


Spell Sensitivity (on target)
Amplify Magic {[+255 Spellpower, +382 w/ Magic Attunement] (worth noting in duels or friendly NPCs, such as Dreamwalker)]}
Dampen magic(-255 Spellpower, -382 w/ Magic Attunement)


+3% Damage
Sanctified Retribution(Retribution Paladin)
Ferocious Inspiration(Beast Mastery Hunter)
Arcane Empowerment(Arcane Mage)


Mage Buff
Molten Armor[+35% of spirit as +Spell Critical Strike rating(+20% more from glyph and 15% more from 2 piece Tier 9 can be added)]
Mage Armor(50% of your regeneration continues during casting + 40 resist all)
Frost Armor(+930 armor, +40 Frost Resist, Chill effect when struck)


Focus Magic (player buff)
+3% spell critical strike chance from the passive buff put on you by another Arcane Mage


Focus Magic (temporary effect)
+3% spell critical strike chance when your Focus Magic target crits with a spell (10 seconds)


Intellect
Arcane Intellect (+60 Intellect, Mage)
Fel Intelligence(+48 Intellect, +52 w/ Improved Felhunter,Demonology Warlock)


Spirit
Divine Spirit(+80 Spirit, Priest)
Fel Intelligence(+64 Spirit, +70 Spirit w/ Improved Felhunter, Demonology Warlock)


Stat Addition
Mark of the Wild(+750 armor +37 all stats +54 resist all)
Improved Mark of the Wild(+1050 armor +51 all stats +71 resist all)


Stat Multiplier
Blessing of Kings (+10% stats)
Forgotten Kings (+8% stats)


Stamina
Power Word: Fortitude(+165 Stamina, 214 Stamina w/ Improved Power Word: Fortitude)
Runescroll of Fortitude(+165 Stamina)


+Spell Hit
Heroic Presence(+1% in group with a Draenei)


+Spellpower
Totem of Wrath: 280 (elemental shaman)
Flametongue Totem: 144 (165 w/ Enhancing Totems)
Demonic Pact: 10% of Warlock's spell damage to the raid every time their pet critically hits with melee or spell. Lasts 15 sec. (Demonolgy Warlock)


+5% Spell Haste
Wrath of Air Totem (Shaman)


+3% Haste
Improved Moonkin Form(Balance Druid)
Swift Retribution(Retribution Paladin)


+5% Spell Critical Strike Chance
Elemental Oath(Elemental Shaman)
Moonkin Aura(Balance Druid)


Replenishment, +.2% Maximum Mana/Second
Hunting Party(Survival Hunter)
Judgements of the Wise(Retribution Paladin)
Enduring Winter(Frost Mage)
Vampiric Touch(Shadow Priest)
Improved Soul Leech(Destruction Warlock)


Mana Regeneration
Mana Spring Totem(89 mp5, 109mp5 w/ Enhancing Totems)
Blessing of Wisdom(89 mp5, 109mp5 w/ Improved Blessing of Wisdom)


Mana Restore
Judgement of Wisdom[24% base mana/min(PPM)] (Level 80 Mage's base mana is 3268, 24% is 784.32)


+Health
Blood Pact(+1330 Health, +1729 Health w/ Improved Imp)
Commanding Shout(+2250 Health, +2812 Health w/ Commanding Presence)


3% Damage Reduction
Blessing of Sanctuary(Protection Paladin)
Vigulence(Protection Warrior)


-10% Threat
Vigulence(Protection Warrior)


Pushback Protection
Concentration Aura(35%, 55% w/ Improved Concentration Aura)


Flask
Flask of the Frost Wyrm (125 Spellpower)


Food
Fish Feast(+46 Spellpower, + 40 Stamina)


+130 Shadow Resist (note: resists do not stack with Mark of the Wild)
Shadow Protection(Priest)
Shadow Resistance Aura(Paladin)


+130 Nature Resist
Aspect of the Wild(Hunter)
Nature Resistance Totem(Shaman)


+130 Frost Resist
Frost Resistance Aura(Paladin)
Frost Resistance Totem(Shaman)


+130 Fire Resist
Fire Resistance Aura(Paladin)
Fire Resistance Totem(Shaman)

Other Buffs you can ask for include:

Power Infusion[(Discipline Priest)20% increased cast speed and 20% less mana cost, lasts 15 seconds]


Innervate(+225% of the Druid's base mana over 10 seconds)(Level 80 Druid's base mana is 3496, 225% is 7866)


Mana Tide Totem(+6% of your total mana to all party members every 3 seconds to group members within 30 yards, total of 24% over 12 seconds)(Restoration Shaman)


Hymn of Hope{[Priest]Restores 3% mana/2 seconds[for 8 seconds; if low on mana]and increases maximum mana by 20% for 10 seconds}


Sacred Shield[(Paladin)Absorbs 500 damage(scales with spellpower) and increases Flash of Light crit case by 50%, lasts 30 seconds)]...this ability can be helpful for Incanter's absorbtion uptime


Power Word: Shield(Priest)(Absorbs damage, this of course can be used to activate Incanter's Absorbtion, see if you can make friends with a priest so they'll keep it on you)

Nota Bene(Note Well/NB):

-Check page 9 for simulation craft statistics for BIS 9.5 gear(pg 3 for 8.5 gear): dps, spells casted, dmg composition, dynamic buffs, procc uptimes, mana gains etc... (soon to come T10 parsing)

-Current BIS trinkets for arcane:
Dislodged Foreign Object
Muradin's Spyglass
Reign of the Unliving/Dead
Flare of the Heavens
Abyssal Rune
Talisman of Resurgence
Scale of the Fates

(their order depends on your stats, but the last 3 are very similar in dps)
Please don't even consider Fetish/Talisman of Volitile Power or the Nevermelting Ice Crystal; as that they are very poor trinkets.

-If you do need stat weights, use Rawr or Truecrafting to tell you what stat is better at certain gear levels.
Spell Hit Ratingis your most valuble and best stat untill you reach the cap, however, read my entry on Hit rating. At around 3500sp, Haste possibly becomes better than spellpower. Spell Critical Strike Rating is worse than any of those and only slightly better than Spirit.

-I do support the use of Amplify Magic and Dampen Magic. Amplify Magic is increases damage taken from magic but also increases healing received. It does not affect ALL magic damage taken it does affect nukes, dots, and few auras(but not many); however, it affects all healing.So if any competant healer/healers are doing their job, more damage will be healed than damage given over the course of the fight. If magic damage is not applicable to the fight, whether it is nonexisting or unaffected by Amplify Magic, then use it on the whole raid. Dampen Magic, though, isnt used as much in raids and mostly for soloing.

By Cedrick
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"Does tank have aggro? B!%$#, I dont care!"

By Shazaam
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"Hit this button as many times as you can."

By Leyra
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"OOM? Is evocate up? No. FUUUUU--"

By Magealexis
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"It's a good day to die"