Arcane Mage DPS Mythic+ Tips — Battle for Azeroth (BfA) 8.3

Arcane Mage, although not the best out of the Mage specs, can hold its own in Mythic+. It can focus down priority targets very quickly due to its burst potential, and it can also do quite strong AoE damage when needed.

If you are unfamiliar with Mythic+ and its associated general mechanics, you can read more about it on our dedicated Mythic+ page below.

Both the single target and multi-target rotations do not change in Mythic+ content. For more information about the Arcane Mage DPS rotation, refer back to the Rotation, Cooldowns, and Abilities page.

The main reason to bring a Arcane Mage to a Mythic+ group is for its damage, but aside from that, it also has some very valuable utility which makes every Mythic+ group want at least one Mage:

• Arcane Intellect is a big boost for both the other caster DPS in the group, as well as additional healing for the healer.
• Time Warp is a required cooldown for any Mythic+ group.
• Remove Curse can be useful to dispel Curses in some dungeons.
• An Arcane Mage adds some crowd-control in the form of Polymorph.
• Spellsteal can be useful in some dungeons to remove dangerous buffs from enemy targets. Sometimes it can also be used as a big DPS boost for the Arcane Mage by Spellstealing beneficial buffs that increase your damage.

Below are the suggested talents for Mythic+. There are a couple of choices you can make with the talents, which are discussed below.

Level	Choices
15	✗ Amplification	✓ Rule of Threes	? Arcane Familiar
30	? Mana Shield	✓ Shimmer	✓ Slipstream
45	? Incanter's Flow	✗ Mirror Image	✓ Rune of Power
60	✓ Resonance	✗ Charged Up	✗ Supernova
75	✓ Chrono Shift	✗ Ice Ward	✗ Ring of Frost
90	✓ Reverberate	✗ Touch of the Magi	✓ Nether Tempest
100	✓ Overpowered	✗ Time Anomaly	✓ Arcane Orb

There are 3 real choices to make in the talent tree for Mythic+ content.

Rune of Power is in theory the better choice here. It is both more DPS on single-target and on AoE. However, in certain dungeons it may be hard to stay in your Rune of Power due to a variety of different reasons. If you notice you are forced to move out of your Rune of Power multiple times during a dungeon, you should consider Incanter's Flow.

Reverberate is the better AoE DPS option. However, during Tyrannical weeks, Nether Tempest should be considered. This is because Nether Tempest is not far behind Reverberate on AoE, and can actually be used for single-target DPS.

Arcane Orb is the go-to choice for most Mythic+ dungeons, however, during Tyrannical weeks you should consider Overpowered for dungeons with hard DPS checks on bosses.

The only part of this affix that really applies to Mages, is Voidweaver Mal'thir. Mal'thir spawns when you activate the Cursed Spire of Ny'alotha—or when the last boss is pulled without activating that spire—and proceeds to cast both Crippling Pestilence and Lingering Doubt. Lingering Doubt leaves a curse on the target that reduces casting speed by 70% for 8 seconds. It is up to you to Remove Curse if that should land on a caster.

Beyond that, treat them as you would any other trash mobs. They need to die, and if engaged by their spire, so do their adds.

There are two Arcane Mage-specific traits should be used when possible in Mythic+

• Explosive Echo will increase your AoE damage significantly in Mythic+.
• Arcane Pressure is extremely strong in Mythic+, especially combined with Resonance. If you make sure to have 4 Arcane Charges when a group of enemies hits 35% Health, you can instantly Arcane Barrage them, follow it up with an Arcane Orb which should give you 4 Arcane Charges again, and allow you to Arcane Barrage again. In a lot of Mythic+ levels, this rotation of 3 spells will outright finish off an entire pack of enemies from 35%, especially if you managed to get the trait on multiple pieces of Azerite gear.