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it (read more Arcane Mage DPS Rotation, Cooldowns, and Abilities in Battle for Azeroth (BfA) 8.0.1
Table of Contents
General Information
On this page, we list your Arcane Mage core abilities and how they should be used together (rotation) in World of Warcraft Battle for Azeroth 8.0.1. We also explain when to use your various cooldowns. Then, we go deeper and present all the subtleties that you will need to know if you want to excel at playing an Arcane Mage.
The other pages of our Arcane Mage guide can be accessed from the table of contents on the right.
About Our Author
This guide has been written by Dutchmagoz. Dutchmagoz is a Mythic raider in UnknownError, owner of the Mage theorycrafting website Altered Time, and an admin of the Mage Discord server, Halls of the Guardian.
1. Ability Priority List for Arcane Mage
Use the switches below to tailor the rotation to the talents you are using or situations you expect to be facing, and it will populate the rotation priority list appropriately:
- Show AoE lines
- Show
Rune of Power - Show
Overpowered - Show
Rule of Threes - Show
Charged Up - Show
Arcane Orb - Show
Nether Tempest - Show
Mirror Image - Show
Amplification - Show
Supernova
The rotation of an Arcane Mage is outlined in the following priority list.
The concept is to maintain a high and stable Mana pool during your
Conserve Phase, biding time until your
cooldowns are available. As soon as your cooldowns are ready, you enter the
Burn Phase where you siphon all your Mana
into damage. After the Burn phase concludes, you recoup your entire Mana pool
using 
Evocation, and the cycle begins anew.
1.1. The Burn Phase
The Burn phase commences at the start of the encounter, and whenever
Arcane Power is off cooldown thereafter. It is important to
ensure you will not be interrupted during the Burn phase, so avoid entering
this part of the rotating during heavy movement or when volatile mechanics are
active.
You can enter the Burn Phase when the following is all true:
Arcane Power is ready;- you have 4 charges of Arcane Charges;
- you have at least 50% Mana.
Below we have listed the order in which you should perform your spells during the Burn Phase.
- Cast Arcane Power.
- Cast
Presence of Mind if Arcane Power would run out before you
can finish your next 
Arcane Blast. - Cast
Arcane Missiles when 
Clearcasting procs and you
have less than 95% Mana, and Arcane Power is not active. - Cast Arcane Blast.
- Cast
Evocation when out of Mana. - If you run out of Mana before Evocation is available, simply use
Arcane Barrage to reset your Arcane Charges, and continue like normal
until Evocation is available.
See our Opening Sequence for instructions on what to cast when the fight starts.
1.2. Conserve Phase
The Conserve Phase is deceptively straightforward, but it mercilessly
punishes mistakes. Once Evocation is on cooldown, the only way
to regain your Mana is by waiting for it to slowly regenerate. Therefore, paying
close attention to your Mana and your available spells is of crucial importance.
During the Conserve Phase you should try to maximize the amount of time spent
casting 
Arcane Blast with 4 Arcane Charges, while keeping your Mana
high enough during the Conserve Phase, so that when your Arcane Power
comes off cooldown you are able to Burn as much Mana as possible within that
window for optimal output.
- Cast Arcane Missiles when Clearcasting procs.
- Cast Arcane Barrage if you have 4 Arcane Charges and you have less
than 60% Mana (80% Mana if you would cap on Rune of Power charges before
Arcane Power is ready).
- Cast Arcane Blast.
2. Important Notes for Arcane Mage
2.1. Arcane Charges: Understanding Your Mana Pool
If you are unfamiliar with Arcane, managing your Arcane Charges
can be a bit confusing at first. Arcane as a specialization is fundamentally
very straightforward, but also stands apart from many specializations in the
respect that you have full control over your damage output and resources at all
times. Ultimately, the only wild card in the Arcane rotation is
Clearcasting, and it alters the specialization in a unique
way. Since 
Arcane Missiles does not cost any Mana to cast when used
during Clearcasting, it functions as a way to regenerate Mana without having to
cast 
Arcane Barrage. Every time you do a new pull on a boss, you will
reorganize your abilities into a different sequence due to the randomness of
Clearcasting procs. Ultimately this results in a reactive playstyle
revolving around your Mana pool.
For each Arcane Charge you have, you deal more damage with Arcane Blast,
however, the Mana cost is also increased by 100% per charge. It is not possible
to maintain a stable Mana pool by only casting Arcane Blast at 4 Arcane Charges,
and therefore you will have to sometimes clear your charges with
Arcane Barrage during the Conserve phase. Since it is Mana neutral to
cast 4 Arcane Blasts followed by an Arcane Barrage, as long as you run
Rule of Threes (or have a decent amount of Mastery on your gear),
you should never cast Arcane Barrage with less than 4 Arcane Charges.
It is important to use Arcane Missiles instantly when you get
Clearcasting, since it does not stack, and Clearcasting indirectly
equals a lot of free Mana, since it allows you to regenerate Mana while channeling
Arcane Missiles. This in turn allows you to cast more Arcane Blasts
at 4 Arcane Charges.
In conclusion, your Mana pool and Arcane Charges have inverse synergy.
The longer you remain at higher stacks of Arcane Charges,
the faster your Mana bar will deplete, but the more burst damage you will deal.
The shorter you remain at higher stacks of Arcane Charges, the
easier it will be to maintain a stable Mana pool (or possibly regenerate Mana),
though you will deal less burst damage. Clearcasting serves as
a tool to allow you to remain at high stacks for an increased period without
penalty, but occurs randomly, keeping you on your toes. Finally, during the
Burn phase the intent is to permanently remain at maximum
Arcane Charges until your Mana pool is entirely depleted.
2.2. Spells That Benefit From Arcane Charges
Evocation is not affected by Arcane Charges, but it is still
preferable to ensure you do not clear your charges with
Arcane Barrage before casting Evocation. The reason for this is that
you will finish Evocation with 100% Mana and 4 Arcane Charges,
allowing you to immediately cast a 4 charge Arcane Blast instead
of Mana capping for a few seconds.
2.3. Truncating Arcane Missiles
Many channeled basic spells, such as 
Drain Soul, benefit from
truncating (or "clipping") the channel after the tick before the last tick, allowing you
to immediately lead into the next cast without delay.
Arcane Missiles, however, fires off an extra missile every time
it ticks throughout the channel, making it extremely beneficial to fully
complete your channel before queuing up the next spell. Many players will
accidentally clip the last tick of the channel, cancelling the final missile
and robbing them of a noticeable amount of damage. This can be solved by using
!nochannel macros, which prevents you from interrupting a channeled spell with
another cast. This induces slight input lag, causing a slight delay between the
end of your channel and the beginning of a new cast, so it is not recommended.
For players that want maximum results, the best solution is AddOns. The easiest
way to avoid missile clipping is by installing Gnosis, a cast bar AddOn
specifically designed to make channeled ticks easily identifiable. Unlike the
in-game castbar or most other AddOns, it updates dynamically with latency so
your true tick rate is always displayed. This is the castbar used almost
unanimously by all high level players, but it is especially beneficial for
Arcane Mage due to the importance of Arcane Missiles.
2.4. Effectively Handling AoE
As a specialization that is typically known for single target damage, AoE is
a bit of a foreign concept to some Arcane Mages. It is possible, however, to
deal very effective AoE damage as Arcane. Arcane Power does
technically affect your AoE spells, however, it is often inefficient to
dedicate your Burn phase to AoE damage (generally speaking), however, there are
some exceptions to this rule. For example, in a dungeon environment where you
know your cooldowns will be up in time for the boss, it makes sense to use your
cooldowns to help clear the trash in a more timely fashion.
There are 2 main spells that are the reason Arcane Mages can do good AoE
damage, namely 
Arcane Explosion and Arcane Barrage. The
idea is to cast Arcane Explosion from 0 to 4 Arcane Charges, doing significant
damage, and then following it up with a very hard hitting Arcane Barrage,
especially with 
Resonance. It is important to realize, that this is
not Mana neutral, so you will eventually run out of Mana when keeping this
rotation up for prolonged periods of time. So make sure you keep an eye on your
Mana bar, to ensure you keep enough Mana for the rest of the fight.
If you need to continue doing AoE damage for prolonged periods of time,
there is a Mana neutral rotation that can be used via the use of
Rule of Threes. Instead of using Arcane Explosion when on
3 Arcane Charges, you instead use Arcane Blast to go from 3 Arcane
Charges to 4. Because of Rule of Threes, the Arcane Blast going
from 3 to 4 Arcane Charges will not cost any Mana, saving a good portion of
your Mana by casting less Arcane Explosions, and regaining Mana during the cast
time of the free Arcane Blast.
If you are playing with 
Charged Up and/or 
Arcane Orb,
you can drop your stacks with Arcane Barrage and instantly
rebuild them without effort.
2.5. Rune of Power
Rune of Power is a medium length cooldown that is best used to
apply significant pressure during its duration. You should always overlap Rune
of Power and Arcane Power, as this will result in the maximum
possible burst. Start by casting Rune of Power, and immediately
activating Arcane Power at the end of the cast, so they will both
end at the same time. Rune of Power does have 2 charges, allowing you to save
the second for a usage of your choice. Good times to use your second rune
charge:
- after Arcane Power ends and you have enough Mana to last another
10 seconds in the Burn phase;
- to push a damage check;
- when several advantageous procs overlap;
- during a period of zero movement;
- with excess Mana in the Conserve phase at 4 Arcane Charges;
- on AoE.
2.6. Prismatic Barrier
Do not forget to cast this any time you have to slightly reposition and
Blink/
Shimmer is either unavailable or would move you
too far to be useful. It lasts for 30 seconds, and has a 30-second cooldown,
meaning you can keep a 100% uptime on the magic damage reduction if magic
damage taken is heavy. You can and should cast it before the start of every
engagement.
3. Core Concepts for Arcane Mage
Arcane Mage is an elementary enough specialization to perform on a target dummy, but there are a few key factors that will separate the good from the great. Learning to focus on what is important and master the core concepts of a specialization is what leads to strong overall performance on the damage charts. There are 3 major concepts that form the central trinity of optimizing for success:
- Mana management during the Conserve phase;
- flawless execution during the Burn phase;
- movement management.
Managing movement is a fundamental skill shared by all the caster classes in World of Warcraft. The highly mobile nature of the Mage class allows flexible and creative ways to move during combat, making it of supreme importance that you give this the proper respect.
3.1. Mana Management During Conserve Phase
It is highly recommended you develop an instinct for your Mana regeneration rate by practicing on a target dummy or in LFR. The more Mastery you have, the faster you will regenerate Mana in combat, making this regeneration highly variable depending on your level of gear. On the flip-side, the more Haste you have, the faster you will use up your Mana.
It is important to have a good sense of the interplay between your
Arcane Charges and your current Mana pool. On encounters with cleave
and AoE, pay close attention to your timers if you plan on capitalizing on the
extra targets. If you need to unleash a little extra burst in the Conserve
phase for an important add, AoE opportunities, or to push a damage check,
ensure you correctly budget Mana and a Rune of Power charge in
advance.
Mana regenerates at a fixed 2% of base Mana per second. Arcane Familiar does
not increase this base Mana regeneration. Evocation however, does benefit from
the extra 10% Mana from Arcane Familiar. This is further increased through
stacking Mastery, which will increase your maximum Mana and Mana regeneration
and thus lower the number of Arcane Barrage casts per fight, allowing
you to stay at 4 Arcane Charges longer.
If you have an AddOn that allows you detach your Mana bar, it is highly recommended you put it somewhere near the lower centre of your screen so you can easily keep track of your current resource level. Newer players tend to overburn during the Conserve phase and are unable to execute a complete Burn phase because of this.
Although the Burn Phase is often seen as the most important part of the Arcane
rotation, this does not mean that you should not try to maximize the amount
of Mana you use during the Conserve phase, especially since you spend a long
portion of the fight in this phase. You should absolutely never sit on 100% Mana,
because every second spent at a 100% Mana is Mana wasted. Especially with high
Mastery levels, you can cast a surprising amount of Arcane Blasts
during the Conserve phase before you need to start using Arcane Barrage
actively.
3.2. Executing the Burn Phase Consistently
Although the Burn Phase is only a small portion in terms of time spent,
it is not a small portion of your total damage at all. During your Burn Phase,
you can do enormous amounts of damage in this short time window.
Therefore, it is very important to consistently perform your Burn Phase correctly.
Arcane Power should be used on cooldown wherever possible, though you
do want it to overlap with any other major damage buffs (such as
Rune of Power or raid mechanics that increase your damage). You should
cast Evocation immediately upon hitting 0 Mana, so the cooldown
becomes available as quickly as possible.
Pay close attention to the Burn Phase priority list posted at the top of this page. This seems very straightforward on the surface, but a surprising number of players will stutter in the execution. Make sure you are prepared before entering the Burn phase!
3.3. Movement Management
While it is difficult to describe the best ways to position and move during a dungeon or raid encounter, it is essential to your success as an Arcane Mage.
Try and use Blink for "urgent" movement — when you need to
travel from one place to another as quickly as possible.
Prismatic Barrier is a good choice when you only need to take
a few steps, as it only costs a single GCD. Shimmer is a great talent
as it is off GCD and does not interrupt your current cast, allowing you to
continue casting when a damaging raid mechanic spawns under you, by shimmering
out of it.
Displacement is underutilized by a lot of players,
but is an essential part of your mobility kit. This spell is fantastic for
mechanics that force you to run out of the raid and return moments later.
It is also great for dealing with dance mechanics — after the "dance" ends
you can return to your original location without delay. Do not underestimate
Displacement and do not be afraid to get creative with how you use it! It should
be noted that when using Shimmer, your casts are also uninterrupted
by Displacement in addition. The Shimmer talent is very strong overall, allowing
you to stay in line of sight and in range mid cast if the boss moves, or quickly
dodge a mechanic without interruption.
Always try to position yourself in a location central to fight movement. For example, if the boss is being moved in a circle, try to stay on the inside of the kite path to ensure minimal movement.
3.3.1. Quiet Movement
Many players will unconsciously move during fights, despite it being unnecessary. For example, sometimes the boss or adds will be moved by the tank a couple yards, and though you are still in range to cast, you subconsciously mirror that movement, costing you global cooldowns. Consciously work to "quiet" your movement, and reduce unnecessary movement to a minimum. The best way to see this in action is to take a video of your raid, then watch yourself play. Most players will be surprised by the amount of wasted movement they commit. When you are forced to move, make use of the tips above, and make your path as direct and decisive as possible.
4. Arcane Mage: Opening Sequence
- Use
Battle Potion of Intellect 2 seconds before the pull. - Cast Arcane Blast 2 seconds before the pull.
- Cast Charged Up if you have it talented, otherwise cast 3 more Arcane Blasts.
- Place Rune of Power.
- Activate Arcane Power and any racial cooldowns or on-use
trinkets.
- Cast Arcane Blast as a filler.
- Cast Arcane Missiles when Clearcasting procs and you
do not have Arcane Power active.
- Place Rune of Power again when Arcane Power ends.
- Cast Arcane Missiles when Clearcasting procs and you
have Amplification talented.
- Cast Arcane Missiles when Clearcasting procs and you
have less than 95% Mana, and Arcane Power is not active.
- Cast Arcane Blast as a filler.
- Cast Presence of Mind if Rune of Power or
Arcane Power would run out before you can finish your next
Arcane Blast.
- Cast Evocation when your Mana is empty and commence Conserve
phase.
5. Changelog
- 30 Sep. 2018: Made the rotation slightly clearer based on what checkboxes are selected.
- 29 Sep. 2018: Added checkboxes to show rotation based on talents.
- 02 Sep. 2018: Optimized Rune of Power usage in rotation.
- 30 Aug. 2018: Changed rotation to make use of the free Arcane Blast from Rule of Threes in specific situations.
- 28 Aug. 2018: Changed rotation for more optimal Presence of Mind usage.
- 25 Aug. 2018: Changed opening sequence to ignore Clearcasting during Arcane Power.
- 21 Aug. 2018: Updated rotation to also ignore Clearcasting procs during Arcane Power.
- 20 Aug. 2018: Updated rotation to conserve at 60% mana because it is better at pre-raid gear levels.
- 18 Aug. 2018: Optimize the rotation for new findings.
- 13 Aug. 2018: Remove mention for a Legion tier bonus.
- 12 Aug. 2018: Updated for Battle for Azeroth launch.
- 23 Jul. 2018: Update rotation to not wait for Evocation to start burn for slightly better DPS.
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