Arcane Mage DPS Spell Summary (Legion 7.3)

Table of Contents

• +Introduction
  • 1. Class Overview
  • 2. Patch 7.3 Changes
  • 3. Patch 7.2.5 Changes
  • 4. Strengths
  • 5. Weaknesses
  • 6. Viability in the Current Patch
  • 7. Contents
  • 8. ChangeLog
• +Easy Mode
  • 1. The Basics
  • 2. Talent Choice
  • 3. Stat Choice
  • 4. Basic Rotation
    • 4.1. "Burn"
    • 4.2. "Conserve"
  • 5. ChangeLog
• ×Spell Summary
  • 1. Spell Summary
  • 2. Main Resources
  • 3. Basic Abilities
  • 4. Important Procs
  • 5. DPS Cooldowns
  • 6. ChangeLog
• +Builds and Talents
  • 1. Talent Choices
  • 2. Talent Cheat Sheets
    • 2.1. Raid Encounters
      • 2.1.1. Heavy Cleave/AOE
    • 2.2. For General Use
  • 3. Tier 1 (Level 15) Talents
  • 4. Tier 2 (Level 30) Talents
  • 5. Tier 3 (Level 45) Talents
  • 6. Tier 4 (Level 60) Talents
  • 7. Tier 5 (Level 75) Talents
  • 8. Tier 6 (Level 90) Talents
  • 9. Tier 7 (Level 100) Talents
  • 10. ChangeLog
• +Artifact Traits and Relics
  • 1. Artifact Progression — First 35 Points
    • 1.1. Early Point Investment
    • 1.2. Second Golden Trait
    • 1.3. Third Golden Trait
      • 1.3.1. Mythic Raid Progression/Single Target Focused
      • 1.3.2. Mythic+ Dungeons/AoE Focused
    • 1.4. Final Point Investment
  • 2. Patch 7.2: 35+ Trait Path
  • 3. Relic Choice
  • 4. ChangeLog
• +Netherlight Crucible Relic Paths
  • 1. General Optimization Advice
  • 2. Tier 2 Upgrade Priority
  • 3. Tier 3 Upgrade Priority
  • 4. ChangeLog
• +Rotation, Cooldowns, and Abilities
  • 1. Ability Priority List
    • 1.1. Conserve Phase
    • 1.2. Burn Phase
  • 2. Important Notes
    • 2.1. Arcane Charges: Understanding Your Mana Pool
      • 2.1.1. Aluneth's Avarice
    • 2.2. Spells That Benefit From Arcane Charges
    • 2.3. Truncating Arcane Missiles
    • 2.4. Effectively Handling AoE
    • 2.5. Rune of Power
    • 2.6. Arcane Orb
    • 2.7. Prismatic Barrier
  • 3. Core Concepts
    • 3.1. Mana Management During Conserve Phase
    • 3.2. Executing the Burn Phase Consistently
    • 3.3. Movement Management
      • 3.3.1. Quiet Movement
  • 4. Resonance Opening Sequence
  • 5. Charged Up Opening Sequences
  • 6. ChangeLog
• +Stat Priority
  • 1. Basics
  • 2. Getting a Better Understanding
    • 2.1. Statistics Explanations
  • 3. ChangeLog
• +Gems, Enchants, and Consumables
  • 1. Gems
  • 2. Enchants
  • 3. Consumables
  • 4. ChangeLog
• +Macros and Addons
  • 1. Addons
    • 1.1. ElvUI
    • 1.2. Weak Auras
    • 1.3. Boss Mods
      • 1.3.1. BigWigs Bossmods
      • 1.3.2. Deadly Boss Mods
    • 1.4. Name Plates
      • 1.4.1. KUI Nameplates
      • 1.4.2. TidyPlates
    • 1.5. Damage Meters
      • 1.5.1. Skada
      • 1.5.2. Details
    • 1.6. Extra AddOns
      • 1.6.1. Mik's Scrolling Battle Text
      • 1.6.2. DeathNote
      • 1.6.3. Doom CooldownPulse
      • 1.6.4. Angry Assignments
  • 2. Macros
    • 2.1. Generic Macros for Mages
      • 2.1.1. Stopcast Blink
      • 2.1.2. 1-Button Block
      • 2.1.3. Block Cancel
    • 2.2. Specific Macros for Arcane Mages
      • 2.2.1. Stopcast Displacement
  • 3. ChangeLog
• +Gear, Legendaries, and Best in Slot
  • 1. Tier 20 Set Bonus
  • 2. Best in Slot List
    • 2.1. Trinket Notes
  • 3. Evaluating Upgrades Using Stat Weights
  • 4. Racial Bonuses
  • 5. Legendaries
  • 6. Loot Competition
  • 7. ChangeLog

General Information

On this page, we list the spells that you will often use as 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 and Reviewer

This guide has been reviewed and approved by Blixius, a top Arcane Mage who raids in Bird is the Word.

1. Spell Summary

If you are new to Arcane, it is recommended you read this before proceeding! In this section we will discuss what abilities you have, what they are used for within the specialization, and how they interact with important cooldowns. If you have played this spec before or have already achieved a level of comfort playing this spec in a practical environment, it is recommended you skip this section and move on to the rest of the guide.

2. Main Resources

Mana and Arcane Charges are your primary resources, and interact with each other in a fashion unique to Arcane.

Arcane Charges are generated by most of your basic spells, and by some talented spells. They go to a maximum of 4, and increase the Mana cost of your basic spells by 100% per stack. They also increase your damage by a percentage dictated by your current Mastery value.

Mana is the main resource of Arcane Mages. With the above information in mind, managing your Mana can be a challenging task. On one hand, casting spells while at 4 Arcane Charges allows you to do maximum damage. The consequence of this is that you will quickly chew through your Mana bar, leaving you with no option but to stand there and wait for your Mana to slowly regenerate. This relationship between Mana and Arcane Charges forms the central tenet of the Arcane specialization and will be discussed at length later in the guide.

3. Basic Abilities

These abilities are available no matter what talents you chose, and form the bread and butter of this specialization.

Arcane Blast is your main filler and nuke, and generates 1 Arcane Charge when cast. This spell has a low Mana cost when you have no Arcane Charges, but can make your Mana bar disappear in only a handful of casts at 4 Arcane Charges. It has no travel time, which makes it great for instantly applying damage, or finishing off an important add.

Arcane Missiles is a channelled spell that deals slightly more damage than Arcane Blast, but is only available when it procs off other spell casts. It generates 1 Arcane Charge. Damaging spells have a 15% chance to grant a charge of Arcane Missiles, and the chance for Arcane Blast is doubled (30%). You can store a total of 3 charges of Arcane Missiles. This spell costs no mana, which makes it ideal for use at 4 Arcane Charges, as it allows you to bypass the high Mana multiplier while still taking full advantage of the increased damage. It also allows you to regenerate some Mana during the channel. Arcane Missiles has a moderate travel time which means you should avoid using it right as things are about to die, as the missiles will likely not make it there in time to deal damage.

Arcane Barrage is an instant cast spell that clears are your Arcane Charges. This ability is used as a reset button to help you maintain a stable Mana pool. You can generate charges with Arcane Blast, take advantage of the damage buff with Arcane Missiles, then clear your charges with Arcane Barrage and start over again. Clearing your charges helps you keep your Mana pool healthy so you can unleash heavy burst during your cooldowns.

4. Important Procs

Arcane Missiles is the only rotational proc Arcane has. As noted above, this ability has 3 charges, so be sure to spend a charge immediately when you hit 3, so you do not overcap by accident!

5. DPS Cooldowns

Arcane Power is your main damaging cooldown. It increases your spell damage by 30%, and reduces all Mana costs by 30%. While it only lasts 10 seconds, it allows for a potent burst window. It is best to combine this with 4 Arcane Charges and a healthy Mana bar so you can really unleash hell while this is active.

Evocation is not a direct damage cooldown, strictly speaking, but does restore 100% of your Mana bar. As noted, Mana is damage for Arcane Mages, so this ability ends up having an extremely high DPS value. This is typically used after Arcane Power is over, as you will be out of Mana from casting so many spells at 4 Arcane Charges.

Time Warp increases Haste by 30% for 40 seconds for all party and raid members within 100 yards. This ability debuffs everyone with a debuff that prevents the possibility of benefiting from Time Warp, Ancient Hysteria, Netherwinds, Heroism, and Bloodlust for the next 10 minutes.

6. ChangeLog

+ show all entries - show only 10 entries

• 12 Jun. 2017: Page reviewed and deemed updated for 7.2.5.
• 29 Aug. 2016: Updated for Legion's launch.
• 18 Jul. 2016: Updated for the Legion pre-patch.