Alt mage, need advice.

[Deleted]

Hi guys, I have a mage alt that I've had at 85 for a while, but I just started to gear it up now, is there anyway I can see where I can get good items? I will mainly do 5mans and LFR, and weapons and trinkets is probably what will do most difference in dps so if you prioritize that I would really appreciate it.

Thanks in advance.

[Jimm3]

check the in-game loot journal..you can see dg and raid loot in there and put the mage filter so you can see what drops where
As for trinkets there is one in Well of eternity dg and a couple in DS raid bosses

[Blueobelisk]

Do the Hour of Twilight with the faction leaders and Jaina drops a staff. I think in the dungeon with Illidan that Queen Azshara lady drops a staff too.

Trinkets you'll have to get from LFR or valor, but there is a decent trinket at the end of the Illidan dungeon too from Mannoroth.

[DarkSoul]

Weapons:

Fire 5 man: Fanged Tentacle from Archbishop Benedictus in Hour of Twilight + Orb of the First Satyrs from Peroth'arn in Well of Eternity.
Fire LFR: Ti'tahk, the Steps of Time from Madness of Deathwing or Rath'rak, the Poisonous Mind from Madness + Orb of the First Satyrs (or Ledger of Revolting Rituals, a spirit piece, if you can win it on a greed roll).

Arcane 5 man: Jaina's Staff from Azure Dragonshrine in End Time.
Arcane LFR: Rath'rak + Orb of the First Satyrs/Ledger of Revolting Rituals.

Trinkets:

5 Man: Foul Gift of the Demon Lord from Mannoroth in Well of Eternity

Fire LFR: Insignia of the Corrupted Mind from Yor'sahj the Unsleeping + Will of Unbinding from Spine of Deathwing.
Arcane LFR: Cunning of the Cruel from any of the first 6 bosses except Ultraxion + Will of Unbinding.

Get 4t13 + Gloves of Liquid Smoke from Spine of Deathwing for Fire. Get the VP helm and 4t13 for Arcane.

VP cloak, boots, and neck will be your best in slot; maybe the wand too. VP belt is probably better than Cord of the Slain Champion LFR. VP Wrists will be better than anything in LFR

Skip the VP Trinket.

[Kurzior]

In terms of order I would buy things and what may be available to you, here goes. The higher it is on the list, the easier it is to buy and the better it is for you to have.

Valor:
- Kavan's Forsaken Treads (best option before DS normal)
- Seal of the Grand Architect (best ring before DS normal)
- Chronoboost Bracers (not quite as good as tailoring option, but probably cheaper)

Tailoring:
- Bracers of Unconquered Power (best option before DS normal, pricey)
- Lavaquake Legwraps (best non-tier armor piece before DS normal, pricey)

Heroic Dunges:
- Foul Gift of the Demon Lord (Well of Eternity)
- Orb of the First Satyrs (Well of Eternity) (better for Fire)
- Fanged Tenticle (Hour of Twilight) (better for Fire)
- Jaina's Staff (End Time) (Better for Arcane/Frost)

LFR
- Will of Unbinding (Spine)
- Insignia of the Corrupted Mind (Yor'sahj)*
- Cunning of the Cruel (shared bosses, except Deathwing)*
- Rathrak, the Poisonous Mind (better for AoE)
- Ti'tahk, the Steps of Time (better for Single-Target, unless you have an off-hand for Rathrak, this is the better option)

*Insignia is generally better on single-target fights. Cunning will generally perform better on AoE fights. There are was as Fire to make Insignia come out ahead in all cases but it requires perfect timing of procs and DoT spreading, making it a less AoE trinket than Cunning.

Other:
- Darkmoon Card: Volcano (tier 11 but still very strong if you don't have access to firelands gear)

Obviously, 2-piece and 4-piece bonuses are going to make those pieces your best upgrades. If you can, it's not a bad idea to buy the 2-piece tier 12 (firelands) to fill your gear out until you can get 4-piec tier 13.

Bottled Wishes (valor trinket) is an option if you can't otherwise get an LFR trinket, Foul Gift or DMC:Volcano. It does perform reasonably well in 5-mans though, because fights are short enough that the burst damage increase is not offset by the poor performance over time. Use best judgement here, but I recommend you put this off until you have no other valor pieces to buy.