6.2 Mage TC Summary and Predictions

[Komman]

Hello fellow Khadgar-wannabes,

I made a compilation post of 6.2 expectations, with some summaries on how I predict the specs to play out in HFC. It's posted on Altered Time Forums.

http://altered-time.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=1663

Here's an excerpt from it:

T18 General Expectations: Arcane > Frost > Fire
Most of HFC is looking to be about priority (single) target damage, with very few mass AOE fights the likes of Blast Furnace. I've also previously mentioned that I never count out the strongest single target spec, because raid strats will always be developed to take advantage of that strength in one way or another. For that reason, I expect Arcane to pull farther and father ahead of the other two specs.

I also included some analysis on the set bonuses, trinkets, gearing strategies and other things I thought would be useful. I'd love to hear some feedback from you - especially on things that you disagree on!

I tried to keep it short, but unfortunately it's still a gigantic wall-o-text. Maybe I can figure out what to cut short next time.

Cheers.

[Chivolence]

Good read, thanks for your efforts

[Deleted]

Thanks for all the work you've put in Komma, you're a beast <3

[Ipsissimus]

Kudos to you and Frosted.

[Xires]

Hello fellow Khadgar-wannabes,

I made a compilation post of 6.2 expectations, with some summaries on how I predict the specs to play out in HFC. It's posted on Altered Time Forums.

http://altered-time.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=1663

Here's an excerpt from it:


I also included some analysis on the set bonuses, trinkets, gearing strategies and other things I thought would be useful. I'd love to hear some feedback from you - especially on things that you disagree on!

I tried to keep it short, but unfortunately it's still a gigantic wall-o-text. Maybe I can figure out what to cut short next time.

Cheers.

Thanks for all the hard work you guys did in helping the rest of us know how to optimize and what we can and should do. VERY useful info.

[isaac2314]

Many thanks for the helpful work you and frosted produced!

[Summer]

Thank you very much

[Deleted]

T18 General Expectations: Arcane > Frost > Fire

Thanks Komma.

I just wonder when was the last time Arcane was "the spec to go with" in a coming tier.

[Kromus]

Really good read, fair play.

But have to say I'm concerned that what you are saying is somehow conflicting how I was approaching the tier. I sometimes find it hard to put my trust totally into the theory crafters, or the top players. While I don't raid cutting edge mythic, I still like going into a tier with a plan and clear vision. I had resigned to continuing playing fire into the tier, but your article has definitely thrown a spanner in the works there.

When you say you have had little exposure to the PTR raids, how little are we talking?

Again, while I'm not cutting edge mythic, I like being as optimal as possible to help the guild/raid team, so if Arcane is maybe going to be strongest, I need to totally relook at what I had planned.

Do you know why there is disparity with say top players with extensive PTR experience saying Fire will be great, and some theorycrafters feeling it might be least effective? Is it the age old difference between numbers and application or?

[Zelendria]

Arcane has never been weak.
If you look at all the bosses in BRF how many actually need a mage to be AOE?
Darmac adds last 5 seconds at best.
Thogar adds last 10 seconds at best.
Furnace is more about how you deal with Operators and Elementalists.

Fire was only as good as it was because of 2T17. You take that away, which Blizz have, and it would not have dominated 6.1.

Arcane was/is always good at killing bosses. It was just terrible at padding meters.

[isaac2314]

Personally, I think that, while fire can be of good use on some fights, Arcane/Frost simply brings too much single-target/two-target firepower, to the degree that it is preferable to bring balance druids or other AoE specs/classes (well, or whatever is the best AoE class at the moment) and Arcane/Frost mages than it is to bring Fire mages and other single-target specs/classes. It's a bit hard to discuss spec usage in a vacuum, I think, unless it's pugging.

Though more importantly, it will be easier for discussion if you can repeat the arguments in favor of fire - well, on the Best Spec thread you also posted in I suppose, not here (and I'd like to hear them too personally, since I have heard very few.)

[Deleted]

Thanks Komma.

I just wonder when was the last time Arcane was "the spec to go with" in a coming tier.

in BRF T17

[Deleted]

in BRF T17

Well, that would be true if I had asked "in a coming raid" - even if Fire ended up being better in BRF. However when T17 was coming Arcane was definitely not "the way to go".

[Imnick]

Firelands is the most recent I can remember that people were touting it as the best before the raid came out.
It has been a strong contender across pretty much all of Cataclysm, Mists of Pandaria (after the first balance patch) and Warlords of Draenor though. And much of Wrath of the Lich King.

[Deleted]

Firelands is the most recent I can remember that people were touting it as the best before the raid came out.
It has been a strong contender across pretty much all of Cataclysm, Mists of Pandaria (after the first balance patch) and Warlords of Draenor though. And much of Wrath of the Lich King.

MoP and Arcane is a thing most people tend to forget because of RoP. U dont remeber the bad things *g*

[Imnick]

People who forget about rune of power are just jealous that my posts have 15% more spellpower than theirs do.

[Tobedeleted123]

Well, MoP arcane was insane when you could weave mana-free scorches and never drop your 6-stack of AB throughout the fight. Didn't last long though.

[Xires]

Arcane has never been weak.
If you look at all the bosses in BRF how many actually need a mage to be AOE?
Darmac adds last 5 seconds at best.
Thogar adds last 10 seconds at best.
Furnace is more about how you deal with Operators and Elementalists.

Fire was only as good as it was because of 2T17. You take that away, which Blizz have, and it would not have dominated 6.1.

Arcane was/is always good at killing bosses. It was just terrible at padding meters.

Mythic thogar the adds lasted longer then a few seconds and if you timed your combust well and had a strong one you could destroy the adds.

[Deleted]

Arcane has never been weak.
If you look at all the bosses in BRF how many actually need a mage to be AOE?
Darmac adds last 5 seconds at best.
Thogar adds last 10 seconds at best.
Furnace is more about how you deal with Operators and Elementalists.

Fire was only as good as it was because of 2T17. You take that away, which Blizz have, and it would not have dominated 6.1.

Arcane was/is always good at killing bosses. It was just terrible at padding meters.

You are talking about heroic.

On mythic Furnance you should be fire - yes you have single target priorities but you need to cleave firecallers down too, but you don't have time to switch them directly and when you are killing elementalists with 2 openings, than you don;t realy need single target burts dmg.
On mythic Thogar you realy don't have problem with boss dmg, but you want to cleave all adds asap and they live much more longer than 10s.
On mythic Darmac you have pretty long time 2 targets (boss + his pet), but that boss is easy enough to go without any spec .
On mythic H&F you did mych better effective dmg with fire because of 2pt17.
On Mythic Flamebender only problem wes the fire wolf phase (5 wolfs) and that is the reason for fire there.

Yes there were bosses where fire was only for padding, but on mythic fire was best spec for a lot fo fights.

[Zelendria]

No I'm on about Mythic
How many times did your raid claim they needed moar AOE? All the wipes of them fights you mention were far more likely to come from something else rather than a lack of cleave.
Take the ridiculously high parses of the add style bosses where the raid has toned down cleaving to just a couple of players to own the meters. Proof in itself in BRF you never needed the amount of cleave you actually went in with.
Any two Warriors, Mages, Locks could deal with a Darmac pack before the next one spawned yet at least 10 people would cleave every pack.

Fire was absolutely the best on every one of them fights. 2T17 amplified it and made it good for the fights it shouldn't have been. What I said was Arcane was never weak