In short
- These are conditional priorities (“if X happens, do Y”), not fixed sequences.
- They come from the official mechanics, but nobody has measured them in game yet.
- Frost freezes and shatters with Ice Lance; Fire turns crits into fast Pyroblasts; Arcane stacks Arcane Blast and cashes it in.
How to read these priorities
Each list goes top to bottom: use the first thing whose condition is met. They are not fixed rotations, because Forever’s mechanics depend on what happens in the fight (freezes, crits, charges).
Frost: single target
Frost · single target
Analysis: Our reading of official mechanics. Not tested in game.- Ice Lance if the target is Frozen (after Frost Nova) or you have Fingers of Frost charges: 300% more damage.
- Frostbolt as your main spell. It slows (a Chill effect), which can grant Fingers of Frost charges. Use a high rank: low ranks do not trigger your talents.
- Frostfire Bolt (level 40+) if the target strongly resists Frost.
- Unfrozen Ice Lance or Fire Blast only while moving: both are instant.
Fire: single target
Fire · single target
Analysis: Our reading of official mechanics. Not tested in game.- Pyroblast at 3 Heating Up stacks: it casts in 1.5 s. The stacks last 20 s.
- Fire Blast when available, especially right after a kill (Wake of Fire greatly raises its crit chance for 30 s). Its crits also add Heating Up stacks.
- Fireball or Frostfire Bolt as filler: their crits build Heating Up.
- Scorch when you need a short cast. With Improved Scorch, remember its effect only helps you.
Arcane: single target
Arcane · single target
Analysis: Our reading of official mechanics. Not tested in game.- Arcane Missiles when Missile Barrage is active: twice as fast and no mana cost.
- Arcane Blast to build stacks (up to 4, for 8 s) while your mana allows it: each stack makes the next one more expensive.
- Another strong spell to cash in the Arcane Blast bonus before it expires. This is what Blizzard intends with the redesign.
- Presence of Mind and Arcane Power as damage cooldowns (Arcane Power now requires Presence of Mind).
Multiple targets
The Mage’s AoE tools are still Blizzard, Arcane Explosion, Flamestrike, Cone of Cold and the Blast Wave talent. Classic reference: This is how it works in WoW Classic. Forever has not announced a change; not yet checked in game.
In Forever, Cone of Cold lasts less and Improved Blizzard slows less. Official: Published by Blizzard in a source we have read. Be more careful when dragging large packs. Analysis: Our reading of official mechanics. Not tested in game.
Not documented yet
- Why it is missing
- Without damage numbers or tests on large packs, we cannot rank the AoE options.
- What we will do
- We will test farming routes and multi-target pulls after launch.
Control and survival
If an enemy reaches you
Analysis: Our reading of official mechanics. Not tested in game.- Frost Nova to root it in place. As Frost, use the opening for Ice Lance.
- Blink away.
- Polymorph a second enemy to take it out of the fight.
- Ice Block as a last resort: it is now Frost’s 16-point milestone.
- Cold Snap resets your Frost cooldowns, but its cooldown rises to 10 minutes: save it for emergencies.
- Counterspell with 1 point in Improved Counterspell always silences (previously 50% of the time). Official: Published by Blizzard in a source we have read.
- Mana Shield absorbs damage with your mana; Arcane Shielding makes it more efficient and improves Mage Armor resistances. Official: Published by Blizzard in a source we have read.
Openers
Not documented yet
- Why it is missing
- Openers depend on damage values and effect durations that are not known yet.
- What we will do
- We will document them per tree once they can be measured in game.