Infraction for Ithraides: 6. Do not post unless you have something new and worthwhile to say.

• Jessamy · 08/21/10, 1:21 AM

Post: Arcane Cataclysm Discussion
User: Ithraides
Infraction: 6. Do not post unless you have something new and worthwhile to say.
Points: 1

Administrative Note:

Message to User:

I think you're confused and are posting in a forum for the wrong game. Is this what you were looking for?

http://finalfantasy.wikia.com/wiki/Time_and_Space_magic

Original Post:

I started playing wow as a fire mage, and reached L70 when TBC released. After the protracted stumbling around required of every noob...new mage (yes, quite familiar with the graveyards) I settled into the thrilling and demanding fun of raiding. My mage however didn't come alive until I discovered Arcane.

Arcane to me is foremost the advanced mage.
Knowledge (of fight mechanics, mob weakness, allies' supportive powers) and indepth understanding of our class abilities (nope, didn't say I was an expert) was what made or break the Arcane mage. Burst too long/short, Evocation at inopportunate timing, incorrect use of spell mix = mana management etc. and c'est la vie to your DPS.

Arcane is Burst DPS incarnate
Unless you played Arcane with 2T5 in TBC before its nerf (shame! It's iconic!), or saw one, u have no clue what Burst DPS is, and apparently Blizzard has forgotten the design genius that made Arcane possible and intellectually stimulating. In TBC AB spamming iresults in multiples of other dpser's DPS...its doing 2000 single target DPS when they are doing 800 DPS, and in the process going OOM before IV runs out. I enjoyed the extreme balancing act required to manage mana vs. maintaining the raid's ave DPS via short insane bursts of damage. You don't hear anyone cry foul, because that high burst DPS came at an extreme cost.

Arcane's Burst DPS is thrilling because it provides a dangerous potential to leapfrog current DPS level at tremendous cost, with a small margin for mistakes. If the audience jaws didn't pop, it isn't Arcane Burst DPS. If its mundane like in ToC Twins' fight, it isn't Arcane Burst DPS.

Arcane is Speed
Haste defined Arcane. It feeds the Burst DPS machine with cinematic flair that flaunt our damage potential, causes the audiences and enemies into epileptic shock, demand their respectful applause at our daring victories and control, and invoke shivering shake-of-heads from other classes at our insane choices.

Having such mastery over Space - Teleport, Portal, Blink - that other classes until very recently lack, you would think Improved Blink would do more than...reduce mana cost. (oh yea and that pvp afterthought tagged on miss thing...what was that again?) Why condemn Slow and left it in its premier talent spot? The combination to empower ourselves to cast faster, and spellbound our enemies in chronic goo, is a theme that should be exploited more than in pvp. Once upon a time, even boss mobs, quake at Slow. Now it couldn't Slow that elite critter.

My lazy Time-Space-WoW related suggestions
1. Translocation Trick - Swap places with an enemy with a transient disguise that changed our appearances (me look like him, he as me etc.) I will leave you to design what wicked mischief to do with that.
2. The famous Elminster Three Jump kinda Improved Blink - Duration based buff with charges which allows multiple blinks.
3. Contingency. I do regret some of the best/most imaginative spells in D&D can't be implemented. Here is one. Blizzard says we are master of Time and Space. Go ahead and make us glass canons at the mercy of external heals. It would be fun to be able to preset some conditions that allow us to "teleport" to a safe haven...did someone just say Portable Hole?(I vote for Emerald Dream and personal time with Mulfurion). But introduce fickle disasters and dire consequence ...think Janni and wishes.
4. Ragna Blade (Slayers anime): Dimensional blade that cuts even the souls of gods. Resist...damage reduction, immunity, immortality, say what? Oh it frequently goes out of control and wipes the raid.
5. Time Stop is the signature of any master of time. Blizzard can't bestow us that title without any spells to time stop the scene, hey we do need to evocate and its a damn dps loss per second...if nothing else.
6. Sphere of Annihilation: Anti matter particle, a particle of gravity (black hole) whatever makes your brain cells tick. A channeled sphere that costs us life/mana so we can annihilate life. There is our AoE range spell...mobile, controlled, painful to us, no tomorrow for them.

A DPS class with three talent trees. Just how many ways can I spam a button? Arcane was already functioning as the support tree for most of its sad life with 4 miserly damage spells, yet Arcane magic is what created the class in the first place, and differentiate mages from other caster types. It will always be boring nuking only one school. 40/0/21 boosted Frost and saved Arcane from bad spots. More synergy between the trees should be made possible via Arcane talents especially in the undesirable first 2 tiers.

This post is getting ridiculously long, I feel a censure imminently on my first post...

My parting thoughts
1. Reward the Arcane Mage for knowledge and skillful management of mana and spell rotations
2. We like Arcane difficult and dangerously costly, not bumping into Arcane mages everywhere because its stupidly easy
3. Empowerment type of magic should come through Arcane
4. Give us a way to save a fellow group member. I'm tired of watching people die and all I can do is cause more death period. Ice block usable on another, Contingency on another. Something
5. Magic Resistance and Disruption should be our forte,How about a proc mechanic type spell that blizzard is currently in favor of that disrupts magic? Magic Absorption, a mechanic already in place, should play a more central role with Blizzard's new mana management is key.
6. We are only good for water and food....so let us make more exciting "water and food" type enhancing group spells (though a priest should be the group enhancer. If I wanted to serve, I too will serve a god, not that raid lead)
7. Addicted to Arcane Magic. What happened to that critical fact that segregated the elven race?
8. No Sunwell for us? Little transient ones? Buried rivers of ley energies? Pretty flowering mounds that leads to giggling little places?
9. WoW mages are the only mages in all fantasy record without a familiar. (so I exaggerates...u get the point)
10. Hiding behind the warlock/shadow priest skirts doesn't make WoW "mages" different from the powerful house of yesteryears.

Lastly, Blizzard thank you for fixing the Arcane tree, and taking care of mages in your own special ways.

Portable Hole...Ithraides Ethereal Boudoir...mages polymorph themselves, witches polymorphs others...don't get me started.