Originally Posted by Qbert

Koraas statement about utility/DPS compromises really hit a nerve for me. I really hope it was directed purely at the imp WE mana regen. It frustrates me whenever the changes to Imp Scorch & WC are even considered utility. They should by no means be treated as utility for DPS balance purposes, since they are specifically designed to boost the classes own DPS.

It seems that the only way Mages will have competitive DPS is when all Mage debuffs are present.It is like the devs realized the Mages lack of damage capability and opted to give the trees a few debuffs to close the gap.... then point to the exact same DPS-modifying debuffs as an example of utility, and thus a reason to nerf the damage!
I'm sorry but it just doesn't work both ways. Yes, the WC debuff will help Destruction Firelocks and Moonkin, and imp scorch will help Moonkin whereas it has always boosted Firelocks.... but Focus Magic is nothing but a damage spell with a different mechanic, and it seems like Mages are the only ones going OOM getting excited about the imp WE mana regen.

In the end, all this so-called utility is essentially Mage-only. Shaman, Priests, Warriors, Paladins, Rogues, Hunters and 2 out of 3 Warlock/Druid specs still couldn't care less if a Mage is brought to the raid. That sounds a lot more like liability than utility, and certainly not any reason to bring multiple Mages to a raid unless Mage DPS rivals Rogues.

As it stands now, I can easily see a raid justifiably bringing 0 Mages, 0 Destruction Warlocks & 0 Moonkin. The only way to redeem the classes/specs is ensuring that the three specs combined do more damage than any other 3 class/spec combination. Otherwise, you replace a Mage and lose Imp Scorch? Moonkin, Destrolock & Mage lose 10% damage. Lose WC & imp WE? Moonkin, Destrolock & Mage lose 10% crit & sustainability. Lose the Moonkin? Destrolock & Two Mages lose 5% crit and ~5% overall haste.

note: if you drop Mages, you might as well drop any Destruction Warlock too because 10% damage and 10% crit lost would cripple viability.

No matter how you swing it, 2 Mage specs, Destrolock and a Moonkin appear necessarily a package deal, or you lose 10% damage from each remaining source. Then, even if all are present, if they don't outdamage 4 rogues or 4 hunters or 2 rogues/1 enhance shaman/1 warrior, etc. etc. ... then theres no reason to ever bring them to raid for anything beyond gimmick AoE/spellsteal encounters. This is why having top DPS potential is so imperative if the specs remain the way they are; without the DPS potential the so-called "utility" is nigh useless and not worth the slot, because the main beneficiaries of the "utility" would be the lagging DPS classes.