[Cataclysm] Mage Simple Questions and Answers (Read the First Post)
 

If you have a simple question that only requires a simple answer and don't see a better place to post it, this is your thread. Forum rules still apply although rule #7 is relaxed. However, if you ask a question that is clearly explained in one of the spec specific threads, then your post may still be infracted. Asking people to make specific gear or spec decisions for you is still against the rules. Proper capitalization, punctuation, and spelling are important even in short posts. This thread is for simple questions- not stupid ones.

Furthermore, we are now allowing you to post your World of Logs parses if you feel stuck with respect to your DPS. Please note you must follow the criteria listed here:

• The parse must be from a 10 or 25 man raid (non-heroic is fine). 5-mans and target dummies are not welcome.
• In line with this, you must be max level (85). We're not about to look over a log from a level 70 Sunwell run.
• Your profile MUST work. If you tend to change specs/log out in PVP gear please create a character profile through Wowhead or a similar site. That way if your issue is related to your gear, help can be provided.
• You must give a few sentences regarding what you think your problem is. Are you moving a lot due to fight mechanics? Do you perform some vital secondary role that may impact your DPS? (kiting, etc). We can't help you if you don't help us.

Please note that this thread is no exception to how the rest of our forums work regarding the fact that no one is obligated to help you. Do not bump, repost, or cry about it.

Has there been any definitive answer on whether the patch changes has made blizzard the preferable aoe spell for fire mages as well? (After spreading dots with impact of course) A quick glance at tool tip damage seems to show that blizzard does roughly 3x the amount of damage as flamestrike, over the same duration. Obviously the difference in casting/channeling may make a bit of difference here, I curious as to if anyone has worked out the math?

Hot Streak Overwriting
 

This may be old or new i've read through several forums and can't seem to find any information that isn't outdated back to Wrath. I've been experiencing a LOT of Hot Streak overwriting my procs. Seems that Hot Streak and Improved Hotstreak are overwriting one another I'm getting in my combat logs (which i have a screen capture of to back this up) that I had two crit procs of fireball but my log says I gained a Hotstreak and time stamp exactly the same says that its refreshed my Hotstreak. Is there a way to avoid this? Or is this just an occurrence that's unavoidable? Also flight time on FB while queing my next fireball seems to cause overwriting also. usually with less than a second between procs. Any advice?

I have been tinkering with Rawr/Simcraft but I can't seem to figure out a definitive number for the arcane mage haste cap. I have been assuming full 25 man buffs and attempting to push my bloodlusted AB cast time as close to one second as possible. I am coming up with somewhere around 1434 haste rating assuming Troll racials. Is this correct or am I doing something wrong?

The cap is ~10.7% (with 4pc t11) haste before lust. Assuming Netherwind Presence and raid buff 5%, you should need about 2.36% haste or 302 rating from gear to be at 1 sec casts during lust. I assume by Troll Racials you don't mean berserking, because with berserking and lust and nothing else, you would be well past the cap.

You might want to check here: http://elitistjerks.com/f75/t110326-...9/#post1920635

and the posts above and below it. There's nothing concrete at the moment, but there is a hint at some changes to the HS proc chances.

If the proc is simultaneous then you're out of luck with the overwriting. It has been happening to me on occasion as well.

Caps....
 

Been trying to find a definitive answer on these forums with regards to caps for fire mages - in specific crit chance.

For my mage, ive been getting the hit cap and then reforging any mastery or haste into crit and managing a rating of 2175 (which is 23% unbuffed).

The simple question is, how efficient is it for me to be continually pumping all haste/mastery into crit? Are there actual caps making increasing this no longer viable over using haster or mastery?

I imagine this is quite a loaded question but hoping some of you guys might be able to point me in the right direction.

Delly

Have you even read: http://elitistjerks.com/f75/t110326-...Combat_Ratings ?

First off you're off base with your hit cap. 17% is the cap, not 23%. Secondly, haste vs crit for fire is VERY gear dependent. Read through some of the simcraft or RAWR stuff to get a handle on that. In fact, try using this: elitistjerks.com/rawr.php

Just an off note here. I'm not hit capped. Haven't ever been. I'm close now, but I've been as far as 2-3% below and still managed good DPS.

Thanks for the agressive response - yes i've read said thread and if you read my post correctly, you would see im referring to my CRIT being 23% not my hit - i know hit cap is 17% and have that bang on.

Back to the combat ratings part - i think this has been recently made moot by patch 4.1 that eliminated the majority of ignite munching issues from periodic damage (but happy to be corrected here).

That would be my bad on mis reading that then. Sorry.

Thus far I've seen two schools of thought on the ignite munching. I personally feel it's been eliminated (as long as you don't toss a proc'd Pyro! right after a fireball/scorch/fire blast. Although the issue really would be moot as the ignite from the Pyro! should be bigger... but you'd still lose out on the previous ignite.

This post gets at a little simcraft to the haste vs crit currently in post 4.1: http://elitistjerks.com/f75/t110326-...8/#post1918974

As well as a few posts around that area.

Been a bad day at work for me hence the agressive response from me - apologies.

I was afraid of the haste vs crit answer. I have been following the threads but I think it'll be just an indecisive answer - maybe for now im better evenly spreading between crit and haste - ill do some scenarios on the rawr and simc.

Actually, the only scenario of those that is likely to result in a lost ignite is if you cast Pyroblast! right after a Fireball. The travel time of Pyroblast is usually sufficient to prevent munching after an instant spell. Unfortunately, although only limited testing has been performed, the results suggest that in this case, the larger ignite from the Pyroblast is the most likely to be lost.

RE: Arcane Mage "rotation". I've read some light theorycrafting to a second, smaller burn phase using fire orb. Essentially, after you're back to 100% after the first burn, you do a 2nd smaller burn and use fire orb arcane missile procs to get back to full once that's over. Is this in any way substantiated? I didn't see anything in the arcane mage compendium regarding this.

Could you link to that TC Terrorific? I'd be interested to read up on it a bit more. I personally toss the Orb out while I have my Spell power and Int buffs up during the burn phase so it gets the bonuses from that. Then I drop into a conservation phase or 3 or 4 AB and then missle/barrage.

Working on my Chog'all HM spec and wondered; does the 100% blood buff/debuff also makes you immun to Cauterize healing?