Arcane Mage DPS Mythic+ Tips — The War Within (11.0.5)

Last updated on Oct 27, 2024 at 09:23 by Dutchmagoz 69 comments
General Information

In this guide, you will find tips and advice to tackle Mythic+ dungeons with your Arcane Mage in World of Warcraft — The War Within (11.0.5).

1.

Best AoE/Mythic+ Talents for Arcane Mage

Both Sunfury and Spellslinger are good in Mythic+ content. However, the Spellslinger build does do more overall AoE DPS (while doing similar single-target), making it generally the favoured spec for Mythic+. We listed both in-case you do want to play Sunfury.

You can easily import the talent trees below into the game by using the "Export Talents" button below.

1.1.

Spellslinger AoE Build

This build does higher AoE damage while doing similar single-target damage.

1.2.

Sunfury AoE Build

This build does lower overall AoE damage, while doing similar single-target damage.

1.3.

Flexible Talents

1.3.1.

Utility / Defensive Flexible Talents

  • Replace Mass Barrier Icon Mass Barrier for Mass Invisibility Icon Mass Invisibility if your dungeon route requires the ability to skip enemy packs and have no one else providing the group with invisibility (a Rogue or using potions).
  • Swap out of Remove Curse Icon Remove Curse for any defensive talent of your choice when there are no Curses to dispel in the dungeon you plan to do or if someone else will handle the dispelling.
  • Swap out of Spellsteal Icon Spellsteal for any defensive talent of your choice when there are no buffs worth dispelling in the dungeon you plan to do.
  • Take Ring of Frost Icon Ring of Frost or Ice Nova Icon Ice Nova if you need any more crowd-control at the cost of any of your defensives.
  • Replace Blast Wave Icon Blast Wave for any defensive talent of your choosing if you do not need the crowd-control.
  • Replace Supernova Icon Supernova for any defensive talent of your choosing if you do not need the crowd-control.
  • Opt out of Ice Cold Icon Ice Cold (and the nodes leading to it) for any defensive nodes of your choosing if you need the immunity of Ice Block Icon Ice Block for the dungeon you are doing.
1.3.1.

DPS Flexible Talents

  • In the Sunfury build, swap out of Orb Barrage Icon Orb Barrage for Consortium's Bauble Icon Consortium's Bauble for more single-target DPS and less AoE DPS.
2.

Arcane Mage Utility In Mythic+

The main reason to bring an Arcane Mage to a Mythic+ group is for its damage, but aside from that, it also has some very valuable utility:

  • Arcane Intellect Icon Arcane Intellect is a big boost for both the other caster DPS in the group, as well as additional healing for the healer.
  • Time Warp Icon Time Warp is a required cooldown for any Mythic+ group.
  • Remove Curse Icon Remove Curse can be useful to dispel Curses in some dungeons.
  • An Arcane Mage can add a lot of crowd control in the form of Supernova Icon Supernova, Polymorph Icon Polymorph, Blast Wave Icon Blast Wave, Ice Nova Icon Ice Nova, Ring of Frost Icon Ring of Frost, or even Mass Slow Icon Mass Slow.
  • Spellsteal Icon Spellsteal can be useful in some dungeons to remove dangerous buffs from enemy targets. Sometimes, it can also be used as a big DPS boost for the Arcane Mage by Spellstealing beneficial buffs that increase your damage.
  • Mass Barrier Icon Mass Barrier can be brought as a decent defensive cooldown for the group.
  • Mass Invisibility Icon Mass Invisibility can be very useful to skip certain packs.
3.

Arcane Mage Mythic+ Rotation

The AoE rotation outlined in the Rotation Page below is a perfect fit for Mythic+ content. However, we also list some additional tips on this page that only apply to Mythic+.

4.

Dungeon Tips and Tricks for Arcane Mage for The War Within Season 1

This section has Mage-specific tips and tricks that may not seem obvious, for all dungeons' bosses and mobs. Generic tips or guides for the dungeons are not included here.

5.

Mythic+ Tips for Arcane Mage in The War Within Season 1

Ara-Kara City of Threads Dawnbreaker Grim Batol Necrotic Wake Mists of Tirna Scithe Siege of Boralus Stonevault
5.1.

Bosses

5.1.1.

Avanoxx

  • Try to use Arcane Surge Icon Arcane Surge immediately on the pulls so that Arcane Soul Icon Arcane Soul is up for the first adds.
5.1.2.

Anub'zekt

  • Use Shimmer Icon Shimmer when targeted by Burrow Charge Icon Burrow Charge, or use Greater Invisibility Icon Greater Invisibility to completely cancel the ability.
5.1.3.

Ki'katal

  • You can Blink Icon Blink to break the root of Grasping Blood Icon Grasping Blood. Shimmer Icon Shimmer can still be used while rooted to reposition, but it does not break the root.
  • Use Alter Time Icon Alter Time before Cosmic Singularity Icon Cosmic Singularity goes out far away from the boss, and re-activate it when you get pulled close.
5.2.

Trash

  • You can Blink Icon Blink out of the root of Silken Restraints Icon Silken Restraints and Grasping Blood Icon Grasping Blood. Shimmer Icon Shimmer can still be used while rooted to reposition, but it does not break the root.
5.3.

Bosses

5.3.1.

Orator Krix'vizk

  • Use Prismatic Barrier Icon Prismatic Barrier right before Shadows of Doubt to reduce the duration.
5.4.

Trash

  • Silk Binding Icon Silk Binding from Sureki Silkbinder can be completely negated by casting Prismatic Barrier Icon Prismatic Barrier combined with Energized Barriers Icon Energized Barriers.
  • Use Prismatic Barrier Icon Prismatic Barrier right before Shadows of Doubt from Herald of Ansurek to reduce the duration.
5.5.

Bosses

5.5.1.

Speaker Shadowcrown

  • Shimmer Icon Shimmer can bug out quite often while on the ship. You can still use it, but do not leave it for last second movement as it is quite likely to fail and simply not move you at all. Arcane Orb Icon Arcane Orb often does not work either on the ship.
5.5.2.

Rasha'nan

  • Mages are pretty good at delivering Arathi Bombs Icon Arathi Bombs due to good mobility, so be ready to pick some of these up, especially outside of DPS cooldowns.
5.6.

Trash

  • Tormenting Ray Icon Tormenting Ray from Nightfall Ritualist can be cancelled completely via Greater Invisibility Icon Greater Invisibility.
  • Tormenting Beam Icon Tormenting Beam from Nightfall Darkcaster can be cancelled completely via Greater Invisibility Icon Greater Invisibility.
  • Ensnaring Shadows Icon Ensnaring Shadows from Nightfall Shadowmage can be dispelled via Prismatic Barrier Icon Prismatic Barrier combined with Energized Barriers Icon Energized Barriers when on yourself, or Remove Curse Icon Remove Curse when on anyone.
  • You can Spellsteal Icon Spellsteal Abyssal Howl Icon Abyssal Howl from Nightfall Commander and Darkblade Icon Darkblade from Nightfall Curseblade.
5.7.

Bosses

5.7.1.

General Umbriss

  • Greater Invisibility Icon Greater Invisibility completely cancels Rock Spike Icon Rock Spike by pressing it right as you get the circle.
5.7.2.

Forgemaster Throngus

  • Note that the orc is not the main boss and usually dies very quickly. The main boss ends when dragon reaches 50% health, so do not use big DPS cooldowns right before that.
5.7.3.

Drahga Shadowburner

  • Remove Curse Icon Remove Curse should be used on Curse of Entropy Icon Curse of Entropy.
5.7.4.

Erudax, the Duke of Below

  • Blink Icon Blink / Ice Block Icon Ice Block can remove Depth's Grasp Icon Depth's Grasp if you happen to be running these spells.
5.8.

Trash

  • Remove Curse Icon Remove Curse Enveloping Shadowflame Icon Enveloping Shadowflame from Twilight Warlock.
  • Greater Invisibility Icon Greater Invisibility completely cancels Corrupt Icon Corrupt from Faceless Corruptor.
5.9.

Bosses

5.9.1.

Blightbone

  • Greater Invisibility Icon Greater Invisibility makes Heaving Retch Icon Heaving Retch pick a new target. Careful using this as it might cause a party member to be caught off guard by the sudden target switch.
5.9.2.

Amarth, The Harvester

  • Use Supernova Icon Supernova on the adds right as Final Harvest Icon Final Harvest is ending to avoid the explosion.
5.9.3.

Surgeon Stitchflesh

  • Greater Invisibility Icon Greater Invisibility cancels Morbid Fixation Icon Morbid Fixation.
  • Greater Invisibility Icon Greater Invisibility makes Spew Disease Icon Spew Disease pick a new target. Careful using this as it might cause a party member to be caught off guard by the sudden target switch.
  • Shimmer Icon Shimmer can sometimes bug out on the platform so be careful relying on it too heavily.
5.9.4.

Nalthor the Rimebinder

  • Greater Invisibility Icon Greater Invisibility makes Dark Exile Icon Dark Exile pick a new target. Careful using this as it might cause a party member to be caught off guard by the sudden target switch.
5.10.

Trash

  • Spellsteal Icon Spellsteal Dark Shroud Icon Dark Shroud from Nar'zudah quickly, especially if you have physical DPS in the group.
  • Greater Invisibility Icon Greater Invisibility makes Drain Fluids Icon Drain Fluids (cast by multiple enemies) pick a new target. Careful using this as it might cause a party member to be caught off guard by the sudden target switch.
  • Greater Invisibility Icon Greater Invisibility cancels Morbid Fixation Icon Morbid Fixation from Separation Assistant.
5.11.

Bosses

5.11.1.

Ingra Maloch

  • Greater Invisibility Icon Greater Invisibility makes Heaving Retch Icon Heaving Retch pick a new target. Careful using this as it might cause a party member to be caught off guard by the sudden target switch.
5.11.2.

Mistcaller

  • Polymorph Icon Polymorph works on Freeze Tag Icon Freeze Tag to stop it from moving.
5.12.

Trash

  • Always be in melee range of Druid Spiteclaw to avoid getting 1-shot by Bloodletting Icon Bloodletting.
  • Dying Breath Icon Dying Breath can be removed via Remove Curse Icon Remove Curse if someone got hit.
  • Greater Invisibility Icon Greater Invisibility cancels Overgrowth Icon Overgrowth from Tirnenn Villager.
  • Greater Invisibility Icon Greater Invisibility cancels Harvest Essence Icon Harvest Essence from Drust Harvester.
  • Greater Invisibility Icon Greater Invisibility cancels Expel Icon Expel from Mistveil Defender. Make sure to let the cast finish, and then activate Greater Invisibility.
  • Spellsteal Icon Spellsteal Bramblethorn Coat Icon Bramblethorn Coat and Nourish the Forest Icon Nourish the Forest (if not interrupted) from Mistveil Shaper/Tender
  • You can spellsteal Stimulate Resistance Icon Stimulate Resistance from Spinemaw Staghorn, but since this is AoE, you will end up having to Spellsteal many times, so it is much better that your group interrupts it.
5.13.

Bosses

5.13.1.

Chopper Redhook

  • If targeted by the fixate, the best solution is to simply kite the boss into a bomb. However, if for some reason you cannot do this, you can Greater Invisibility Icon Greater Invisibility right before the end of the fixate to avoid the boss AoE damage.
5.13.2.

Dread Captain Lockwood

  • Greater Invisibility Icon Greater Invisibility makes Fiery Ricochet Icon Fiery Ricochet pick a new target. Careful using this as it might cause a party member to be caught off guard by the sudden target switch.
5.13.3.

Hadal Darkfathom

  • Shimmer Icon Shimmer generally does not work properly on many parts of this fight. The planks and the final boat almost never work, but even on the first two platforms it can bug out, so do not rely on it too heavily.
  • Prismatic Barrier Icon Prismatic Barrier reduces the duration of Putrid Waters Icon Putrid Waters if you have it up before you get the debuff.
5.14.

Trash

  • Spellsteal Icon Spellsteal Watertight Shell Icon Watertight Shell from Irontide Waveshaper.
  • Spellsteal Icon Spellsteal Bolstering Shout Icon Bolstering Shout from Ashvane Commander.
  • You can Remove Curse Icon Remove Curse Cursed Slash Icon Cursed Slash from Irontide Curseblade if your tank struggles with survivability. (or just to be nice to your tank... never hurts)
5.15.

Bosses

5.15.1.

Master Machinists

  • Quickly Shimmer Icon Shimmer into Counterspell Icon Counterspell when the boss jumps away.
5.16.

Trash

  • Remove Curse Icon Remove Curse Void Infection Icon Void Infection from Cursedheart Invader.
6.

Affix Tips, Tricks and Management for Arcane Mage in The War Within Season 1

This section has Mage-specific tips for dealing with the various affixes of Mythic+. If you want general guides for each of our Dungeons or Mythic+ in general, check out our dedicated page below.

7.

Affix Guide for Arcane Mage in The War Within

Affix: Ascendant Affix: Oblivion Affix: Devour
6.1.

Ascendant Affix Management for Arcane Mage

Blast Wave Icon Blast Wave and Dragon's Breath Icon Dragon's Breath / Supernova Icon Supernova are great at handling this affix.

6.2.

Oblivion Affix Management for Arcane Mage

We do not have anything of particular use here, simply use your mobility tools as needed to soak these.

6.3.

Devour Affix Management for Arcane Mage

Remove Curse Icon Remove Curse should be used to remove Void Rift Icon Void Rift.

6.4.

Optimizing Movement and downtime in Mythic+

One of the most important parts of your damage in Mythic+ will come from how efficiently you move between packs and how you use the downtime between packs. Below, we have some tips on how to manage this.

  • Make sure you start the run with some water so you can generate mana out of combat if needed.
  • Make sure you drink some water if you are low on mana while moving to the next pack. The easiest way to do this is to Blink Icon Blink or Shimmer Icon Shimmer ahead right after a pack dies and getting in 2 or 3 seconds of drinking. Although nowadays you are unlikely to fully run out of mana, if you do end up very low on mana, make sure to use the downtime to recover this.
  • Avoid using Evocation Icon Evocation in combat whenever possible. You should always try to fit Evocation in between packs so that you can immediately start doing damage when you enter combat with the next pack or boss. Make sure to use Shimmer Icon Shimmer or Slipstream Icon Slipstream to follow your group toward the next pack while casting Evocation. Of course, if a pack or boss still has plenty of health left and Evocation is ready, you should still use it but otherwise, aim to use it outside of combat.
7.

Changelog

  • 22 Oct. 2024: Updated talents based on last minute nerfs.
  • 21 Oct. 2024: Updated best talents for 11.0.5 rework. Added Spellslinger vs Sunfury information. Added dungeon specific tips.
  • 09 Sep. 2024: Updated for TWW Season 1.
  • 07 May 2024: Reviewed for 10.2.7.
  • 22 Apr. 2024: Reviewed for Season 4.
  • 19 Mar. 2024: Reviewed for Patch 10.2.6. and updated talent choice information.
  • 15 Jan. 2024: Reviewed for Patch 10.2.5.
  • 06 Nov. 2023: Updated talents for 10.2.
  • 04 Sep. 2023: Reviewed for Patch 10.1.7
  • 10 Jul. 2023: Updated suggested talents and rotation for reworked Arcane.
  • 01 May 2023: Removed mentions about thundering and reviewed for 10.1 changes.
  • 20 Mar. 2023: Reviewed for Patch 10.0.7 and provided some small phrasing tweaks.
  • 24 Jan. 2023: Reviewed for Patch 10.0.5.
  • 16 Jan. 2022: Updated suggested talents to Mana Gem build and some minor tip changes.
  • 11 Dec. 2022: Reviewed for Dragonflight Season 1.
  • 28 Nov. 2022: Updated for Dragonflight launch.
  • 24 Oct. 2022: Updated for Dragonflight pre-patch.
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