Results tagged “buff”

Some mage tweaks appeard on the blue tracker at MMO Champion. They seem to be a mix of buffs and nerfs. My comments:

1) Evocation - cooldown reduced to 4 min.

1 minute off the cooldown is always going to be a buff.

2) Arcane Flows - now also reduces the cooldown of Evocation by an additional 1 / 2 min.

And likewise another 30 seconds.

3) Arcane Blast - overhauled. Will now increase the damage of your next Arcane spell by 15%. However using Arcane Blast itself does not consume the charge, but instead increases the mana of your next Arcane Blast, up to a maximum of 3 stacks (and a 45% buff). You can alternate Blast and Barrage to keep buffing Barrage, or you can build Blast up higher for a heavy mana cost.
An interesting change that is solidly aimed at using AB in a rotation. As it says, when combined with Arcane Barrage (or Arcane Missiles) you could be looking a quite a hefty zap. Could be costly to get the buff up to +45% though due to the mana-cost escalator on re-used AB (unlike, say, scorch)

4) Torment the Weak - now works with Arcane Blast and does bonus damage to targets afflicted by any kind of slowing effect (e.g. Thunder Clap).

Wide utility and greater range of proccing effects = win

 5) Elemental Precision - renamed Precision and now works on all spells.

This one is both a buff and a (needed) nerf. From the PoV of arcane it's a buff as it stacks with Arcane Focus (for a possible Arcane +hit of 6%). There's no change to frost or fire spells, but to frostfire its a nerf (as it seems to have been gaining +3% as frost AND +3% as fire). This latter 'nerf' was expected (more correcting a side-effect) and the arcane element is a buff.

6) Improved Blizzard - snaring effect reduced to 20/40/50%.

A definite nerf (as its currently 30/50/65%) but a fairly measured on in my opinion.