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The Mage in WoW Forever is a pure damage class. Frost is the pick for leveling, dungeons and PvP. Humans, Gnomes and Skyborne play it for the Alliance, Orcs, Undead and Trolls for the Horde. You wear Cloth and use daggers, one-handed swords, staves and wands. 7 of the 53 talents are new.
You fight from range with Frost, Fire and Arcane spells and keep enemies away with slows, Frost Nova and Blink. You conjure your own food and water, turn one enemy into a sheep with Polymorph and hit whole packs with area spells in dungeons. Cloth armor means you drop fast when something reaches you, so control is part of every fight.
Best to level: FrostFrostbolt slows everything you hit, Frost Nova buys time and Ice Lance at 20 punishes frozen enemies, so most mobs die before they reach you. Also good: Fire.
Damage
You stack Arcane Blast, and every cast adds spell damage for 18 sec, then cash in with fast, free Arcane Missiles when Missile Barrage triggers. It burns through mana and levels slowly, so most Mages switch to it later for dungeons and burst.
Damage
You cast Fireball and Fire Blast, and your critical hits add Ignite burns and speed up your next Pyroblast through Heating Up. It kills single targets quickly while leveling and grows stronger as your gear adds crit chance.
Damage
You slow enemies with Frostbolt, freeze them with Frost Nova and hit frozen targets with Ice Lance for heavy bonus damage. Ice Block and later Ice Barrier keep you alive, which makes Frost the safest way to level a Mage.
Drag to your level: the talent to take now, your newest abilities and the dungeons that fit.
Take now
New abilities
Dungeons for you
Class quests30Journey to the Marsh → Choice of Icefury Wand, Nether Force Wand or Ragefire Wand
These races can play a Mage. Hover a racial icon for the details.
Human
Alliance
Will to Survive breaks any stun the instant you need to Blink or reposition, Ruthless adds 1% crit to every spell, and The Human Spirit adds 10% Spirit for both your regeneration and Arcane Meditation.
GnomeTop Alliance pick
Alliance
For 8 sec Eureka! makes your spells 10% cheaper and 10% stronger. Periodic effects do not gain from it, channeled spells like Arcane Missiles do. Expansive Mind and Escape Artist round out a strong all-purpose kit.
Skyborne
Alliance
Read Leyline adds 50% mana and health regeneration for 15 sec and can be cast on the move. Cast it at a leyline and you stay Attuned for 1 hour, which doubles it to 100%, a big help while you level. Wind Blessed adds 2% haste to every spell. The beta notes of October 15 also added more Leyline and Elemental Convergence spawn locations in most Eastern Kingdoms and Kalimdor zones.
OrcTop Horde pick
Horde
Blood Fury grants Spell Power as well as Attack Power, a straight damage cooldown for a caster every 2 min, and Hardiness shortens every stun you eat.
UndeadTop PvP pick
Horde
Will of the Forsaken is usually called the strongest Mage PvP racial in the game, breaking or preventing Charm, Fear and Sleep, while Cannibalize restores mana as well as health between pulls.
Troll
Horde
Berserking speeds up your casting for 15 seconds on demand, and the reworked Rapid Regeneration channels back half your health, a real defensive tool Mages otherwise lack.
The Mage can use daggers, one-handed swords, staves and wands. Weapon skills you do not have yet you buy from a Weapon Master in a capital, and the skill goes up as you fight with the weapon. Your class trainer teaches new abilities and ranks and resets your talents, and a second talent set opens at level 40.
Orc mages, new in Forever, use the Orgrimmar trainers. High Order Skyborne mages start in Thendal Village and later find Jessa Weaver in Dalaran in the Alterac Mountains. Darnassus has no mage trainer.
Class trainersBeta
Weapon MastersBeta
All Mage trainers on the World Map
As of Oct 10, 2026. NPCs and places from the beta database, we check them again in the live game.
Your trainer teaches 160 abilities and ranks from level 1 to 60. In the beta that came to 241g 37s, at launch the whole training from 1 to 60 costs about 206–207 gold for every class. New ranks come on every even level, so drop by every two levels. Of these, 13 are new in Forever and 2 come later than in Classic.
| Level | What you learn | Cost | Total so far |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
| 10c | 10c |
| 4 |
| 2s | 2s 10c |
| 6 |
| 3s | 5s 10c |
| 8 |
| 6s | 11s 10c |
| 10 |
| 12s | 23s 10c |
| 12 |
| 24s | 47s 10c |
| 14 |
| 36s | 83s 10c |
| 16 |
| 30s | 1g 13s |
| 18 |
| 54s | 1g 67s |
| 20 |
| 1g 80s | 3g 47s |
| Level | What you learn | Cost | Total so far |
|---|---|---|---|
| 22 |
| 1g 50s | 4g 97s |
| 24 |
| 2g 2s | 6g 99s |
| 26 |
| 1g 50s | 8g 49s |
| 28 |
| 3g 80s | 12g 29s |
| 30 |
| 6g 44s | 18g 73s |
| 32 |
| 5g | 23g 73s |
| 34 |
| 5g 15s | 28g 88s |
| 36 |
| 6g 48s | 35g 36s |
| 38 |
| 5g 60s | 40g 96s |
| 40 |
| 15g | 55g 96s |
| Level | What you learn | Cost | Total so far |
|---|---|---|---|
| 42 |
| 12g 69s | 68g 65s |
| 44 |
| 7g 1s | 75g 67s |
| 46 |
| 10g 73s | 86g 40s |
| 48 |
| 19g 65s | 106g 5s |
| 50 |
| 22g 40s | 128g 45s |
| 52 |
| 17g 85s | 146g 30s |
| 54 |
| 18g 18s | 164g 48s |
| 56 |
| 19g 20s | 183g 68s |
| 58 |
| 16g 20s | 199g 88s |
| 60 |
| 41g 48s | 241g 37s |
Beta dataFrom the trainer lists of the Forever beta, as of Oct 24, 2026. The prices per rank are still the beta ones, the launch evened them out.
Every class quest that brings you an ability, a form or a class item, quest by quest: who gives it and where, what you need and what you get.
Journey to the MarshLevel 38
Mage's WandLevel 40
Beta dataQuest steps from the Forever beta database, as of Oct 21, 2026. The quest texts you read in the game.
Rotation Trainer
See every button with the reason behind it, your Mana live and all presses on a timeline. Play it on your own keys and compare your damage, or watch it with Autoplay.
The builds players plan for level 60, under the names you hear in chat. One click opens the full build in the talent calculator.
Damage·Raid and dungeon damage with strong control
Fingers of Frost keeps Ice Lance hitting like a Frozen target even on bosses, Frostbolt stacks Winter's Chill for a stronger Cone of Cold, Ice Barrier adds Frost damage while you keep it up, and Missile Barrage from the Arcane side adds free Arcane Missiles between casts.
Damage·Raid damage that scales hard with gear
Improved Scorch stacks a Fire vulnerability debuff, Heating Up shortens your Pyroblast casts, and Combustion raises your Fire crit chance with every hit until you land 3 crits, all backed by Master of Elements.
Damage·Raid burst damage for guilds that manage mana breaks
You stack Arcane Blast for extra spell damage and fire free Arcane Missiles when Missile Barrage procs, then use Arcane Power and Presence of Mind together for the single biggest burst window a Mage has.
Damage·Battlegrounds and world PvP control
Ice Barrier keeps your casts alive under focus fire, Improved Counterspell punishes anyone who tries to heal or reset through your silence, and Fingers of Frost keeps Ice Lance dangerous even without a Frost Nova.
Damage·Battleground burst on a single target
Presence of Mind turns your next spell instant and Arcane Power adds 30% damage on top, a burst combo few targets survive, backed by a Frost half for Ice Block and Shatter when things go wrong.
The beta stopped at level 30, so these level 60 builds are plans from the Forever talent data. Since launch we check them in the live game. Builds as published on wowforeverbuilds.com.
Our pick for every slot at level 60 from the gear the Forever data holds: dungeon drops, dungeon quests, Dungeon Set 2 and crafted items. The raids open on December 9, until then this is the gear to farm.
EditorialThe item stats come from the Forever client. The order is our call by the stats each spec wants, because the beta stopped at level 30 and nobody has tested level 60. Set bonuses are not counted. Stats and hit cap.
What countsSpell power first, Fire, Frost or Arcane damage for its school, then hit, crit and Intellect.
| Slot | Our pick | Where it comes from | Also good |
|---|---|---|---|
| Head |  |   | |
| Shoulder |  | Tailoring 300, pattern from a vendor |   |
| Back |  | Tailoring 275, pattern from Overmaster Pyron | |
| Chest |  | Tailoring 300, pattern from Firebrand Pyromancer (Blackrock Spire) |  |
| Wrist |  |   | |
| Hands |  |   | |
| Waist |  |   | |
| Legs |  |  | |
| Feet |  |  | |
| Ranged | | Enchanting 320, formula from a vendor |
The Forever data has no item from level 50 for neck, finger, trinket, main hand and held in off-hand yet. We add them once the dungeons are run at level 60 in the live game.
Raid gear, PvP rank gear and battleground rewards are not in this list, PvP has its own page: PvP gear.
Rare and epic armor (Cloth) and weapons you can use, dungeon by dungeon by level. Armor and weapon types as in Classic. Getting to 60 takes many evenings of quests and dungeons. If you would rather spend yours elsewhere, a WoW Forever leveling boost for your Mage takes over those levels.
Seen in the beta, unless it says otherwise.
Frost gets Ice Lance, an instant spell that hits frozen enemies much harder, and later Fingers of Frost, which makes your next spells treat the target as frozen, even bosses that cannot be frozen. At launch Ice Lance deals 300% more damage to frozen targets again, but it has an 8 sec cooldown that it shares with Fire Blast. Frost Blast, a beta spell from level 24, is removed.
Frost changed again for launch. Piercing Ice is gone from the tree, and Precision, the old Elemental Precision, has 3 ranks for 6% hit with all spells. Winter's Chill stacks only from Frostbolt and Ice Lance with Fingers of Frost, and each stack adds 20% damage and 7% of your spell damage to your next Cone of Cold. Ice Barrier also gives you 15% more Frost damage for 1 min and another 5% while the shield holds, and Frost Warding makes Ice Barrier and Frost Ward absorb more and gives Frost Ward a chance to cancel a spell's damage instead of reflecting it.
Arcane is a real damage spec now. Arcane Blast at 20 is a 1.5 sec cast, and each one adds 12% of your Intellect as spell damage for 18 sec, up to 4 times, while every stack makes the next one 100% more expensive. Missile Barrage sits in the second row at launch and makes Arcane Missiles fast and free. Arcane Blast, Arcane Wrath, Fireball, Frostbolt and Frostfire Bolt light it, Arcane Missiles hits no longer do. Arcane Wrath, a new talent you reach with 15 points in Arcane, hits about like a Fireball plus extra spell power from 5% of your maximum Mana on a 6 sec cooldown.
Frostfire Bolt is a new spell at level 40. It counts as both Fire and Frost, slows the target, takes the higher of your Fire and Frost spell damage bonuses and checks the lower of the target's two resistances.
Not tested in the betaHeating Up, called Hot Streak until October 1, works differently from Hot Streak in later versions. Each direct crit from Fireball, Fire Blast or Scorch adds a stack that makes your next Pyroblast cast faster, not instant, and Ignite and Improved Scorch now only boost your own damage. Combustion ends after 3 critical hits again instead of 4. Since October 16 every Fire Blast adds a stack, a critical one two, and Presence of Mind no longer eats your stacks on a Pyroblast. Fire Power now adds 1 to 3% Fire damage for each of your Fire effects on the target, up to 12%.
Not tested in the betaImproved Blizzard slows far less than before, so large area farming pulls are harder than in Classic.
Comprehension is a new skill only Mages have. From level 6 you read the untranslated scrolls that enemies drop with Comprehend Scroll and turn them into buffs, weapon enchants or consumables, and in a library Study turns a Light Feather into a Bundle of Scrolls once an hour. Detect Magic is gone. The spells from these scrolls can no longer be cast while moving.
On October 8 the low ranks of Frostbolt, Fireball and Arcane Missiles were evened out, so every new rank you train is an upgrade over the last.
More launch changes: Improved Fireball is now Accelerant and also speeds up Arcane Wrath, Critical Mass is back to 3 ranks for 6% crit (was 5 ranks for 10%), Incineration has 5 ranks for 10%, Improved Fire Blast moved to the third row, Arcane Focus is merged into Precision and Arcane Resilience takes 3 points for armor equal to 75% of your Intellect. Arcane Missiles only checks line of sight when the channel starts.
7 of 53 talents are new
Every change from Classic Era, for each class and beyond the talents, is in WoW Forever vs Classic, and what Blizzard's patches changed for the Mage in the patch notes.
For your class
Sets13
Frost. Frostbolt slows everything you hit, Frost Nova buys time and Ice Lance at 20 punishes frozen enemies, so most mobs die before they reach you. Also good: Fire.
Frost. Frost controls a pack with Frost Nova, Cone of Cold and Blizzard, and Ice Block saves you when a pull goes wrong. Winter's Chill stacks only from Frostbolt and Ice Lance with Fingers of Frost, no longer from Blizzard, and each stack makes your next Cone of Cold hit 20% harder.
Frost. Frost survives what kills other Mages: Ice Block comes at level 25 and saves a lost fight, Shatter turns Frost Nova into crits (roots from Frostbite have diminishing returns now), and Ice Barrier at 40 now gives 15% more Frost damage for a minute and another 5% while the shield holds. Frost Warding on the first row makes Ice Barrier and Frost Ward absorb more.
Until the raids open on December 9, your best gear comes from the level 60 dungeons, their quests, Dungeon Set 2 and crafting. For Arcane, Fire and Frost: Deathmist Mask (Dungeon Set 2) and Robe of the Archmage (Tailoring). Every pick is our call until level 60 is tested.
Gnome for the Alliance, Orc for the Horde, Undead for PvP. Gnome: For 8 sec Eureka! makes your spells 10% cheaper and 10% stronger. Periodic effects do not gain from it, channeled spells like Arcane Missiles do. Expansive Mind and Escape Artist round out a strong all-purpose kit. Races that can play it: Human, Gnome, Skyborne, Orc, Undead and Troll.
Daggers, One-Handed Swords, Staves, Wands. You buy the weapon skills you do not have yet from a Weapon Master in the capitals. In the beta they stood in Stormwind, Ironforge and Darnassus for the Alliance and Orgrimmar, Thunder Bluff and Undercity for the Horde. Your skill with a weapon goes up as you fight with it.
Orc mages, new in Forever, use the Orgrimmar trainers. High Order Skyborne mages start in Thendal Village and later find Jessa Weaver in Dalaran in the Alterac Mountains. Darnassus has no mage trainer.
About 206 to 207 gold at launch: that is what the full training from 1 to 60 costs for every class. The trainer lists of the Forever beta added up to 241g 37s for the 160 abilities and ranks every Mage learns there, with the priciest visit at level 60 (41g 48s).
A new skill only Mages have. From level 6 you read the scrolls that enemies drop and turn them into buffs, weapon enchants or consumables. The skill goes up to 300, and in a library Study makes a Bundle of Scrolls once an hour.
For example Frost at level 60: open with Frostbolt, Frost Nova, Ice Lance, Frostbolt. Then your main buttons are Ice Lance, Frost Nova and Frostbolt. The Rotation Trainer shows every button with the reason behind it and lets you play it yourself.
The Mage is medium to start with. Your rotation stays short, but you wear cloth, drink often and have to keep enemies at range with slows and Frost Nova.
7 of 53 talents are new and 35 changed. Frost gets Ice Lance, an instant spell that hits frozen enemies much harder, and later Fingers of Frost, which makes your next spells treat the target as frozen, even bosses that cannot be frozen. At launch Ice Lance deals 300% more damage to frozen targets again, but it has an 8 sec cooldown that it shares with Fire Blast. Frost Blast, a beta spell from level 24, is removed.
As of Nov 6, 2026. Values from the beta and the launch client, hotfixes can still change them. Talent tree data: talentsforever.com (CC BY 4.0)
Every guide here shows how to do it yourself. If your evenings are short, our boosters take the grind off your hands. Options and current prices are on each service page.
Page history
Updated
Roots from Frostbite have diminishing returns now.
Removed spells left the trainer list: Salvation, Blessing of Light, Frost Blast, Lava Burst, Binding Heal.
Training from 1 to 60 costs about 206–207 gold at launch, and the launch class changes are in.
First published Every change on the guides
