Insider Trader: The Oil Industry
by Lisa Poisso 
Jul 20th 2007 at 1:00PM
Insider Trader is your inside line on making, selling, buying and using player-made products.
While the world outside WoW contemplates the future of the petroleum industry, casters nurse their own form of oil dependency: mana oils and wizard oils. Heck, if you're an enchanter, you may even be hooked on both! These weapon-buffing beauties boost various combinations of healing, mana regeneration, spell damage and spell critical strike rating ... juicy stuff for casters.
As with many consumables, The Burning Crusade era ushered in an enhanced rung of these weapon-buffing oils. Yes, they're higher level than the older versions ... But as Blizzard is so fond of reminding us, bigger is not always better. Most players seem to prefer the older oils, which offer the stronger oomph of two effects instead of one. However, today's shift away from Old-World components (in this case, the relative difficulty of obtaining Large Brilliant Shards in a post-Burning Crusade economy) stymies many an enchanter seeking to make and market oils, as well as many a consumer seeking an affordable way to buy them.
Oil it up
Mana and wizard oils are 30-minute weapon buffs that persist through both death and zoning. (They used to not persist through zoning, but this has been changed quite some time ago.) Because you can die and zone without losing their effects, oils are a superb choice for boosting output and staying power when learning new encounters.
Oils come in non-stackable vials containing five 30-minute charges. Click the oil and then your weapon to apply a charge to your weapon.
A note on "required levels": The required level of these oils refers to the item level of the weapon the oil is being applied to, not the level required by the player to use the item.
Let's take a look at the pre-BC and post-BC oils.
Mana oil: The old version
Brilliant Mana Oil
12mp5 and +25 healing
Requires level 45
Components: 2 Large Brilliant Shards, 3 Purple Lotus, 1 Imbued Vial
Formula Requires Zandalar Tribe - Friendly
The gold standard for healers, Brilliant Mana Oil provides a hefty bonus to both mana regen and +healing. Most servers have a sufficient population of Zandalar-friendly enchanters to get these made without too much to-do. The challenge to getting these made in today's economy lies with the components. Purple Lotus isn't too terribly difficult to come by, but Large Brilliant Shards are in short supply in today's economy. Most enchanters who take the time to farm old instances for shards remain intent on using them for their own oils. Consumers will have a much easier time getting these made if they farm up their own shards.
Mana oil: The new version
Superior Mana Oil
14 mp5
Requires level 52
Components: 3 Arcane Dust, 1 Netherbloom, 1 Imbued Vial
Formula requires Enchanting (310); available from Outlands vendors
With a gain of 2 mana per 5 seconds over the older oil but a loss of +25 to healing, Superior Mana Oil is generally considered inferior to the older Brilliant Mana Oil – but oh, how much easier it is to come by the components in this day and age! The formula is easily purchased in various Outlands locations by enchanters of skill 310 or higher. For non-healers, of course, Superior Mana Oil is desirable for its maximum mana regeneration. Hunters can dual-oil their dual-wielding selves to great effect in intense encounters.
Wizard oil: The old version
Brilliant Wizard Oil
+36 spell damage and +14 spell critical strike rating
Requires level 45
Components: 2 Large Brilliant Shards, 3 Firebloom, 1 Imbued Vial
Formula requires Zandalar Tribe – Honored
Brilliant Wizard Oil offers a sexy double-whammy bonus to both spell damage and spell critical strike rating, and the spell damage affects healing as well. Unfortunately, this oil can be harder to find on newer servers where fewer enchanters have had the opportunity to achieve Honored rep with Zul'Gurub's Zandalar tribe. Obtaining the Large Brilliant Shards to make these remains the primary hurdle for consumers, and as with mana oils, most enchanters who farm for shards want to use them for their own oils. Consumers will have a much easier time getting these made if they farm up their own shards.
Wizard oil: The new version
Superior Wizard Oil
+42 spell damage
Components: 3 Arcane Dust, 1 Nightmare Vine, 1 Imbued Vial
Requires level 58
Formula requires Enchanting (310); available from Outlands vendors
Few casters will want to trade a gain of +6 spell damage for a loss of +14 spell critical strike rating from the older Brilliant Wizard Oil – but the components for Superior Wizard Oil are much easier to come by in the BC era. Healers might want to consider these as a less-expensive alternative to Brilliant Mana Oil, because although wizard oils don't provide mana regen, the spell damage does also affect healing bonuses (and +42 healing ain't too shabby!). For enchanters who are unable to reach Honored with the Zandalar Tribe, this formula is a simple substitute, easily purchased in various Outlands locations by enchanters of skill 310 or higher. In fact, this formula serves as a great grinding product for enchanters before and after the 350 skill mark.
And finally, don't forget lower-level versions of these oils:
Minor Mana Oil
Lesser Mana Oil
Minor Wizard Oil
Lesser Wizard Oil
Lisa Poisso is a freelance writer, when she's not bugging guildmates to run Old-World instances to get shards to feed her mana oil habit.
While the world outside WoW contemplates the future of the petroleum industry, casters nurse their own form of oil dependency: mana oils and wizard oils. Heck, if you're an enchanter, you may even be hooked on both! These weapon-buffing beauties boost various combinations of healing, mana regeneration, spell damage and spell critical strike rating ... juicy stuff for casters. As with many consumables, The Burning Crusade era ushered in an enhanced rung of these weapon-buffing oils. Yes, they're higher level than the older versions ... But as Blizzard is so fond of reminding us, bigger is not always better. Most players seem to prefer the older oils, which offer the stronger oomph of two effects instead of one. However, today's shift away from Old-World components (in this case, the relative difficulty of obtaining Large Brilliant Shards in a post-Burning Crusade economy) stymies many an enchanter seeking to make and market oils, as well as many a consumer seeking an affordable way to buy them.
Oil it up
Mana and wizard oils are 30-minute weapon buffs that persist through both death and zoning. (They used to not persist through zoning, but this has been changed quite some time ago.) Because you can die and zone without losing their effects, oils are a superb choice for boosting output and staying power when learning new encounters.
Oils come in non-stackable vials containing five 30-minute charges. Click the oil and then your weapon to apply a charge to your weapon.
A note on "required levels": The required level of these oils refers to the item level of the weapon the oil is being applied to, not the level required by the player to use the item.
Let's take a look at the pre-BC and post-BC oils.
Mana oil: The old version
Brilliant Mana Oil
12mp5 and +25 healing
Requires level 45
Components: 2 Large Brilliant Shards, 3 Purple Lotus, 1 Imbued Vial
Formula Requires Zandalar Tribe - Friendly
The gold standard for healers, Brilliant Mana Oil provides a hefty bonus to both mana regen and +healing. Most servers have a sufficient population of Zandalar-friendly enchanters to get these made without too much to-do. The challenge to getting these made in today's economy lies with the components. Purple Lotus isn't too terribly difficult to come by, but Large Brilliant Shards are in short supply in today's economy. Most enchanters who take the time to farm old instances for shards remain intent on using them for their own oils. Consumers will have a much easier time getting these made if they farm up their own shards.
Mana oil: The new version
Superior Mana Oil
14 mp5
Requires level 52
Components: 3 Arcane Dust, 1 Netherbloom, 1 Imbued Vial
Formula requires Enchanting (310); available from Outlands vendors
With a gain of 2 mana per 5 seconds over the older oil but a loss of +25 to healing, Superior Mana Oil is generally considered inferior to the older Brilliant Mana Oil – but oh, how much easier it is to come by the components in this day and age! The formula is easily purchased in various Outlands locations by enchanters of skill 310 or higher. For non-healers, of course, Superior Mana Oil is desirable for its maximum mana regeneration. Hunters can dual-oil their dual-wielding selves to great effect in intense encounters.
Wizard oil: The old version
Brilliant Wizard Oil
+36 spell damage and +14 spell critical strike rating
Requires level 45
Components: 2 Large Brilliant Shards, 3 Firebloom, 1 Imbued Vial
Formula requires Zandalar Tribe – Honored
Brilliant Wizard Oil offers a sexy double-whammy bonus to both spell damage and spell critical strike rating, and the spell damage affects healing as well. Unfortunately, this oil can be harder to find on newer servers where fewer enchanters have had the opportunity to achieve Honored rep with Zul'Gurub's Zandalar tribe. Obtaining the Large Brilliant Shards to make these remains the primary hurdle for consumers, and as with mana oils, most enchanters who farm for shards want to use them for their own oils. Consumers will have a much easier time getting these made if they farm up their own shards.
Wizard oil: The new version
Superior Wizard Oil
+42 spell damage
Components: 3 Arcane Dust, 1 Nightmare Vine, 1 Imbued Vial
Requires level 58
Formula requires Enchanting (310); available from Outlands vendors
Few casters will want to trade a gain of +6 spell damage for a loss of +14 spell critical strike rating from the older Brilliant Wizard Oil – but the components for Superior Wizard Oil are much easier to come by in the BC era. Healers might want to consider these as a less-expensive alternative to Brilliant Mana Oil, because although wizard oils don't provide mana regen, the spell damage does also affect healing bonuses (and +42 healing ain't too shabby!). For enchanters who are unable to reach Honored with the Zandalar Tribe, this formula is a simple substitute, easily purchased in various Outlands locations by enchanters of skill 310 or higher. In fact, this formula serves as a great grinding product for enchanters before and after the 350 skill mark.
And finally, don't forget lower-level versions of these oils:
Minor Mana Oil
Lesser Mana Oil
Minor Wizard Oil
Lesser Wizard Oil
Lisa Poisso is a freelance writer, when she's not bugging guildmates to run Old-World instances to get shards to feed her mana oil habit.
Filed under: Enchanting, Tips, Buffs, Insider Trader (Professions)
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Lokse Jul 20th 2007 1:12PM
For hunters in particular, mana oil is an excellent argument to dual-wield with the advent of the new +20 agi enchant next patch. Myself and a few hunters I know, have all started Need rolling on Stellaris (which we previously considered DE-fodder,) for the sizable crit and AP paired with a pair of mana oils..
1.25% crit, almost as much AP as a Sonic Spear with Savegery, and 28 mp/5.. Yummy!
ben1778 Jul 20th 2007 1:28PM
The brillant versions of the oils routinely sell for a few G more than the higher lvl versions, however that is probably due to both higher demand and lower supply. There always seems to be a few superior oils on the AH since people are always looking for inexpensive ways to level up enchanting.
Sergio Jul 20th 2007 1:58PM
Mage theorycrafters say 1 spell damage is equivalent to about 1.5 spell crit rating. So the overall damage difference is close to 3.33 more damage in favor of the older oils. It's worth it if you are a min/max DPSer who wants to squeeze out that extra bit of damage in the form of crits, or you have trinkets that proc on crits.
CTDeLude Jul 20th 2007 2:16PM
What is the best place to farm large brilliant shards anyways? Seems as if the items fall from the high instances which aren't as easily solo farmed.
Sylythn Jul 20th 2007 3:07PM
And a nice little bonus to these oils is that you can put it on someone else's weapon just like an enchant - so you don't have to give away 5 charges to every caster.
Matthew Rossi Jul 20th 2007 3:21PM
Farming LBS, I'd say BRD (you'll get smalls, too, but the stuff that drops from the Chest of the Seven should DE to large and it can easily be two manned) or maybe LBRS if you're feeling ambitious. I've two manned the Spider Boss in there who drops Wildheart boots.
Argent Jul 20th 2007 3:26PM
best place to farm LBS (hands down) is Dire Maul East. you can push through a whole instance in about 10-15 mins, killing 3 bosses (4 if you got the tier 0.5 gizmo.)
but it's still out in the boonies, so BRD or LBRS might be better options for most.