Breakfast Topic: I suck at playing mage
by Dawn Moore 
Apr 25th 2010 at 8:00AM
Una was a promising young woman who hailed from the forests of Elwynn. She had many friends who loved her humor, wit, and engaged conversation. She baked a delicious peach and berry cobbler, and was known to take joy in simple things, like brightly colored boot socks. In apprentice mage school, Una was frequently complimented by her teachers for her brilliance. Her loving parents supported her choice to pursue magic, and with her gifts it was no surprise when she graduated top of her class.
Not long after Una began her service to the Stormwind guard, she was tasked to journey to the Redridge Mountains to help stabilize an encroaching force of Blackrock orcs. When Una arrived she learned that the orcs had taken refuge in a former human stronghold known as Stonewatch Keep. With a determined heart, Una set out to recapture the keep.
Una died.
Okay, so, what am I babbling about? Let me explain: Una is my level 29 mage. She was the second character I ever made, back in 2005 when vanilla WoW was in full swing. I had high hopes for her, but ended up abandoning her quite quickly in favor of priest. Why? Because I absolutely suck at playing mage. I'm an awful, terrible, baddie mage who can't even get to level cap! *cries* I don't really know what it is either; I have tried to go back and play Una many times over the years, and despite becoming quite savvy with priest (including shadow!), rogue, and feral druid, I still die to the same level 24 orcs in Redridge.
I always get overwhelmed by adds when I quest and and before long I'm running back to my corpse. Don't think I haven't been persistent either! I've tried emulating other mages, who I see run through packs of mobs, casting Frost Nova and Arcane Explosion all the way to 80, but it doesn't seem to work for me. I've tried being extremely precise and using lots of crowd control; I've tried every spec I can muster at level 29; no matter what I do, how hard I try, I always get the same result. (I even tried playing an old boyfriend's mage at level 70 and had the same problems.)
Over the years, I've come to cope with my arcane shortcomings. I swallow my sorrows daily with Honeymint Tea, never knowing the sweetness of my own conjured water. Oddly, I find that my best friends are usually mages who, with an admiring eye, I watch work their wonders. I've tried to remain graceful, never letting my envy sour me; I even frequently gift mages with my Power Infusion, as if it allows me to somehow live through them vicariously. I have accepted my fate, but oh, how I long to know the joy of an Incanter's proc.
So, are there any classes you struggle with? What classes do you admire most when you see one being played well? Why?
Filed under: Breakfast Topics
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 10)
steveflener Apr 25th 2010 8:11AM
Lol I can totally relate. I have 6 level 80s and can't for the life of me get my mage leveled up!
Kabuki Joe Apr 25th 2010 9:24AM
I had much the same experience. I hated the slow pace of my mage and the monotony. I went fire at 25 and that helped over the hump because you have to be active with no real slows. That lasted until 45 where it just... blech.... even thinking about Feralas makes me throw up in my mouth a little. But once I hit 50, it turned suddenly awesome. Tough it out, get a friend to level with and make it different. Or use strictly dungeons, there are so many avenues these days. Or worst case scenario, maybe your a Mr Rossi and mage just ain't yo class.
Andraste Apr 25th 2010 10:00AM
I have problem that with my rogue...(8 80's and a 60-ish druid, and my rogue is stuck at 21)
Although to this day I have no idea how I managed to get my mage to 80. Nor have I done much with her since. I'm much happier on my priest...
Fizzl Apr 25th 2010 10:50AM
Ha, my main is a Mage and I love it but for some reason I can't work out melee classes!
AltairDusk Apr 25th 2010 11:34AM
My first main back in vanilla was a mage. One valuable skill for leveling: learn to kite using all your abilities, and go easy on arcane explosion unless you like being oom. Even as fire starting a pull with a frostbolt gives you more time to cast before the mob reaches you, use frost Nova, cone of cold, and blink to keep your distance. Don't forget you have mana shield either. It's situational but it can save your life time and time again.
Trexxen Apr 25th 2010 2:08PM
@AltairDusk Agreed,
Fingal Apr 25th 2010 2:07PM
Those orcs are group quests for a reason!
I agree though, my mage is my only non-80 (and he's 30). I suck at him
and i've got a pally, shammy, DK, druid, rogue, hunter and lock.
Almoderate Apr 25th 2010 2:30PM
As someone who has leveled a mage 1-80, I can definitely back you up on how those first 20-40 levels do suck. In particular, vanilla WoW offers mobs that are immune to your main rotation, and you probably don't have your ice barrier yet.
But rest assured... While the early levels suck hard for just about every class (especially mages), I can promise you that it's well worth the bloody trail you will leave in your wake later on. At the higher levels, it was one of my most fun classes to play.
Moonfaxx Apr 25th 2010 3:17PM
This is so bizarre and foreign to me. I have played every class several times and have many level 80 characters. I'm not sure why we have such different experiences, but my main is a mage who made leveling seem trivial (and I leveled fire). And the only class I have ever found to be relatively mind-numbing while leveling is a priest. :)
Anye Apr 25th 2010 3:47PM
I, too, seem to have trouble leveling a mage. It's not so much a matter of frustration, but a lack of investment.
I rolled my mage, Blick, nearly three years ago. He was the second toon I created in the game. Originally I'd rolled him to play alongside my wife's rogue (what a terrible combination for leveling?!) but he was parked for so long that she leveled her rogue alone.
I decided that my mage was just too annoying. He was a gnome, and he distinctly looked like a mutant, midget version of David Letterman. Also, someone that Dateline's Chris Hansen would want to talk to. I couldn't even stand to look at him on the load screen--how was I ever going to level him?
So, a few months ago, at level 23, I deleted Blick. I rolled a new Blick, this time a female gnome. Much more fun, much less annoying. In a week or two, I had leveled the new Blick as far as it had taken me years to level the old one.
Then my main toon switched servers. I wanted to move the rest of my toons, but I couldn't justify paying the transfer fees for anyone under level 40. So, instead, I rerolled all of my alts on the new server.
And there, Blick the Third sits to this day, a level 1 gnome mage, with a full set of heirlooms. Poor mage.
Noctune Apr 25th 2010 4:34PM
My biggest problem atm is Rouges or Mages
I think it got somthing to do with survivability and handling packs of mobs.
My first char was a priest and i quickly learned to shield renew run to handle all the adds
my second char was a druid and he was powerlevel very fast
i manage to get my lock up to 58 before BC arived
now in wrath i got
4x Lv80 1x 72 1x65(another server) 1x44 (mage)
I have created a rouge leveled him to lv20 to realize it's not going to happen ... he just constantly died on me... had same problem with mage or well the biggest problem with the mage must have been his mana when i leveled my other chars i didn't stoped to drink/eat after each 2nd pull with my mage i feel like im using my mana to the max.
the Druid & Paladins i have leveled before was a walk in the park compared to the mage even the lock was 10x easier ...
I must say the feel for the classes shifts
Feraldruid -- sneak up on objective kill objective in bearform after heal your self up and stealth out
Shadowpriest -- dot em up and wand *yes i wanded my self all the way to level70 but back then it was a sound strategy .. dot up 3 mobs and wand em to death.....
Enhancement Shaman -- kill them with your melle weapon and heal your self if needed
Retribution paladin -- same as Enhancement shaman with the bonus of a bubble if needed
Deathknight --- i play frost and i love it grab as many mobs as you can spread diseases . HB and DnD wellcome to the AoE dream.
Warlock Dotbot -- yes i play affiction just dot em and all keep your hp& mana at full most of the time.
So why don't i got
Mage / Hunter / Rouge basicly thoes classes does lack one thing that it seems i need to level fast SELF HEAL ....
jakel Apr 25th 2010 4:55PM
Obviously, different Strokes for different folks.
I COULD NOT get any character to cap (I got a hunter to 40 and a warlock to 36). I tried different classes on different races on both factions...nothing seemed to fit UNTIL BC and I rolled my Draenei mage. There was something about her that was...right and the levels seemed to fly by. I've since discovered fits with other classes and races...but my mage is still my favorite.
BUT ALSO> Quest in Kalimdor. It's just more fun.
murabayashi.harukaze Apr 25th 2010 9:51PM
Overall, this sounds to me like one of those times where it's just not your thing. Ya' try everything, and nothing seems to work. Even stuff that works wonders for others, doesn't seem to work. Accepting of this isn't a bad thing. I've long believed that for most people, one class (or at least one roll) in this game will call to an individual and they'll excel at it. I'm excellent with casters, and I have a really rough time with melee.
But, in case you still have a little wind left and plan to keep trying (hats off to your perseverance!), I'll offer a little wisdom learned from my first toon: my own Mage who is my main.
::Ahem:: You're gonna' die. A LOT. I can't tell you how many times I died in Hillsbrad Foothills when I was leveling during Vanilla WoW. Those bloody cats are murder. Make sure that you get the talent that reduces spell pushback in whatever tree you're using. You can't kill it if you can't cast. Attack things the same level as you, or no more than one level higher. If it's elite, it'd better be lower than your own level. Overall: if you can't kill it *now,* go gain a level or two and come back to it later. Choose your talent tree based on your natural inclinations. If you're a careful player, maybe Frost. If you're active and aggressive: Fire. Arcane.. well, it's a little fiddly. Try and see. But, choosing the tree that matches your play style best will capitalize on your natural talents. This always gives you the best chance. Happy hunting, and a merry way to you!
ash Apr 26th 2010 1:46AM
I have a problem with my druid and warlock. I don't like the positioning requirement and animations on the kitty enough to keep leveling it. It just gets boring too fast no matter how many times I try to keep on leveling. My warlock just does not flow for me. The pets aren't as fun/varied as on my hunter(s) and things just don't seem to click as far as burning through opponents like I do on my mage. Every other class I have tried to level I have eventually found something or some build which made it work. The only other one I would mention sort of is my shammy but the good outweighs the bad by too much to really count it as drag. There just seems to be a lot of prep into making sure my shammy is operating at peak capacity re:buffs, totems, etc. Stormstriking everything makes up for it though.
Zalvi24 Apr 25th 2010 8:10AM
a lock, they look boring and they stink
shiftplusone Apr 25th 2010 8:33AM
Defintely a lock. Got one to 50 when the game launched then deleted him when I "quit"
still haven't been able to play one beyond 15. I hate them and I hate casting 4 spells and waiting for the damage to start
also my Mage has been 71 since cataclysm came out. Levelled a Druid shaman and warrior to 80 bit still can't get the motivation to play my stupid Mage. Might be the tusks
Erzfiend Apr 25th 2010 9:09AM
"Look" boring? So have you ever tried one?
You can say you hate a class all you want, just so long as you gave it a chance and really tried to get the hang of it. What really gets my goat is people going around bashing a class without ever really having tried it.
I have one of every class at least 20, and I have to say the most challenging one to level so far has been my Shaman. I really really want a level cap shaman, but he just dies so much. I'm leveling enhancement, but he really doesn't feel like one. I know it gets better once you hit 30, and even more so at 40, but right now he's stuck in Stonetalon at 24.
ZeroDesu Apr 25th 2010 9:11AM
Orly? Since Cataclysm came out? So, you're typing back from the future, yes?
But, all-in-all, I just can't get the hang of any ranged class. I need to be melee. I love my Rogue main, my Deathknight, my (enhancement) Shaman, my Pally, my (bear form) Druid... It's just the Priest, Mage, and Warlock I can't really get into.
Jack Miles Apr 25th 2010 9:58AM
"I hate them and I hate casting 4 spells and waiting for the damage to start"
I used to be like that; ended up leveling as destro/demo for a long time. Then one day, I tried affliction and decided to, instead of waiting, start attacking another mob, and then another. Before I knew it, I slaughtered an entire village. That was a fun day.
chris Apr 25th 2010 12:22PM
mmmm,sweet virtual body odor.