Mages in Warcraft's Azeroth wield the mightiest of Arcane Magics. Thanks to their studies and training in the mystic arts, Mages can do all sorts of wonders. Essentially, beginner Mages can summon food and water, or even polymorph people into sheep. However, the most powerful of Mages can summon Elementals and even unleash mighty fireballs towards foes. As such, Mages also serve as one of the best damage classes in Blizzard's World of Warcraft.Â
Interestingly, Mages represent one of the most mysterious aspects of Azeroth: the nature of magic itself. Unlike Warlocks who rely on unstable Fel Magic, Mages rely on the ever-orderly forces of the Arcane. However, the corruptible nature of Arcane magic leaves Mages vulnerable to corruption, which makes them a double-edged sword amongst both the Horde and the Alliance. What other secrets do they hold?
10 A Focus On Damage And Utility
Unlike other spellcasting Classes, Mages in World of Warcraft specialize in both utility and damage spells. As a Class, they have three distinct specializations: Arcane, Fire, and Frost - all of which have different objectives in mind. For instance, Arcane spells usually serve as the go-to spellcasting tree of Mages for utility purposes. Arcane allows them to teleport to places, save mana, provide effective crowd control, and even remove curses.
Meanwhile, Fire and Frost spells focus on dealing with various types of damage to their enemies. In this regard, Mages more or less rely on Fire for their capabilities of dealing damage-over-time. Meanwhile, Frost becomes a go-to for Mages who want an extra kick out of immobilization and stun opportunities.
9 Glass Cannons Against Heroes
In terms of PVP, Mages tend to be a part of a Class group known as "glass cannons." Essentially, glass cannons have a great potential to dish out tremendous amounts of damage, with a trade-in for being more physically weaker, possessing less armor, and have generally less health. In turn, Mages with the right rotation can dish out the most amount of damage amongst Classes within the shortest time.
As such, Mage builds often focus on maximizing damage output, while using stun mechanics to give them time to regain mana and cast spells without many risks. Unfortunately, a Mage interrupted while spellcasting is usually open for a killing blow.
8 Found Ancestry Within The Elves
Despite today's Night Elves having an intimate connection with Druidism, ancient Kaldorei (Elves) in fact served as the first wielders of Arcane Magic in Azeroth. Thanks to the Well of Eternity, ancient Elves such as Queen Azshara became ancient Azeroth's most powerful Mages at the time. Unfortunately, their reliance on Arcane Magic attracted the Burning Legion, particularly Sargeras the Dark Titan.
Moreover, the ensuing War of the Ancients and the Great Sundering that destroyed the Well of the Eternity marked the spread of magic throughout Azeroth. Sadly, this event also caused Night Elves to reject Arcane Magic in favor of Druidism.
7 Elves, Humans Spread The Study Of Arcane
Interestingly, despite the Night Elves' rejection of the Arcane in favor of Malfurion Stormrage's Druidism, a lot of Night Elves continued to pursue the craft. These Elves, now known as the Highborne or High Elves, fled to Lordaeron to establish Quel'Thalas. They continued to practice and hone their skills in the craft. Moreover, the continuous siege of Zul'Aman trolls forced the High Elves to teach magic to the humans of Arathor in exchange for military aid.
As a result, High Elves opening up the study of magic and Humans spreading their teachings have jumpstarted the spread of magic to all of Azeroth's races.
6 The Kirin Tor Studied Magic To Defend Azeroth
Mages and fans of Warcraft lore would remember the order of the Kirin Tor. This council of Mages served as the pinnacle of Arcane power, wielding tremendous power and knowledge that forced them to become a neutral faction. Interestingly, the Kirin Tor's origins stemmed from a need to defend Azeroth against Fel Magic and the horrors of the Burning Legions.
Specifically, the students of the First War's fallen Conjurers expanded their initial understanding of the Arcane. As a result, it's these once-Conjurers - inside their Violet Citadel in Dalaran - that classified magic into several schools and strove for mastery.
5 The Forbidden School
Contrary to popular belief, Mages segregated Arcane Magic into schools not because they've mastered magic as a whole. Rather, Mages divided Arcane into schools to have more specific control over them. However, there actually exists one "forbidden" school outside the formal classifications of magic. Necromancy, or the Dark Arts, is usually a big no-no for students, as most of those who study this often fall corrupted to the powers surrounding death and undeath.
Essentially, Necromancy borderline taps into the Fel Magics that power the Burning Legion and their demons. To Necromancers, the school allows them to control the very forces that influence life and death. These include the infliction of diseases, reconstruction of the flesh, creating undeath, or killing as a whole.
4 Some Mages Have Innate Arcane Potential
Despite magic being spread all over Azeroth via the Great Sundering, not everyone in Azeroth had the potential to become one. In fact, most Mages begin as Sorcerers. Essentially, Sorcerers refer to Mages of races capable of Arcane Magic. Unlike Wizards with formal training, Sorcerers can tap into raw power for their spells - often making them more dangerous and volatile. However, they can make extremely powerful Mages, given the training.
Interestingly, Sorcerors come in different forms, depending on the race. For instance, Naga Sorcerors primarily use ice and water. Meanwhile, scholars regard Jaina Proudmoore as the most powerful human sorceress alive. In the Warcraft TTRPG, Sorcerers served as a playable Class of their own, separate from Wizards by their lack of formal training.
3 Some Mages Do Not Have Formal Training
Ideally, anyone who discovers their magic potential can hone them within Azeroth's many schools. After all, spellcasters without training can fall under the influence of magical addiction and corruption. Due to the prevalence of magic in Azeroth, it makes sense for other "potentials" to never even get training as Mages. In this regard, people use the derogatory term "Hedge Wizard" to describe these untrained spellcasters.
As a result, Hedge Wizards have different approaches to magic. In World of Warcraft, some Hedge Mages use the Witchbane herb to draw out "evil spirits" from their hiding grounds. Back in the First War, "Hedge Wizards" came in the form of rogue conjurers who refused training or got kicked out.
2 Some Mages Have Specialized Training
While Dalaran's Mages subdivide Arcane Magic into eight schools, other Mages received more specialized training. For instance, players can classify Kael'thas Sunstrider as a Mage. However, the Sun King, who possesses the artifact weapon Felo'melorn, also classifies himself as a Blood Mage.
Unlike other Mages, the Blood Elf has heroic Blood Mages that turn to heat and fire instead of water and frost for their spells. Unfortunately, this penchant for the fire had people associate Blood Mages with Fel Magic. Interestingly, not a lot of Blood Mages outside Kael'thas are prominent in the MMO, meaning it's hard to pinpoint their exact powerset.
1 Favorable Among The Kirin Tor
Similar to the academe in the real world, Mages seem to be aware of each others' internal affairs - most of which involves the careful study and utilization of magic. The Magi's everyday life is often referenced in quest dialogue and even lore in books, but rarely seen in actuality. However, Mages seem to be part of the few exceptions where their relationship with certain factions become prevalent in World of Warcraft.
For instance, in Wrath of the Lich King, classes start with a neutral reputation with the Kirin Tor of Dalaran. However, Mages start the game with a friendly reputation with this arcane council. This means that, theoretically, the Kirin Tor have close ties with all Mages in Azeroth, regardless of their power and standing.