PVE Fire Mage DPS Guide (WotLK 3.3.5a)

Welcome to the Fire Mage DPS guide for World of Warcraft Wrath of the Lich King 3.3.5a. In this guide, you will learn about playing a Fire Mage in a raid. The guide includes Talents, Glyphs, Gems, Enchantments, BiS Gear, Add-ons, Gameplay & Skill rotation tips.

Talent Tree

The first build uses Frostfire Bolt spell as main source of damage. It is more suitable for new players with lower gear level.

The second build uses Fireball as main damaging spell. It is more suitable for players with higher gear level. Torment of the Weak is a great talent to boost your damage. Bosses can’t be snared, but the talent requires only the debuff to be present on the target to work.

Both builds can redistribute one point from Master of Elements into Blast Wave for increased utility.

Glyphs

Major Glyphs

• Glyph of Living Bomb
• Glyph of Molten Armor
• Glyph of Frostfire or Glyph of Fireball

The last glyph is depending on the build you use.

Minor Glyphs

• Glyph of Fire Ward
• Glyph of Frost Ward
• Glyph of Slow Fall

Gems

Gems are situational and depend on the build and equipment. They are used to reach the required stat caps.

• Meta: Chaotic Skyflare Diamond is used in both builds

Option 1: low-level gear, stable DPS:

• Red: Runed Cardinal Ruby
• Yellow: Potent Ametrine
• Blue: Purified Dreadstone

Option 2: high-level gear, enough spell damage to add some crits:

• Red: Potent Ametrine
• Yellow: Potent Ametrine
• Blue: Misty Eye of Zul

Enchants

• Head – Arcanum of Burning Mysteries
• Shoulder – Greater Inscription of the Storm
• Cloak – Enchant Cloak – Greater Speed
• Chest – Enchant Chest – Powerful Stats
• Bracers – Enchant Bracers – Superior Spellpower
• Gloves – Enchant Gloves – Exceptional Spellpower
• Waist – Eternal Belt Buckle
• Legs – Brilliant Spellthread
• Boots – Enchant Boots – Icewalker

Weapons

• Two-handed – Enchant Staff – Greater Spellpower
• One-handed – Enchant Weapon – Mighty Spellpower or Enchant Weapon – Black Magic

Rotation

Scorch → Living Bomb →  spam Fireball or Frostfire Bolt → Pyroblast

• Scorch – every 30 seconds
• Living Bomb – every 12 seconds after the explosion
• Pyroblast – after every Hot Streak proc.

Stat Priority

Hit -> Spell Power & Crit -> Haste -> Spirit -> Intellect 

It’s worth mentioning that Fire specs have higher stat requirements than Arcane regarding Hit and Crits ratings.  

Mages require 17% of Hit (446 rating) to always hit the target. Precision lowers the requirement by 3%, leaving 14% (368 rating). You will get the last 14% of Hit through gear, buffs, and debuffs on the target. [1% Hit = 26.23 rating]  

• Target debuffs like Improved Faerie Fire (Moonkin) and Misery (Shadow Priest) increases the chance to hit with spells by 3%  
• Heroic Presence is a Draenei racial aura which only affects the group and increases the hit chance by 1%  

Spell Power and Critical Strike Rating are the primary stats for this spec. As a Fire Mage, the more crits you do, the more consistent the DPS is. The spec heavily relies on Hot Streak talent, so it only makes sense to have frequent and powerful crits. This spec requires a minimum amount of 45% crit to be viable. 71% of Crit is required to have a 50% chance to proc Hot Streak after casting a Fireball. 

Increase Haste with gear upgrades, as it is a secondary stat for this build. Spirit is another useful stat for this build. Molten Armor converts Spirit into Critical Strike Rating:  

• Standard Molten Armor converts 35% 
• Glyphed Molten Armor converts 55% 
• Glyphed & 2t9 set bonus (Khadgar’s Regalia) converts 70% 

Tip: You can use the 2t9 set bonus to buff an improved Molten Armor, and then switch to your regular items while still preserving the improved effect. 

Last on the list is Intellect, which can also be useful in the beginning to reduce the potential mana problems. 

BiS Gear

Armor

• Head – Sanctified Bloodmage Hood
• Shoulder – Sanctified Bloodmage Shoulderpads
• Cloak – Cloak of Burning Dusk
• Chest – Robe of the Waking Nightmare
• Bracers – Bracers of Fiery Night
• Gloves – Sanctified Bloodmage Gloves
• Waist – Crushing Coldwraith Belt
• Legs – Sanctified Bloodmage Leggings
• Boots – Plague Scientist’s Boots
• Neck – Blood Queen’s Crimson Choker
• Rings – Ashen Band of Endless Destruction Ring of Rapid Ascent
• Trinkets – Charred Twilight Scale Phylactery of the Nameless Lich

Weapons

• Main-hand – Bloodsurge, Kel’Thuzad’s Blade of Agony
• Off-hand – Shadow Silk Spindle