Are Elemental Specs viable PvP/PvE?

[TheFishyOne]

I PvPed in TBC with Evertras's 30/31 Ele spec, and had put together an Ele spec to try here: http://db.vanillagaming.org/?talent#oZVgMzf0uZVhGhRbt

I remember that Elemental play was quite dependent on INT and spell damage on gear, but I only have meaningful experience with TBC itemization, as my Mage did not ding 60 until 1.9. I was also planning on leveling my new Mage with this spec. It seems viable for leveling, albeit with frequent drinking.

My alternative was a standard 17/34 Arc/Frost spec, which I also planned to PvPvE with (This guy is going to be my PvP bitch), but I wanted to be a little different, if doing so won't amount to shooting myself in the foot. What do you guys think? Is this spec viable @ 60 with current/future itemization? Is it workable for leveling? Am I giving up too much by not going 17/34?

Many thanks in advance!

[vinceyoung]

Elemental is pretty bad for raiding. It's fun for pvp though. For leveling I think it'd be better to stay away from the fire tree.

[TheFishyOne]

Thanks for the feedback. I've been on the PvP part of the forums, and it seems like Ignite is bugged and won't proc if you also have Frostbite, which would be kind of a dealbreaker for me until they fix it.

Being as my Mage is going to be my PvP toon, I'm just gonna level him as Deep Frost and slowly build him into a 17/34 spec as he approaches 60.

Don't suppose you have any insight on to whether EP is worth taking until spell hit cap (for 17/34 and PvP)? Heard conflicting reports and not sure which to believe.

[vinceyoung]

For pvp you only need 3% chance to hit so you can skip EP if you have ZG helm/leg enchants and 1% hit from anything else on your gear.

[Rhoen]

For pvp you only need 3% chance to hit so you can skip EP if you have ZG helm/leg enchants and 1% hit from anything else on your gear.

ZG wont be out for quite some time though =)

[TheFishyOne]

So hit cap is a definite must here, even for level 60 PvP? I've heard talk that reaching hit cap here isn't as meaningful as it was on live. (bug?)

Also, is Imp Blizz useful for anything beyond AoE grinding and being the bastard in AV who guards the bridge? If so, was thinking of rocking this @ 60, and just getting 1% spell hit off gear: http://db.vanillagaming.org/?talent#odxVzobZZVqGhRbtho

[vinceyoung]

Haven't heard anything about a hit cap bug for pvp. If there is one then you might not need to spec into EP. I suppose you could try out a spec without EP and see if you notice a lot of resists.

Imp blizzard can be really nice for kiting multiple melee or just providing a nice aoe slow to help an ally run away. A lot of it's uses are sort of situational outside of battle grounds imo. I'd suggest just specing into it and see how much you like it. If you find you don't as much as you thought you could just respec into piecing ice for more damage. A lot of these talent points come down to personal preference anyway.

I think the general spec you posted is really good for pvp so you shouldn't have any trouble.

[MrSteakface]

Here's the spec I use: http://db.vanillagaming.org/?talent#oZVtGz0czZVqMGobth

The two points in Piercing Ice can be moved around between Frostbite or Imp Blizzard. I personally prefer Imp Blizzard over Frostbite though.

Concerning your spec, you should certainly pick up Ice Shards in the frost tree. Remember it's going to be your job to crit as much as possible using Shatter with FN, and 100% extra damage on frost crits makes a HUGE difference. I personally find Imp CoC a better investment than Critical Mass, as well as Imp Fire Blast over Imp Scorch since I rarely get time to stack it. Master of Elements synergizes well with the crit-happy nature of the spec and will extend your longevity in a fight. Burning Soul is a peculiar talent, one that exists for a situation that you are actively trying to prevent. In short, you shouldn't be casting while getting smacked in the face by a melee (though it can happen sometimes). 1 point in EP should be enough in PvP, and as others have said, if you have enough hit on your gear you can skip it entirely.

[Handlock]

For PvE, once ZG/AQ go live, you can use this spec if you're still raiding MC/BWL/Onyxia at the same time. It gets all the relevant DPS talents from both specs, as well as the crucial Ice Block for surviving various boss mechanics. You pretty much don't miss out on anything that matters in a boss fight. You won't have Shatter, but bosses are immune to freezing so that's irrelevant, as are the AoE talents. As long as there's another mage in the raid who brings Winter's Chill, you're golden.

This lets you raid all content without respeccing. There's gonna be guilds that still raid earlier content while doing ZG and such, so it's a useful spec at that point. I used it on Scriptcraft which had ZG and AQ20 open from the start. This lets you use frost in the raids that require this, and the significantly higher DPS of fire in the raid that allow it. It's not very applicable right now since the raid content where you can spec fire isn't available yet, but it'll be a super versatile PvE spec in a few months.

[Ana]

You don't need iceblock for any boss mechanics really. Nor cold snap. Threat reduction comes in handy in places though.