S3 Dreadweave vs Silk

[Dune]

For the curious...
http://img147.imageshack.us/img147/7876/dreadvsilkki6.jpg
(image stolen from mmo-champion.com)

Silk
+77 spell critical strike rating (+3.48% crit)

Dreadweave
+20 stamina
+6 intellect
+14 resilience
+14 spell damage

Silk all the way; don't think anyone will go dreadweave this time around, just not enough gain. Spellblade on the other hand will probably be the choice over staff, because the staff has lost all its +hit while Spellblade retained it.

+hit
We need 38 total for arena, so...

+14 from helm enchant
need +24 more.. (s2 staff used to give us this and we were done)

*s3/honor armor none
*trinkets none
*heroic cape none
*s3 staff none
*s3 wand none
*rings none (s2 honor + s3 honor rings probably the way to go?)

so

*s3 dagger is +17
*need +7 more: Great Dawnstone (8hit) or Heroic Mech/Black Temple Gems (5hit+6stam/dmg) in bracer's?

staff vs blade/endgame
staff
+1 stamina
+5 intellect
+46 spell critical strike rating (+2.1% crit)
+35 spell penetration

blade/endgame
+17 spell hit rating
+16 resilience
+35 spell damage

It's like blizzard intended for mages to use the spellblade combo and warlocks the staff, so they swapped the values around. Sure seems that way anyway - can't imagine many warlocks passing up that staff with 35 spell pene, and I can't imagine many mages been able to get around not using the spellblade.

[Kiing]

think i might stack crit this s3! silk ftw

[sX]

ive just seen a mage in crap gear in skirmish and he did like 4 ice lance to other guy, i guess he didnt crit a single one:P
do you know anything about amulet/rings coming?

[Raynor]

I'm going to go silk and dagger/offhand like this season.

[Spent]

Hey Dune ever heard of gems? Oh whats that you thought those slots were for show? Hrm I need 24 spell hit where to get it where to get it hrm... I could put hit gems, wait no that makes no sense.

[Figs]

I agree, Silk and MH/OH for season 3.

[Dune]

I need 24 spell hit where to get it where to get it hrm... I could put hit gems, wait no that makes no sense.

+24 spell hit is 3 gems min, which isn't going to happen; one gem on hit, sure - Great Dawnstone (+8hit) or Heroic Mech Gem (+5hit/+6stam) in bracer's but it changes nothing in regards to staff vs spellblade.

If you want to use staff it's gonna be 3 gems with +hit or enchant +15hit to gloves over +20dmg and use one +10hit gem; I think! If there's a better way let me know :) But the benefits by doing all this extra enchanting/gemming for the staff don't seem to be there.

Edited my original post to show +hit gem with spellblade however, my bad for forgetting it the first time around.

[Karite]

Another take on the S3 Staff vs. MH/OH combo, you gain a lot of crit, which seems to be a big thing right now. I took almost all dreadweave this season, and a MH (mostly for PvE purposes), and I do regret it looking back on it. At a whopping 14% crit without molten up, I'm pretty far behind other mages.

As it was stated, you do lose some hit in taking the staff over the dagger, but couldn't you make up for this by throwing an extra point into Ele Precision if you have one left over?

14 Hit Rating 1.16% (Helm)
+12 Hit Rating 1% (single point in Ele Precision)
+8 Hit Gem .75% (single gem)
= 34 hit rating, 2.91%

Now at this point you could socket a 4 hit 5 damage gem to be capped, or if you want to get fancy you could get the heroic gem for 5 hit and 6 damage, or you could shrug off the .09 difference in capped vs. non capped. Or maybe you could sub in a piece of gear if you have the option, etc.

So I think that boils it down to, is 1 talent point worth the 2.1% chance to crit and 35 penetration, while losing 16 resil and 35 damage? The penetration I could care less about, and same with the ever so slight upgrade in base stats. With the reduction of 35 resil bonus I'll still be able to plop myself over 400, so it doesn't really matter to me. The 35 damage the big part in my eyes.

Another valid point could be where would you take that one point from? Well, with my current 17/0/44 spec I think I'd take a single point out of my Winter's chill, leaving it at 4/5 and then placing it in Ele Precision. I'm not sure if I'll be going 5/56 next season, but if I do I'm sure I'll be able to find a spare point for it.

Just my thought on the topic, I'd like to see what anyone else has to say about it :)

[Dune]

5/56 could certainly spare that point, keep in mind its only fire and frost though! If you managed to find one point in 17/0/44 you could cover both arcane/fire/frost that way. Most people will be going 5/5 WC in 17/0/44 next season so point budget will be pretty tight. Still, a few ways I guess. I'll be going silk + mh/oh :)

[Pharaun]

I've been running 1/5/55 just for kicks and giggles for a month now, and you really can't notice the difference from 7/54 ~ 5/56...

imo with the change to detect magic, you'll have to get 5/5 WC come 2.3, which will make it that much more annoying to place that last -1 point.

If I do stick with this for 2.3, I will most likely drop to 1/2 ice flows - I don't get nearly as much use out of the reduced cooldowns in 5v5s anyways.

[Accents559]

silk + staff and I will probably spec 6/55

[buena]

MH/OH for sure

Penetration is a wasted stat for a mage, no one has more resists than the 30 we already get. Or at least 30 of that 35 penetration on the staff is wasted.

It's weird because the classes that really DO need that penetration (spriest and lock) don't need crit. Kind of dumb itemization.

[Ariet]

I know I'm not a mage, but I'll still be going for silk.

[Iceweaver]

I think you are all overlooking something when it comes to the 2H vs MH/OH.
The hardest class for Mages to take 1v1? Locks... With the new spell pen (+20 cape, +35 staff, +15 (i think) to wand) you can get up to +70 spell pen. You will be hitting those locks so much harder than before. I will be taking the staff over the MH/OH.

[Reeve]

I think you are all overlooking something when it comes to the 2H vs MH/OH.
The hardest class for Mages to take 1v1? Locks... With the new spell pen (+20 cape, +35 staff, +15 (i think) to wand) you can get up to +70 spell pen. You will be hitting those locks so much harder than before. I will be taking the staff over the MH/OH.

That's what I was thinkin, but I'm still torn. I'll be going with silk and offensive gems, so the staff seems to be the best synergy. But +hit or +penetration...I'm thinkin penetration.

[Dune]

I think you are all overlooking something when it comes to the 2H vs MH/OH.
The hardest class for Mages to take 1v1? Locks... With the new spell pen (+20 cape, +35 staff, +15 (i think) to wand) you can get up to +70 spell pen. You will be hitting those locks so much harder than before. I will be taking the staff over the MH/OH.

Vengeful Gladiator's Grimoire
http://www.wowhead.com/?item=34033
+35 penetration :)

Don't forget you can swap weapons freely during combat and in arena, so going from 30-40~ to max penetration is just a macro click away. I'm probably gonna get the lot, 2xstaff/mh/both oh's/both wands, just take awhile :(