So you just rolled a mage?

After levelling my mage from one to ten and taking notes, here is my guide on mages from level 1 to level 10. I'm not going to go into detail on how to level, I will be overviewing the spells and abilities you will gain and use on your new mage.

Level 1-4
At first you begin in your relevant starting zone with just the robe on your back and your staff in hand. The only mage abilities you begin with are Frost Armor and Fireball, as well as the standard attack and any racial abilities you may have. You are also able to learn Arcane Intellect as soon as you can afford the 9 copper fee. Frost Armor and Arcane Intellect should be kept up at all times for the extra mana and armor they provide. To defeat your enemies simply cast fireball from max range, followed up by 1 or 2 more fireballs and maybe whack them with your staff a few times if they get into melee range. You may also want to melee while regaining mana if you are low.

Level 4-6
When you reach level 4 you get two new spell; Rank 1 Vending Machine and Frostbolt. One thing I love about my mages is never having to buy water or food, but it can be annoying if you get a large amount of whispers pestering you for some. Frostbolt can be used instead of Fireball if you like, or you can start with a Frostbolt to slow the enemy before proceeding to throw balls of fire at them.

Level 6-8
At level 6 you gain access to food conjuring which is always handy, as well as a new higher damage but slightly longer cast Fireball and Fire Blast. I suggest you use Fireballs once you are able to use rank 2 for the higher damage and speedier kills, you may want to begin with a Frostbolt to slow the mob. Fire Blast is an instant cast nuke on a cooldown, less mana efficient than fireballs but should be used once the enemy has closed to melee range whenever it's cooldown is up.

8-10
At level 8 you gain your crowd control ability that makes mages in high demand for instance runs. Polymorph is a renewable form of crowd control that is incredibly useful for soloing and grouping. At this level it is best used when getting an unexpected add while fighting. Sheep the mob while you kill your current target before moving on to it. If you find yourself low on mana and health while fighting you can polymorph the mob and renew it when necessary to regen mana as well as giving you a chance to bandage. All in all an incredibly useful skill to have.

You gain a new rank of Frostbolt and you may want to replace fireball as your main nuke. It doesn't make a great deal of difference which you use, mostly down to personal preference.

Arcane Missiles is a high damage, high mana cost, channeled spell. This shouldn't be used at this level when there is any chance to receive damage, damage will cause spell pushback reducing the number of missiles you are able to fire and wasting mana. Mana is used upfront as you begin channeling the spell. I tend not to use arcane missiles at all at this level.

Level 10
At level 10 you get a new rank of Conjure Water and rank 2 of Frost Armor with an increase in armor bonus.

You also get Frost Nova which allows you to root attackers in place when they are up close to you. You can then move away and begin casting again to avoid taking damage. It is an AOE (area of effect) attack that roots all nearby enemies in place for 8 seconds allowing it to be used as an escape mechanism, giving you time to make your getaway in the event of danger.

Reaching level ten gives you your first talent point to spend, i'll go into more detail on talent points in the next stage of my guide. Hopefully you've managed to make it this far, there's a long way to go...