Fickle Flames, Burst of Sand, Burning Sands

[deadman1204]

How often do people use these (or the level equivalent) for grouping situations.
I'm only 86 right now, so without a spear I've been alternating between bolt and fickle. Are there times when it's better to use the burning sands equivalent (fast cast and a touch more damage than fickle)? Or are these 3 spells just filler?

I suppose I should take into account casting times change after 85. It looks like fickle becomes 1.5 instead of 3.25 at lvl 90

[Fleiss]

I really dont use any of those, though I am 95. If I really wanted to save mana I might load in Fickle. Problem with any spells under 3 secs is their cast times wont be altered. Bolts and Spears are around 2.2 secs for most, so not much time benefit for Fickle.

I do use burning sands, but rarely, it is mob specific. Not sure if cat is out of the bag on this one but long ago someone told me about special ability on this line and told me not to pass it along for fear of a nerf. Since most spells are copy paste from last expansion it still hold true. Out of respect for them I will not say what that special effect is. Since several expansion old, someone might have already said it, but I don't remember seeing it. Thus I will remain silent. Hopefully it is common knowledge and someone will mention it after my post. I just don't want to be that guy who goes against someones trust.

[Aanelyen]

I cast Fickle regularly as part of my weave. Every other cast is Fickle because of the potential recourse effect for increased damage on the next spell. Don't know that I have used a Sands spell of any kind for a long time.

[Calebe]

At level 95 I cast Spear, Spear, and bolt if solo or in a group, I also load the previous level bolt for a bit less mana to finish off a mob. I don't bother with fickle or sands. While this uses the most mana it also is fastest way to kill a mob. I do weave in force of elements whenever it is available for mana free damage. If I cast swarm pets then I will use the many line, but 99.9% of the time those 3 I use, with the previous level bolt as a finisher.

Calebe

[Summerfrost]

My 4 go to's in solo or grp is also spear, spear, bolt and RS. Only problem with RS in those settings is the mobs "shouldnt" last that long so using them is a heavy mana drain if they dont complete their dps cycle. On the other hand they are very consistent dps. Regardless using even 3 of those is very mana intensive. You almost have to be fullly buffed, raid geared and max aa to keep that up for long periods of time. You can tie in thamautize pet in your grp weave to help but its kinda weak atm.

Also at your level you have the first of the "surge" line of DS's? That is well worth the mana, as is your "veil" line if your pets tanking or you cast on your tank. Wizzys nuke nuke nuke, Mages have to use what they got and adapt. Maybe try your rain spells if your going 1-2 mob at a time. Make sure your pet is behind the mob if not tanking to ensure max dps, malo etc. Saving mana as a mage just isnt about the weave, theres a lot of stuff to do outside that.

[deadman1204]

I have the first surge, but its worthless. It cannot be cast on a pet, and I mainly partner with another mage, and an enchanter who is charming.
Do the 90/95 surge's allow you to cast them on pets?

[Voragath]

I have the first surge, but its worthless. It cannot be cast on a pet, and I mainly partner with another mage, and an enchanter who is charming.
Do the 90/95 surge's allow you to cast them on pets?

Yes, the HoT and VoA surges can be cast on pets.

[Sillaen]

My group and solo weave is the same, typically:
RS
Fickle
Spear
Bolt

The way this works out is I have RS outside of the weave and just cast once at start, then weave the 3 DD spells. The cast order works out to be Fickle --> Spear --> Fickle --> Bolt. Rinse and repeat.

Both Bolt and Fickle are dropped from the raid weave.