[6.0] Dutch's Frost FAQ & mini guide for level 90!

[Dutchmagoz]

Since there's been so many (of the same) questions I've decided to make a quick miniguide/FAQ to deal with these.


I advise beginners to read IV's frost guide for 6.0 first, and then come back and read this thread if you still got any questions. (http://www.icy-veins.com/wow/frost-mage-pve-dps-guide" target="_blank)


Table of contents:

- What gems should I use? Should I go for socket bonuses?
- What trinkets should I use?
- Two piece t16 or four piece t16? What offpiece(s)?
- Mirror Image? RoP? Ice Nova? Frost Bomb? Unstable Magic? What do I go when?
- Stat priorities?????


What gems should I use? Should I go for socket bonuses?
Red: http://www.wowhead.com/item=76659" target="_blank or http://www.wowhead.com/item=76671" target="_blank , see below on what to use when.
Yellow: http://www.wowhead.com/item=76700" target="_blank
Blue: http://www.wowhead.com/item=76643" target="_blank

Go for all socket bonuses from SoO gear. As seen above, there's 2 red gems you can take, and which one you use depends on the amount of crit you get from gemming your blue gems + the crit from your gear. You want to achieve somewhere around 36.33% buffed crit chance, so use crit+haste while you're below that, and go haste+mastery when above that.



What trinkets should I use?
Always use http://wod.wowhead.com/item=105422" target="_blank aslong as it's within 2 "tiers" of your other available trinkets. (So use flex PBOI over heroic other trinkets. But use heroic warforged trinkets over PBOI)

Then take your highest item level trinket between http://wod.wowhead.com/item=105540" target="_blank and http://wod.wowhead.com/item=105648" target="_blank. Exception: Warforged http://wod.wowhead.com/item=105648" target="_blank vs nonwarforged http://wod.wowhead.com/item=105540" target="_blank, use nonwarforged http://wod.wowhead.com/item=105540" target="_blank.
If both are equal item level, use http://wod.wowhead.com/item=105540" target="_blank.

All other trinkets are bad and never worth taking.


Two piece t16 or four piece t16? What offpiece(s)?
Use two pieces of tier 16.

There are many offpieces you can use, and almost any scenario works. Frost is very lenient in the items you use, so go for the offset which you have warforged. Outside of that, http://www.wowhead.com/item=105516" target="_blank are very good to have.


Mirror Image? RoP? Ice Nova? Frost Bomb? Unstable Magic? What do I go when?
Use mirror image on all single target fights, or on a fight lasting less than a minute. Use RoP on heavy AoE fights. (Like galakras or nazgrim if you get to AoE the adds)

Frostbomb sucks on almost all SoO fights, unless your group has very low AoE damage. Only use it if you can easily cast it and use multiple FoF procs on it before adds die.

Use unstable magic in almost all cases, unless you can get a lot of AoE damage out of ice nova. (Like garrosh: p1 adds, mind controls, weapons ontop of boss if you do that tactic, or nazgrim adds)

If you're still progressing, choose accordingly to what you're wiping to. Not enough add dps? Ice nova. not enough boss dps? Unstable magic. Adds being alive very long? Frost bomb.


Stat priorities????
Multistrike > int > crit cap (36.33%) > haste while at least a 100 points below mastery, and below 50% > mastery > haste when within a 100 points of mastery > crit after critcap > haste after 50%

Basically, go for the critcap, then keep your haste somewhere around 50-100 below your mastery, while staying above 25% haste

If you're having issues staying within ~100 haste of your mastery, feel free to use http://www.wowhead.com/item=76693" target="_blank in red sockets.

[Razilon]

Just a note for AskMrRobot users:
AMR handles the 3% crit suppression for you now if you have it set to optimize for raid bosses, so if you're setting custom weights, you need to use 33.33% as the crit breakpoint instead of 36.33%.

[wayniac87]

why should we stay ~100 haste below mastery?

[Grogfoot]

Thanks for the guide.

Its interesting that AMR's PVE default for frost places haste so much higher than mastery. If I don't manually cap haste they have me gemming even well beyond 50% haste, regardless of the fact that its already way above mastery.

[Mageski]

Thanks for the guide.

Its interesting that AMR's PVE default for frost places haste so much higher than mastery. If I don't manually cap haste they have me gemming even well beyond 50% haste, regardless of the fact that its already way above mastery.

AMR has done that by default all along. You have to set your own soft caps.

[AcidBaron]

When i got my stat values it actually ranks crit slightly below haste, I'm assuming this is purely due to being at low haste value (-21.50%) and should therefor just go for haste/mastery initially despite being low on crit also.

Would be interesting to know at what point haste gets dropped below crit (beyond the obvious 50%) but guess i'll just have to sim after the next round of upgrades.

Scale Factors:
Aetheralis_Active Int=5.42(0.08) SP=4.95(0.08) Crit=3.42(0.08) Haste=3.50(0.08) Mastery=3.52(0.08) Mult=5.59(0.08) Vers=3.79(0.08) Speed=0.00(0.00) Avoidance=0.00(0.00)


(This is a reroll for WoD, yes i'm aware min maxing at this point is a bit pointless at lower ilevels but just found this result to be interesting and doing out of curiosity sake, once a min maxer, always a min maxer)

[Bedacles]

Thanks Dutch. I re-arranged to your recommendations to the best I could manually with just a few minutes before my raid and even though I didn't get it exactly right my DPS was up significantly.

Would you mind post some recommended stat weights to plug into AMR? I understand there is probably no way to program AMR to say "keep haste within 100 less than mastery" and that will need to be fine tuned manually.

Another thing I found slightly confusing...are you talking about unbuffed or buffed when you say "within 100 less than mastery"?

Thanks!

[sownzoria]

Would you mind post some recommended stat weights to plug into AMR? I understand there is probably no way to program AMR to say "keep haste within 100 less than mastery" and that will need to be fine tuned manually.

Another thing I found slightly confusing...are you talking about unbuffed or buffed when you say "within 100 less than mastery"?

Thanks!

what he said.

[AcidBaron]

Your values is something you have to sim for as it's slightly different for everyone depending on your current stats.

(i can quickly make a step by step guide if people need help with it but it's fairly easy)

But for me oddly enough it's rating crit below haste. What means i should either flat out ignore this ranking simcraft is telling me and follow this guide or i'm overlooking something.

[Wireed]

(i can quickly make a step by step guide if people need help with it but it's fairly easy)

Please.

[Sikkz]

I know I'm repeating people above me, but any kind of basic AMR values for this would be really helpful (I trust these findings, but they're really inconsistent with what's on IV, so I'm hungry for more info).

1.) Is there any fight in SoO that frost bomb is better than UM? Even on an AOE heavy fights such as protectors?

2.) So, Mirror Image = single target, or fights that last less than one minute? I just feel like Mirror Image is SO strong, and I'm struggling to grasp how RoP/IF is better than MI on fights like Dark Shaman, Malkorok, Sha, and Garrosh.

I'm really curious for more info about this build!

[Dutchmagoz]

I know I'm repeating people above me, but any kind of basic AMR values for this would be really helpful (I trust these findings, but they're really inconsistent with what's on IV, so I'm hungry for more info).

1.) Is there any fight in SoO that frost bomb is better than UM? Even on an AOE heavy fights such as protectors?

2.) So, Mirror Image = single target, or fights that last less than one minute? I just feel like Mirror Image is SO strong, and I'm struggling to grasp how RoP/IF is better than MI on fights like Dark Shaman, Malkorok, Sha, and Garrosh.

I'm really curious for more info about this build!

I don't use frostbomb on any fight. It could be worth it on TFP perhaps, but my guild has way too much AoE to make use of frostbomb. Pretty much UM on everything except nazgrim, on which I use ice nova.

I am using MI on every fight except nazgrim now (because we keep up the trash before him, including the bladestorm guys, so I ice nova twice [one with shatter due to pet freeze] so I use RoP because these simple 2 ice novas make up literally 20% of my damage of the fight)

Amr values:

[Sikkz]

Thanks for the quick reply Dutch. Really excited to try UM in raid tomorrow. I feel like Ice Nova on Mythic Garrosh would be stupid strong, 1st Intermission adds, MCs, Phase 1 adds, etc. I saw that you used it in your Garry kill last week, what did you think?

[Dutchmagoz]

Thanks for the quick reply Dutch. Really excited to try UM in raid tomorrow. I feel like Ice Nova on Mythic Garrosh would be stupid strong, 1st Intermission adds, MCs, Phase 1 adds, etc. I saw that you used it in your Garry kill last week, what did you think?

I worked really well, got me a rank 1 kill, but I think it's pretty much equal to UM, depending on raid group. Ice nova is probably better for padding whereas UM is nice for boss damage. IN is nice for mind controls though if you need extra help on those.

[Sikkz]

With the 20% nerf to frostbolt that happened tonight, do you think that now FB is ahead of UM?

[nathyiel]

Yeah, great possibility. But this change are aimed at level 100.

[Dutchmagoz]

With the 20% nerf to frostbolt that happened tonight, do you think that now FB is ahead of UM?

Not for level 90, simply because everything dies so fast, and we still don't cast ice lance during bloodlust / icy veins / meta gem.

Level 100, it's a definite possibility.

[Asmo]

Hey Dutch

I read through your stat priority and I am a bit confused? when you say keep your haste 100 points below your mastery are you referring to rating? This was my assumption and I edited my AMR stat weights based on this assumption however I am unsure if I have reached the correct conclusion. I have posted my AMR results after optimization can you just give a nod on if i did it right or if I could potentially be an idiot.




I also assumed that the 33.33% crit cap is before buffs?

Regards
-Asmo

[Mageski]

33.33% is with buffs included, as shown on AMR. (36.33% in game) As for your Mastery/Haste ratio, that's dead on.

[Asmo]

Thanks for the confirmation, however when I simc the results I posted above I get less dps(like between 50-100) then my current stack haste like a maniac setup any ideas why this is?