Frost Mage: How to do more damage in Mythic+

Frost mages, this video discusses my top 3 tips for improving your overall damage in mythic+ dungeons and breaks down the optimal AOE rotation to get you into higher keys. These tips are relevant in both 9.1 and 9.2, whether you play Splitting Ice or Freezing Rain build.
(0:00) Intro
(0:54) Cast more Blizzard
(2:14) Cast more Icy Veins
(5:02) Shatter your Frozen Orbs
(6:55) AOE Rotation Basics
(10:18) AOE Rotation Breakdown
(13:58) Outro
Freezing Winds Weakaura: wago.io/lR2IFTsQ3
9.1 Written Frost Guide: tinyurl.com/5x96duvs
Twitch: / valaran
Discord: / discord
Twitter: / valaran6
Donate: streamlabs.com/valaran/tip
Patreon: / valaran

[@Warpgatez]

This was by far the best guide I’ve watched in my history of watching WoW guides. Which is a long time in my 16 years of playing WoW. Short and concise but very good at explaining Frost.

[@Valaran1]

I've been wanting to make this video for quite some time. If you found any of these tips useful, or want to see any other topics covered, let me know in the comments and thanks for watching!

[@CrisisCore99]

Hi dude, i'm french but ur vidéo is a great help. Even if I still wondering if it s worth on 9.2 to blizzard on 2 targets. Your weak auras are so good to see available spells, could u share it of give me a vidéo where I can find them ? Thank u So much dude.

[@showtimeap3]

I have a frost mage alt that I've been having a ton of fun on. This video clarifies the priorities for aoe really well and answered a lot of questions I had. Thanks!

[@bst857]

I really like your guide and the style that you present it. I set up a weakaura to play the xylophone sound whenever my blizzard is ready, so when I hear it, I cast blizzard. Makes it so much easier without having to keep darting my eyes around to see when something is ready.

[@Kman1435345]

Love it, started playing mage about 2 weeks ago the Freezing wind tip I think is the biggest thing I took out of it!

[@OhHolliwould]

Helping a lot of frost mages not feel lost... thank you so much for the help Val!

[@eugenesmith9940]

lol how does any frost mage playing such braindead spec ever?

[@frostyyogurt2465]

dude this video was exactly what i wanted and needed !!! GREAT vid keep it up

[@gabrielraw7979]

Finally a channel focused on Mage. Thank you!!!

[@Jjk82486]

Dude, my M+ group just asked me to go frost mage (ours dropped out) and this has been SUCH a help understanding the CDR mechanics and priority list. Thank-you, thank-you, thank-you.

[@Valaran1]

Glad to help, Joshua! And feel free to ask in my discord for any additional help! Next up, I'm collaborating with two 2700+ IO frost mages right now on a 9.2 M+ video. Go forth and pump!

[@champmeister]

Just switched mains from shadow priest (which is a mess atm) to frost - this was very helpful and easy to understand. Thanks.

[@racenuke]

Started a void elf frost mage recently. I will reference this when lvl capped. Thanks!

[@MrJontheStallion]

this is a really well made guide. thanks for the help!

[@Valaran1]

Thank you Jon, looking forward to making much more like this.

[@frozt]

Thank you so much. I blow so hard at frost mage it's really frusterating. Just seems so overwhelming this guide has helped me.

[@Valaran1]

Thank you! Now that so much has changed in 9.2, the first point of this video (use IV more) is probably the most relevant. I haven't been able to make videos lately but I still play. I'm happy to help with updated tactics on my discord. In the meantime, Okaymage has a phenomenal recent M+ guide.

[@frozt]

@@Valaran1 Thank you so much for quick response. I will take a look at his video or guide.

[@jhuang916]

Super helpful. Thank you!

[@boneappleteaparty8983]

Thanks for this, great tips

[@70runr]

Great video, thanks!

[@TOMAR2310]

Best video for learning FM from deep!!

[@radakant156]

really great tipps, especially #1 which was my big mistake

[@tjhernandez779]

really solid guide

[@karlavivas6032]

Thank you for the guide I'm a new player and I really appreciate this video 💜

[@Valaran1]

Glad to help! The build used in this video is still relevant in 9.2.5, until you reach roughly +18 keystones. Despite all you might hear about Necrolord builds.

[@cassielaynemakeup473]

Thank you!!

[@Vondarkstar]

Great video! Might reach more viewers if you make title more general. Not many mythic raiders out there right now and this info is good for all players. 👍🏻 🙏🏻

[@m.h.1443]

Nice video i return to mage after starting SL as a WL but what should i say... so its good to get a refresher on how to play the spec with the conduits and stuff. Thanks !

[@pumba6099]

Great video bro. Is it possible to talk secondary stats for mythic plus and more so in regards to the necrolord frost build currently being used in m+

[@xXanderx87]

Its worth mentioning, that bone Chilling might be the play in 9.2 (because it buffs comet storm from the 2pc I believe) Which means you can run with pet. Your PET NOVA acts just like your nova, and you can shatter it from range safely for a little more extension and CDR with orb while IV is up.

[@Valaran1]

Great point. I plan on including that in my full 9.2 M+ theorycrafting video, which is probably the next thing I'll work on. Unfortunately with all these build variants (Cold Front, Slick Ice, DC etc.) it's starting to look like a much bigger project!

[@xXanderx87]

@@Valaran1 That will be fun to watch. I kind of want to test Necro Mage with Slick ice. And I can definitely see Necro Cold front being a thing for HoA And DoS because of the ability to do Giant giant pulls. Ive been testing NF DC in hoa and dos recently seems good too. We definitely have a lot of options down depending on comp and planned pulls.

[@Valaran1]

@@xXanderx87 I've done a fair bit of sims and PTR testing on the Slick Ice build and definitely plan on putting my full breakdown in the next video.

[@spookymacchiato5503]

I didn't know about the Nova+ Forb.. holy hell.

[@grahamvandyke]

Thumbs up from el Prophet

[@brandon9689]

252 conduits (mainly icy propulsion) have felt more impactful on this spec than any other spec in the game. I've also seen way too many new frost mages padding with glacial fragments, throwing away half of what makes this spec meta right now.

[@wyflip]

I am a frost mage that has completed one +20 so far this season and for sure the Blizzard uptime is my biggest weakness and why I am not doing good enough dps, super clean guide. BTW, what do you do to manage mana with arcane explosion to not be OOM for later packs? I get enough CDR on Icy Veins while using Arcane Explosion but tend to overuse it and not have Icy Veins up later on in the key due to being OOM on the packs that I need Explosion CDR on.

[@thanhiclez]

From what I've read from other frost mages, only Arc Ex if mana is over 30%. Basically don't go OOM.

[@CelticCrow]

Nice Video. But what about arcane Explosion? Yes you got it in the prio list at 6+ Targets, but I have Trouble to weave them in correctly between all the procs from Fingers, refresh Blizzard and Frost Nova's.

[@Valaran1]

Honestly this may be an unpopular opinion, but I feel that if you have trouble weaving in Arcane Explosion, just don't do it. Weave in a frostbolt or something instead unless you feel very confident with the AE. Work on it until you do feel comfortable, but it's not a game changer.

[@equaleffect]

Any major highlights to add to this video with 9.2 out and the change of blizzard from .5 to .25 and the 12% dmg reduction on blizzard and frozen orb?

[@Valaran1]

Really the only update is, your damage is going to suck until you get 2pc and beyond. The nerf was almost certainly done to offset the huge gain of tier sets in M+; now that I have 2pc on live I'm doing 13-14k overall per dungeon again with the exact build I used in this video. It's a little harder to get your FO back, but at this point most groups are exclusively killing Urh which helps a lot with that.

[@Frosty616.]

This is awesome! But a 2nd question. How do you improve on survivability in M+ and open world? I find myself dying a lot

[@Valaran1]

Basically be generous with using Ice Barrier, and Mirror Images. MI is one of the best personal cooldowns in the game IMHO. But most important is having Ice Barrier, Mirror Image, Ice Block, Healthstone, Health pots, and Alter Time all bound to easily accessible hotkeys. If you get used to those hotkeys you should be able to hit any of those abilities almost instantly when you get in trouble.

[@Frosty616.]

@@Valaran1 this always seem to be on CD at the WORST time 😂

[@DannFBS]

What's the addon's name that shows the nest spell's icon? Great video, btw! Thanks!

[@Valaran1]

GCDHistory. It just shows what I'm casting, so viewers can follow along with my rotation.

[@ccsstorm]

With freezing rain , do you throw FO and then blizzard ? or blizzard before orb ? I noticed i can get 3 instant casts when Icy veins up , if i threw in orb after blizzard i only get 2 instant casts.

[@Valaran1]

Yup, always blizzard after FO if you can. If FO is coming off cooldown soon (next ~4 sec), I'd wait to blizzard.

[@iMemoacebo]

how would you incorporate the covenant ability in AOE? for any covenant ability. how do you use shifting power or mirrors in trash pulls or just AOE in general?

[@Valaran1]

Mirrors - don't use in AOE at all. Only on small pulls. Shifting Power - use when all of your cooldowns are on cooldown. Deathborne - try to coordinate it on large pulls.

[@iMemoacebo]

@@Valaran1 thanks!

[@leighburns156]

live it ty

[@tnance29]

Do you have a video or resource where you list or talk about what addons you use? Would be interested to see what you're runnin

[@Valaran1]

The only things I have at the moment is my TellMeWhen export string, hosted on my Google Docs. That's what tracks all my cooldowns. I'm happy to share it on my Discord anytime! I also have a written 9.1 guide, pinned in the #announcements channel, which lists some of my recommended Weakauras.

[@tnance29]

@@Valaran1 Cool thanks! I also meant like all your UI stuff too, not so much performance related I just love the layout of your UI too

[@mamali2]

watching this im able to keep basically keep my icy veins ready to go but idk how you're getting orb ready so fast

[@Valaran1]

This footage was actually recorded in 9.1.5 before the blizzard nerf. It's not possible to get orb back this quickly anymore without Urh. All the advice in the video is still valid, although I'm working on more 9.2-updated stuff.

[@mamali2]

@@Valaran1 first, thank you for the speedy reply! Second, ok because I was watching and trying it and I had no idea what I was doing wrong. I was able to maintain about 14-16.5k over 3 minutes (no tier, 265 FW, 291 unity, venthyr)

[@Valaran1]

@@mamali2 without tier that's really good imo :)

[@woodyshooter]

I'm very new to Frost mage. I see you are using FoF procs > Flurry procs, but are we not supposed to hardcast a Frostbolt before every flurry? So FoF> Frostbolt > Flurry?

[@Valaran1]

It's not really necessary in aoe. It's moreso for single target.

[@trap0viejo]

should I recast a new Icy Veins when the old Icy Veins is still active?

[@Valaran1]

With freezing winds legendary, yes you do. It's not really relevant to this video, but with slick ice legendary you don't recast IV until the first one falls off.

[@endlessstudent3512]

I am playing Necrolord, after 9.2 most mages do. But I am not doing enough damage with it. How does the necro-ability deathborne into the rotation? I feel it destroys any priority cd list, as you are supposed to cast ice lance as much as you can. But I feel this just costs time and the damage increase is lost due to the long casting time. What am I doing wrong? How to get max dps as necro-frost-mage? Do you have any ideas?

[@Valaran1]

Unfortunately it's not a simple answer. What level of keys are you running? Which necro build? Are you pugging or do you have a dedicated group? It's easier to talk via discord if you want to pm me or hop in my server.

[@endlessstudent3512]

@@Valaran1 That is very nice of you, I do not want to stress your time. I play actually exact the build that you recommend. Necro- Slick Ice, Marileth. I have 32% crit and 22% haste. I have split ice, not comet storm. I think my problem is the ue of my procs. especially in m+. Everytime I cast rune of power for example...I have to move due to some ground-effect etc. And the glacial spike often fails the target, bec it seems every boss these days needs to be kited. Is there a trick to get back to a good rotation fast if you got thrown off?

[@zane3917]

what is that druid bear form and why is it glowing

[@Valaran1]

That's the felbear appearance from Legion Timewalking Mage Tower

[@audiocattt]

Let me start by saying, I LOVE this guide and it has drastically improved my performance. But why do you move out of your RoP so often!? LMAO

[@Valaran1]

I don't. ROP's effective radius is much larger than the graphic on the ground. Below my player frame is a weakaura that grays out if I moved out of ROP's effective radius.

[@Luna-ii4mx]

Is this still the same in current patch? :o

[@Valaran1]

The build used in this video is still viable in the current patch, yes. It's better at lower keys (+15 and below ish) though.

[@Jman1ify]

Dumb question - how do you get a free rune of power from IV?

[@Valaran1]

They reworked the Rune of Power talent in shadowlands. It does that automatically now if you're talented into ROP.

[@Jman1ify]

@@Valaran1 I had no idea of the rework! No more incanters flow for me

[@RWds24]

So now they got nurfed into the ground we playing fire or arcane

[@Valaran1]

I'm preparing to play arcane if none of these changes get walked back. They're very similar damage profiles, but admittedly fire is a little more "error-proof" on prog with Pod and Cauterize. I just like arcane better, and GInvis and Prismatic Barrier are both amazing.

[@RWds24]

@@Valaran1 kiryan arcane or venth arcane I’ve played both

[@Valaran1]

@@RWds24 I prefer Kyrian Arcane myself.

[@willsohrnberger2441]

How the hell do you get icy veins back SO FAST. ??

[@Valaran1]

It's partly because splitting ice applies 2x icy propulsion every time it hits 2 targets. But a bigger part of it is frozen orb - frozen orb ticks very fast, and its crits also give IP. This is why my message in the video is basically use all your cooldowns on cooldown.

[@willsohrnberger2441]

@@Valaran1 Sweet. I kind of figured it out on target dummies but with 5 its hard to keep Icy propulsion refreshing icy veins. I guess with bigger than 5 and i'm sure you have better than a 213 conduit. I bet hat 265 or 278ilvl conduit is a big gain even though its only .2 or .3 seconds What M+ Plaugefall level should I farm for the best icy prop conduit ilvl?

[@brylee__tv]

Just want you to know at 4:40 and 6:04 I saw that ;)

[@Valaran1]

Lol, I don't normally use it at all, so I don't keybind it. I just wanted to use it a few times for this video. That's why I explain it's a good trick for beginners as you're getting used to this, but once you have the hang of it you won't even need frost nova.

[@mars313]

I noticed on your single target rotation, you're not prioritizing your frostbolt into flurry (brain freeze proc) rotation. You want to be sure you're always casting frostbolt before using flurry (brain freeze proc) as your brain freeze proc will always do more dps than a fingers of frost proc, as well as this gives you a chance to cause another brain freeze proc and it'll shatter your frostbolt, too. I think it would also benefit you to keybind your frost nova, as you only have a very short window and having to look for and click can cause a lot of downtime especially as frost mage has a lot of proc-munching problems this expansion (even more so with the freezing winds legendary).

[@Valaran1]

I almost always shatter my frostbolts. Only skip it in AOE, when moving, and if I'm squeezing it into the end of a ROP. And yeah I know I should bind Fnova, but I normally don't use it at all (you can see in the second half, I easily get enough CDR that I don't need it) but I used it several times in this dungeon for the purposes of highlighting it in the video.

[@zepplo9309]

Which legendary?

[@Valaran1]

Freezing Winds is king right now in 9.1. In 9.2 it will still be very good, but two other legendaries (Slick Ice, and Cold Front) may become viable if you play Necrolord. I'll be covering all of that in my next video!

[@zepplo9309]

@@Valaran1 what do you think about glacial fragments leggo? I keep reading it’s amazing, besides in single target

[@Valaran1]

@@zepplo9309 Glacial Fragments legendary is not even worth crafting at all. It was strong in 9.0.2 because we had no other options, and that was a long time ago. Everything it "does well," Freezing Rain build with Freezing Winds legendary does it better. I'm genuinely curious where you're reading that it's amazing.

[@zepplo9309]

@@Valaran1 sorry, I’m just trying to understand frost mage. I’m still a noob. But it’s on wow head, it does state it’s useless in single target, and only better with bigger pulls. I currently use the one you have. Was just wondering if fragments was worth it.

[@Valaran1]

@@zepplo9309 There's a lot of stuff in the Wowhead frost guide I disagree with, but I'm not here to put down other creators. I just encourage players to read multiple sources; I'm not perfect, either. Technically "it's useless in ST and only better with bigger pulls" is not inaccurate, but taken out of context I can see people thinking it's GOOD in big pulls compared to the other options, and that's not really true. It could've been said better.

[@christmasham4312]

To bad 9.2 frost is unplayable now :(

[@Valaran1]

In case you haven't seen it yet, they already reneged on the IP internal cooldown.

[@davidstukalov1498]

Kinda late 😅 next patch is so close

[@Valaran1]

I made this before the blizzard/frozen orb nerfs were announced; most of this was going to still be valid in 9.2. Still is, really.

[@kikoredog]

just for updates sake, blizzard is 3+ targets now.

[@Valaran1]

What's your source on this? I've done most of the sims for 9.2 frost, and it was still 2+. The current default APL written by Altered Time is still 2+.

[@Y4WN]

Getting to know how to use Icy Veins is probably one of the worst things ever There's like learning how to walk, how to read, how to talk And here's how to learn how to use Icy Veins, rework mage for the love of God

[@Valaran1]

I lol'd so hard at this. And completely agree. I've always loved frost mage but if ever there was an expansion I should've played demo lock, this was it.

[@eugenesmith9940]

Well... 1. Covenant choice really makes sense in m+. 2. Shattering the orb doesn't provide with huge or "big" IV cdr effect. It's more like to prevent mobs from moving away out of the orb range. 3. Arcane Explosion does it (IV cdr on relevant amount of targets) better.

[@hoodfamousxz6084]

howw to do more damage - just use more spells 4head

[@melliz6022]

This is about the wrong frost spec, frost dk 4 lyfe

[@Insertor]

Woe man nothing of what you said was new to me.. What a waste

[@petcharapornkitphotiyarn8291]

Can u re(link) discord pls

[@Valaran1]

discord.gg/eJ6CvuUChH