AoE grinding...oh my...

[nosoup4crr]

So...i recently made my first mage. And after levelling out of the 20-29 bracket, I decided to spec for AoE to help the PvE process until I PvP at level 39 for a while. I did some running around Darkshire to kill worgen for a bit--however, befcause of their placement, it was only slightly more effective than rogue grinding of the same level. However, once I hit level 33, I went to the go'shek farm in arathi. oh my.

I levelled from 33-35 with no rested xp in about 3 hours and 15 minutes. I was killing the 25-30 mobs around the farm, and having to wait a minute or so for more to respawn.

Yes...i'm gimped in world PvP. But this grinding ability is ca-razy.

[Polaba]

Welcome to the world of mages.

Everything is easier here.

[nosoup4crr]

i'm loving it. I've never been opposed to grinding. I have good patience for it...and this is just ridiculous. I know that there are some places that are better for it than others...and I realize that go'shek is about as good as it gets...but still. 2 levels in 3 hours and 15 minutes?

I've only died a few times while grinding them, too--never once from the mobs, but from passing hordies. Even a gimped PvP mage can escape at my level as easily as I could've had I been spec'ed for PvP. It's killing that becomes more problematic. THis means I can often run away successfully. The only real problems I've had were a few level 40's passing through, and a level 38 rogue that ambushed me while I was eating/drinking (The first time, he cheapshotted me while I was at 230 life. Quick blink and run at 70 HP. He must've been pretty embarassed, because he waited for me at Go'Shek for 20 minutes to make his move).

[Polaba]

i'm loving it. I've never been opposed to grinding. I have good patience for it...and this is just ridiculous. I know that there are some places that are better for it than others...and I realize that go'shek is about as good as it gets...but still. 2 levels in 3 hours and 15 minutes?

I've only died a few times while grinding them, too--never once from the mobs, but from passing hordies. Even a gimped PvP mage can escape at my level as easily as I could've had I been spec'ed for PvP. It's killing that becomes more problematic. THis means I can often run away successfully. The only real problems I've had were a few level 40's passing through, and a level 38 rogue that ambushed me while I was eating/drinking (The first time, he cheapshotted me while I was at 230 life. Quick blink and run at 70 HP. He must've been pretty embarassed, because he waited for me at Go'Shek for 20 minutes to make his move).

Glad to hear you're enjoying it. Here's a little something for pointers on where to go next, etc: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-903331917281359369&q=in+frost+we+trust&total=13&start=0&num=10&so=0&type=search&plindex=0

It's also pretty funny with the animation and sounds too :)

[memetootoo]

Pally aoe grinding is pretty amazing too. J/w what kind of xp/hr are you getting. Throughout my level process from 30-50, I've been getting about 60-70 xp/hr rested.

Its sometimes a challenge trying to figure out how many mobs you can take some, because sometimes, an extra mob can mean my death. I can't take on 20 mobs at a time, 10-15 is the max for me, but I usually come out with almost full heath.

[nosoup4crr]

Pally aoe grinding is pretty amazing too. J/w what kind of xp/hr are you getting. Throughout my level process from 30-50, I've been getting about 60-70 xp/hr rested.

Its sometimes a challenge trying to figure out how many mobs you can take some, because sometimes, an extra mob can mean my death. I can't take on 20 mobs at a time, 10-15 is the max for me, but I usually come out with almost full heath.

I just did a short 25 minute stint at Go'Shek to check my xp/hr. I ended at just under 47k/hr unrested...so, about 90-95k/hr rested. However, I restarted my session right before I started, and checked right after...so, no transport time was considered.

I'm still a novice when it comes to AoE mage grinding, so I can't speak in definites. However, how many mobs you pull seems to be dependent on 2 considerations. The first is how many hits you can take on your pull. The second is how likely is it that one of the mobs will resist your cast. Mages only ever get hit for damage during the pull. If you live through the pull, you live to their death (barrign any unfortunate respawns). However, if a single mob resists one of your frost novas, it can really screw up your process. If you have enough mana, you can sheep/kite and fix the situation by adding about 8-10 seconds to your kills. If you're short on mana for your level, you might just have to run away and reset the pull.

At goshek, I would pull all 8 peons with very little trouble both at level 33 and 34. At level 33, I sometimes had problems with the grunts (level 34/35). But, at level 34, it seemed MUCH less troublesome. Honestly, at level 35, I'd be comfortable pulling 13 or 14 of them without worrying about dying.

[Dhoum]

Here's a little something for pointers on where to go next, etc: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-903331917281359369&q=in+frost+we+trust&total=13&start=0&num=10&so=0&type=search&plindex=0

It's also pretty funny with the animation and sounds too :)
Superb link, thanks ... I might even dust off my baby Mage and level him a bit.

[Twoflower]

I'm still a novice when it comes to AoE mage grinding, so I can't speak in definites. However, how many mobs you pull seems to be dependent on 2 considerations. The first is how many hits you can take on your pull. The second is how likely is it that one of the mobs will resist your cast. Mages only ever get hit for damage during the pull. If you live through the pull, you live to their death (barrign any unfortunate respawns). However, if a single mob resists one of your frost novas, it can really screw up your process. If you have enough mana, you can sheep/kite and fix the situation by adding about 8-10 seconds to your kills. If you're short on mana for your level, you might just have to run away and reset the pull.

that's why you only aoe whit cone of cold normaly and only frost nova when a mob resists. the chance that a mob resists both your cone of cold and your frost nova are small. very small.

check this vid for what i mean :)

http://www.warcraftmovies.com/stream.php?id=25665&stream=Google

blizzard aoe grinding is of course easier, but imo it is cheap and cheesy :P the CoC aoeing is where the skill lies. ALso, CoC grinding does not require any talent points anywhere, while blizzard grinding requires you more or less to be frost specced.

Practice CoC grinding and you can do it anywhere, anytime. Any mob that can be slowed will be kite - and killable. Even trashmobs in raid instances.

[Polaba]

blizzard aoe grinding is of course easier, but imo it is cheap and cheesy :P the CoC aoeing is where the skill lies. ALso, CoC grinding does not require any talent points anywhere, while blizzard grinding requires you more or less to be frost specced.

Practice CoC grinding and you can do it anywhere, anytime. Any mob that can be slowed will be kite - and killable. Even trashmobs in raid instances.

While AoE grinding its a little less important what's "cheap and cheesy" if you're focusing on XP/Hour. CoC grinding is messy, way too much kiting and way too many things that can go wrong. My sequence at level 30-40 usually went like this.(pretty much what you saw on the vid)

1. Make sure you're at full health, full mana, fully buffed with AI, frost armor and dampen magic. (Maybe you can spare a few hundred mana if you have high int.)
2. Mana Shield, gather up mobs by running as far away from them as possible while still aggroing. Pull to the edge of a clear spot with no LoS/Patrolling Mob Issues.
3. If you're doing a lot of mobs and it takes a few seconds for them to all get to you, Ice Block.
4. When it fades, frost nova. You can CoC if you wish first but I find it unnecessary and it can mess up your pulls if you screw around too much trying to get to face them.
5. Blink away, put the first Blizzard on them.
6. When that Blizz is over, they should be not even close to you, so put the next Blizz right in front of them.(Imp Blizz is a must)
7.They should be about half health, maybe less or more, and closing in on you. Cast Mana Shield again and hit them with a Cone of Cold. Your frost nova CD should be up, so do it and then frost nova, then hit them with another Blizzard. If you're feeling bored or adventurous, you can try a Flamestrike. They should be dead now. If not, you can Arcane Blast a few times or whatever works for you.

The most important part is the pull. As the OP said, if you have a good pull you can usually outlive the mobs.

Note- You should always have a conjured Mana Pot at the ready and if you have the gold, a few health/mana pots. Another thing that works if you find yourself OOM at the wrong time is frost novaing and Evocating. Frost Nova is cheap, only costs 80 mana, so if you're Evocate CD is up it can save your life.

[nosoup4crr]

that's why you only aoe whit cone of cold normaly and only frost nova when a mob resists. the chance that a mob resists both your cone of cold and your frost nova are small. very small.

check this vid for what i mean :)

http://www.warcraftmovies.com/stream.php?id=25665&stream=Google

blizzard aoe grinding is of course easier, but imo it is cheap and cheesy :P the CoC aoeing is where the skill lies. ALso, CoC grinding does not require any talent points anywhere, while blizzard grinding requires you more or less to be frost specced.

Practice CoC grinding and you can do it anywhere, anytime. Any mob that can be slowed will be kite - and killable. Even trashmobs in raid instances.

CoC kiting seems to take 2 to 3 times longer than Blizzard grinding. :/

[Twoflower]

of course you can speed CoC kiting up if you mix in Arcane explosions...

and yes, it can get messy if you dont do it right, that s why i said that it takes more skill than blizzard kiting.

But while blizzard kiting is pretty much only usable whit a) a frost spec and b) for leveling fast, whit CoC kiting you learn something which will be great use for you a) with ANY spec and b) everywhere.

imagine going trough some instance. you are fire specced for maximum damage. The pull goes terribly wrong and one after the other, your group members die. at the end it is you and 2,3 or 5 half dead melee elites.

now you can either frost nova them in place and hit invisibility, or you can remember the good old CoC kiting which you practiced and just CoC kite them to death. Guess what would be more usefull to a group. Guess what would impress the other members of your group more.

Guess what you should practice :P

[ZaxGreia]

I like to drag a priest along myself - I don't work without a net, whenever possible.

After playing around with leveling speeds in 2.3, just you wait until you see the new curve. Your xp/hour rates will skyrocket.

I did one quest (the Thalassian quest from Valormok - Horde) and got 5 bars from the killing of elves alone (all rested). The average per kill was ~580 xp or so at level 50. I've been leveling about once every couple hours, if I'm working at it - in the 50s!

Enjoy the new patch ;)