02-09-2005, 09:18 AM
Skandranon,Feb 8 2005, 12:29 PM Wrote:Bzzzzt! Try again. Mages are third in total damage output behind Rogues and Hunters. Mages only pull ahead when they're hitting three or more targets at the same time.
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I don't think so.
At level 60:
Mages pull aggro off my pet all the time. At least they would if they tried. I was told they hold back a bit to avoid getting aggro. The only way I can pull aggro off my pet is if I crit aimed shot (upwards of 2000 damage) or use rapid fire (+40% fire rate, 5 min cooldown).
If you put a hunter and a fire spec'd mage side by side, and have them both attack an armorless, resist-less target with everything they have, the mage is still going to outdamage the hunter, although not by much. The caveat is that mobs take about 30% less physical damage due to armor, while, if I'm not mistaken, large majority of them don't have any significant fire resistance.
If both a mage and a hunter are in a party, I'd say that the mage will do 30-50% more damage than the hunter, assuming the mobs have no fire resist, there is a tank that can hold aggro well, and the mage's downtime isn't considered.
That's against single targets. There's no dispute that mages are kings when it comes to AOE.