FROST
Tier 1:
Frostbite (3) - Gives your Chill effects a 15% chance to freeze the target for 5 sec.
R: D
S: A
P: A
This is an amazing talent for any solo or PvP mage, especially when combined with Shatter. And with the addition of the ability to crit to blizzard, this becomes a very interesting tool to combine with Shatter and Imp Blizzard in those raid AoE situations.
Improved Frostbolt (5) - Reduces the casting time of your Frostbolt spell by 0.5 sec.
R: A
S: A
P: A
Same deal as Improved Fireball, makes it cast faster. If you spec Frost, you have this. A big nuke that is only 1 second longer to cast than Scorch is pretty badass, especially given it's slowing capabilities. A mage has to be mobile to survive, and this goes a long way to keeping you at least semi mobile while doing your damage.
Ice Floes (3) - Reduces the cooldown of your Frost Nova, Cone of Cold, Ice Block and Icy Veins spells by 20%.
R: B
S: B
P: A
Anyone who has ever been ambushed by a couple foes with Frost Nova on cooldown can tell you just how long a few seconds seems. It's like hell on Azeroth for any mage to be in need of a spell only to have it be on cooldown. This talent makes it less likely to ever be an issue. Being able to use my Frost tree toys even faster? Yes please.
Tier 2:
Ice Shards (3) - Increases the critical strike damage bonus of your Frost spells by 100%.
R: A
S: A
P: A
Filterspawn said it best:
Now, let's clear some sh*t up, since some people want to argue with me about the semantics on this talent. I am right, you are wrong if you disagree with me, so stfu and sit your dumbass down. (If this doesn't apply to you, and you are a smart little cookie, then disregard the last sentence). All this talent does, in layman's terms, is cause your critical strikes with frost spells to do double the damage of the regular strike. That's it, there is no 250% x ninja kitten/samurai squared to the @#%^ing Nth power of bewbs. Don't make this overcomplicated, just double your damage, remember that and you will be ok. In case some still aren't getting it, let's go to the math chart below:
Regular Frostbolt hit = 1,000
Critical Frostbolt strike without Ice Shards = 1,500
Critical Frostbolt strike with Ice Shards = 2,000
Got it? Good, if you don't, please review the underlined text again.
Frost Warding (2) - Increases the armor and resistances given by your Frost Armor and Ice Armor spells by 50%. In addition, gives your Frost Ward and Fire Ward a 30% chance to negate the warded damage spell and restore mana equal to the damage caused.
R: D
S: D
P: C
No longer the Frost Warding of old, this talent still isn't great. Its only true purpose is in fights with a ton of fire or frost damage. Otherwise, it's mostly a filler talent.
Elemental Precision (3) - Reduces the mana cost and increases your chance to hit with all spells by 3%.
R: A
S: B
P: A
Awesome talent. Almost (not completely) but almost irreplacable in a PvE spec. In PvP it helps as well, just not as much since you won't be fighting many players that are 3+ levels higher than you once you reach level cap. (If you do, let me know, I wanna know how they pulled it off).
Permafrost (3) - Increases the duration of your Chill effects by 3 secs and reduces the target's speed by an additional 10%.
R: D
S: A
P: A
Another great talent for kiting. Simple as that, nothing else to add.
Tier 3:
Piercing Ice (3) - Increases the damage done by your Frost spells by 6%.
R: A
S: A
P: A
Pretty much a no brainer here, more damage = good mmkay?
Icy Veins (1) - Hastens your spellcasting, increasing spell casting speed by 20% and reduces the pushback suffered from damaging attacks while casting by 100%. Lasts 20 sec
R: A
S: A
P: A
Extremely useful talent in a myriad of situations. Resistance to interruption is great for PvP, and the increased casting speed is godly for both raids and PvP. Odds are, if you can sacrifice something from your build to get this, you want it.
Improved Blizzard (3) - Adds a chill effect to your Blizzard spell. This effect lowers the target's movement speed by 65%. Lasts 1.5 sec.
R: D
S: A
P: A
"I keep putting points in Improved Blizzard but the company still isn't getting any better!" is an old joke, and interesting commentary about the game we love. Thanks to Blizzard's newfound ability to crit, this talent has become a LOT more interesting. Having one point in this + frostbite + shatter can make for some interesting times in raids or instances. This is also a must for AoE grinding. Now, 1.5 seconds may not sound like a lot, but it can mean all the difference in many situations. Example would be WSG, a single mage can turn the tide of a battle with this spell. If you aren't planning on doing much AoE, you can go without this.
Tier 4:
Arctic Reach (2) - Increases the range of your Frostbolt, Ice Lance, Deep Freeze and Blizzard spells and the radius of your Frost Nova and Cone of Cold spells by 20%.
R: A
S: A
P: A
Given that the mage is meant to fight from a distance, a tool to allow him to do it from even farther out is a handy thing to have. Gives you a bigger margin of error when kiting.
Frost Channeling (3) - Reduces the mana cost of all spells by 10% and reduces the threat caused by your Frost spells by 10%.
R: A
S: A
P: A
This makes the efficiency of the Frost tree as far as mana goes truly shine, add in the reduced threat, and you have a very solid PvE talent. Not as great in PvP, as the reduced threat does nothing, but it can save you some mana, which has become an important factor in ye olde arenas.
Shatter (3) - Increases the critical strike chance of all your spells against frozen targets by 50%.
R: A
S: A
P: A
This is one of the most defining talents of the frost tree and it synergizes with a ton of talents. Thanks to Fingers of Frost, it's no longer just for solo/PvP anymore. If you don't have Fingers of Frost, skip it for raiding, though I'm not sure why you wouldn't have FoF as a raiding frostie.
Tier 5:
Cold Snap (1) - When activated, this spell finishes the cooldown on all Frost spells you recently cast.
R: A
S: A
P: A
If you skip this as a Frostie, ehh, I have some beachfront property to sell you in Arizona. This spell turns a formidable Frost mage into a demigod. Learn how best to use it and you can be better than baby Jesus at PvP or up your DPS from "Meh" to "Woot!" in raids.
Improved Cone of Cold (3) - Increases the damage dealt by your Cone of Cold spell by 35%.
R: D
S: B
P: A
Queue the "How much does your CoC hit for?" jokes. In group fighting, whether it be PvP or PvE, this spell adds another page to the mages nasty book of AoE tricks. Story time: I was in Arathi Basin, and rode up to the Lumber Mill which the opposing team held at the time. Seeing no one near the flag, I dismounted and proceeded to cap the flag. Of course, out come the rogues, two of them. I quickly hit Blink and Frost Nova to get my distance. Following up with a PoM Flamestrike to keep them from vanishing. I hit my CoC (Joke again) then Cold Snapped to go into another Frost Nova and CoC. Hit them with two Arcane Explosions and they both fell over dead. That's right, one mage versus two rogues and they lost, lost badly I might add. If I hadn't had Improved CoC, it might have turned out differently. While this anecdote is less relevant nowadays thanks to resilience, CloS and myriad other things, it still is a great talent for a PvP mage.
Frozen Core (3) - Reduces the damage taken from all spells by 6%.
R: D
S: D
P: C
Despite the major buff this talent has received, I'm still inclined to reiterate what the last GMPE said. "Waste of talent points, ignore it."
Tier 6:
Winter's Chill (3) - Gives your Frost damage spells a 100% chance to apply the Winter's Chill effect, which increases the chance spells will critically hit the target by 2% for 15 sec. Stacks up to 5 times.
R: A
S: D
P: C
Quick math again: 2% x 5 =10%. Now in raids, that's a no brainer. Someone in your raid should have this talent or your fire mages will be forced to add scorch back into the rotation. Since scorching is no bueno for the fire mage's DPS, someone should be stacking this if at all possible. In PvP, it can be helpful just because it's one more thing for your foe to have to dispel.
Cold as Ice (2) - Reduces the cooldown of your Cold Snap, Ice Barrier, Deep Freeze and Summon Water Elemental spells by 20%.
R: B
S: C
P: A
We already went over this on Ice Floes. The dividends paid by the reduced cooldown on Ice Barrier alone will pay for the talent point cost for a PvP mage. Not to mention that both PvP and raiding mages will benefit from faster recasting of the elemental. Just pony up and get it.
Tier 7:
Arctic Winds (5) - Increases all Frost damage you cause by 5% and reduces the chance melee and ranged attacks will hit you by 5%.
R: A
S: A
P: A
5% increased frost damage is awesome. The reduced chance to be hit by those pesky enemy melee and ranged attacks is just gravy.
Ice Barrier (1) - Instantly shields you, absorbing damage. Lasts 1 min. While the shield holds, spells will not be interrupted.
R: B
S: A
P: A
This is another one of those talents that truly defines the frost tree. Our version of Power Word: Shield, except we don't have to waste it on sh*tty tanks, it is all ours. Simply awesome spell. Good for AoE grinding, good for PvP, good for PvE good for everything. Also gets a bonus from your spell damage gear. Remember friends, a dead mage deals no damage.
Shattered Barrier (2) - Gives your Ice Barrier spell a 100% chance to freeze all enemies within 10 yds for 8 sec when it is destroyed.
R: D
S: B
P: A
Yet another escape tool in the mage ******** A lifesaver in PvP and soloing(when good pulls go bad!) but not all that impressive in raids. I found myself letting an ice barrier near running out of time get shattered just so I could kill my enemy with ice lances. Granted, I was only soloing Dead Strat at the time, but still a fun talent.
Tier 8:
Fingers of Frost (2) - Gives your Chill effects a 15% chance to grant you the Fingers of Frost effect, which treats your next 2 spells cast as if the target were Frozen. Lasts 15 sec.
R: A
S: B
P: A
Finally! Now raiding frost mages have a reason to get shatter. In fact, if I ever raid with a frost mage that doesn't have this and shatter, I'll probably point and laugh at them. Only downside it really has is that it always seems to proc at the same time as frostbite.
Empowered Frostbolt (2) - Increases the damage of your Frostbolt spell by an amount equal to 10% of your spell power and increases the critical strike chance by an additional 4%.
R: A
S: A
P: A
Crit AND damage. Spec this, ye frost mages.
Tier 9:
Summon Water Elemental (1) - Summon a Water Elemental to fight for the caster for 45 sec.
R: A
S: A
P: A
The awesomeness of this thing is not to be underestimated. Gives you another Frost Nova at range and shoots Frostbolts at stuff. Also gets a damage bonus from your gear. Play with this thing a bit, I will aggro any and all classes on sight if I am specced into this thing. Ol' drippy is worth having at your side, no matter the spec. He is your escape tool. He is the offtank in a bad mob double pull. He is your sunshine, your only sunshine. He'll make you happy when skies are gray. This is the third defining talent of the frost mage. You want him. You love him. You need him.
Improved Water Elemental (3) - Increases the duration of your Summon Water Elemental spell by 15 sec and your Water Elemental restores mana to all party or raid members within 100 yds an amount equal to 0.6% of their total mana every 5 secs.
R: A
S: B
P: A
Look at what I said about the "Summon Water Elemental" talent above. Now, make the damn thing last 15s longer and restore mana to your raid. Now pick your jaw off the floor and put points into this talent. Rated slighty lower for soloing because a lot of frosties will find themselves saving him for rough situations, especially on PvP servers, but still worth having.
Brain Freeze (3) - Your Frost damage spells have a 15% chance to cause your next Fireball spell to be instant cast and cost no mana.
R: A
S: A
P: A
This talent makes no sense. It really doesn't. Why on earth would a frost mage want to throw a fireball? Nonetheless, an instant cast, mana-free fireball is an awesome thing to have available. Especially when you're on the move. Even more nifty if combined with Ignite.
Tier 10:
Chilled to the Bone (5) - Increases the damage caused by your Frostbolt, Frostfire Bolt and Ice Lance spells by 5% and reduces the movement speed of all chilled targets by an additional 10%.
R: A
S: A
P: A
We've mentioned this before: Damage good. If you're the kind of neanderthal who still can't wrap your head around that, then there's no hope for you. Beyond the damage, you'll find an additional movement speed reduction to be an awesome thing to have for soloing and PvP.
Tier 11:
Deep Freeze (1) - Stuns the target for 5 sec. Only usable on Frozen targets.
R: F
S: D
P: B
With the removal of the damage from it, this talent is no longer the joy it used to be. Was great for shatter combos before. Still, it has its place in PvP where a properly timed stun can be more effective than a properly timed burst. Worth looking into for the PvP mage, skip it if you don't PvP.
Edited, Mar 1st 2009 11:06pm by MageSock
Edited, Mar 1st 2009 11:06pm by MageSock
) taking away so much of his time, Filter hasn't been able to share his wisdom with us lately. We are all made poorer for it. 
