Best caster class for someone new to casters?

So I’ve always played melee classes and I want to try a caster so what would be the best to start with? I have a shaman I could switch to ele. But I want to try mage or warlock but I feel like they’re not the best class to start with since I’ve never played caster before. I’ve played hunter but I wouldn’t consider it a caster just ranged. So any help guys and gals? Thanks :smiley:

Honestly Mage or Warlock probably are the better options, because of the pets. They take some of the aggro off you so you don’t die if you make a mistake. Frost’s water elemental and the Locks Voidwalker are good built in tanks.

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elemental shaman does some damage and Im sure its fun to some, but Ive played all the casters in this game and elemental is the LEAST fun of them all.

Id go with Arcane mage IF you like mana management.
Or frost if you dont.
Balance Druid is a ton of fun and with self heals is very viable, even if it isnt always topping the DPS charts.

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I’m assuming you mean PvE?

If you enjoy the idea of Warlock then Affliction is relatively easy to wrap your head around and usually of decent strength

Can I has your water elemental? On my mage the water ele couldn’t tank its way out of a wet paper bag and is in no way a reliable tank at all

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I mean higher levels the ele is worthless but I found it to be pretty solid while leveling. I still did 90% of the dmg bit it distracted the mobs enough to keep them off me since I didnt put out much threat.

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I have a feral Druid so I might reroll specs and try balance. Mage also seems fun so I’ll probably level one so I can get the full experience from 1-120 and get a fell for it and how to play it

You can never go wrong with Frost Mage.

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It might just be my preferences, but doesnt elemental feel really laggy and slow to you?
I feel like its standing there waiting for a mailed invitation between casting anything.
I love the effects but god it just feels sluggish.

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Ah all good, was curious as to whether I was missing something

I wish our water elemental could do a decent bit of tanking, even at cap :sob:

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I know you didn’t mention it directly but BM hunter is probably the easiest ranged. Depending on the number of mobs, you have 1-2 buffs/debuts to maintain and a couple of cooldowns.

Arcane has fewer buttons I guess but the mana management to maximize DPS can be annoying to someone new to ranged. BM is super straightforward.

I know you said you don’t consider hunter a caster but it’s really just visuals, if you want a more turret=like caster marks hunter is always there for you.

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It is a wet noodle, no pun intended, and not super smart. I’m not Frost currently but at max level when I was still Frost, Lonely Winter was the only way to go.

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BM probs is objectively the best beginners ranged class, though technically not a “caster”

Another thing with BM is its mobility, which makes handling mechanics while maintaining your output a lot less punishing

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I think destruction warlock is probably one the easiest ranged dps specs and the moment.

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The turret styles of warlocks will drive you nuts if you’re used to moving around as melee

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And one of the most annoying to have to fight in PvP.
God i hated having that pet eat me alive then Id get to the hunter only to have him turtle shell :joy:
I normally love PvP…even if Im getting stomped…but fighting a BM hunter can seriously cause ulcers :rofl:

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I havent played many in the current game TBH, but I would highly recommend balance druid after trying it out for a bit.

It has a very simple reactive rotation, only about 6 spells that you really have to bind/use frequently, and the damage output is awesome.

Also, if you ever feel like you want a change of pace, you can try feral DPS, guardian tanking, or resto healing without having to change classes entirely, gives a nice break in the monotony of gameplay. Most casters cant do that.

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Shadow Priest are tons of fun to play!

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Depends on what you want to do. If you want to push M+, the best caster classes are: outlaw rogue and ww monk. :slight_smile: :slight_smile:

If you have a problem with being squishy you do not want to play a mage. Group content is not bad just ice block and wait for the tank to pick up the mobs. But solo your going to have to stay on your toes to stay alive. It used to bug the heck out of me being so squishy. When I finally really “tried” the mage class I found the mini game of staying alive to be quite refreshing and fun.

If you play a lot of solo and don’t like being squishy hands down go affliction warlock.

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I like challenges so I think mage would be fun >:)

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