Frostbolt

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"Wearing heavy plate is taxing enough without having to lug around another eighty pounds of ice." —Warrax^{TCGHoA 56}

Frostbolt is a mage spell that deals frost direct damage and chills the target, slowing its movement speed. This spell is the primary source of damage for a frost mage.

Contents 1 Rank table 2 Notes 3 Improvements 4 Tips and tactics 5 Past changes 6 References 7 External ilnks

Rank table

Rank	Mana Cost	Cast Time	Damage	Duration	Level	Cost
1	16% of base mana	1.5 sec	18 - 20	5 sec	4	1
2	16% of base mana	1.8 sec	31 - 35	6 sec	8	2
3	16% of base mana	2.2 sec	51 - 57	6 sec	14	9
4	16% of base mana	2.6 sec	74 - 82	7 sec	20	20
5	16% of base mana	3.0 sec	126-138	7 sec	26	50
6	16% of base mana	3.0 sec	174 - 190	8 sec	32	1
7	16% of base mana	3.0 sec	227 - 247	8 sec	38	1 40
8	16% of base mana	3.0 sec	292 - 316	9 sec	44	2 30
9	16% of base mana	3.0 sec	353 - 383	9 sec	50	3 20
10	16% of base mana	3.0 sec	429 - 463	9 sec	56	3 80
11	16% of base mana	3.0 sec	515 - 555	9 sec	60	4 20 [1]
12	16% of base mana	3.0 sec	536 - 578	9 sec	63	5 70
13	13% of base mana	3.0 sec	597 - 643	9 sec	69	11
14	13% of base mana	3.0 sec	630 - 680	9 sec	70	15
15	13% of base mana	3.0 sec	702 - 758	9 sec	75	15
16	13% of base mana	3.0 sec	799 - 861	9 sec	79	15

^[1] Frostbolt (Rank 11) can also be learned from [Tome of Frostbolt XI], a drop from bosses Ruins of Ahn'Qiraj; however, it is more economical to sell the tome and hire a trainer.

Notes

• All ranks of Frostbolt damage scale slightly with level after training it (game version 2.1.3).^{[citation needed]}

Frostbolt at max rank gets 81.4% of the caster's frost spell damage from gear and buffs. This figure is derived from the cast time and the 5% penalty for spells with a secondary effect, such as Frostbolt's chill effect (an exception to which is Frostfire Bolt).

.95(3.0 / 3.5) ~ .814

The talent Empowered Frostbolt increases the bonus by 5% per rank. To calculate the spell damage bonus, use the following formula, where Y is the number of points in Empowered Frostbolt:^[1]

(.95(3/3.5) + .05Y)

Multiplying this spell damage bonus by the amount of frost spell damage from gear and buffs gives the final amount added to the base Frostbolt damage.

Improvements

Improved Frostbolt will lower the cast time of Frostbolt by up to .5 seconds at max rank. Empowered Frostbolt at max rank will increase the amount of frost spell damage that applies to the spell by 10%, and further reduces cast time by .2 sec.

Elemental Precision and Frost Channeling reduce the mana cost of the spell, while Frost Channeling also lowers its threat. Frostbolt deals Frost damage, so the bonuses from Piercing Ice, Ice Shards, Arctic Winds and Winter's Chill apply to the spell. Arctic Reach extends the range to 36 yards at max rank. Master of Elements will refund a percentage of the mana cost of the spell if it critically hits its target.

The chill component of Frostbolt is affected by Permafrost, which increases the duration of the snare to 12 seconds at max rank, and increases the snare to 50% of movement speed. Also, the chill will trigger the Frostbite talent.

As with all mage spells capable of critical hits Arcane Instability, Spell Power, Molten Fury, Playing with Fire and Shatter can increase the effective damage output of this spell.

As of Patch 3.0.2, Impact from the Fire talent tree will work with any spell, including Frostbolt. With Frostbolt's snare and possible root effects, this additional stun can help further slow down one's opponents.

Lastly, Glyph of Frostbolt will increases the damage it deals by 5%, but removes its slowing effect. Frostbolt will still apply chill-based effects like Brain Freeze and Fingers of Frost.

Tips and tactics

Even though the duration of the snare is shorter, the fast casting time on the low ranks of this spell means never letting the big one get away. Keep rank one on your hotbar when you or your group are going to be facing enemies that flee when at low health... this includes PvP, the downside, is that this actually costs more mana per cast.

Past changes

Patch 2.1.0 (2007-05-22): Damage on rank 12 was increased slightly to ensure it did more damage than rank 11 at all levels.

References

External ilnks

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