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No other hero wields the arcane with as much skill and raw power as a Mage. Using their unrivaled array of spells, Mages can wipe entire boards of minions, deal devastating amounts of damage directly to their enemy, or summon creatures of pure energy to do their bidding.[1]

Mage icon Mage is one of 11 classes in Hearthstone.

Heroes[]

Mage is represented by the following heroes. Jaina Proudmoore is the default hero of Mage.

Heroes
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Alternate portraits
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HERO 08w
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HERO 08y
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Background[]

Main article: Mage

Students gifted with a keen intellect and unwavering discipline may walk the path of the mage. The arcane magic available to magi is both great and dangerous, and thus is revealed only to the most devoted practitioners. To avoid interference with their spellcasting, magi wear only cloth armor, but arcane shields and enchantments give them additional protection. To keep enemies at bay, magi can summon bursts of fire to incinerate distant targets and cause entire areas to erupt, setting groups of foes ablaze. Masters of ice can command blizzards that tear into flesh and limit movement. Should enemies manage to survive this assault, the mage can shrink them into harmless sheep in the blink of an eye.

Powerful magi can even generate enhancements and portals, assisting allies by sharpening their minds and transporting them instantly across the world.[2]

Hero Power[]

Fireblast
Main article: LegacyFireblast
Singe unworthy opponents with a burst of magical flame.[1]

The Mage Hero Power LegacyFireblast can be used to deal 1 damage to any target. It is useful for board control, able to remove smaller minions like LegacyBluegill Warrior or even weaken large minions like LegacyBoulderfist Ogre. It can be used strategically to remove a Divine Shield from an enemy, or to hit one of the mage's own minions to activate certain effects, such as LegacyAmani Berserker or LegacyAcolyte of Pain. As a Hero Power, Fireblast can bypass minions with Taunt, but cannot target elusive minions like LegacyFaerie Dragon. (Note that it is not a spell and therefore is not affected by Spell Damage.) Over time, the Mage class has received several cards revolving around this Hero Power. They have cards like Rastakhan's RumbleDaring Fire-Eater and Forged in the BarrensWildfire to increase its damage, and payoff cards like Rastakhan's RumbleJan'alai, the Dragonhawk and Forged in the BarrensMordresh Fire Eye.

Replacement Hero Powers[]

Fireblast Rank 2
Icy Touch
Ascendant Scroll
What Does This Do?
Arcane Burst

Traits[]

Surprising Effects[]

Sometimes the magic forces wielded by Mages have surprising results. Take advantage of the wild nature of magic by activating random effects and… hoping for the best![1]
Featured cards
Spellslinger
Deck of Wonders
Puzzle Box of Yogg-Saron
Mana Cyclone

Freeze[]

Mages can freeze minions to prevent them from attacking for a turn. They can also take advantage of a minion’s frozen state to deal bonus damage or trigger additional effects.[1]
Featured cards
Ray of Frost
Shatter
Cryomancer
Blizzard

Secrets[]

Store your arcane energies as mysterious secrets that will automatically trigger when your opponent unknowingly meets the spell’s requirements.[1]
Featured cards
Explosive Runes
Duplicate
Flame Ward
Ice Barrier

How to get cards[]

Core cards[]

Raising Mage up to level 10 awards 17 Core Mage cards (32 copies), while winning up to 500 games in Ranked, Arena and Duels awards golden copies of existing cards. All Core cards are uncraftable and cannot be crafted or disenchanted.

Up to level 10, reaching each level will award the player two copies (one at level 10) of new Core Mage cards.

Flame Geyser
Unlocked at level 1.
Shooting Star
Unlocked at level 1.
Arcane Intellect
Unlocked at level 1.
Ice Barrier
Unlocked at level 1.
Fireball
Unlocked at level 1.
Blizzard
Unlocked at level 1.
Firelands Portal
Unlocked at level 1.
Stargazer Luna
Unlocked at level 10.
Aegwynn, the Guardian
Unlocked at level 10.
Arcane Artificer
Unlocked at level 2.
Explosive Runes
Unlocked at level 3.
Arcanologist
Unlocked at level 4.
Fire Sale
Unlocked at level 5.
Snap Freeze
Unlocked at level 6.
Babbling Book
Unlocked at level 7.
Counterspell
Unlocked at level 8.
Pyroblast
Unlocked at level 9.

Expansion cards[]

Mage - Card pack

Mage pack

Main article: Card pack

Mage's expansion cards can be obtained mostly by obtaining corresponding card packs or Mage class packs. The player can buy them in Shop with gold or real money, or get them through various sources. Some cards may be available through various promotions, like logging in to get them.

Mini-set cards, while can be obtained like expansion cards, can also be obtained by buying its bundle available in Shop for a limited-time. The player can buy the bundle with gold or real money.

Expansions cards are also craftable and can be obtained by crafting them with Arcane Dust.

Adventure cards[]

Main article: Adventure

Adventure cards can be obtained by completing their Adventure's encounters. They are uncraftable until the player completes the Adventure or their set rotates to Wild format. The player can buy the Adventure with gold for each individual part, or real money for the whole of it.

Cards[]

For Standard format cards, see Mage/Standard format.
For Wild format cards, see Mage/Wild format.
For Classic format cards, see Mage/Classic format.

Breakdown of Mage cards in both Standard and Wild formats can be seen in the following table.

MageMage card statistics
Rarity Hero Minion Spell Weapon Location Anomaly
Free 0 2 18 0 0 0
CommonCommon 0 60 59 0 0 0
RareRare 0 58 50 2 1 0
EpicEpic 0 17 43 0 0 0
LegendaryLegendary 4 42 7 1 0 0

Strategy and gameplay[]

Mages use a large array of spells that impede on the opponents minions and damage their hero. Decks with Spell Damage minions like LegacyKobold Geomancer or LegacyAzure Drake strengthen the mage's numerous direct damage spells, even turning weak spells into formidable nukes. Minions that benefit from playing spells like LegacyMana Addict, LegacyGadgetzan Auctioneer, and the Naga minion type can also fit well into Mage decks.

For slower decks, mages can turtle exceptionally well, with Frost spells like LegacyIce Barrier, LegacyIce Block, and Murder at Castle NathriaSolid Alibi. These augment the hero's ability to survive, while their early game crowd control effects like LegacyFrost Nova and LegacyCone of Cold prevent retaliation. Then the mage can play powerful cards like LegacyPyroblast.

Common deck types[]

Tempo Mage is perhaps the most common mage deck type, with a number of variants. Mages can arm themselves with low-cost spells with LegacyMana Wyrm, Blackrock MountainFlamewaker, and The WitchwoodVex Crow to snowball early and finish off with direct damage while never running out of steam with Kobolds & CatacombsAluneth or Rise of ShadowsMana Cyclone. Secret Mage relies on Secrets not only to generate useful effects but also to baffle and confuse the opponent, forcing them to delay strong plays while they dismantle the mage's unpredictable web of spells.

Aggro or Burn Mage goes for direct damage as as often as possible instead, using aggressive but short-lived minions to push for damage early on and pelt the opponents with Fireballs, a barrage of LegacyArcane Missiles, and one big LegacyPyroblast to finish them off. In the Wild format, Mech Mage makes heavy use of cards from Goblins vs Gnomes for strong Mech synergy, and also spell synergy with the generated Spare Parts cards, making this a semi spell-oriented deck. Starting with Voyage to the Sunken City, the Mage class has received additional Mechs and Mech synergy cards that enhance the archetype's power and variety.

On the slower side, Mages can employ heavy spells with Kobolds & CatacombsDragon's Fury and Kobolds & CatacombsArcane Artificer for late-game control. Mage is also known for featuring one of the slowest decks in the game - the Freeze Mage. It uses heavy control elements: the Mage's unique Freeze effects, AoE removal like LegacyFlamestrike, and the impenetrable LegacyIce Block to slow and delay the opponent's assault. It is then followed by a flurry of direct damage spells like LegacyFireball, LegacyFrostbolt and LegacyIce Lance to destroy the opponent, often in a single turn. They can also employ a deck known as Exodia Mage. It goes all-in on LegacyArchmage Antonidas and creating four Sorcerer's Apprentices. Their powers combined allows the mage to throw infinite Fireballs to end the game.

Similarly to Shamans, Mages are also attuned with Elementals, a common minion type. Elemental Mages have rudimentary Elemental synergies. These Elementals generate value, enhance spells, and can even flood the board. Late game Elementals can overwhelm opponents, whether it's using Knights of the Frozen ThroneFrost Lich Jaina to create an army of Lifestealing Elementals, or crashing down Elemental giants like Galakrond's AwakeningAnimated Avalanche upon them.

Counters[]

While strategy against mages depends heavily on deck type, this section describes some general pointers to bear in mind when learning to play against the class.

Mages have strong battlefield control, with single target spells like LegacyPolymorph and LegacyFireball, and numerous Freeze effects such as LegacyFrost Nova, along with board wide removal from LegacyFlamestrike and LegacyBlizzard. These cards excel later in the game when stronger minions are played and when mana is available. It is possible to bait removal by placing threatening minions to force the mage to use them before then playing your strongest cards. Be aware of minion vulnerability when approaching turn 7, as any sizeable force of minions (especially at 4 Health or less) will offer a good reason for the mage to play Flamestrike if they have it. While Mage players are good at protecting themselves, they severely lack healing of their own, which makes them weak against early-game damage.

Mages have a large array of powerful Secrets, but it is still possible minimize their impact. If an opponent has any Mage Secrets, always try to safely determine which ones they are:

  • Play a weak/cheap minion before a strong minion in case it is LegacyMirror Entity, Knights of the Frozen ThroneFrozen Clone, Mean Streets of GadgetzanPotion of Polymorph, or Murder at Castle NathriaObjection!
  • If you suspect the Secret is Kobolds & CatacombsExplosive Runes, you could try to play a high-Health minion to soak up the damage.
  • Play weak/cheap spells before using strong and costly spells in case of LegacyCounterspell or Journey to Un'GoroMana Bind. If it instead triggers Ashes of OutlandNetherwind Portal, gauge whether or not to deal with the summoned minion.
  • When killing enemy minions, target the weakest/cheapest one first in case of NaxxramasDuplicate, The Grand TournamentEffigy, or Rastakhan's RumbleSplitting Image.
  • Forged in the BarrensOasis Ally summons a Freezing LegacyWater Elemental when one of a mage's minions are attacked, so be ready to deal with it if necessary.
  • Attack the hero directly with a weak minion before a strong minion in case it's LegacyVaporize or Murder at Castle NathriaVengeful Visage.
  • LegacySpellbender will redirect a single-target spell onto a 1/3 minion. So you can use a weak spell before an important spell to negate it.
  • LegacyIce Barrier gives the mage 8 Armor when you or your minions attack them, so try to use spells or Hero Powers to not trigger it.
  • Saviors of UldumFlame Ward deals 3 damage to your minions after one attacks the mage, but can be telegraphed by them reducing your minions down to 3 or less Health. In that case, only attack with your hero, or use spells and Hero Powers.
  • Madness at the Darkmoon FaireRigged Faire Game draws them 3 cards if they didn't take damage on your turn, so try to deal some type of damage each turn.
  • LegacyIce Block will prevent lethal damage and make the mage Immune for the turn. In a close game, don't be baited into using all of your cards as it may allow the mage to make a comeback. Since mages lack healing, you can also try to whittle the mage's health down as close to 1 as possible.
  • Plenty of Mage Secrets have a spell school. It's possible to narrow down which Secrets the opponent plays if they come from a card that generates from a specific spell school or if they progress the United in StormwindSorcerer's Gambit Questline.
  • Additionally, you may want to keep track of Secrets played from the opponent's starting deck. If they don't generate more copies, you won't have to worry about Secrets they've already played in a game.

Trivia[]

  • As of 2016, mage is by far the most commonly searched for class using Google. Top searches include "Freeze Mage" and "Mech Mage".[3]
  • Mage was one of the first three classes to receive an alternate hero. It is tied with Paladin and Warlock for the most available heroes, and was the first class to have three possible heroes.
  • During the game's early development, the mage hero was Kael'thas Sunstrider. The hero can be seen in screenshots from that period.

Gallery[]

Card frames
Dual-class
History

References[]


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