Mage — the elemental engine
The Mage is the class the store uses to explain elemental conversion: Ember Bolts, burning legions and arrows in a chosen element. The class is confirmed; the spellbook is not. Here is what the art and the store’s examples actually support.
What the official art shows
The lineup presents the Mage as an older, bearded figure in a purple robe with a tall staff. The silhouette is narrow, the weapon is long, and the pose is upright — a caster who stays behind the front line. It is the clearest “keep away from me” silhouette in the six.
The likely game plan
A Mage in a loot-driven ARPG usually wins by converting mana into area damage and by choosing an element that matches the pack. The interesting question in Broken Oath is how the support-gem system changes a spell. The store’s example — a Cyclone that fires Ember Bolts while you channel — implies supports can attach a projectile to a channelled skill. If a Mage can do the reverse (attach a channel to a projectile), the class could play very differently from the usual stand-and-cast wizard.
- Clear: projectile spread, chaining or ground effects. The HUD’s eight skill slots suggest multiple active spells, not one button.
- Single target: a channel or a delayed burst. Watch for mana cost per second.
- Defence: distance, frost/chronomancy effects, or a shield skill. The two flasks are your emergency layer.
- Bossing: cast time is the enemy. Test whether you can move while channelling.
What to test first
- Does the starting spell pierce, chain or explode?
- How fast does mana run out, and does the mana flask refill enough?
- Can you cast while moving, or does every spell root you?
- Does the chosen element change the colour and sound of the skill, or only the damage number?
- Is there a defensive spell before the first Guardian?
The build shape to aim for
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One element, one engine
Pick fire, cold, lightning or whatever the tree supports. Do not split three elements before you have a working clear skill.
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One mana solution
Mana flask, regeneration, leech or cost reduction. A Mage with no mana is a spectator.
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One defensive layer
A shield, a chill, a decoy or pure distance. Choose it deliberately, not by accident.
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One support that changes behaviour
The store’s design promise is behavioural change, not +10% damage. Look for supports that add a projectile, a chain, a trigger or a conversion.
Playtest report: the Storm Whirl engine
This is the most technically specific playtest report we have, and it is still unverified. If true, the Mage is not a stand-and-cast class; it is a trigger engine builder. That would make support-gem behaviour, crit chance and movement the three stats that matter most.
The claimed five-skill limit is exactly the kind of number we will not build a guide around until the game documents it. It could be a real trigger cap, a UI limit or a misunderstanding.
What would change this page
A spell list, a gameplay clip with the Mage HUD, or a playtest build. Until one of those exists, any “Mage leveling guide” with named skills and gem links is inventing them. We will update this page the day the developer shows the spellbook.