Classes
Magician
Pet caster — elemental pets, summoned items, sustained DPS, and the server's quartermaster.
Magician specializes in elemental summoning. The Mage's pets scale harder than any other class's pets in the era; the reagent-free pet-nuke combo produces sustained DPS across the full class lifespan; and the Mage's summon kit makes the class the unofficial quartermaster of every server. The Magician identity is pet-DPS plus item-summon utility. The pet tanks, the Mage nukes, and the group benefits from summoned stat-food (Rod of Iron), summoned containers (Bag of Sewn Evil-Eye), summoned light sources (Summoned Torches), and Modulation rod hand-outs that let casters drain the Mage's mana pool into theirs.
Role and identity
A Magician exists to point a pet at a problem and watch it solve the problem. Four elemental pet flavors — Fire (DPS), Earth (tank/root), Water (proc), Air (stun) — let the Mage tune the pet to the encounter. Outside combat, the Mage hands out summoned items that no other class can produce: free food, free torches, free Rods of Iron for any group member who asks.
Identity is the elemental binder. Mages don't tank, don't heal, don't crowd-control. They summon, they nuke, and they let the elemental do the heavy lifting. The class is mechanically simple but rewards pet-management mastery — knowing when to pull the pet back, when to recall, when to Reclaim Energy for a mana refund.
Strengths
- Strongest pets in the era — fire pet out-DPS most melee classes
- Reagent-free Pet + Nuke combo for sustained mana economy
- Rod of Iron and other summoned items reduce party logistics costs
- Call of the Hero — summon a group member to the Mage's location
- Modulation Rods — mana donation to other casters
- Solo-friendly — pet-tank, Mage-nuke covers most outdoor named
Weaknesses
- Pet pathing breaks in tight zones (Plane of Hate, Sebilis spires)
- No CC contribution
- No healing utility (small pet heal only)
- Pet aggro management requires positioning awareness
- Summoning reagents (component spells) require inventory space
Solo, group, and raid
Solo
Excellent. Pet-tank, Mage-nuke. The Magician is one of the top three solo classes in EQ. A 60+ Mage with a fire pet can solo most outdoor named encounters that Wizards cannot touch. Reclaim Energy lets the Mage swap pets mid-fight if the current pet's about to die.
Group
Any group. The pet reduces the tank's workload; the nukes contribute DPS; and the Mage's summons reduce food/drink costs for everyone in the party. Magicians are less "required" than Clerics but universally welcomed. Modulation Rods let the Mage donate mana to whichever caster needs it most.
Raid
Pet-DPS seat. Mages parse high in fights where the pet can sit at melee range without breaking. AA priority is Mana Conservation, Spell Casting Reinforcement, and the Magician-specific Improved Reclaim Energy. Elemental Form (AA) provides a temporary pet replacement with unique procs.
The Last Camp any-race-class combos
The Last Camp opens Magician to canonically forbidden races. Iksar Magician is the standout — Cabilis starting, regen, and racial AC bonus on a pet-caster body. The race traditionally rolled Necromancer or Shaman; on The Last Camp the Mage build works perfectly with Iksar INT scaling.
Ogre Magician brings frontal stun immunity to the pet-caster line — the only Mage race that can guarantee pet uptime against caster bosses where stun protection matters. Halfling Magician is the smallest INT-stat-cap Mage, with the highest racial AGI / DEX layered onto cloth. Wood Elf Magician of Solusek Ro is the corrupted-druid build, faction-hostile in every Wood Elf city the character tries to bind in. Barbarian Magician is the largest cold-resist Mage with the smallest INT pool — workable, but slower scaling than Erudite or Gnome. Vah Shir Magician combines Safe Fall with elemental summoning, ideal for vertical raid zones.
Spell / discipline highlights
Defining spells: Pet summons (Fire / Earth / Water / Air, four flavors per tier), Burnout (haste + DPS for pet and self), Call of the Hero (long-distance group summon), Reclaim Energy (dismiss pet for mana return), the Modulation Rod line (mana donation), Summoned items (Rod of Iron, Torches, Bag of Sewn Evil-Eye), and the late-game Pet of the Holy / Inferno Shield stacks. No disciplines.
AAs to prioritize
Mana Conservation, Spell Casting Reinforcement, and Improved Reclaim Energy first. Then Spell Casting Subtlety, Innate Intelligence, and the Magician-specific Pet Discipline / Improved Pet Damage. Elemental Form and Hastened Call of the Hero round out late-tier picks.
Leveling path summary
- 1-15: Newbie yard. Pet learns to hold aggro.
- 15-30: Blackburrow, Sol A, Najena. Upgrade pet every 4 levels.
- 30-45: Sol B, Lower Guk, Mistmoore.
- 45-60: Karnor's, Chardok, Sebilis. Pet handles what nukers can't.
- 60-65: PoP pet-DPS seat. Plane of Fire is Magician territory.
Notable gear by tier
Early Magicians prize Crystallized Wand, Bone-Splinter Staff, and any robe with INT for mana scaling. Kunark adds Sceptre of Mastery, Lambent Wand, and Iksar caster gear. Velious provides Coldain Magician robes and the Plane of Mischief elemental focus drops. PoP endgame is the Time-tier magician set and Spire-tip Pet Focus. Epic 1.0 Orb of Mastery is a pet-focus clicky that scales pet damage and hit chance — the Mage's BiS off-hand for the era.