… you do not talk about Frozen Orb. The second rule about Frozen Orb: You DO NOT talk about Frozen Orb. Well I am going to break some rules to educate the masses on this powerful spell.

If you ever visit the WoW>Mage Forums, you often finding yourself reading countless threads that are: 72% – QQ’ing, 20% – “Mages are Overpowered”, 3% – Educational, and 5% – “OMG 1337 Pyroblast Crit!”.

“QQ” threads are mostly about Warlocks and Shadowstep Rogues and the “Mages are Overpowered” are usually posted by Warriors and Paladins. The educational threads are pretty rare, are usually posted by the 4-5 respectable players in the Mage Community. The “OMG 1337″ threads are mostly places Mages go to flex their epeen.

These “OMG 1337″ threads are frowned upon in the Mage Community not only because the uselessness it brings to the Mage Forums, but because the fear of the small chance that a Mage Moderator might actually read what someone says (*gasp* I know! It happens sometimes!), and find something to be too powerful and nerf it.

It began with the “LOlz! 5 Consecutive Ice Lance Critz before NOva Broke!” threads which prompt the establishment of the First two rules about Ice Lance. The rules were not enforced and it was too late. It has been “fixed” and you no longer see many Ice Lances not breaking nova anymore. Everyone knew that this “fix” was to come eventually, but many Mages felt that their own forums contributed to the nerf.

The Frozen Orb. Long time fans of Blizzard games may already know of this spell. It is from an older Blizzard MMORPG called Diablo II, and World of Warcraft has taken some gameplay elements from this game. Some sound effects here and there, the item rarity level system, talent tree system… even the Item Socketing System was taken from Diablo II.

Now there is a class in Diablo II, the Sorceress, and she has a few spells like Frost Nova, Frozen Armor, Fireball, Ice Blast, Ice Bolt, Blizzard and Teleport (sound familiar?). Going down the Cold Spell talent tree you can unlock the spell, Frozen Orb.

Frozen Orb
Casting Delay: 1 Second
Required Level: 30
Prerequisites: Ice Bolt [1], Ice Blast [6], Frost Nova [6], Glacial Spike [18], Blizzard [24]

An intimidating sight that strikes fear into the hearts of her opponents, the Frozen Orb is an awesome spectacle to behold. The Orb coalesces from the air, unleashing freezing bolts at all nearby, and wreaking havoc, seemingly at random, before bursting into a brilliant explosion of frigid destruction.

Effect: A pulsating orb that shreds an area with ice bolts

Here is a video of the Frozen Orb in action: