I found many mage skills quite useless that require a lot of skill points. So I decided to state down which are worth being spent on. as a Mage HM PvE myself.

http://www.aeriagames.com/wiki/index.php?title=Mage/Pagan_Skills&game=shaiya

I won't waste time putting the picture icon beside each skill so you can check them on the link above:

Keep in mind that I'm new to Shaiya (LvL 44)


Passive Skills:

1) Mana Training 1-7
2) Relax Body 1-6
3) Staff Power Up 1-6
4) Dagger Weapon Power Up 1-6
5) Backpack Upgrade 1-3
6) Staff Mastery 1


Basic Skills:

1) Town Portal 1-3
2) Magic Arrow 1-9
3) Body Protector 1-7
4) Fire Ball 1-8
5) Magic Roots 1-8


Combat Skills:

1) Fire Thorns 1-4
2) Fire Wall 1-6
3) Earth Strike 1-6
4) Meteor Strike 1-6
5) Earthquake 1-6
6) Chain Lightning 1-6
7) Sustain Doom 1-5
Missile Rage 1-5
9) Flame Choir 1-5


Special Skills:

1) Evasion 1-3 (0 points)
2) Support Spell 1-6
3) Potential Motive 1-3
4) Diversion 1-5
5) Health Assistant 1-3
6) Aqua Skin 1-3 (To protect you from NPC mage/range attacks)
7) Earth Skin 1-3 (To protect you from NPC melee attacks)
Equivalent Exchange 1-3
9) Kaiman's Breath 1


Total would be 451 skill points to spend on.

What do you think? Is there a skill I should add or take out? This is my PvE opinion.

Few things:

1. Mana Training at max level does not even grant you enough MP to cast another spell. Orange stats don't cost skill points and add up to a ton more MP. Consider that before you invest skill points into it.
   
   
2. You have passive abilities for both staff and dagger. Choose only one. This not only saves you skill points, but saves you from having to link multiple weapon types. Daggers excel at Lv1-60, but the attack power of staffs eventually overcomes the speed disadvantage at Lv60+.
   
   
3. Roots gets its full Pause effect at Lv1. You don't need to max it for PvE. The damage difference won't be your make-or-break. In PvE, you have time to simple use another Magic Arrow if something requires one last hit. No need to spend another 20 skill points on Magic Roots.
   
   
4. Fireball is useless if you have elemental weapons (like your Lv45 epic staff). Its cast time causes it to do less damage than Magic Arrow.
   
   
5. It would take a lot of ticks for Sustain Doom to do more damage than casting a single Magic Arrow instead. If it takes you that long to kill mobs, you should be killing things that are a lower level. Grind efficiency is about XP over time, not XP per mob.
   
   
6. Hellfire is superior to Meteor Strike in every way. You should get that instead.
   
   
7. Fire Thorns is worse than useless if you're not a tank. It's dangerous. It picks up aggro and gets you killed.
   
   
8. Flame Choir doesn't have a purpose if you have an elemental weapon. Even the Lv45 epic staff will do. Magic Arrow does more damage.
   
   
9. Health Assistant isn't really necessary for PvE, but if you want it, I would leave it at Lv2. Lv3 eats up your SP, which is needed for many skills, including Diversion, which you've also maxed. Lv2 only removes MP, which is safer for you.
   
   
10. Taking all 3 levels of Skins isn't necessary. Even Lv1 is enough because the cooldown = duration. Unless you die, you'll never run out, even if you're only using Lv1. That's a handful of easy skill points to save if you just pick up Lv1 of Aqua. A second one shouldn't be necessary for PvE, but you can take one if you want.
    
    
11. Equivalent Exchange is a PvP skill. It's weak and dangerous in PvE. It takes ALL of your MP to use and does less damage than Magic Arrow in the same time frame. It's only good use is an 'assassination' tool in PvP.

What if I end up fighting a mob with high HP?

Will Meteor Strike + Earthquake + Chain Lighting + Hellfire + Earthspikes + Turbulence be a good combo?

I'm going to buy a skill reset stone soon, so what do you think should be the right way to spend skill points?

I'm going full int till level 70. Isn't firethorn useful in that case?

Should be Missile Missile Missile Missile Missile Missile if killing one target, maybe roots/earth quake in beginning to get a small advantage.
If AoEing, Fire Wall, Earth Strike, Storm and Chain Lightning (and AR ofc)

And if you are going full INT fire thorn is NOT useful, as Avyn said, it just makes everything target you and 650 dmg per tick is nothing. It's good for REC when you are able to tank mobs and use self cast AoE's on those.

splasher__ wrote:

Should be Missile Missile Missile Missile Missile Missile if killing one target,

Well Avyn summed it pretty much up. I leveled a NM to 60+ and had much less skill points and tried to get a efficient skilling, so I used most of his recomondations that have been posted before.

One remark left:
For PvE, I found roots on higher level quite handicaped, since it becomes a longer range spell. I used it quite often as opening spell when soloing. This made me often do some steps afterwards to the target mob, since all other spells are with shorter distance. This makes you loose time.
So I downgraded roots to level 2 or so.