Mage: New Spells That Are Low Damage

This is formed as a question, but really more of a complaint.

Why is it that when I'm at a level where I have DD damage spells with a base damage of 25-32k they give new DD spells that only do 12K damage?

For instance: I have a level 110 spell "Spear of Molten Arcronite" that has a base damage of 32,704, then when I hit level 111 they give me "Crash of Sand" with a base damage of 12,351 and "Bolt of Molten Komatiite" with a base damage of 23,052. The only real difference I see is that the lower damage spells have a faster cast time, but that isn't enough to make me want to use them. These lower damage spells make the new level less exciting.

Crash of Sand 111 upgrades Volley of Sand 106. That spell line will be upgraded again for you at 116 by Destruction of Sand.

Spear of Molten Arcronite 110 is upgraded at 115 by Spear of Molten Komatiite. You're not there yet.

Hello,
Originally each spell line has its own use. Quick cast spells, long cast spells with huge mana cost and huge damage. You really would have to go back into history, expansion by expansion, to really understand the niche of some spells that today are still getting upgraded but nobody uses them that doesn't mean that they aren't bad situational tools, etc.

Currently on Live I doubt anyone use the quickcast spells unless really skilled; a mob is about to die and a Sand spell is perfectly timed over a Spear spell.

Anyhow, and regardless of class designs, stick to what Szilent said... Spear is your main nuke and it gets uppgraded every 5 levels. They doesn't share timer so you can weave a pair of Spears and do the usual mage rotation you will find on the dps guides that roam around made by Sancus.

Isn't there some other aspect to the Sand nukes, like that they aren't reflectable or something (not that it would come up on anything but random raid mobs).

The quick casting low damage nukes in this day in age are really only good for is farming TS mats in old expansions.

Years ago, I used them for runners. Low health mobs that bolt at warp speed. Those mobs could be hazardous when they brought back a train of friends. Runners seem to have disappeared from the game.

The two Sand lines are also good for finishing off low health mobs in Beam killing.

I use the "of Sand" line but not the "Sands" line because for Beaming, shorter recast time is more important than shorter casting time. But since the "Sands" line has a Type 3 aug while the "of Sand" line does not, I imagine most players will prefer the "Sands" line.

Back in the day when Force of Elements does not consume mana, it does the trick of stopping runners and finishing off Beam mobs. But now that Force of Elements is not worth using in mass killing, the two Sand lines are needed.

This is the same issue that has killed wizards as a class, the spell lines have lost their purpose. Aether spells were the big hits that cost a ton and the smaller ones were faster and way more efficient but now the aether spells are less effective then the fast nukes used to be and the fast nukes are pointless in the current meta. As a result wizards can't just cut loose or take proper advantage of GoM procs since the proc changes nothing about your rotation where as before the proc would be the time to cast Aether during the average fight. They need to sweep across nukes like they did with DoTs and bring them into the modern meta better.

You can trigger Alliances easier with faster spells?

I always looked at those spells and wondered what I was missing, they seemed pretty worthless. I guess they really are pretty worthless. It's like the mending heals from shamans, that no one uses.

I'm not sure if this is a thing that people do or not. I'd love to hear if this is something I should be trying to do with 2 mages in a group.