The Archmage
Overview
The Archmage is a spellblade mage that blends all elements into one devastating package. Where other builds might lean heavily into fire or frost, this one thrives on versatility—cycling through ice, lightning, and flame to exploit weaknesses and chain advantages. By late game, the Archon feels limitless: infinite spell chains, capped damage on core abilities, and sustain that keeps you standing no matter the encounter.
What makes the Archon stand out is how it scales. The early game is surprisingly smooth compared to most mages, thanks to reliable control from Frost Nova and consistent damage from Ice Blast. As the build matures, you unlock the Spellblade specialization, gaining Void Blade and Meteor, which combine with Ice Blast to form a three-spell rotation that can be looped endlessly once the right passives and gear come online. With Blast Efficiency, All-Mother’s Copse, and Garb of Kinship, the Archon transitions into a true elemental powerhouse that can trivialize Nightmare difficulty.
Early Game
Character creation offers a few strong options: Shadow Dragons for mana regeneration, Mourn Watch for affliction damage, or Veil Jumpers for added critical power. Shadow Dragons are the most comfortable choice, but all three are viable.
The early spell trio—Frost Nova, Ice Blast, and Chain Lightning—makes this one of the best mage starts in the game. Frost Nova locks down entire groups without costing mana, giving you breathing room to safely use staff autos or set up bombs. Ice Blast serves as your primary damage source, hitting multiple targets and applying chill or weaken to soften them up. Chain Lightning provides additional AoE, spreads overwhelm, and helps control long fights by staggering enemies. While damage is still slower than a rogue or warrior, this setup is far more manageable than the typical mage struggle.
For early passives, Spirit Blade is a handy tool if you prefer running Orb and Dagger. It allows you to detonate bombs from range with the final attack in your chain. Beyond that, most passives are filler until you start reaching deeper into the Spellblade tree.
Early Levels
| Level </1675_d0d58d-6b> | Spell/Passive </1675_b98bdb-86> |
|---|---|
| 1 </1675_96247c-c8> | Mortal Concentration </1675_b6ccd1-fe> |
| 2 </1675_65ba13-d6> | Charging Spirit </1675_4b91e8-e7> |
| 3 </1675_069ce2-1f> | Frost Nova </1675_8636c3-f0> |
| 4 </1675_832e74-cd> | Frostbite </1675_35196f-e4> |
| 5 </1675_a3130a-77> | Fade Reflex </1675_6f3ef3-38> |
| 6 </1675_a350f3-9f> | Providence </1675_6d0f0b-c1> |
| 7 </1675_fa7e25-74> | Clarity in Suffering </1675_71aa3d-7b> |
| 8 </1675_82db80-be> | Ice Storm </1675_bac9c2-d9> |
| 9 </1675_d20fca-fc> | Ice Blast </1675_f9ed5b-77> |
| 10 </1675_671502-49> | Improved Health </1675_ae7b68-bb> |
| 11 </1675_25dcb2-23> | Fade Strike </1675_056ae0-0f> |
| 12 </1675_519340-30> | Quick Recovery </1675_ca563f-3f> |
| 13 </1675_2ab3ed-77> | Chain Lightning </1675_8f7112-2a> |
| 14 </1675_850f75-6b> | Concentration </1675_18d12e-71> |
| 15 </1675_029917-6a> | Energy Burst </1675_805c4b-c3> |
| 16 </1675_6898cb-d5> | Bulwark </1675_66022d-8f> |
| 17 </1675_7fc41f-df> | Medium Armor Mastery </1675_18ef3e-56> |
| 18 </1675_34e566-ac> | Deterioration </1675_182278-cf> |
| 19 </1675_a8b86d-eb> | Imbued Reaction </1675_aa6a6d-52> |
| 20 </1675_f98277-ed> | Underestimated </1675_835d80-2f> |
| 21 </1675_c3ad3d-5c> | Storm Surge </1675_4e45c1-22> |
| 22 </1675_d39383-e1> | Shellbreaker </1675_69619e-7c> |
| 23 </1675_c1ab61-28> | Spirit Blade </1675_665eb9-6f> |
| 24 </1675_95fbc1-67> | Thunderous End </1675_ee455d-3d> |
| 25 </1675_9f72c6-16> | Void Blade </1675_4acfb4-6a> |
| 26 </1675_0eaf8f-7a> | Finale </1675_0b4b8e-d6> |
| 27 </1675_015ec1-87> | Blast Efficiency </1675_9d285f-27> |
| 28 </1675_8e369b-be> | Deterioration </1675_3006b1-cb> |
| 29 </1675_69c0dc-ba> | Downfall </1675_7a30c2-af> |
| 30 </1675_f18111-bb> | Wall of Fire </1675_ab6b95-20> |
Equipment
| Item </1675_c74c7d-26> | Details </1675_27663f-10> |
|---|---|
| Primary Weapon  Fadelight </1675_617f56-5e> | Provides +15% bonus damage and additional status effects </1675_4f8c50-93> |
| Secondary Weapon  Enchanted Athame </1675_78ba70-6d> | More then doubles your damage at the cost of additional mana </1675_9372a5-db> |
| Staff  Flamebranch </1675_da2d75-55> | Additional fire damage and mana resource </1675_b7fe87-b2> |
| Helmet  Defiant Silence </1675_fe4479-5f> | Provides +30% damage from having all blast abilities and refunds 25% of mana cost on impact </1675_187065-3f> |
| Armor  Garb of Kinship </1675_c2349b-71> | The best armor piece in The Veilguard, provides longer advantage duration, +10% damage for EVERY advantage (you will typically always have 3+), makes the advantages more effective and most importantly heals you for +5% when gaining an advantage which will offset the self damage of Maw of the Black City </1675_ac8b59-69> |
| Ring 1  Maw of the Black City </1675_735147-b2> | Makes your abilities a guaranteed critical hit at the cost of our health, this issue is completely negated by Garb of Kinship & Twin Buckle Binding </1675_060b53-21> |
| Ring 2  Band of Smoke </1675_23aa93-ad> | Extra Fire Damage </1675_cba147-f9> |
| Amulet  All-Mother’s Copse </1675_5ed625-6e> | Significant boosts to our blast ability damage and returns our mana when critical hitting with blast abilities, working in perfect combination with Maw of the Black City </1675_095bda-df> |
| Belt  Twin Buckle Binding </1675_11b5f6-7b> | Extra healing and ability damage </1675_007b99-c1> |
| Rune 1  Vivify </1675_9ff54c-0f> | Ability cooldowns are refreshed and the next ability is free </1675_fe08b7-3d> |
| Rune 2 Glaciate </1675_a2e3b2-c7> | Passive +10% Frost damage </1675_4709a1-35> |
| Rune 3 Ascend </1675_cc5c99-c7> | ? </1675_54ee31-e6> |
Equipment Overview
The Archmage thrives on equipment that amplifies crits and spell cycling. Defiant Silence serves as the ideal helmet, pumping up critical damage for a build that leans entirely on Ice Blast, Meteor, and Void Blade critting for absurd numbers. Garb of Kinship again is the centerpiece, patching up Maw of the Black City’s self-harm while fueling higher advantages for even more damage uptime. Accessories like the All-Mother’s Copse amulet and Maw of the Black City ring turn the kit into a machine—mana refunds on crits plus guaranteed crits on every spell. A second slot, such as Band of Smoke, pairs nicely with Ice Blast to push the damage cap even harder, while Twin Buckle Binding provides both damage and sustain through its passive healing.
For weapons, the loadout leans on passive synergy rather than actives. Fade Light helps deal with tanky enemies while giving sustain, Thorn of Misfortune adds reliable crit damage scaling into the late game, and Flame Branch boosts Meteor for consistent AoE devastation. Together they form a balanced kit that doesn’t require weapon attacks to function—the Archmage’s spells become their own weapons, with each passive feeding into the cycle of infinite blasting and advantage stacking.
How to Play Late Game
With the Spellblade specialization unlocked, the Archon’s rotation comes together. Void Blade gives you a second blast option early, and later Meteor joins Ice Blast to complete the tri-element setup. The goal is to constantly rotate between these three blasts, weaving in detonations when possible for added advantages. Ice Blast often becomes your highest damage-per-cast spell, frequently hitting the 99,999 damage cap. Meteor is your best AoE tool, especially against clustered darkspawn, and Void Blade provides flexibility and mobility.
The passive backbone is Blast Efficiency, which reduces the mana cost of blast spells and makes infinite chaining possible. From there, the advantage package (Flames of Inspiration, Resistant Blast, Zone of Destruction, and Imbued Duration) keeps you alive and supercharges your spells. Garb of Kinship makes these advantages even stronger, stacking healing and damage multipliers until you feel untouchable.
In combat, the playstyle is deceptively simple: rotate spells as soon as they’re available, always prioritize Ice Blast first, Meteor second, Void Blade third. Detonate a target early in fights to trigger Imbued Duration and ensure Shocking Weapons is active. With Maul of the Black City providing guaranteed crits and All-Mother’s Copse refunding mana, you’ll find that your resources never run dry. Use Vivify if your chain slips, and keep destructive light as your panic button ultimate—it offers invulnerability frames and resets your rhythm.
By the late game, the Archon turns every battlefield into an elemental storm. Frozen packs are shattered by meteors, darkspawn melt under waves of fire, and bosses fall to endless barrages of critical Ice Blasts. It’s the pinnacle of spellblade power—fast, efficient, and brutally effective across every enemy type in the game.
Final Levels
| Level </1675_50c248-9f> | Spell/Passive </1675_4edb09-87> |
|---|---|
| 31 </1675_b3c972-57> | Prolong </1675_5dca05-35> |
| 32 </1675_a49fbd-25> | Return Fire </1675_d7a90c-7a> |
| 33 </1675_1c1ed0-fd> | Providence </1675_a4311d-44> |
| 34 </1675_f9e5dd-2b> | Resistant Blasts </1675_83045a-a4> |
| 35 </1675_1efef3-03> | Inner Focus </1675_305fdd-69> |
| 36 </1675_d40675-29> | Wrath </1675_b0c3fc-15> |
| 37 </1675_00b693-7e> | Meteor </1675_394b9a-4a> |
| 38 </1675_19db14-31> | Desolate Malady </1675_cd733a-bd> |
| 39 </1675_13915d-46> | Flames of Inspiration </1675_697119-85> |
| 40 </1675_ad0deb-e8> | Ethereal </1675_1f313a-33> |
| 41 </1675_c64ff5-05> | Zone of Destruction </1675_7052b9-5f> |
| 42 </1675_f49235-2c> | Necessary Steps </1675_5146ce-a9> |
| 43 </1675_167628-58> | Breathing Room </1675_c52acd-eb> |
| 44 </1675_5c8ebe-fd> | Shattering Control </1675_ee442a-de> |
| 45 </1675_03490a-f7> | Even the Odds </1675_0b3cda-b8> |
| 46 </1675_bbfe1a-2f> | Arcane Defiance </1675_657b57-13> |
| 47 </1675_d68fc7-ff> | Corrupted Ground </1675_b10ccb-60> |
| 48 </1675_f5b1af-84> | Enervation </1675_5eeb3b-9d> |
| 49 </1675_81d7e9-14> | Collateral Damage </1675_b7211a-9c> |
| 50 </1675_8b8ec6-cf> | Necessary Steps </1675_8731d1-ab> |
| 51 </1675_89941b-e1> | Breathing Room </1675_df6d55-39> |
| 52 </1675_a600d2-e7> | Imbued Duration </1675_ad3937-24> |
| 53 </1675_6f4823-8a> | Degrade </1675_99eff6-74> |
| 54 </1675_50fc32-22> | Staggering Charge </1675_f078b4-50> |
| 55 </1675_387894-d1> | Breacher </1675_583bb2-97> |
| 56 </1675_d37354-26> | Frost Shield </1675_b6efd9-e5> |
| 57 </1675_85fba3-80> | Shellbreaker </1675_cb22a2-38> |
| 58 </1675_70d96b-fc> | Imbued Takedown </1675_1f72f3-17> |
| 59 </1675_9ca034-40> | Desolate Malady </1675_8ac7df-4c> |
| 60 </1675_3978d3-ab> | Dark Squall </1675_eb8392-4b> |
| 61 </1675_b8bc67-f1> | Perfect Cast </1675_c01cfa-f7> |
| 62 </1675_3242fe-aa> | Wrath </1675_04aea2-90> |
| 63 </1675_4b9c0f-c1> | Reclamation </1675_0af9c5-b1> |
| 64 </1675_737827-0a> | Enervation </1675_55b925-ff> |
| 65 </1675_3539ec-41> | Tempest </1675_480f89-6c> |
- Every ability node is an extra 15% passive damage so we want to grab as many abilities as possible even if we are not using them
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