I have mixed feelings about this.
Yes it is a chore to have to cast another spell to return your mana again.
At the same time there are actually good ways to get mana regen with gear.
I think that mage is in a scary place if you give to many options of even more mana regen and added mana.
What is the downside of mage then in LE? I think nothing.
- Damage of mages are great. AOE and Single target options are good aswell.
- You can blink away at a chosen spot without downsides.
- Mages are mostly range so you can hit enemys from a safe spot which melee cant.
- Mage has the exact same defence possibillities in defences as the tankier classes + scaling ward is easier with mage. Yes the same goes for Armor with Paladin but at the same time… mage is able to get armor aswell.
- Mage doesnt wear cloth as some games have or other downsides.
Am i missing something about the downside of mage in LE beside mana?
I like mage to be fun for everyone but boosting it from (in my opinion) a S tier class damage defence and mobility wise into an S+ tier class doesnt sound like a good idea to me unless you nerf mage in a different area. You could lower some caps at phys resist or armor for example.
There are many ways to do it but it requires a lot of math and thinking since you need to change a lot if you lower the base foundation.
I think they should experiment with this non-theless.
It would also give mage a more classic mage identity. The downside however is that if you want to be a more tankier mage you couldnt. So a better thing would be to let the player choose. You want more mana regen? Ok you can but then we lower X or Y defensive cap or your skill X is nerfed. Another option would be to receive More damage from monsters but you get a lot more mana regen. By doing this you give the player the option to be glass canon or to be a more balanced overall mage who’s not glass canon but survives certain fights easier.
Heavy actually already has an discussion on this point on the forum: The Importance of Mana in Last Epoch