Warning: Online Experience May Ruin Gameplay

Sephran left a comment that was really more a question than a comment. That's fine. I love it anyways. The basic gyst of the quest was this, "When I hit 70, I'm going to be PvPing a lot and will be spec'd deep frost. I've got the Frozen Shadoweave set, but I'm torn between the Battlecast and Spellstrike sets. Do you have any suggestions?" You bet I do.

First of all, I am a happy gnome camper with yet another frosty mage around. Even though I'm not "iced out" anymore, I miss it and love all the possibilities with the spec. Good on you, Seph, for picking a powerful class and spec for PvP.

I love Frozen Shadoweave. Really I do. The +frost damage and that delicious set bonus make me titter with glee. A mage recovering health from just hitting things with frost spells? It's a warlock with no sacrificial demon screaming at you the entire time.

One thing I do not like is the loss of stats in exchange for damage. Then again, I'm a raider at heart, so having a smaller mana pool is a big no- no for me. But PvP is a different animal. Normally, I rank my gear with +spell damage, +Intellect and +spell crit. Spell hit and Stamina are lower on my agenda. In an instance or raid, I can reasonably expect a heal or a bandage. My lifespan is also longer. You don't get that in arenas and battlegrounds, so this changes priorities around.

Our rearranged priorities could look something like this:
1) +Stamina
2) +Spell damage
3) +Intellect
4) +Spell crit (probably should be ranked lower, but I only have 4 points on the list)

(We don't really need to worry ourselves with +spell hit. Everyone we're fighting is level 70, so all that +spell hit gets wasted.)

Going with the Frozen Shadoweave set, make sure you stack +Stamina gems whenever you can. You're going to need it. Big concern, however, is the low +Stamina already on the pieces. But, we're set on using it, so we need to make up for it elsewhere. Time to look at the rest of our gear.

We want more stamina because we want to last longer on the battlefield and do the kinds of things mages are designed to do, i.e. blow things up with extreme prejudice. Thankfully Blizzard stepped in and gave Frozen Shadoweave tailors just the craftable pieces we need.

Enter the Battlecast set. Let's see what we're getting for all our hard work and well- earned gold.

Battlecast Hood
145 armor
+43 Stamina
+28 Intellect
Red Socket
Blue Socket
Socket Bonus: +3 spell crit rating
Increases damage and healing done by magical spells and effects by up to 43

Battlecast Pants
156 armor
+42 Stamina
+27 Intellect
Red Socket
Blue Socket
Socket Bonus: +3 spell crit rating
Increases damage and healing done by magical spells and effects by up to 46

Now we're talking. That's a lot of +Stamina and a good amount of +spell damage too. You can even ignore the socket bonuses (they do kinda suck) and stack some +9 spell damage gems in there if you want.

There is a big downside to this, and that's sheer cost. Even if you have the patterns, the materials can be ridiculously expensive, especially since it takes a Primal Nether to make each piece. If you've got the gold to spare, go this route. You won't regret it. Get your PvP reward bracers and belt immediately.

Alas, my time is short tonight, so I won't be able to go through the less expensive version yet, but that's coming.

And finally, remember, gear does not make you a better player. You, and only you, make a better player. Gear just helps to tilt the odds a bit in your favor. If you know your class and play it well, you can be successful. Work on you first, then you'll be able to pull out the most bang for your buck with the gear you have.