Best Early-Game Weapons For Mages In Dragon Age: The Veilguard

Key Takeaways

• Frostbranch: Ideal for Control Mages, provides Frozen debuff for critical hits vs. enemies.
• Flamebranch: Offers high damage output, extra Mana generation, great for spell rotations.
• Crystalline Shard: Best for dealing with barriers, increases damage to Armor and Health.

Dragon Age: The Veilguard has a huge arsenal of weapons players can pick from, but magic weapons are quite special since they come in a wider array than most melee weapons from other classes. This list has some great early-game weapons for Mages, with detailed information on their specs, where to find them, and the best builds to pair them with. Mage weapons are divided into three main categories: Staves, Orbs, and Mageknifes. Then, Orbs and Staves are divided according to four elements: Necrotic, Fire, Lightning, and Ice.

Keep in mind that in this game, loot can be randomly distributed, and though some of these weapons have a certain “area” where they spawn regularly, it could be different depending on each player’s luck. On the other hand, some of these weapons can be bought from Faction Vendors, so they’re also great choices that are available for a small price.

1 Frostbranch

The Best For Control Mage, Good Starting Weapon

• Uncommon Perk: +20% Charged attack damage
• Rare Perk: +50% Charged attack damage vs. Armor
• Epic Perk: Apply Frozen to enemies when this weapon breaks their Armor
• Legendary Perk: Charged attacks with this weapon are Critical vs. Frozen enemies

The Frostbranch is an Ice Elemental Stave, which can be randomly obtained by opening chests in Arlathan, Dock Town, or Treviso. Ideally, players will get this during the first quarter of the game, and stick to it during most of the adventure, if not all of it. This is especially important for those building Control Mages since the Crowd Control skills like Ice Nova synergize perfectly with Frostbranch’s passives.

This stave is perfect for those who enjoy using the Charge Attack to break opponents apart while dexterously dodging enemy melee strikes. As more perks are unlocked, this weapon will become even more lethal against Frozen enemies, guaranteeing critical hits each time it hits an enemy with this debuff.

2 Flamebranch

Great Damage Output, Available Quite Early

• Uncommon Perk: +15% Mana generation
• Rare Perk: Hitting a Burning enemy with this weapon generates +2 Mana
• Epic Perk: +50 maximum Mana
• Legendary Perk: Deal 25% bonus Fire Ability damage for every 50 Mana spent

This stave can be located in The Crossroads. During the initial quest, after talking to The Caretaker, players need to destroy a big Blight Cyst, then a smaller one. Behind the smaller Blight, there’s a chest that contains the Flamebranch. Players can also purchase a second Flamebranch from the Veil Jumper’s Faction trader when it reaches level 2.

It causes a lot of damage, and in its final version (Legendary) it boasts the highest damage from all staves. But perhaps its most useful perk is the extra Mana generation, which is a hard-to-come-by stat. Unlike Mana Regeneration, Mana Generation gathers this resource each time the player attacks with a single attack from the Stave. This is especially useful to power up the Mage’s Spell Rotation engine, which consumes a lot of Mana.

3 Crystalline Shard

The Best Spellblade Early Weapon

• Uncommon Perk: +25% damage vs. Barrier
• Rare Perk: Bonus damage to Armor is now applied to Barrier
• Epic Perk: Gain Quickened when this weapon breaks an enemy’s Barrier
• Legendary Perk: All damage vs. Barriers leeches a portion of its damage as health

This Mageknife can be purchased from the Shadow Dragons shop at level 1, so it is relatively easy to get. Players with a Mage Rook should be especially interested in the first Perk of this weapon, which increases Barrier damage by a whopping 25%. This can be quite useful in the early stages of the game since most enemies will have this resource active at all times, and it can be quite annoying for Nuker Mages.

The Spellblade does considerably more damage to Armor and Health, and it is weak against Barrier Enemies, so having this extra Barrier damage can be a game-changer for those mages aiming for that specialization.

4 Mage’s Gambit

Good Choice For Evokers And Spellblades

• Uncommon Perk: +20 % Final Attack damage
• Rare Perk: Hitting with a Final Attack will alternate the damage of this weapon between Electric and Fire.
• Epic Perk: +15% Fire and Electric damage.
• Legendary Perk: Critical Hits apply Burning or Shocked depending on the current Damage Type of the Orb.

The Mage’s Gambit is perhaps the best Orb for Mages in Dragon Age: The Veilguard, but sadly, it is a random loot from world chests, so getting it in the early stages is a matter of luck. This particular weapon will alternate between Electric and Fire Damage after every successful Final Attack from a sequence.

This is especially good for those Spellblades using the Fire/Lightning hybrid build, which combines the effects of Shocked and Burning and empowers these two elemental damage types. Great for causing a lot of Affliction damage, and also good for triggering effects like Shocking Weapons and other Combat Advantages.

5 Chilled Grasp

Good For Control And Death Mages

• Uncommon Perk: +30 Defense
• Rare Perk: +25% Cold Resistance
• Epic Perk: Perfect Dodge applies Chilled to nearby enemies
• Legendary Perk: +70 Defense vs. Chilled enemies

Death Mages in Dragon Age: The Veilguard are the squishiest of the bunch, and will generally have to combine a lot of passive skills from the Control Mage branch to survive enemy attacks. But with the Chilled Grasp Orb, Mages will have less to worry about with its impressive defensive capabilities.

It will not only empower the natural defense of Rook, but also increase Cold Damage resistance, and apply the Chilled (Slow) effect to nearby enemies after managing a perfect dodge. This Orb can be acquired from the Veil Jumper’s Faction Shop at level 1, and then, players can acquire a second Orb from the Grey Warden’s Vendor later in the adventure. The good thing is that it is also a World Drop, so getting more copies of this item early on is a possibility.

6 Timeworn Mageknife

Great For Mages That Want To Go Melee

• Uncommon Perk: +20% Arcane Bomb trigger damage
• Rare Perk: Triggering an Arcane Bomb now also Staggers enemies around your target
• Epic Perk: Gain 250 health on triggering an Arcane Bomb
• Legendary Perk: Triggering Arcane Bombs now costs 50 Mana but deals its damage in an area

The Timeworn Mageknife has one of the best passives for Spellblades building for Arcane Bomb damage and can be acquired early on from Chests in Arlathan, The Crossroads, Treviso, and also purchased from the weapons vendor at the Treviso Canals Market.

Reliable, powerful, and versatile thanks to its sustain perk, this Mageknife will accompany most Mages during the whole game, especially for those who enjoy a more Melee-focused build. In Dragon Age: The Veilguard, mages are quite melee-focused, so it is a good weapon to have from the start of the adventure.

7 Twist Of The Veil

Another Great Spellblade Early Weapon

• Uncommon Perk: +25% damage vs. Armor
• Rare Perk: +30% Charged attack damage
• Epic Perk: Gain Enhanced Damage when breaking an enemy’s Armor
• Legendary Perk: Enhanced Damage now also grants +25% damage vs. Armor and Barrier

Twist of The Veil can be purchased from the Veil Jumper Faction vendor and also found as a random drop from chests. It is an overall great weapon that grants a lot of extra damage to Armor, considering that the 25% extra damage from the Uncommon Perk pairs with the +30% Damage to Charged Attacks, which do more damage to Armor and Barrier enemies.

Then, its third passive is a great Damage Buff to have active at all times, since it increases damage output by an extra 20%. With Mages being the class that causes more damage in the game, having these buffs can make their attacks even more lethal. This Mageknife will help players aiming to cause huge chunks of damage to bosses, like High Dragons and Demons.