Scyer’s Bloodgem: Best Caster Trinket

The Scryer’s Bloodgem is just a lowly blue. Although it requires Exalted status with the Scryer’s, it doesn’t seem like it should be one of the best trinkets in the game for casters.

Surely, the wonderful, purple Icon of the Silver Crescent and other epics are better?

For the most part, no. I didn’t realize it until after I had purchased it, but Scryer’s Bloodgem is one of the best caster trinkets in the game for a Mage.

Why Do I Need Spell Hit?

Why is Scryer’s Bloodgem so good? One simple stat - Spell Hit Rating.

When you are attacking a Boss Mob - i.e. a raid boss - you have an 83% chance to hit. In other words, you can use up to 16% increase to your hit chance. You increase your hit chance by stacking Spell Hit Rating - 12.6 Spell Hit per 1% to hit.

Is it really that important to knock down your “resists” or “misses”? Absolutely.

Look at it this way. In the long run, +1% to hit is +1% DPS. Let’s say you miss 98% of the time. By increasing your hit chance to 99%, you’ve effectively increased your overall damage by 1%. Since you’re spending the same amount of time lobbing those spells, you’ve also increased your DPS.

How Much Damage is 32 Spell Hit

With this in mind, Scryer’s Bloodgem is so great because it offers 32 Spell Hit Rating. That’s a whopping 2.5% to hit. Or, as we established earlier, 2.5% increase to your DPS.

If I’m an Ice Mage, what is the equivalent amount of spell damage you would need to match this?

Let’s assume I have some average gear and I deal ~1600 damage per Frostbolt. A 2.5% increase in that damage would be ~40 damage per Frostbolt. With the damage coefficient on Frostbolt’s, that would require +43 Spell Damage to achieve.

Huh. That’s exactly what Icon of the Silver Crescent has on it. In terms of Boss DPS - i.e. maximizing your DPS during a raid - the Bloodgem is equal to (or more effective) than the Icon. Considering the Icon costs a lot of badges, and that you’ll probably want to use those badges for other gear, pick up the Bloodgem instead. You’ll want to be Exalted with the Scryer’s anyway to get the shoulder enchant.

What Is Better?

Well, it isn’t actually the best caster trinket in the game. However, it is awesome in comparison to other items that you pick up in level 70 instances.

In my opinion, there are only a handful of items in the game that are better for mages.

Serpent Coil Braid - from Serpentshrine Cavern - is roughly on par. It has a better on use, and the Spell Hit/Spell Crit component is probably about even with the Bloodgem. I think I’ll work it out later and see exactly how and when this is better.

The Hex Shrunken Head - from Zul Aman - may be a clear upgrade. 53 damage is clearly better than the 43 we stated before. However, what happens if you deal 2k per Frostbolt? You’ll find that 2.5% to Hit is roughly equal to 55 Spell Damage. As your gear increases, the potency of the Bloodgem also scales up. So the Shrunken Head may be a nice upgrade, or it may be a sidegrade for a better on use.

But don’t worry. The Skull of Gul’dan is pretty good. If you can walk into Black Temple and down Illidan, you’ve got a shot at the true best trinket in the game. In the meantime, get Exalted with the Scryer’s and buy a Bloodgem. It’s awesome.

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