The Spirit Realm

Caveat - I am not very good at math. But I am curious about how Specialize: Alteration, the LDON augs, items with the +Spec: Alt mod, the SCM AA and mana preservation foci work together to affect our mana costs.

I know the formula for calculating the mana savings you get from your specialize ____ skill is this:
(SpecSkill / 2000) + .01 * 100 = _____% savings

How are augments, such as the LDON augments, tacked on to that?
Anomalous Rock of Alteration is +15% to Specialize Alteration skill.
Would it turn the math into this?

(SpecSkill * .15) + SpecSkill = NewSpecSkill
(NewSpecSkill / 2000 ) + .01 * 100 = ______% savings

What about SCM? It's 10% mana savings at level 3, and I believe it stacks with innate specialization and mana preservation effects.

What about mana preservation items? How are those percentages factored in?

Thanks, guys.

Everything looks correct, though I usually just say SpecSkill/20 to keep things simple.

Correct on the augment.

Correct on Spell Casting Mastery. Fourth level is 15% now

Mana Preservation is random 0-max%. It's my belief from wayback (I don't have evidence from this decade) that the benefit is addative with SCM & Spec, not multiplicative.

Thanks guys Let me try this with Qirik's Mending Rk. I, just to be sure I'm understanding.

Qirik's Mending Rk. I: 1198 Mana
Specialize Alteration Skill: 350
Specialize Alteration Mod: 15%
Spell Casting Mastery 4: 15%
Mana Preservation Item: 20% (just to pick a number, he'll get 10% on this particular cast)

(350 * .15) + 350 = 402.5
(402.5 / 2000 ) + .01 * 100 = 21.125
So call it 21% mana savings from Spec Alt Skill + Mod.
That will shave 251 mana off the spell's cost.

SCM4 Mana Savings:
1198 * .15 = 179.7 ... say, 180 mana saved.

Mana Pres Item:
1198 * .10 = 119.8 ... say, 120 mana saved.

So on this particular cast of Qirik's Mending Rk. I, the Shaman would have saved 551 mana? How come that seems off to me?

Well, the 551 is actually the median value. The highest value would be a touch higher, I think, because using a 20% mana pres focus item, I only said he'd get a 10% savings off that cast. Right?

Right Tordail, I did not read well enough, my bad

Holy crap, that means I can sort of do math.
Watch out, world!

I think when you said:

(402.5 / 2000 ) + .01 * 100 = 21.125

you meant:

((402.5 / 2000 ) + .01) * 100 = 21.125

That is the only way you could get 21.125. Without the extra parentheses, the 0.1 * 100 would happen first according to order of operations and you would end up with a very different number.

The answer to your question (or what I believe was your question) is that without the specialization modifier you would save (before SCM is worked in) 18.5% and with it you would save 21.5%, so the specialization modifier is giving you 2.625% on any spell you cast.

I'm no math expert either, so I could be wrong, but that's the way I see it.

Oh, I don't know anything about order of operations. I do math the way I read, heh, left to right.
(402.5 / 2000 ) ... whatever that number is + .01 ... whatever that number is * 100 = 21.125.

I wasn't so much concerned solely about the specialization modifier - I wanted to know how ALL of it (specialization, +spec mod, SCM and mana pres items) worked together and how much mana a person could conceivably save per cast. I think I got it - or at least figured out how to calculate it.