You regenerate 3.00% of your maximum Magicka per second outside of combat, and 0.99% inside combat. Contrast this with stamina, which regenerates 5.00% of your maximum Stamina per second outside of combat and 1.75% inside combat.

Considering that mages need magica to do anything, (warriors can mitigate physical damage, swing a sword, shoot a bow or block just fine without any stamina) I think the rate should be bumped up.

I think it works well enough to just bump up the rate with enchantments -- the default rate is okay, imo. Sure, if you want it to get massively fast, you have to use the Restoration exploit, but I find equipping a well-thought-out armour set with Magicka Regen and Fortify on as many pieces as possible (4?) will give a satisfying result just as easily.
I'm currently playing a pure mage with a +330% regen rate, and it works nicely without removing the challenge.

Magicka Regen is a lot easier to boost than stamina regen through enchantments though, and I think it's to give mages a reason to use the robes with the unique cost reduction + magicka regen (which you can't enchant customly to the same magnitude unless you have dual effect). When you have +100% magicka regen through adept robes you will be regenerating magicka faster than warriors will regen stamina in general. Also mages can reduce the cost of spells through enchantments while warriors can't reduce the cost of power attacks.

Take for example a mage with Archmage robes and Morokei, two items very easy to come by if you follow the only mage questline. They will be sitting on +250% magicka regen, meaning even in combat they will have aprox 3.5% regen per second. Add to this the easily made Elsweyr Fondue for an extra 100%, and with a standard magicka pool of 400-500 it means they will be regenerating over 20 magicka per second in combat, and nearly 70 per second outside of it. That's pretty reasonable imo, and encourages mages to play as such.

Thanks for the values though, I always wondered what they actually were.

EDIT: also


Surely that's where staves come into play for mages?

I am 95% sure this is correct.

I agree with Alduran. I think my magicka regeneration is nearly 400% now (with the restoration perks) but I play a vampire so it's pretty useless during the day anyway. I rarely use magicka potions anyhow since I play a sneaky style mage. Once I'm invisible my regeneration returns to its full power and recharges pretty quickly.

Also, Alduran, gorgeous deviantart! Mind if I watch?

Yeah, and if you level out Enchanting you can actually completely eliminate the cost for two (3 with necromage) schools of magic. Still, that usually happens closer to end-game, prior to which you'll spend a whole lot of time running away from enemies.

I don't know. I played a pure mage, a pure warrior and a sneaky assassin build, and mage was the toughest to play by far (until closer to end game).

Yet when you're at that endgame stage you get to absolutely [censored] face with next-to-free dual cast incinerates and thunderbolts

Ancient Dragon down in 10 secs from afar without it getting a single breath attack off... yes pleasee

True, true. When you get 2-3 schools for free, mages become pretty much god mode.

Like some others above have said, mages struggle in the beginning, but as they reach the higher levels they steadily get stronger and stronger, until they suddenly hit a point where they can endlessly chain powerful spells because the relative magicka cost is so low. That, and power-boosting perks for spells, particuarly the Illusion tree -- which eventually lets you turn practically any foe. My current pure mage is an Illusionist, Destruction using vamp who also has powerful Conjuration magic. There's almost nothing he can't achieve, but he still gets pummeled by certain enemies; Volkihar Master Vampires, for example.
He's one-shotting Spriggans, for crying out loud! xD

I don't know what's up with my vamp, but his h/m/s regenerates even during the day, but half as slow as at night. o3o
It's gotten to the point, though, that he can pretty much stand up against whatever he needs to, day or night, and only around level 55!
And thank you; I don't mind at all! x3