*inhales* I only really want an explanation as to why...
The way I see it, basic magic attack would be like the mages' basic attack; its strength depends on the weapon you use, not necessarily because the skill you use is strong on its own. For example, it doesnt matter if you are unarmed or with a lvl 10 staff, a high level lightning bolt will still do high damage (ofc, weapon does increase the damage, but its still strong). In those case, the casting time is really necessary. However, basic magic depends on the weapon you are using to do that high damage, so in the same case, lvl 10 staff will be killing it, but unarmed its just... 1 hp. Thus, makes mages rather unviable, or with less chances, for pvp.
Im not saying make the cast time instant like normal attack, but make it have less than 2 seconds of start up lag