One really big thing to note as a magic user in this game -Your weapon has the biggest effect on your spells.
To illustrate the above point: I crafted a HQ Ash Wand that had a magic value of 20. It was a 7 point upgrade for a friend of mine who was using a wand with a value of 13. His cure went from healing 70 per cast to 100 per cast. Early on, armor upgrades don't compare at all with weapon upgrades. As soon as you can get a new weapon from a vendor, get it ASAP.
To illustrate the above point: I crafted a HQ Ash Wand that had a magic value of 20. It was a 7 point upgrade for a friend of mine who was using a wand with a value of 13. His cure went from healing 70 per cast to 100 per cast. Early on, armor upgrades don't compare at all with weapon upgrades. As soon as you can get a new weapon from a vendor, get it ASAP.