Rogue: Advice from a Girl Gamer

*** Fast Forward a Few Months*** (Disclaimer time! - This conversation exists entirely in my memory. Therefore, perhaps ... and most likely ... is .. flawed, in some way. If you happen to know, or happen to BE "Totally Awesome Friend" ... well.. Sorry... and Thankyou <3 ^-~)

Totally Bored with my Game Again Me (to Totally Awesome Friend): "OMG, where have you been? No one is ever online anymore."
Totally Awesome Friend: "Well ... I haven't been on much lately ....."
Totally Bored with my Game Again Me: "Well, what've you been up to?"
Totally Awesome Friend: " >.> .... not much..... just ..... <.< ..... playing WoW...."
Totally Bored with my Game Again Me: "ugh ... I tried that game. I hated it."
Totally Awesome Friend: " ... but it's fun. We have a great guild on the server we're on. You should come play with us."
Totally Bored with my Game Again Me: **groans and grumbles** " Wouldn't I have to start ALL over?"
Totally Awesome Friend: "Well ... yeah ..... but we can help you do that."
Totally Bored with my Game Again Me: "... but .. they don't have Dark Knights. I checked ..."
Totally Awesome Friend: "you don't always have to play a DK. Play a Rogue ... they're a hard-hitting melee class. It's virtually the same thing."

So I log into the game. I select the server my friend is on. I roll that rogue he was talking about. I take my first quest or two. I walk up to one of the nearly defenseless animals that constitutes a starting mob in virtually any MMO. (I feel a little bad for it ... even though I know it would scratch my face off, given a moment of opportunity). I shrug. I stab it like ... twice... and it DIES! and I'm hooked. Being a Rogue is EASY! .... or ... so I thought.

.... very carefully, my friend.... veerrry carefully. ;)

Where to put those weapons:

At lower levels, the general rule, is to put the slower weapon in your Main Hand, and the faster one (assuming you have a faster one, which is a good rule to live by) in the Off-Hand. What factors in here, is the fact that you are 50% less likely to actually hit a target with your offhand weapon. Basically, as far as your MH goes, you have a better chance to hit, and slower weapons usually do more damage per hit. Since your OH weapon is less likely to hit, hitting more often increases your chances, thereby, increases your damage output. If you ARE lower level, and are just here for the short answer,please skip ahead a paragraph or so to "Your Energy Bar". The next few lines are specific to level 85 toons.

UPDATE!!: LEVEL 85's !! : We're back to square one it seems on this one. Blizzard once again appears to be pushing us to prefer a slower weapon in the MH and a fast one in the OH. Assassination will want a slow dagger (usually 1.8 speed) in the MH. Combat will want a slower, harder-hitting weapon (usually around 2.6 speed). At this point (due to a lack of available fast options for other weapons) both specs are generally using a fast dagger in the OH (1.4 speed). with IP/DP placement as the norm. DP on the thrown for Assassination, and WP on the thrown for Combat for FoK applications.

If you are interested in more detailed explanations, or would like to see similar explanations for other specs, please visit the knowledgable folks over at Elitist Jerks for more info. Alot of the research I put into my rogue happens right there. These guys do their theorycrafting, crunch their numbers and they know their rogues. In depth. Seriously.

Your Energy Bar:

The first thing you need to look at, is the little yellow bar, under your (green) health bar. This yellow bar represents your "energy". Think of it as similar to a caster's mana-bar. Energy is the resource you will use to perform your attacks. Meaning, your attacks will deplete your energy as you use them, and it will refill over time. This means, it becomes more important, as you gain levels, to time your attacks appropriately. Generally, rogues have 100 Energy total, regardless of level. (There are some talents and other ways to increase this later, but these are neither common, nor overly important.) Energy refills quickly, and throughout combat, so there's no need for you to worry about eating or drinking to replenish it.

Combo Points:
If you look to the right of your little character portrait, you should see 5 empty looking little bubbles. This, is where your "Combo Points" will go.

When you perform certain abilities (Called Combo-Point Generators) these bubbles will fill in RED. This is how you know you have combo points. Combo Points enable you to perform "Finishing Moves". Finishing Moves are abilities that generally scale in strenghth depending upon the number (1-5) of Combo Points you had available when you apply them, and which have different effects on your self, or your target.

Which Combo-Point Generators and Finishing Moves should I be using?

Honestly, this is based more on your "spec" or "talent build" later in game, than anything. For now, due to general availability, you'll probably be using Sinister Strike as a Cp generator, and Eviscerate as your finishing move. This will conitinue to remain true, if you opt to place most of your Talent Points in the Combat Tree. Should you choose later to put most of your Talent Points in the Assassination tree, this will change, but let's not worry about that now. The Subtlety Tree, while it looks inviting, at this time is widely accepted as the "PvP" tree, and not really viable for leveling and/or raiding. There is speculation that this may change with the upcoming Cataclysm Expansion.

Dual Wield:

One of the intersesting things about fighting with a Rogue. You get TWO weapons! How awesome is that? ... While it may seem like the obvious to some, it isn't always. Whatever you do, make sure you're remembering both of them when it's time for upgrades, AND for poison applications.

Poisons:

Another useful Rogue snippet to increase both your damage, and overal utility: Poisons. Yep, you can apply poisons to your weapons! Wicked! The minimum level required to use any type of poison is 20, and more poisons become available as you gain in level. Poisons generally last for one hour after they are applied, refer to specific poison tooltips in game for more specific details. update: Poisons can now be applied to your thrown weapon as well! (All the more reason not to out-roll that poor hunter for the bow guys =P)

Let's take a look at some of the basic types of poisons, and what they do.

Crippling Poison: (available at level 20) Each time you strike an opponent, there is a chance you will apply the poison, slowing the target's movement speed for a limited duration.

Instant Poison: (available at level 20) Each time you strike a target, you have a chance to apply Instant Poison, immediately causing additional Nature damage to your target.

Mind-Numbing Poison (availabel at level 24) Each time you strike an opponent, you have a chance to increase the time necessary for them to cast spells, for a limited duration.

Deadly Poison (available at level 30) Each time you strike an opponent, you have a D.o.T. (damage over time, debuff) that causes Nature damage to tick on a target for a certain period of time. Stacks up to five times on a single target. (It is worth noting that a Deadly Poison debuff is necessary on a target before you can hit said target with an "Envenom" Finishing Move.)

Wound Poison (available at level 32) Deals damage to a target, and decreases the effect of healing on the target for a limited time.

Anesthetic Poison update!: Anesthetic Poison no longer exists! Don't be upset. The effect from this one is actually now baked into your Shiv. That's right ... put it back on your bar guys. Shiv dispels Enrage. ;)

Other Useful Tidbits: Whenever possible, attack your target from behind, as it will be less likely to dodge/parry your attacks, thus more vulnerable. Just the way we like 'em. ;) Also, whenever possible, open with a move from stealth. Ambush, Garotte, and Cheap Shot are common openers, and you should vary their usage based on your situation.

Your Talent Build: Which one is right for you?:

*Consider the rotation, and how difficult it will be for you to execute. Proper rotation is key to maximizing your dps. Complicated rotations may require extensive practice to perfect.

*Take into consideration the group(s) you intend to run with. Will you be running mostly pugs (pick-up-groups, or 'random' groups), or will you be running with guildies and/or friends? If you'll be raiding, is your guild short on Combat rogues, but full on Mut? Or vice versa? Do a little asking around.

*Think about the types of weapons you prefer to use, or the types you've seen drop most frequently. Weapon preference, and accessibility have both affected my spec-changes over the years. Choose the spec that works best with your weapons of choice. If you think rogues should wear daggers, and refuse to use anything else, then Combat is not the spec for you. If you prefer swords and axes, your dps in an Assassination spec would suffer..

Assassination - Requires Daggers in both hands to pull efficient DPS. Also, relies heavily on poison as a primary source of damage. VERY viable in end-game raiding scenarios. Assassination rogues are capable of putting out very high dps, but suffer slightly from having to move frequently during a fight. However, a good Mut (short for Mutilate) rogue, should be a chart topper on a stand-still fight. Your main Cp builder will be Mutilate, finishers will vary slightly, but will involve (until patch 4.0 which will change builds and rotations in general for all classes) keeping several buffs/debuffs running with your finishing moves, including Hunger for Blood, Slice and Dice, and Envenom. Depending on the specific spec you choose, you may also add Rupture to the list of running buffs to maintain. Addons to assist with this, will be covered later.

Combat-Less restricted in weapon choices than Assassination, Combat rogues generally prefer swords, axes, maces, and occasionally fist weapons, to daggers. (Since Cata, it is however common for Cobat rogues to use a fast OH dagger in place of another weapon). Combat rogues have heavy burst damage, and for this reason, tend to do more dps on encounters where it's necessary to move around alot. Your primary Cp generator in the Combat tree will be Sinister Strike, with the occasional Revealing Strike and your finishers will also involve keeping up Slice and Dice, using Eviscerate, and Rupture.

Subtlety- Subtlety, is widely accepted as the PvP spec, where rogues are concerned. It's dps has fallen behind the other two trees for PvE purposes, so it is uncommon, and not advised to go with a subtlety spec for PvE content. If you plan to go PvP, it is likely this is the spec for you. In all honesty however, my focus is PvE. I will attach some links to sites that should help provide more info on the subject later.

Intermission's over, it's back to work little rogues. Time to talk stat priorities.

Well, first things first: Don't panic. There are tons of resources out there, for deciding which stats you want on your gear, which glyphs are best, and which gems you want.

Low level rogues, what you get will vary, and will probably be based more on the drops you see, than actual stats anyway. However, there ARE some guidelines. Stay away from gear that is +Defense, +Spell power, +Intellect and +Mp5. These stats do nothing for you. Keep an eye out for gear that is +Agility, +Attack Power, +Critical Strike, +Hit Rating, etc. +Strength and +Haste are viable, but only on gear with some of the other stats, don't gear specifically for them.

Rogues looking to get raid-ready; you're going to want to do a bit more research/work.

Your first stat = Hit Rating. Get it to 1127. This assumes you have 3/3 points in Precision. There are some currently viable specs with 2/3 in Precision. If you're running one of those, aim for 1332. This will get you the 'yellow' hit cap, meaning your special attacks will not miss vs a raid boss. You're still going to miss on some white dmg (think auto-attacks) .. but pushing your hit rating to the white cap at this point is not only nearly impossible, but you would find yourself sacrificing more useful stats to do it, and in the end your dps would suffer. Get to the yellow cap, and you're good.

Your second stat = update!: Expertise is no longer a stat priority for Assassination rogues. Basically, when a combo-point-generator or finishing move is dodged, you regain 80% of the energy used for it. Envenom gives the buff, even when it is dodged, and you get some energy back. At this point, it's actually benefiicial NOT to cap expertise .... move on to other stats. Agility>Hit>Mastery>Haste.

Combat rogues will still want to push for the expertise cap, which is 26. Unless your a gnome. Gnome expertise cap is 23.

Put an Ebonsteel Belt Buckle (made by blacksmiths, and available on the Auction House) on your belt, and get it socketed. If you've already reached your hit and expertise caps, you'll want to go with Agility. At 85, Agility is our strongest/most useful stat.

Enchants: (Keep in mind: Do NOT replace any enchants you may have applied to get your Hit and Expertise to cap) Here are the "preferred" enchants for rogue itemslots.

Head - Arcanum of the Ramkahen - requires Revered reputation with Ramkahen.
Shoulder - Greater Inscription of the Shattered Crystal - requires Exalted reputation with Therazane.
Chest - Enchant-Chest:Peerless Stats
Hands - Engineering +Haste Tinker, Enchant-Gloves:Greater Mastery
Wrists - Leatherworking + 130 Agility, or Enchant Bracer:Greater Speed
Legs - Dragonbone leg Reinforcements (Leatherworking Emboss), or Dragonscale Leg Armor (leatherworking B.o.e)
Feet - Enchant-Boots:Major Agility
Back - Enchant-Cloak:Greater Critical Strike, Engineering Tinker:Flexweave Underlay
Both Daggers - Enchant Weapon: Landslide (it is worth noting that at this time, this is a VERY expensive enchant. It is acceptable to substitute this with Enchant Weapon:Hurricane until you upgrade to a dagger that warrants the expense, but eventually you WILL want Landslide.)

Glyphs: What to put here, I wonder? ... The good news - in Cata ... once you "learn" a glyph, you just .. know it. No more wasting money re-buying them on the auction house. So you can swap them out to your hearts content, as long as you carry the Dust of Disappearance reagent it requires to replace them. Happy Glyphing.!

If you are:

Assassination Spec - you want: Mutilate, Rupture and Backstab as your Prime glyphs. Viable Major Glyphs are Fan of Knives, Sprint, Feint and Tricks of the Trade. Minor Glyphs are your choice. You should keep a couple Dust of Disappearance handy, should you choose to swap your Major glyphs on a per-encounter basis.

Combat Spec - You want Adrenaline Rush, Sinister Strike and Slice and Dice as your Prime Glyph choices. Viable Major Glyphs are Tricks of the Trade, Blade Flurry, Feint, and Sprint. Minor Glyphs are your choice. You should carry some Dust of Disappearance around, in case you decide to swap out a Major Glyph for a certain encounter.

Subtlety Spec - Frankly, I'm not sure, as Subtlety at this time, is still not considered a viable raiding spec. (pre 4.0)

Gems: For your meta-gem, you're going to want an Agile Shadowspirit Diamond. This meta requires 3 red gems be socketed anywhere else in your gear to work. (Purple and orange gems DO count towards this requirement.)

When considering what other gems to socket, make sure you look to determine whether it's actually worth aiming for a bonus. Sometimes it's better to go with a straight stat, (usually agility) and ignore the socket bonus. Sometimes, the socket bonus IS agility .. in that case, you probably want it. Here are some of the viable gems you can use:

Delicate Inferno Ruby (red socket) - +40 Agility
Fractured Amberjewel (yellow socket) - +40 Mastery Rating
Quick Amberjewel (yellow socket) - +40 Haste
Rigid Ocean Sapphire (blue socket) - +40 Hit Rating

Adept Ember Topaz (red or yellow socket) - +20 Agility and +20 Mastery
Deft Ember Topaz (red or yellow socket) - +20 Agility and +20 Haste
Glinting Demonseye (red or blue socket) +20 Agility and +20 Hit Rating
Lightning Dream Emerald (blue or yellow socket) +20 Haste and +20 Hit Rating
Sensei's Dream Emerald (blue or yellow socket) +20 Mastery and +20 Hit Rating

Some items (such as the new engineering goggles) will also have the new "cogwheel" gemslots. (Engineers can trade mats for cogwheels at a vendor in Twilight Highlands.) Viable Cogwheel gems are:

Fractured Cogwheel - +208 Mastery Rating
Quick Cogwheel - +208 Haste Rating
Rigid Cogwheel - +208 Hit Rating

As with anything else, the specific gem choices you make should vary, based on the stats you need at the time and the socket bonuses available to you. Make sure your hit rating is capped, (I personally use reforging to get as much +hit rating as possible before making gem choices, since it is not possible to reforge into +Agility, but you can gem for it, and Agi has a higher weight for us now.) and then move on to your mastery and haste.