General Rogue Thoughts

Hey guys,

I thought I would write a little something about rogues in general. As you may know, Deadrush was my very first WOW character and even though I've been playing my priest and DK a lot more lately, there will always be a soft spot in my heart for my rogue. Rogues get tossed aside a lot of times because people do not understand them fully. Hopefully, this might clear some things up as well as help some of our newer rogues.

Rogues in PVE

You will never find a group (heroic or otherwise) that is dying to have a rogue in their group. With the advent of the DK, the buffing of ret pallies and the general improvement of all the other classes, rogues have kind of been left in the dust in some ways. A rogue with the same level gear as a DK or pally stands no chance at doing the same kind of damage. Realizing this is half the battle. Instead, think outside the box more with the crowd control (CC) and interrupt moves you have. Sure you might not be tops of the damage meter but you can mitigate some of the damage your group will take which can be just as important. Lesser knowledgable groups might scoff at the numbers you put up but those with experience (especially with rogue experience) will appreciate what you do and how you make the group successful. Some of the tools at your disposal.

Sap - How nice is it for a tank to only worry about having to deal with 2 or 3 mobs instead of 3 or 4. There's a good chance there's another CC dealer in your group as well (mage/sheep, paladin/repent, etc.) which means your group could go through a whole instance without fighting more than 1 or 2 mobs at a time.

Cheap Shot (CS)/Kidney Shot (KS) - Just because the fight has started doesn't mean you are out of CC options. When the tank pulls, hit the skull-marked target with a CS, build up a few points and then a KS. By this time, your group will probably have killed the mob (or close to it) and you are on to the next one. Throw in a vanish and you can restart your rotation and double your stunlock fun.

Kick - Tanks hate casters, no ifs, ands or buts. So use this interrupt to your group's advantage and save your tank some health.

Blind - Though it's not used a whole lot in PVE, it can still be a life saver. There will be times when your group has a bad pull (2 groups) or you somehow manage to get aggro from a mob. Throw a little dust in a mob's eyes and that's one less guy you have to worry about for a few seconds. By that time your group can handle the rest of the mobs and you've done your part to save your group.

Cloak of Shadows (CoS) - Again, this is a skill used more in PVP but it still has it's uses in PVE as well. Your healer will thank you when he has to heal/dispel one less person from a DoT (damage over time spell).

I am currently running an Assassination build with daggers that I am quite enjoying (http://www.worldofwarcraft.com/info/classes/rogue/talents.html?tal=00532300535010052010330135100500500300000000000000000005020000000000000000000000000). I'm getting a lot more DPS than I would have thought with very average to below average gear. Before each battle make sure your Hunger for Blood is triple stacked and that you refresh it as needed within the rotation. My current rotation is:

1) Ambush
2) Slice and Dice (SnD)
3) Mutilate to 4+ CP
4) If SnD has less than 12 seconds left, then Envenom and go back to step 3.
5) If SnD has more than 12 seconds left, then Rupture and go back to step 3.

The basic concept is to always have your Slice and Dice and your Hunger For Blood active. I keep Instant Poison on my main hand and Deadly Poison on my off hand.

Rogues in PVP

This is where rogues can really shine. Use all the above-mentioned CC and interrupts to your advantage. Gouge is a nice PVP tool to use against casters as well. CoS is a wonderful tool against warlocks; let em DoT you up and with one click of a button, you've erased all their work. Poisons are even more importatn in PVP so use those to your advantage. When doing arena, make sure to aim for anything squishy. Priests, warlocks, hunters and shammies are always nice to see. Stunlock everyone and keep them busy while your partner executes his plan. You want to ideally pair yourself up with a face melter (warlock or shadow priest) but other combinations are viable too. Stay away from another straight melee dps partner like a warrior. Lash and I found this out the hard way but we still had fun. Subtlety is usually the spec of choice here and the usual rotation would be something like:
1) Cheap Shot
2) Whatever your main CP generating move is (Sinister Strike, Mutilate, etc.) until Cheap Shot is about to expire
3) Kidney Shot
4) Whatever your best DPS rotations is while throwing in any necessary CC (too many options to write depending on spec and situation).