One Rogue's Journey

So we’ve gotten a glimpse of some of the planned changes for our favorite stabbity class in 3.1. I, for one, am extremely excited. I feel they are a step in the right direction all around. Granted these aren’t all the changes and they may go away or be tweaked at anytime, after all 3.1 is still a ways away (I’m guessing 2 months or so, write it down: Zaltu says patch 3.1 in early April), but they still give me a warm feeling inside. Let’s go down the list and discuss shall we? Yes, let’s.

• Hunger for Blood – instead of a self-buff, this ability can only be used when there is a bleed effect on the target. However, it has no stacks and grants a 15% damage bonus.

A very nice buff for our Assassination brothers and sisters. Keeping HfB up, while certainly not impossible, is a pain in the butt simply for the huge loss you get when trying to work back up to 3 stacks. Granted you can only have it up when your target has a bleed (I see a lot of mutilate rogues possibly leading with a 1 point rupture unless they have someone else in their party that can provide a bleed effect) but it’s much easier to keep up now and it gets a 6% damage boost. Win all around.

• Adrenaline Rush – the cooldown on this ability has been lowered.

Wonderful! They haven’t said by how much but any amount is great. My money is going on 4 minutes with the glyphed version taking it down to 3.

• Lightning Reflexes – reduced to 3 ranks. In addition to 2/4/6% dodge, this talent now also grants 4/7/10% passive melee haste.

So your standard combat build has 4 “throw away” points (provided you’re not combining weapons like fist/sword or mace/sword). Well 4 has become 1 because this new ability is just amazing. 10% haste! That’s 10% increase to your white DPS, which is a major part of our DPS. This is a great change, a big boost to the combat tree and I want it NOW…now dammit…give me the box!

• Killing Spree – while this ability is active, the rogue does 20% additional damage.

Why hello there Killing Spree! Welcome to my rotation. I sure will enjoy those poison crits while you’re active. This seems minor but don’t forget that auto attacks continue while you’re performing a killing spree and this 20% will carry over to any poison or sword spec procs that happen during it.

• Savage Combat – now causes 2/4% physical damage done.

What’s this? An increase in our utility? Am I dreaming? Well it is early in the morning and I am only half awake but regardless this is a great little buff. An extra 4% damage for our fellow meleeing friends…oh and I guess hunters too. Notice this puts savage combat ahead of Blood Frenzy but I have a feeling that ability will be getting a similar buff.

• Mace Specialization – this talent now grants haste in addition to armor penetration.

Armor penetration is the bastard child of stats right now and in turn maces became the bastard child of rogue weapons, so this is a nice boost for them. Will this cause a sudden influx of mace rogues? Probably not, but it’s a nice gesture nonetheless.

These are all a huge step in the right direction and I’m quite excited about them. You could say I’m feeling pretty giddy right now. Is giddy a bad choice of words? I suppose it sounds more like a school girl than the blood thirsty killing machine that is suppose to be a rogue…whatevs.

Bring on 3.1.