One Rogue's Journey

There’s a lot to say on this topic so let’s jump right into it. I received the following emails recently:

My main is a Ret Paladin and I consider myself to be a pretty fair player, but I’m looking to start a Rogue for some REAL Melee DPS. Do you have any suggestions for a leveling guide specifically for Rogues? Any and all suggestions are greatly appreciated.

Well I know a certain Ret Paladin that would probably disagree with you on the whole “real” melee DPS thing but you’re not going to get a lot of argument out of me. I have a lot of love for our melee brethren but as Rogues we are kings among men and don’t you ever forget it!  As for a guide, keep on reading and be enlightened.

Im a new and noob rogue. I am currently at level 39 and have had a great time. I would like to level using DW SWORDS. Two things I need help with, if you can help; it would be great. 1. Talent Points, which to choose by level and 2. Rotations for Combat SWORDS depending on new talents by level (if it changes). If you believe that DW SWORDS is not the way to go; I will take any suggestion you have. Thank you for the great post and interesting reading .. Keep up the good work.

A quick answer to your question, yes I believe swords are the easiest way to level. You should, however, use whatever weapons you have the best of at the time. I’m going to be going deeper into specs a little farther into the guide.

I’m going to divide this guide up into level ranges of 10.  I’m going to go through each ability to get as you level through the range and give you some tips on how and when to use it.  As well, at the end of each section there will be a link to a spec. I find combat to be the easiest spec to level as, so I’ll be focusing on that. This guide will be focused on solo leveling.

After that I’m going to be providing some general tips that will help you turn from just another rogue into a blazing shadow of death.

Level 1-10

Your first few levels as a brand new denizen of the shadows will involve Sinister Striking to 5 combo points and then Eviscerating and well, that’s about it. Not overly exciting, I know, but luckily these levels go by pretty quickly.

At level 4 you get Backstab and since you start with a dagger go ahead and begin using stealth to get behind a mob and open with it. You also receive Pick Pocket so don’t forget to give that a try but it’s overall usefulness doesn’t really start until later.

At level 6 you receive Gouge. Using this you can stun an enemy and get around to backstab outside of an opener. While this is a good strategy and you should experiment with it, often times it is faster to just sinister strike and eviscerate at these early levels.

At level 8 you receive Evasion, which is a wonderful ability. It’s only on a three minute cooldown now so don’t be afraid to use it whenever you think your in trouble, especially if you find yourself engaged with multiple mobs.

Level 10 is a big one, you receive Sap, Slice and Dice and Sprint. Sprint is great for getting away when you find yourself in trouble or for just decreasing travel time during those tough pre-mount levels. Slice and Dice will become a staple in the end game but, when leveling, fights hardly ever last long enough for it to be really effective.  Don’t be afraid to throw a one combo point SnD at the beginning of some harder mob fights though.  Sap can be a real help when used properly, turning a three or two mob pull into a one or two mob pull can make an impossible quest simply challenging.

At level 10 you also get the ability to dual wield so grab yourself an offhand ASAP and put that shiny new talent point into Dual Wield Spec.

Level 11-20

Dual Wield is a nice addition and you should feel yourself taking things down a bit quicker nowadays (not a whole lot because of the miss chance but it’s nice nonetheless).

At level 12 you pick up Kick which is nice for dealing with those pesky caster mobs.  Don’t ignore this ability! One avoided spell makes a huge difference at this stage in the game.

Level 14 brings Expose Armor and your first true opener – Garrote. Expose Armor is pretty weak in a short fight and you’re better off using your combo points for something damaging. Garrote can be extremely useful when fighting casters due to the silence, so keep that in mind.

Level 16 brings Feint and Pick Lock. Feint is completely useless for solo leveling (arguable just completely useless overall) but don’t ignore Pick Lock. Picking locks is a very useful skill and you should start leveling it right away. The easiest way is through lockboxes, and you find them from Pick Pocket. Use this macro for your openers:

Replace Garrote with your with your opener of choice and you shouldn’t have any trouble with your Pick Lock skill.

Level 18 brings Ambush and if you’re still using a dagger this becomes your opener of choice.

Level 20 brings Rupture and Dismantle. Rupture, like Slice and Dice, is a staple late game but you won’t find much use of it in your solo leveling. Dismantle, however, is a dream come true. Pop Dismantle – and then Evasion when it wears off – and you have 25 seconds of taking majorly less damage.

Suggested build at level 20

Level 21-30

Level 22 will see your number of deaths drop dramatically because you receive Vanish. Don’t be scared to use this baby, it’s a wonder. What the hell is a corpse run? You also receive Distract at this level which has some nice uses when it comes to breaking apart patrols (more on this later).

Level 26 brings Cheap Shot, which will quickly become your opener of choice (don’t forget your Pick Pocket macro!). A stun and two combo points?  Tasty.  If you find yourself not taking that much damage and you’re still using a dagger then Ambush might still be a better choice, but a stunned enemy is an enemy doing no damage, and the less damage you take the less downtime you have and thus the faster you level.

At level 30 you receive the second step in a nice stun lock, Kidney Shot. Once again you’re going to find yourself with a decision, to stun or do damage. This really boils down to how much damage the mobs are dishing out.  Experiment with whichever combination of moves (get it, combo moves!) gives you the least amount of downtime.

Level 30 is also when you can first pick up Blade Flurry if you’re following my spec, which is beautiful for burning down two mobs at once.

Suggested Level 30 Build.

Level 31-40

Hurray you have a mount! There’s not a whole lot new at these levels, mostly just improvements on what you already have.

At level 34 you get Blind which is a nice source of temporary crowd control and can also be used on a single mob to give you a moment to bandage (Gouge is also great for this).

If you’re following my spec you can pick up Adrenaline Rush at 40. You will love this ability. Do not be afraid to use it and use it often. See the tips below for more on AR.

Suggested Level 40 Build.

Level 41-60

I combined this brackets because there are literally no new abilities in these 20 levels, but that’s OK. You have a number of tricks up your sleeve at this point and plenty of levels to practice them.

At level 60, following my spec, you’ll get Killing Spree. Combine this with Blade Flurry to really devastate a group of mobs.

Suggest Level 50 Build.

Suggested Level 60 Build.

61-70

At level 62 you receive Envenom, throw this in the “not used while leveling” pile because you’ll rarely even be using Deadly Poison.

Level 64 brings Deadly Throw, decent for chasing down those mobs that like to run for help.

Level 66 brings the real gem, Cloak of Shadows. Poisoned, Diseased, Cursed? Not anymore. That caster mob winding up for a big old spell of doom? Well, you should probably just kick them but sometimes it’s fun to just watch their spell get resisted.

At level 70, you get Shiv. One more for the not used while leveling pile.

Suggest Level 70 Build.

Level 71-80

The home stretch and the best set of leveling zones yet.

Level 75 brings Tricks of the Trade, another “not used while leveling” skill but a great skill nonetheless.

Level 80 means Fan of Knives and the joys of being a sprinkler.

A note about builds

I would like to say that the builds I have presented are not 100% you-must-absolutely-use-these-builds-or-you-will- fail-horribly. It’s been awhile since I leveled my rogue and I’m going from my memory and providing what I feel was the best way for me.

A couple of things to keep in mind:

• Deflection and Riposte

I did not use these talents when I leveled so I do not feel like I can speak knowledgeably on their overall usefulness. While they are absolutely terrible in end game PvE, it is possible that during solo leveling they might be helpful. Feel free to experiment. If you wish to pick them up, I recommend dropping Precision.

• Remorseless Attacks and Improved Evisercate

These are great talents for leveling, so why did I put them off for so long.  Simple – my builds are designed to get you to your big point abilities (Blade Flurry, AR, Killing Spree) as quickly as possible as I feel these make a huge difference.

• Weapon Spec

I have sword spec in my builds. As I said earlier you can (and should) use the best weapons you have available. Obviously, replace those points with the spec of your choice.

A Few Tips of High End Roguery

• You > Patrols

Say there is a patrol of three or four mobs and you only need to kill one of them. Sounds like a tough task huh? Not for a rogue. Use distract. If you throw your distract in such a way that only the mob you want is hit by it then the rest of the patrol will continue on, leaving your target all alone. If you have trouble doing this, distract the group and sap your target, after the distract wears off, the group will walk off, leaving your sapped target prime for the stabbing.

• The Old Burn and Run

Quest mob surrounded by a few adds and they aren’t patrolling? No problem. Pop Evasion to help you stay alive and burn the mob down using AR (don’t forget to sap one of the ads if you can). When the mob is dead grab your quest item (if need be) and Vanish. Done and done.

• Boy that guy hits hard

Here’s a strategy for taking down a particular tough mob. Open with Cheap Shot, pop AR and Blade Flurry and build as many combo points as you can. Right as Cheap Shot wears off, hit him with a Kidney Shot. When that’s done, use Dismantle if you can and after that Evasion. Use a health potion if you have to and don’t forget to Blind or Gouge and bandage for that little bit extra.

• Live to fight another day

Don’t be too proud to Vanish. A corpse run is a huge time waster.

• Poisons

Wound/Wound is your combination of choice. Don’t forget your poisons! They help a lot.

Leveling Addons

Addons are not required to level. Some people like to simply enjoy the quests and level at a leisurely pace. If that’s you, more power to you. To me, most of the fun is in the end game and I’m trying to get there as soon as possible.

If you’re like me you can’t level any faster than using the combination of Lightheaded, Tour Guide and Cartographer.

Whoo, that was wordy. I hope to see a lot more up and coming shadow denizens. Any questions?