One Rogue's Journey

So the preliminary patch notes for 3.1.3 are out and there is one note for us, my stabby brethern and sistern.

Overkill currently decreases the energy cost of abilities by 10 while in stealth and for 6 seconds after breaking stealth. So yes, this is a nerf but not a particularly huge one and I’m actually pretty happy about it. Happy about a nerf? Zaltu you crazy, handsome bastard what are you talking about?

Well, it’s simple really.  This change cuts down on our opening burst which is, admittedly, slightly over the line. It is a nice, balancing change that certainly won’t gimp us in any terrible way. Trust me, we are still going to be able to front load a lot of damage with a full energy bar. I’m actually willing to bet that the 30% increased energy regen will be really nice after a Vanish. Time will tell on that one.

Side Note: The previous comments apply mostly to PvP, I don’t expect this change to have a huge effect (if any) on PvE Mutilate. I haven’t run the numbers but I expect the increased energy regen to more than make up for the loss of the decreased energy cost (so yes, you will still be using Vanish on cooldown).

So, bravo Blizzard, this one is well played overall.

With the landing of patch 3.1 onto our grubby little hard drives (you really should clean that thing you know, what would your mother think?), Combat is back in vogue. This has made me happy in indescribable, unnatural and most likely unhealthy ways. My unending desire for a combination of bits and bytes aside, I believe that the Combat build has a few little tricks to help you eek the absolute most out of your DPS. I’m going to share one with you today. Damn I’m a nice guy (also handsome).

Killing Spree

Killing Spree (KS) is the 51-point Combat talent introduced in Wrath.  The ability was/is extremely fun to use, though at launch it was a bit underwhelming (Combat as a whole was but that’s not what held KS back).  While it was a nice burst to combine with Tricks of the Trade and a good opportunity to pool a little bit of energy, it was missing that “IT” factor that really made it “pop”.

Enter patch 3.1 and the addition of a single line that changed everything:

and increasing all damage done by 20% for the duration.

Now, you must be asking yourself: All damage? So your KS attacks are done for 20% more damage, that’s pretty cool I guess but how does that change how it is used? Well my friend, here’s the deal: you continue white attacks during Killing Spree. This means that Killing spree syncs up AMAZINGLY with your attack speed increasing abilities.

Knowing this, it is a simple leap in logic to remember to put up Slice and Dice and pop Blade Flurry right before you killing spree to make sure that you get the maximum amount of white attacks in during that 20% damage buff! What this also means is that Killing Spree synergizes perfectly with Bloodlust/Heroism!

I hope this tip helps you. Always remember that stacking your abilities and cooldowns in just the right way can have a significant affect on your DPS.

Right out of the gate I’m going to tell you that I’m forgoing a list this week as well. I should start calling this post Monday update instead of to-do list but you know how I feel about change (I don’t like it). With that said I have two solid posts lined up for this week that I hope to get out before I go on vacation this weekend (does it seem like I go on vacation a lot? Because I do, it is one of the benefits of being as awesome as I am). So you have that to look forward to.

In addition to my standard what is everyone else up to this week question, I leave you with another question. As I was looking over my guild this weekend I noticed that it seemed to have a spawned a bevy of druid alts. This got me thinking. 1st, what’s so special about Druids anyways? And second, am I the only one in this guild with only one 80? So I ask you my readers, are you a single character kinda player or do you have multiple 80s and if so, how many?

All against all
Enter the ring
The game of games
Bloodsport is king

-Bloodsport by Skold vs KMFDM

So with the coming of patch 3.1 and dual-specs, I have stepped into the Arena. Is it easy? No. Is it so mind-numbingly frustrating that it causes me to scream and yell over vent, bang my fist on my desk and generally lose my mind in fits of rage for brief moments? Yes. Do I absolutely love it? Oh hell yes.

Now I’m no expert but I’ve learned a thing or two in the past few weeks that I feel I’d like to share with those of you who either are just stepping into the Arena or are planning to step into the Arena. So here they are, in no particular order.

I Love the Sound of Your Voice

Communication is absolutely vital for a good arena team. As soon as the match starts someone should be calling out who to CC, who to burn down and where to move to. Call out everything that happens. Seriously, everything. Let your teammates know exactly when you got the sap off (or if you failed to do so). Tell them when you’ve used kidney shot, let your healer know when you’re popping Evasion or you’ve managed to get off that Dismantle. Let them know who and when you’re Blinding. The arena is a place where quick wits and quicker reaction times win matches and when that’s the case, information is king.

Say Goodbye to “A” and “D”

So. Keyboard turning. Keyboard turning is the act of using the “A” and “D” keys to turn your character. It is significantly slower than using your mouse to turn yourself. Keyboard turning is terrible in PvE and in PvP is it down right abysmal. Do yourself a favor, rebind your “A” and “D” key to strafe left and strafe right respectively.

Keybind, Keybind, Keybind

As I said earlier, the Arena is all about fast reaction times and one of the things that this means is that you don’t have time to click on your abilities. You have to, need to, must keybind them. Not only must you keybind them but you have to spend some time to keybind them in a way that best fits your playstyle. This is not something anyone can tell you directly. There is no magic list of keybinds. The only thing you can do is think about what abilities you use the most, what abilities you need in emergencies and how quickly you can react and press a certain key. This is going to take practice but more importantly it is going to require thinking about it. Keybindings for the Arena are not a set-it-and-forget-it affair. As you play and learn you’re going to realize that perhaps things are playing out a little different than you expected and that a change in keybindings might be for the best.

Don’t Forget to Focus (macro)

In the Arena you are often going to be paying attention to many different things at once. You’ll have to stay on one target while Blinding another. This is where your focus comes in. First off, I recommend an addon like Gladius which allows you to set your focus with something as simple as a right-click. Once that is done, a simple macro like this is all you need:

Two Sap (Macros) are better than One

I recommend having two different sap macros. One for saping your focus and one that’s “spammable” so you can attempt to sap that other rogue before he can sap you. Here they are:

Don’t Stop Believing Moving

Final tip for today. Move. Move. Move. A stationary target is an easy target. Even when you’re burning a target down, spin circles around them. One line of sight or directional-facing-error™ can be the difference between them going down or you. The Arena is fast-paced and high energy so you have to be to. Remember this maxim: “Be Quick on Your Feet or Your Enemy Will Put You on Your Knees”.

I plan to get into some more advanced tips in the future. So how about you my rogue brethern and sistern, any tips for the Arena?

Welcome back again loyal readers (and robot spiders that crawl the site) for another exciting week with everyone’s favorite sexy rogue. In case you’ve forgotten (don’t know how you could have, but just in case), that’s me, Zaltu. I’m going to keep today’s post rather short; there was no list last week and I’ve decided not to put out a list this week either. The fact of the matter is that all I really want to do this week is kill Yogg-Saron. My guild could do it but it is really a matter of putting all the pieces back together.

Of course, the lack of a list doesn’t mean you’re going to be without your weekly dose of rogue-a-licious advice. I am currently planning an Ask Zaltu about the Arena and, while I am no arena expert, I believe I have some good insight for those of you just starting out and I’m looking forward to sharing my experiences so far in my first arena season.

So, what’s everyone else up to this week? How far are you in Ulduar? Tried any of the hard-modes?

Sometimes it’s nice to just sit back and have a good laugh, am I right? Well, as you know, I am a huge fan of number crunching and strategizing.  I thought it would be fun to take a break for a moment and just have a giggle. What? Giggles can be manly…you know, like a deep, rolling, mountain shaking giggle…Ok, forget I said anything about that. Forgotten? Good. So here are the top four things I love about being melee. Why only four? What? Are you saying four isn’t enough for you? Why you ungrateful son of…er um…excuse me…what I meant to say is it’s because I like even numbers.

4. The Run Down

There’s something very enjoyable about being able to get your move on as a melee. You need to exercise those legs too you know. Otherwise you might end up like one of those crazy mutant arm wrestlers with only upper body strength. Don’t get me wrong, while the giant arms/tiny legs look is awesome for comedic value, the whole falling over and not being able to get up because you’re so top-heavy can be a real detriment to your DPS.

Enter The Run Down. A little leg exercise of those of us who only seem to know stand-and-stab. Whether it’s running after those adds that just spawned (why should the range have all the fun just because they don’t have to do anything but turn slightly to deal with them?) or chasing after the tank as he kites the big guy (or gal) all around the various hazards of the environment (don’t forget to spin him around every now and then, us melee LOVE to cause parry haste) there’s a real joy in moving around as melee.

3. The Hit Box

Ah, the hit box. This is what us melee DPS live for. For those of you that don’t know, the hit box is the area around the mob in which you can stand to strike it from melee range. One of the great things about it, is that it is different for every mob! The absolute best thing about it, is that it generally makes no sense whatsoever. Sometimes you’re standing so far out that there is no chance you’d even be close to hitting the big nasty, but there you are, just swinging away. Other times you swear you could reach out and give them a big hug (they all really need one anyways) but you are still treated to the pleasant “I’m out of range” message (I how I love to hear that).

It’s the mystery and the surprise that make it so fun. You never know what you’re gonna get! A very wise man once said that I believe…what was it exactly? Something about chocolate? Damn…now I want some chocolate…

2. Whirlwind

Ah yes. Now this was a tough decision as this could have easily been the number one choice. Whirlwind…AKA, “OMG THE BEST AND MOST INTERESTING MECHANIC IN THE ENTIRE GAME”™. Whirlwind is a fabulous little mechanic that requires melee to get the hell out of dodge for a few seconds or face certain doom (and ridicule), afterward we generally enjoy a second or two to scratch our butts in preparation for returning to combat.

The best thing about this mechanic? It combines both of the previous two things mentioned. You get to do some near aimless running around AND you get to try and reset yourself inside the hit box!

I think my favorite thing about this mechanic is how usually there is a timer for the cooldown but not a timer for when the whirlwind will exactly start. Since you can’t usually safely get out of the whirlwind after it starts you get the chance to run out early and really spend some quality time wondering why your butt is so itchy all the damn time. Oh the joy!

1. The Awesome View – AKA Monster Butt

So what could possibly top Whirlwind? Why the view of course! No, not that show with the ladies talking about whatever it is that they talk about (stickers and glitter I believe), but the constant view of every melee…Monster Butt! (Side Note: I’ve been informed that these views are very similar, I’ll investigate further and get back to you).

Yes, as melee (dps) we will spend 95% of our time crammed firmly up a monsters backside, stab, stab, stabbing away. Apparently there’s a lot of very pretty things going on in an instance (the range rave about it, silly range) but not us melee. We get the absolute joy of up close and personal view of just how much detail Blizzard has put into the backside of that big and nasty boss. Let me tell you, there’s no finer view in the game (and the smell ain’t too shabby either). Rejoice my melee bretheren and sistern for we are the owners of the best view in the game.

Isn’t it just grand being melee?

Here we go again folks, another week, another small patch to shore things up a bit. There are only two items of interests to rogues in this patch. Blind now shares diminishing returns with Fears but not with Cyclone. I guess they want to see more Rogue/Druid and a few less Rogue/Priest? Also, they have changed the Tricks of the Trade glyph to no longer increase the damage, but rather the duration. This is a wash in PvE and a slight nerf to PvP burst so…meh.

Couple of quick notes:

• Brigwyn from The Hunting Lodge is running a charity auction for Child’s Play. Go buy something.
• Aenorn of Unholy Hands had a couple of questions about Ulduar. I was happy to answer. What a nice guy I am.

Last Week’s Results

• PvP

Did a lot of Arena and it’s going rather well. 1231 3s and 953 2s. Still a ways to go and a lot to learn but in due time.

• Blog-Related

Got the video up, I didn’t have enough time to edit it and the quality suffered a little but I believe it was still useful.

This Week’s List

No list this week. I’ve got some things in the works but you’ll just have to wait and see on those. OOOOO…cryptic Zaltu is cryptic.

What’s everyone else up to this week?

Another Friday, another video. Like clockwork eh? Well, like if you’re talking about a very flaky sort of clock that periodically misses a week here and there, and as it turns out that’s exactly what we’re talking about. Therefore…like clockwork, huh?

Today’s mod is the ever so awesome bag mod, ArkInventory.