TL;DR version of the question: “Should I be taking 5 points in Dual Wield Specialization for PvP?”

Yes! Yes, absolutely! 100% without a doubt you want to take this talent. There is no other talents you could spend those 5 points on that will give you a larger benefit than the 50% extra off-hand damage, particularly if you’re mutilate. PvP or PvE, off-hand attacks are a large portion of our damage. You want this talent.

What do you think about the Resilience change? I mean I think this is the biggest problem for Rogues in 3.2. We have low survivability anyway and with this you will need to survive even longer to be able to kill your opponent(s). Yes you can get Res gear too, but then you do less damage and I don’t think it will even out the problem.

Ah, the Resilience change. For those of you that don’t know, Resilience current decreases from periodic sources (DOTs) and decreases the chance that you will be critically hit. The change that is currently on the table for 3.2 will make Resilience reduce all damage taken.

What do I think about this?

I’m a fan, for the most part.

Yes, it reduces our ability to burn through some of those clothies and that makes me a bit sad (oh how I love blowing up some casters) but it also has the added advantage of making us just a little less squishy ourselves.

Let’s be honest, this change is a knee-jerk reaction to burst in Arenas. Arena matches can be over in the span of a single global cooldown and that’s just too fast. This change is not the silver bullet that is going to fix this problem but it will probably help a little.

It also has one added benefit for rogues. It gets us out of our PvE gear. Now now, put down the pitchforks. We all know that rogues traditionally wear less PvP gear in Arenas than any other classes (namely because it didn’t help our squishyness enough so we needed the extra damage provided by PvE gear). The end result of this was that rogues who were able to raid had a bit of an edge.

I’m rambling off in a number of different directions here so let’s sum it up. I feel the change is a good thing as a whole, it may help stretch that 1 global and you die to 2 globals and you die. Is it the best solution? Probably not. Is it just going to make the healing is way overpowered issue bigger? Yeah, maybe.

I just hope they are attacking this thing on two fronts, the burst damage and the burst healing.

Vacation this week. Zaltu out.

Is it better to gem with agi or attack power?

The quick and simple answer is to consult a spreadsheet. That wasn’t the answer you wanted though was it? So yeah, more often than not, AP gems provide an ever-so-slight advantage over AGI. The difference is so slight, however, that it is generally up to personal preference. I, personally, always gem for AGI.

It should be noted that once you have the T8 4-piece bonus, AGI will always come out on top.

What is the best talent build and glyphs for Assassination?

51/13/7

Often, depending on your gear, you can switch some points around in Master Poisoner for Turn the Tables. You’ll have to check a spreadsheet to be exact on this and it’s generally not worth worrying too much about.

What is the best talent build and glyphs of Combat?

15/51/5

Obviously, you can change Close Quarters Combat out for your weapon of choice. A good thing to note is that if you are using fists/dagger, you can replace that one point in Endurance with one point in Throwing Specialization. I’m a fan of this, as it helps on a couple of fights in Ulduar.

What poisons should I be using?

For Combat: Wound on the Main Hand and Deadly on the Off Hand.

For Mutilate: Instant on the Main Hand and Deadly on the Off Hand.

Why are you so awesome?

Just born that way I guess.

Will you have my babies?

Yes.

You’re damn sexy.

Not a question, but you are correct.

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.

-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?

First off, great question. The quick answer is that no, hit rating doesn’t mean as much in PvP as it does in PvE (nor do you need as much of it as you would for Bosses since players are level 80 and bosses are level 83) but it is still important.

For PvP, your “yellow” or special hit cap (Mutilate, Ambush, Eviscerate, etc) assuming no precision(most PvP builds will not have this) is 167. You should be aiming for this number because a missed finisher can be the difference between getting that kill and them receiving that heal they so desperately needed.

Allow me to give you a quick run down of the kind of stat numbers you should be aiming for, but please have your salt shakers ready because these are very loose and in PvP nothing is set in stone.

• Resilience – 500+
• Hit – ~167
• Crit – 30%+
• AP – 3000+

In direct answer to the question about your two trinkets, use the Medallion regardless of how much hit you lose. The PvP trinket is a must for serious PvP play (you might do fine in some BGs but you can’t live without it in the arena). That being said, there are some new PvP Trinkets from Wintergrasp that are just awesome; one even has a large amount of hit-rating: Titan-forged Rune of Accuracy.

Below is a list of easy to obtain (they only cost Honor) PvP items that have hit on them (Note: I’ve linked the Hateful versions but the Deadly versions should no longer have Arena Rating requirements either):

• Hateful Gladiator’s Cloak of Victory
• Hateful Gladiator’s Pendant of Victory
• Deadly Gladiator’s Ring of Victory

I hope that answers your question, enjoy your PvPing!

Have a question you need answered? Leave a comment or drop me a line.

Now I know what you’re thinking: “Zaltu, you’re so awesome and handsome and you picked the day of the patch perfectly, what other great thing can you do for me?”

Well I’m glad you asked!  I’m going to supply you with some nice patch day specs for my stabby brethern and sistern. Let’s check it out, shall we?

PvE – Combat

15/51/5

Not a lot of changes here except that Lightning Reflexes is now so useful that you can no longer viably spec into both sword/dagger and fist. Sad, I know. Currently you have only one “free floating” point in this spec. I choose Endurance – but Throwing Specialization is also a popular choice.

PvE – Mutilate

51/13/7

The big change to the Mutilate build is the taking of Master Poisoner instead of Turn the tables. The reason for this is that previously Master Poisoner only provided a buff to crit that was usually provided by other classes which made it a relatively easy talent to skip, but now, with it’s increased chance to apply Deadly Poison after an Envenom, it’s a must have.

PvP – Mut/Prep

41/5/25

A few things worth noting with this build is that there is really no set-in-stone “this is the best Mut/Prep build”. This is the build I like to use. Some variations include replacing Initiative with Serrated Blades and/or replacing Find Weakness with Ruthlessness.

PvP – Shadow Dance

12/0/57

I’ll be honest with you here, I have yet to try this spec but it really has my attention. Likemost PvP specs where there’s not a 100%, this is the right spec. What I’ve linked is my best approximation after doing some research and looking over the armories of some of the best PvP rogues in the game currently.

Enjoy patch 3.1!

Berserking or Mongoose? I’d like to know which enchants are best for PvP & PvE situations, given the 25% reduction in armor on Berserking.

I personally have Mongoose on my weapons for PvE. However, for PvE Berserking is the superior DPS enchant. On my server Abyss Crystals are ridiculously expensive so I went the cheap route. If you have a best in slot weapon or just one you don’t plan to replace for a long time and can afford it, go with Berserking. Otherwise, Mongoose is a perfectly acceptable substitution.

Now, on to PvP. If the question is Berserking vs Mongoose, I’d have to go Mongoose since the loss of armor from Berserking seems less than ideal. However, if you’re looking for the best weapon enchant for PvP I would be inclined to suggest Exceptional Agility. On-proc events like Mongoose shine the longer the fight lasts and PvP has become rather bursty and a flat, constant Agility boost feels, to me, to be the stronger choice. Now, I’m not a PvP expert so take that with a grain of salt…perhaps someone in the comments can confirm or deny my assumption?

what is the best rotation for mutilate pve raiding rogue..thx for the help

Let me preface this by saying that I am not Mutilate. I have, however, done a significant amount of research on the subject (as I will likely be going Mutilate someday) and I believe I can speak knowledgeably on it.

Let me post-preface (making up words is fun) that by speaking on the concept of rotations a bit. Please remember that rotations are not set in stone (especially with Mutilate) and you should always be aware of your situation and adapt to it.

First, I like the idea of a nice little Cold Blood Macro to always make sure you’re using it whenever it is up:

Before the fight begins get yourself 3 stacks of Hunger for Blood (HfB). Your number one priority is to make sure this never, never, never drops. Having to reply 3 fresh stacks (at the cost of 3 global cooldowns and 90 energy!) is a huge DPS loss. This is a big balancing act, you don’t want to reapply it too early because you’re wasting time on it but letting it fall off is even worse so err on the side of caution with this one. Hot Tip: Always refresh it before a stun effect like Maexxna’s Web Wrap.

Cast Tricks of the Trade on your tank and open the fight with Garrote (EDIT: Some commenters -thanks all!- mentioned that Ambush would be a better opener due to the fact that it adds 2-combo points. I had totally forgotten about his change and that’s a excellent choice.) followed by Slice and Dice (SnD). SnD is your number two priority. Luckily for you, thanks to Cut to the Chase, Envenom restores SnD to it’s a full 5 combo point stack but don’t let it fall off or you’ll have to reapply it manually. Like with HfB, try to refresh it before a stun if possible. Hot Tip: Always refresh SnD with Envenom before you have less than 2 global cooldowns (GCD) remaining (3 seconds) – particularly if you are below the expertise cap. A boss dodging your Envenom means no refreshed SnD which makes you a sad panda.

After SnD is up, Mutilate up to 4 or 5 combo points (In 2 Mutilates there is a strong chance that Seal Fate will proc and in the first rotation Cold Blood will guarantee that it does, so you will very likely have 5 combo points, but if you only have four don’t sweat it) and then Envenom to give SnD its full duration.

Mutilate again up to 4 or 5 combo points and Rupture.

At this point the rotation comes down to repeating these steps while keeping track of your top four priorities, which in order are:

• Stay Alive
• Keeping Hunger For Blood Up
• Keeping Slice and Dice Up (with Envenom)
• Keeping Rupture Up

Other Tips:
Generally you want to Envenom with 4 or 5 combo points but if SnD is about to drop go ahead and throw one with whatever amount you have.

Use Vanish whenever it is up and Garrote. The extra damage from Garrote is nice but the real purpose of this is to take full advantage of Overkill.

I say again, remember that no rotation is set in stone. Just relax, watch your timers and trust your instincts (they will get better and better with time and practice).

Have a question you’d like answered? Leave a comment or drop me a line.

Remember, follow your heart and stab your enemy in theirs.

So I believe this might just be my battlegroup but here are some facts I’ve discovered about the horde (hopefully I can back this up with some honorfu data later):

• We win only about 5-10% of EotS games
• We win about 10% of AB games
• We win 99.99999% of WSG games
• We win about 80% of AV games

The numbers just seem odd to me, though I suspect flag obsession attributes to both EotS loses and WSG wins.

Side Note: I heard someone say once that we should be able to buy [Badges of Justice] with honor. Awesome: Yes; Fair: ???