Combat Rogue Guide for WoW Forever

What changed for Rogues in WoW Forever

Rogues keep the kit anyone who played the original game will recognise. The changes are mostly a rebalance of the talent trees, plus two system changes that affect every spec:

• Poisons scale with Attack Power. Your poisons now grow with your gear, and they stack with Windfury Totem and Sharpening Stones.
• Energy regenerates smoothly. The old tick every two seconds is gone; Energy fills continuously, as in later expansions.
• Misses refund Energy. An ability that misses gives back part of its cost.

Combat has always been the most complete Rogue spec in PvE, so it has the fewest changes of the three. Hover any ability or talent in this guide to see its WoW Forever tooltip.

New talents

Reworked talents

Is Combat Rogue good in WoW Forever?

Yes. Combat doesn’t lean on poisons or bleeds, so bosses that are immune to them don’t hurt it. Its damage comes from auto attacks and Sinister Strike, with Blade Flurry for cleave. Expect most Rogues to keep a Combat spec for fights with several targets, alongside a single-target spec.

For new players

Combat is the easiest Rogue spec to learn. It’s a builder–spender loop: build combo points, keep Slice and Dice running, and spend the rest on Eviscerate.

Best race for Combat Rogue

Eight races can be a Rogue in WoW Forever. The only new option is the Skyborne, and for Rogues its racials are underwhelming.

Alliance: Night Elf or Gnome

Both have an active racial that beats anything else on the Alliance side. Night Elves get a crit cooldown to stack with your other burst; Gnomes get cheaper, stronger abilities, and their bigger Energy pool wastes less of a Thistle Tea under the new smooth regeneration.

• Elune’s Light — +10% crit chance for 15 sec.
• Shadowmeld — harder to detect while still; used in combat it makes enemies ignore you, but it doesn’t grant Stealth.
• Quickness — +1% dodge and +2% movement speed; harder to spot in Stealth.
• Wisp Spirit — move 75% faster as a wisp after dying.

• Eureka! — your next 3 damaging abilities cost 20% less Energy and deal 10% more damage.
• Expansive Mind — +5% maximum Energy.
• Escape Artist — break free of snares and roots, with 3 sec of immunity.
• Engineering Specialization — engineering gadgets fail less often.

• Will to Survive — removes all stuns.
• Sword Specialization — +2% crit chance with a sword equipped.
• Perception — much better Stealth detection for 20 sec.
• The Human Spirit — +5% Spirit.

• Stoneform — removes bleeds, poisons and diseases, and cuts physical damage taken by 10% for 8 sec.
• Mace Specialization — +1% crit chance with a mace equipped.
• Big Game Hunter — +5% damage against Beasts.
• Find Treasure — shows nearby treasure on the minimap.

Horde: Orc or Undead

Orcs bring Blood Fury, a burst cooldown that stacks with your other cooldowns, and a little free crit with an axe — which Rogues can now use. Undead get Touch of the Grave, a chance on hit to drain health; Rogues attack so often that they get more out of it than any other class.

• Blood Fury — +10% Attack Power and Spell Power for 15 sec.
• Axe Specialization — +1% crit chance with an axe equipped.
• Shatter Curse — removes curses and reduces magic damage taken by 15% for 8 sec.
• Hardiness — stuns on you last 20% shorter.

• Touch of the Grave — 5% chance on hit to drain health from the target.
• Will of the Forsaken — removes charm, fear and sleep.
• Cannibalize — regain health and mana from a nearby corpse.
• Underwater Breathing — breath lasts much longer underwater.

• Berserking — +10% attack and casting speed for 10 sec.
• Rapid Regeneration — regenerate half your health over 6 sec while standing still.
• Beast Slaying — +5% damage against Beasts.
• Regeneration — faster health regeneration, some of it in combat.

Horde Skyborne get Skysight and Alliance Skyborne get Read Ley Line; the rest is shared. See the Skyborne race guide for the full picture.

• Walk on Air — glide down through the air for 10 sec.
• Skysight — +10% movement speed; lasts far longer near an elemental convergence (Horde).
• Read Ley Line — +100% health and mana regeneration; lasts far longer near a ley line (Alliance).
• Wind Blessed — +1% Haste.
• Elemental Insight — +5% damage against Elementals.

Best level 20 talent build

The beta caps characters at level 20, which gives you 11 talent points. Improved Sinister Strike, Improved Eviscerate and Precision belong in every Combat build. Where the last points go depends on how you play:

• Solo: 2 points in Remorseless Attacks and 1 in Malice. Remorseless Attacks pays off after every kill.
• Groups: move those 2 points into Malice (3/5) for crit that works on every pull.
• Daggers: if you’re using a dagger, Puncturing Wounds makes Backstab your builder.

Level 20 rotation

At 20 you have your core three abilities, but not the second rank of Slice and Dice (level 42) or Blade Flurry, so there is no cleave yet.

1. Build combo points with Sinister Strike, or Backstab in the dagger build.
2. Spend them on Slice and Dice.
3. In a physical group, apply Expose Armor if the target will live long enough to benefit.
4. Otherwise keep building and spend on Eviscerate, refreshing Slice and Dice just before it runs out.

Tips for leveling and dungeons

• Get a slow weapon early. Combat lives on auto attacks and Sinister Strike, so a slow Sword, Axe, Mace or Fist Weapon in your main hand matters most. Train the matching weapon skill.
• Sap no longer breaks Stealth. That makes it reliable crowd control in dungeons, as long as you reach the target unseen.
• Stop casts. Alternate Kick and Gouge to interrupt.
• Pick Lock opens dungeon doors, such as the locked door before Ironclad Cove in The Deadmines.
• Professions. Skinning with Leatherworking gives you early crafted gear, and First Aid makes bandages and healing potions.

Gear to pick up by level 20

Camping buffs for Rogues

Camps give buffs based on the professions of the players at the fire. The three best for damage are the Lodestone from Mining, the Camp Chair from Skinning and the Fish Bowl from Fishing.

Best professions

Engineering is as strong as it has ever been for its gadgets and utility. Skinning with Leatherworking is the easy option early on, with many new recipes for crafting your own gear. We’ll update this once there is more data from the beta.