WoW Classic Subtlety Rogue Leveling Talent Build from 1 to 60

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Your first talent unlocks at Level 10.

1. Levels 10 & 14 — 5 points in Opportunity
2. Levels 15 to 19 — 5 points in Camouflage

1. Level 20 — 1 points in Ghostly Strike
2. Levels 21 to 23 — 3 points in Improved Ambush
3. Level 24 — 1 point in Elusiveness
4. Levels 25 to 27 — 3 points in Serrated Blades
5. Levels 28 to 29 — 2 points in Improved Sap

1. Levels 30 & 31 — 1 points in Hemorrhage
2. Levels 31 & 32 — 1 points in Preparation
3. Levels 32 to 33 — 1 points in Improved Sap
4. Levels 34 to 35 — 2 point in Heightened Senses
5. Levels 35 to 39 — 5 point in Deadliness

1. Level 40 & 41 — 2 points in Remorseless Attacks
2. Levels 42 to 46 — 5 points in Malice
3. Levels 46 to 48 — 3 points in Murder
4. Levels 49 — 1 point in Improved Eviscerate

1. Level 50 — 1 point in Relentless Strikes
2. Levels 51 to 52 — 2 points in Improved Eviscerate
3. Levels 52 & 57 — 5 points in Lethality
4. Levels 58 to 59 — 2 point in Vile Poisons
5. Levels 60 — 1 points in Cold Blood

The main difference in the Subtlety Rotation is the fact that Backstab and Ambush require a Dagger, meaning you have access to these two abilities.

You start with Sinister Strike, Eviscerate, and Throw, with the ability to buy Stealth from your class trainer when you get 10 Copper (which you can choose to wait with until Level 4).

1. Use Eviscerate at 5 combo points.
2. Use Ambush to initiate combat whenever possible and you are stealthed.
3. Use Ghostly Strike on cool down.
4. Use Backstab to initiate combat if you cannot stealth and to build combo points.
5. Use Gouge whenever you can in order to minimize the damage that you will take. You can pool Energy, use Gouge, then go behind your target to Backstab them.
6. Use Vanish if your threat is too high and you are in danger of pulling aggro.
7. Use Sinister Strike to build combo points if you cannot get behind your target until you learn Hemorrhage which will replace Sinister Strike.
8. Use Slice and Dice if the target is about to die and you will be switching to a different target.

While leveling, Rogue gains a huge power spike when they complete their level 20 class quest and get access to Poisons and Thistle Tea.

Leveling Information

Rogue Quests

Check out how to gain access to powerful upgrades for your Rogue by completing their class-specific questline!

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• At Level 4, buy Backstab and Stealth, which pair well together, since Stealth allows you to open up on aggressive mobs using Backstab.
• At Level 6, buy Rank 2 Sinister Strike, and Gouge, which is your first CC ability and is great when paired with Backstab.
• At Level 8, buy Evasion and Rank 2 Eviscerate. Evasion is a great emergency survivability cooldown.
• At Level 10, buy Slice and Dice, Sprint, and Sap. Slice and Dice is used early in leveling with 1 combo point since mobs will not survive long enough to warrant more combo points used. This changes if you are doing a dungeon or a boss. Since you do not have a mount before Level 40, Sprint is a great mobility cooldown that cuts down on your travel time. Sap is a strong CC ability that allows you to safely pull Humanoids that are grouped together.
• At Level 12, buy Rank 2 Backstab. Also, buy Parry and Kick
• At Level 14, buy Rank 3 Sinister Strike.
• At Level 16, buy Rank 3 Eviscerate and Feint.
• At Level 18, buy Rank 1 Ambush.
• At Level 20, buy Rank 2 Stealth, Rank 3 Backstab and Crippling Poison. Make sure you purchase your Instant Poison as well.
• At Level 22, buy Rank 4 Sinister Strike. If you have money to spare, also buy Distract and Vanish.
• At Level 24, buy Rank 4 Eviscerate.
• At Level 26, buy Rank 2 Ambush, Cheap Shot. If you have extra money, then buy Rank 2 Kick.
• At Level 28, buy Rank 4 Backstab and Rank 2 Instant Poison.
• At Level 30, buy Rank 5 Sinister Strike, Deadly Poison and, if you are on a PvP server, it is recommended that you buy Kidney Shot.
• At Level 32, buy Rank 5 Eviscerate. If you have the money, then buy Wound Poison.
• At Level 34, buy Rank 3 Ambush, Rank 2 Sprint, Blinding Powder, and Blind.
• At Level 36, buy Rank 5 Backstab and Rank 3 Instant Poison.
• At Level 38, buy Rank 6 Sinister Strike and Rank 2 Deadly Poison.
• At Level 40, buy Rank 6 Eviscerate. If you have extra money, then buy Rank 2 Feint, Rank 2 Wound Poison, and Rank 3 Stealth for the decreased movement speed penalty.
• At Level 42, buy Rank 7 Backstab, Rank 4 Ambush, Rank 2 Vanish, and Rank 3 Kick if you have the extra money for either ability. The last two are not required as upgrades.
• At Level 44, buy Rank 6 Backstab and Rank 4 Instant Poison.
• At Level 46, buy Rank 7 Sinister Strike and Rank 3 Deadly Poison.
• At Level 48, buy Rank 7 Eviscerate. If you have extra gold, then buy Rank 3 Wound Poison.
• At Level 50, buy Rank 5 Ambush, Rank 2 Crippling Poison, and, if you bought Kidney Shot, buy the Rank 2 version now.
• At Level 52, buy Rank 5 Instant Poison.
• At Level 54, buy Rank 8 Sinister Strike and Rank 4 Deadly Poison.
• At Level 56, buy Rank 8 Eviscerate and Rank 4 Wound Poison.
• At Level 58, buy Rank 6 Ambush, Rank 3 Sprint, and, if you have extra gold, buy Rank 4 Kick.
• At Level 60, buy Rank 8 Backstab, Rank 6 Instant Poison, and Rank 4 Stealth.

Using abilities like Gouge, Cheap Shot, and Kidney Shot is useful on mobs as well as players. It is highly recommended that you buy these abilities if you are on a PvP server.

Endgame Information

Rogue Guides

Finished Leveling? Check out the rest of our Rogue Guide to learn how to maximize your gameplay!

Rogue Endgame Guides

Sellin

Guide Author

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This guide has been written by Sellin, a former top 10 US raider and current season and several time Gladiator, long time WoW Player and passionate about all things Warcraft and Theorycrafting. You can follow him on Twitter and watch him on Twitch.

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