Arms Warrior DPS Easy Mode in Battle for Azeroth (BfA) 8.0.1

Table of Contents

• +Introduction
  • 1. Class Overview
  • 2. Battle for Azeroth 8.0.1 Changes for Arms Warrior
    • 2.1. Core Mechanical Changes
    • 2.2. Baseline Abilities Changes
  • 3. Arms Warrior's Strengths
  • 4. Arms Warrior's Weaknesses
  • 5. Viability of Arms Warrior in the Current Patch
  • 6. Contents
  • 7. Changelog
• ×Easy Mode
  • 1. Foreword
  • 2. The Basics of Arms Warrior
  • 3. Talent Choices for Arms Warriors
  • 4. Stat Choices for Arms Warriors
  • 5. Basic Rotation for Arms Warriors
  • 6. Changelog
• +Spell Summary
  • 1. Spell Summary of Arms Warrior
  • 2. Arms Warrior's Main Resource
  • 3. Basic Abilities of an Arms Warrior
  • 4. Important Procs for an Arms Warrior
  • 5. Offensive Cooldowns of an Arms Warrior
• +Builds and Talents
  • 1. Talent Choices for Arms Warrior
  • 2. Talent Cheat Sheet for Arms Warrior
    • 2.1. Open World, Levelling and Questing
    • 2.2. Dungeons and Mythic Plus
    • 2.3. Single Target Raid Encounters
  • 3. Tier 1 (Level 15) Talents for Arms Warrior
  • 4. Tier 2 (Level 30) Talents for Arms Warrior
  • 5. Tier 3 (Level 45) Talents for Arms Warrior
  • 6. Tier 4 (Level 60) Talents for Arms Warrior
  • 7. Tier 5 (Level 75) Talents for Arms Warrior
  • 8. Tier 6 (Level 90) Talents for Arms Warrior
  • 9. Tier 7 (Level 100) Talents for Arms Warrior
  • 10. PvP Talents (War Mode)
    • 10.1. Arms Warrior War Mode Talents
      • 10.1.1. General PvP Talents
      • 10.1.2. Arms Warrior PvP Talents
  • 11. Changelog
• +Azerite Traits and Armor
  • 1. Best Azerite Traits for Arms Warrior
    • 1.1. Outer Ring Single-Target
    • 1.2. Outer Ring Multi-Target (Mythic+, etc)
    • 1.3. Middle Ring Single-Target
    • 1.4. Middle Ring Multi-Target (Mythic+, etc)
  • 2. Azerite Traits for Arms Warrior
    • 2.1. Outer Ring Traits
    • 2.2. Middle Ring Traits for Arms Warrior
    • 2.3. Inner Ring Traits for Arms Warrior
  • 3. Find Azerite Armor By Trait/Power
  • 4. Changelog
• +Rotation, Cooldowns, and Abilities
  • 1. Single-Target Rotation for Arms Warrior
    • 1.1. Execute Usage
    • 1.2. Opening Rotation for Arms Warrior
  • 2. Multiple-Target Rotation for Arms Warrior
    • 2.1. 2-3 Targets
    • 2.2. 4+ Targets
  • 3. Mastering your Arms Warrior
    • 3.1. Aligning Cooldowns
      • 3.1.1. Managing Deep Wounds
      • 3.1.2. When to use Skullsplitter
  • 4. Azerite Traits
    • 4.1. Tier 1 Talents Rage Generation
    • 4.2. Rage Management
    • 4.3. Heroic Charge
    • 4.4. Movement and Mobility
    • 4.5. Defensive Abilities
    • 4.6. Group Buffs
  • 5. Changelog
• +Mythic+ Tips
  • 1. Disclaimer
    • 1.1. Arms Warrior in Mythic+
    • 1.2. Arms Warrior Utility
  • 2. Mythic+ Talents for Arms Warrior
  • 3. Mythic+ Affixes
    • 3.1. Tier One Affixes
    • 3.2. Tier Two Affixes
    • 3.3. Tier Three Affixes
    • 3.4. Seasonal Affix
  • 4. Mythic+ Azerite Traits
  • 5. Changelog
• +Common and Worst Mistakes
  • 1. Downtime
  • 2. Overcapping Rage
  • 3. Not Knowing How To Sim Yourself
  • 4. Analyzing Your Own Mistakes
• +Frequently Asked Questions
  • 1. Battle for Azeroth Frequently Asked Questions
    • 1.1. Should I Worry About Rage?
    • 1.2. Should I Only Use Mortal Strike During Execute?
    • 1.3. What Piece of Gear is Better?
    • 1.4. How Much of Each Stat Should I Have?
  • 2. Changelog
• +Boss by Boss Strategies
  • 1. Arms Warrior in Uldir
    • 1.1. Talent Cheatsheet
  • 2. Taloc
    • 2.1. Suggested Talents for Arms Warrior on Taloc
    • 2.2. Arms Warrior Playstyle on Taloc
  • 3. M.O.T.H.E.R.
    • 3.1. Suggested Talents for Arms Warrior on M.O.T.H.E.R.
    • 3.2. Arms Warrior Playstyle on M.O.T.H.E.R.
  • 4. Fetid Devourer
    • 4.1. Suggested Talents for Arms Warrior on Fetid Devourer
    • 4.2. Arms Warrior Playstyle on Fetid Devourer
  • 5. Zek'voz, Herald of N'Zoth
    • 5.1. Suggested Talents for Arms Warrior on Zek'voz, Herald of N'Zoth
    • 5.2. Arms Warrior Playstyle on Zek'voz, Herald of N'Zoth
  • 6. Vectis
    • 6.1. Suggested Talents for Arms Warrior on Vectis
    • 6.2. Arms Warrior Playstyle on Vectis
  • 7. Zul, Reborn
    • 7.1. Suggested Talents for Arms Warrior on Zul, Reborn
    • 7.2. Arms Warrior Playstyle on Zul, Reborn
  • 8. Mythrax the Unraveler
    • 8.1. Suggested Talents for Arms Warrior on Mythrax the Unraveler
    • 8.2. Arms Warrior Playstyle on Mythrax the Unraveler
  • 9. G'huun
    • 9.1. Suggested Talents for Arms Warrior on G'huun
    • 9.2. Arms Warrior Playstyle on G'huun
  • 10. Changelog
• +Stat Priority
  • 1. The Basics of Stats for Arms Warrior
    • 1.1. Getting a Better Understanding
    • 1.2. Statistics
    • 1.3. Breakpoints
  • 2. Racial Bonuses for Arms Warrior
  • 3. Changelog
• +Gems, Enchants, and Consumables
  • 1. Gems for Arms Warrior
  • 2. Enchants for Arms Warrior
  • 3. Consumables for Arms Warrior
  • 4. Changelog
• +Macros and Addons
  • 1. Macros for Arms Warriors
    • 1.1. Generic Macros for Warriors
      • 1.1.1. Fervor/Slam Switch
      • 1.1.2. Avatar/Deadly Calm Switch
      • 1.1.3. Cancel Bladestorm Macro
      • 1.1.4. Pummel Macro
      • 1.1.5. Automatic Heroic Leap
      • 1.1.6. Heroic Leap Spam
    • 1.2. Specific Macros for Arms Warriors
      • 1.2.1. Charge Macro
      • 1.2.2. Offensive Cooldown Macro
  • 2. Addons recommended for Arms Warriors
    • 2.1. Generic Addons for Warriors
      • 2.1.1. ElvUI
      • 2.1.2. Boss Mods: Deadly Boss Mods or Bigwigs
      • 2.1.3. GTFO
      • 2.1.4. Parrot or Mik's Scrolling Battle Text
      • 2.1.5. Weak Auras
      • 2.1.6. TellMeWhen
      • 2.1.7. Raeli's Spell Announcer
      • 2.1.8. Recount / Skada / Details!
      • 2.1.9. Omen Threat Meter
    • 2.2. Specific Addons for Arms Warriors
• +Gear and Best in Slot
  • 1. Raid Best in Slot List for Arms Warrior
  • 2. Azerite Gear for Arms Warrior
  • 3. Trinkets
  • 4. Changelog
• +Simulations
  • 1. Disclaimer Page
  • 2. Arms Warrior Talent Comparisons
  • 3. Arms Warrior Racial Bonus Simulations
  • 4. Arms Warrior Stat Weights
  • 5. Arms Warrior Azerite Simulations
    • 5.1. Outer Ring Single-Target
    • 5.2. Outer Ring Multi-Target (Mythic+, etc)
    • 5.3. Middle Ring Single-Target
    • 5.4. Middle Ring Multi-Target (Mythic+, etc)
  • 6. Changelog

About Our Author

This guide has been written by Archimtiros, the Warrior class theorycrafter, and one of the best DPS Warriors in the world, who raids in Infinity. You can follow him on Twitter and you can watch his stream on Twitch.

1. Foreword

This section is intended for players who are new to the game or class, have no intentions of raiding Mythic difficulty, or simply want a more straightforward way to play their specialization without being overwhelmed by the numerous priorities and active abilities that need to be taken into consideration for optimal play.

2. The Basics of Arms Warrior

Arms is a combination damage dealer that focuses on buffing their Mortal Strike, and debuffing the enemy with Colossus Smash and Deep Wounds. While the base rotation is not very complicated, talents can add numerous extra attacks and replace others with different versions, allowing players to customize their rotation to their situation or taste. The build showcased here is a simple yet effective play style, good for all types of game content, which is meant to help new players learn the fundamentals of Arms.

3. Talent Choices for Arms Warriors

The talents listed below are selected predominantly for ease of use and to mitigate more complex decisions when it comes to resource management. While there are better performing combinations, they also have more room for error. The ones chosen are meant to simplify decision making and resource management while introducing players to Arms' single target, burst, and AoE potential. Despite being the "easy mode", it is still quite effective for questing, dungeons, and raid content.

• Level 15: Sudden Death
• Level 30: Double Time
• Level 45: Massacre
• Level 60: Bounding Stride
• Level 75: Warbreaker
• Level 90: In For The Kill
• Level 100: Anger Management.

4. Stat Choices for Arms Warriors

The current Arms stat priority is as follows when using this build:

1. Haste;
2. Critical Strike;
3. Strength;
4. Mastery.
5. Versatility.

Haste compresses the rotation, increasing auto-attack speed and reducing the time between ability casts. Critical Strikes double all damage done, and increases Rage generation from auto-attacks, which helps reduce downtime within the rotation. Mastery increases Deep Wounds damage. Versatility is a static damage increase and reduces damage taken by half the amount.

5. Basic Rotation for Arms Warriors

The typical single target rotation using our suggested talents is outlined below. Whenever there is more than one target, use Sweeping Strikes to allow your other abilities to also hit a second target.

• Cast Warbreaker on cooldown or whenever it will hit multiple targets.
• Cast Bladestorm while the Colossus Smash debuff is up.
• Cast Sweeping Strikes whenever there is more than one target.
• Cast Execute if your target is below 35% health.
• Cast Mortal Strike on cooldown to maintain Deep Wounds.
• Cast Overpower to buff Mortal Strike.
• Cast Slam as a filler while the enemy is above 35% health.

While all builds focus on the same principle of resetting the cooldown of Overpower with Tactician procs, using it to buff Mortal Strike, and using that to inflict Deep Wounds, other talents add extra abilities, maintenance buffs, and replace other abilities within the rotation. These talents and their rotations are covered in more detail in the advanced sections of the guide.

6. Changelog

• 17 Aug. 2018: Updated stat recommendation and Mastery description to account for hotfix.
• 13 Aug. 2018: Updated for Battle for Azeroth launch.