Assassination Rogue DPS Guide in Battle for Azeroth (BfA) 8.0.1

Table of Contents

• ×Introduction
  • 1. Class Overview
  • 2. Patch 8.0.1 Changes for Assassination Rogue
  • 3. Assassination Rogue Strengths
  • 4. Assassination Rogue Weaknesses
  • 5. Assassination Rogue Viability in the Current Patch
  • 6. Contents
  • 7. ChangeLog
• +Easy Mode
  • 1. Foreword
  • 2. The Basics for Assassination Rogue
  • 3. Talent Choice for Assassination Rogue
  • 4. Stat Choice for Assassination Rogue
  • 5. Basic Rotational Priority for Assassination Rogue
    • 5.1. Tips and Tricks
  • 6. Azerite Traits
  • 7. ChangeLog
• +Spell Summary
  • 1. Assassination Rogue Spell Summary
  • 2. Main Resources for Assassination Rogue
  • 3. Basic Abilities for Assassination Rogue
  • 4. Important Procs for Assassination Rogue
  • 5. DPS Cooldowns for Assassination Rogue
  • 6. Defensive Cooldowns for Assassination Rogue
• +Builds and Talents
  • 1. Talent Choices for Assassination Rogue
  • 2. Talent Cheat Sheets for Assassination Rogue
    • 2.1. Poison Build
  • 3. Tier 1 (Level 15) Talents for Assassination Rogue
  • 4. Tier 2 (Level 30) Talents for Assassination Rogue
  • 5. Tier 3 (Level 45) Talents for Assassination Rogue
  • 6. Tier 4 (Level 60) Talents for Assassination Rogue
  • 7. Tier 5 (Level 75) Talents for Assassination Rogue
  • 8. Tier 6 (Level 90) Talents for Assassination Rogue
  • 9. Tier 7 (Level 100) Talents for Assassination Rogue
  • 10. PvP Talents (War Mode)
    • 10.1. Assassination Rogue War Mode Talents
      • 10.1.1. General PvP Talents
      • 10.1.2. Assassination Rogue PvP Talents
  • 11. ChangeLog
• +Azerite Traits and Armor
  • 1. Azerite Traits for Assassination Rogue
    • 1.1. Outer Ring Traits
      • 1.1.1. Assassination-specific
      • 1.1.2. Generic
      • 1.1.3. Uldir
    • 1.2. Middle Ring Traits for Assassination Rogue
    • 1.3. Inner Ring Traits for Assassination Rogue
  • 2. Azerite Traits Details and Rotation Changes for Assassination Rogue
  • 3. Azerite Trait Recommendations for Assassination Rogues
    • 3.1. Outer Ring
    • 3.2. Middle Ring
    • 3.3. Outer Ring AoE
    • 3.4. Middle Ring AoE
  • 4. Recommended Azerite Pieces for Assassination Rogue
    • 4.1. Head
    • 4.2. Shoulders
    • 4.3. Chest
  • 5. Find Azerite Armor By Trait/Power
  • 6. ChangeLog
• +Rotation, Cooldowns, and Abilities
  • 1. Single Target Ability Priority List for Assassination Rogue
  • 2. Multiple Target Ability Priority List for Assassination Rogue
  • 3. Important Notes
  • 4. Poisons
  • 5. Notable Mechanics for Assassination Rogue
    • 5.1. Nightstalker
    • 5.2. Pandemic and Rupture Refresh
  • 6. Academic Information for Assassination Rogue
    • 6.1. The Interaction Between Combo Points and Energy
    • 6.2. Pooling Energy and Combo Points
    • 6.3. Defensive Utility
  • 7. Opening Sequences for Assassination Rogue
  • 8. Extended Assassination Rotation
  • 9. ChangeLog
• +Mythic+ Tips
  • 1. Assassination Rogue in Mythic+
  • 2. Assassination Rogue Mythic+ Rotation
    • 2.1. Managing Packs with an Infested Mob
    • 2.2. Assassination Rogue Utility
  • 3. Mythic+ Talents for Assassination Rogues
  • 4. Mythic+ Affixes
    • 4.1. Tier One Affixes
    • 4.2. Tier Two Affixes
    • 4.3. Tier Three Affixes
    • 4.4. Seasonal Affix
  • 5. Mythic+ Azerite Traits
  • 6. ChangeLog
• +Common and Worst Mistakes
  • 1. Overcapping Resources
  • 2. Not Pooling Energy
  • 3. Holding Cooldowns For too Long
  • 4. Mismanaging Bleeds
  • 5. Not Knowing How To Sim Yourself
  • 6. Analyzing Your Mistakes as a Assassination Rogue
  • 7. ChangeLog
• +Frequently Asked Questions
  • 1. Battle for Azeroth Frequently Asked Questions
    • 1.1. Why Does Haste Have Such High Value in SimulationCraft?
    • 1.2. Does Our Stat Priority Change on Multi-Target?
    • 1.3. What Piece is Better, X or Y?
    • 1.4. How Much of X Stat Should I Have?
  • 2. ChangeLog
• +Boss by Boss Strategies
  • 1. Assassination Rogue in Uldir
    • 1.1. Talent Cheatsheet
  • 2. Taloc
    • 2.1. Suggested Talents for Assassination Rogue on Taloc
    • 2.2. Assassination Rogue Playstyle on Taloc
  • 3. M.O.T.H.E.R.
    • 3.1. Suggested Talents for Assassination Rogue on M.O.T.H.E.R.
    • 3.2. Assassination Rogue Playstyle on M.O.T.H.E.R.
  • 4. Fetid Devourer
    • 4.1. Suggested Talents for Assassination Rogue on Fetid Devourer
    • 4.2. Assassination Rogue Playstyle on Fetid Devourer
  • 5. Zek'voz, Herald of N'Zoth
    • 5.1. Suggested Talents for Assassination Rogue on Zek'voz, Herald of N'Zoth
    • 5.2. Assassination Rogue Playstyle on Zek'voz, Herald of N'Zoth
  • 6. Vectis
    • 6.1. Suggested Talents for Assassination Rogue on Vectis
    • 6.2. Assassination Rogue Playstyle on Vectis
  • 7. Zul, Reborn
    • 7.1. Suggested Talents for Assassination Rogue on Zul, Reborn
    • 7.2. Assassination Rogue Playstyle on Zul, Reborn
  • 8. Mythrax the Unraveler
    • 8.1. Suggested Talents for Assassination Rogue on Mythrax the Unraveler
    • 8.2. Assassination Rogue Playstyle on Mythrax the Unraveler
  • 9. G'huun
    • 9.1. Suggested Talents for Assassination Rogue on G'huun
    • 9.2. Assassination Rogue Playstyle on G'huun
  • 10. ChangeLog
• +Stat Priority
  • 1. The Basics of Stats for Assassination Rogue
• +Gems, Enchants, and Consumables
  • 1. Gems for Assassination Rogue
  • 2. Enchants for Assassination Rogue
  • 3. Consumables for Assassination Rogue
  • 4. ChangeLog
• +Macros and Addons
  • 1. Macros for Assassination Rogue
    • 1.1. Generic Macros for Rogues
    • 1.2. Startattack Macros
    • 1.3. Tricks of the Trade
    • 1.4. Specific Macros for Assassination Rogues
      • 1.4.1. Talent Swap
  • 2. Addons for Assassination Rogue
    • 2.1. Generic Addons for Rogues
    • 2.2. ElvUI
    • 2.3. Weak Auras
    • 2.4. Boss Mods
      • 2.4.1. BigWigs Bossmods
      • 2.4.2. Deadly Boss Mods
    • 2.5. Name Plates
      • 2.5.1. KUI Nameplates
      • 2.5.2. TidyPlates
    • 2.6. Damage Meters
      • 2.6.1. Skada
      • 2.6.2. Details
    • 2.7. Extra AddOns
      • 2.7.1. Mik's Scrolling Battle Text
      • 2.7.2. Death Note
      • 2.7.3. Doom CooldownPulse
      • 2.7.4. Angry Assignments
    • 2.8. Specific Addons for Assassination Rogues
  • 3. ChangeLog
• +Gear and Best in Slot
  • 1. Best in Slot List for Assassination Rogue
    • 1.1. Raid Gear
    • 1.2. Dungeon Gear
  • 2. Trinket List for Assassination Rogue
  • 3. ChangeLog
• +Simulations
  • 1. Disclaimer Page
  • 2. Assassination Rogue Racial Bonus Simulation
  • 3. ChangeLog

General Information

Welcome to our Assassination Rogue DPS guide for World of Warcraft Battle for Azeroth (BfA) 8.0.1. Here, you will learn everything you need to know about playing an Assassination Rogue in a raid environment and in Mythic+ dungeons.

About Our Author

This guide has been reviewed and approved by Gray_Hound, a Rogue theorycrafter who raids in Strawberry Puppy Kisses. You can find him on Twitch and Twitter.

1. Class Overview

Assassination Rogues deal damage through the application and empowerment of poison and bleed effects. The damage toolkit of Assassination is somewhat limited, mainly focusing on dealing single target damage over a long period. As with the other Rogue specializations, Assassination sports phenomenal defensive abilities that allow them to soak and survive mechanics that most other classes cannot.

2. Patch 8.0.1 Changes for Assassination Rogue

Overall, very little changed for Assassination. Its core gameplay remains the same going into Battle for Azeroth; a number of abilities that were lost in the Legion prune have returned as talents along with some artifact effects, however the core gameplay is unchanged.

• Bleed and Poison damage over time effects scale with Haste.
• Feint has a cooldown, and cannot be maintained permanently.
• Mastery: Potent Assassin also affects bleed damage.

3. Assassination Rogue Strengths

• Strong and consistent single target damage
• Strong sustained cleave (good for council fights)
• Exceptional defensive utility

4. Assassination Rogue Weaknesses

• Burst AoE and short-term cleave
• Very cooldown-reliant, and cooldowns only affect one target

5. Assassination Rogue Viability in the Current Patch

Assassination is currently fairly competitive with both of the other Rogue specializations. It is hard to say definitively which spec will be the best for Uldir, as there are still numerous number changes going out, and all three specializations have the mechanical potential to be the best, so this will come down mostly to tuning. That being said, Subtlety does appear to sim about 2% higher than Assassination.

6. Contents

To make it easy to navigate the guide, we have split it into 14 pages:

• Easy Mode: Simple breakdown and build for those just getting started;
• Spell Summary: see a summary of all your useful spells;
• Builds and Talents: learn how to choose your talents;
• Azerite Traits and Armor: discover your best azerite traits and the gear that sports them;
• Rotation, Cooldowns, and Abilities: master your rotation and your cooldowns;
• Mythic+ Tips: learn how to adapt your playstyle for Mythic+;
• Common and Worst Mistakes: avoid making common mistakes;
• Frequently Asked Questions: find the answers to the most common questions for your spec;
• Boss by Boss Strategies: find out how to defeat current content bosses;
• Stat Priority: read up on the respective values of your statistics;
• Gems, Enchants, and Consumables: choose the best gems, enchantments, etc.;
• Macros and Addons: step up your game with useful macros and addons;
• Gear and Best in Slot: find the best gear you can wear;
• Simulations: if you are interested in simulations results from SimulationCraft.

7. ChangeLog

• 07 Sep. 2018 (bosses page): Added boss spec-specific tips.
• 07 Sep. 2018 (gear page): Added raid gear.
• 04 Sep. 2018 (mythic+ page): Added affixes and utility descriptions.
• 30 Aug. 2018 (azerite traits and gear page): Added Bloodmallet charts, added top 5 Azerite pieces to the page, removed disclaimer.
• 30 Aug. 2018 (rotation page): Updated rotation for more Azerite conditionals.
• 30 Aug. 2018 (simulations page): Updated for Raidbots syntax.
• 30 Aug. 2018 (gear page): Updated Azerite slots.
• 13 Aug. 2018 (this page): Updated for Battle for Azeroth launch.
• 13 Aug. 2018 (gear page): Updated for Battle for Azeroth launch.
• 13 Aug. 2018 (addons page): Updated for Battle for Azeroth launch.
• 13 Aug. 2018 (enchants page): Updated for Battle for Azeroth launch.
• 13 Aug. 2018 (bosses page): Page added (placeholder for now).
• 13 Aug. 2018 (common mistakes page): Page added.
• 13 Aug. 2018 (mythic+ page): Page added (placeholder for now).
• 13 Aug. 2018 (rotation page): Updated for Battle for Azeroth launch.
• 13 Aug. 2018 (azerite traits and gear page): Page added.
• 13 Aug. 2018 (talents page): Updated for Battle for Azeroth launch.
• 13 Aug. 2018 (easy mode page): Updated for Battle for Azeroth launch.
• 13 Aug. 2018 (simulations page): Page added.
• 13 Aug. 2018 (FAQ page): Page added.
• 07 Aug. 2018 (enchants page): Updated Healthstone advice.
• 29 Jul. 2018 (talents page): Fixed a typo.
• 22 Jul. 2018 (talents page): Split talents based on gear build (T21 4p vs T21 4p, T20 2p).
• 22 Jul. 2018 (rotation page): Updated opener.
• 22 Jul. 2018 (gear page): Added new gear builds using T20, added more information on Sephuz and Insignia of Grand Army. Updated Suggested gear per boss.
• 20 Jul. 2018 (gear page): Updated trinket list order.
• 16 Jul. 2018 (this page): Updated for the Battle for Azeroth pre-patch.

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