Assassination Rogue PvP Best Covenants, Soulbinds, Conduits, and Legendary Powers (Dragonflight / 10.0.2)
On this page, you will find information about which Covenant you should be unlocking. After choosing your Covenant, you will have to unlock your best Soulbind and collect Conduits. This page will outline which of these is the best, including the correct Soulbind path you should choose. Finally, we will tell you which Legendary Powers are the best to have for PvP and in which situations you should be swapping them.
This page is part of our Assassination Rogue PvP Guide.
Best Covenant for Assassination Rogue in PvP
For more information about what Covenants bring you, please refer to our page about Covenant abilities for Rogues.
There are four Covenants available: Night Fae, Kyrian,
Venthyr, and
Necrolord. Each Covenant will provide you with a class ability and a
Covenant
ability. If you have at least one character with Renown 80 and a complete
campaign you can freely swap Covenant in Oribos. With
Patch 9.2 we also
gained the Unity Power, allowing us to access our Covenant Legendary
on top of another Legendary. Assassination Rogue players have only one solid
option now.
Necrolord is by far the best option in Season 4, as
Serrated Bone Spike
solves a lot of the Combo Point generation issue the spec has while doing a lot
of
burst and sustained damage. The other three Covenant are all playable but much
weaker
than Necrolord, and thus will limit you if you want to climb the PvP ladder.
- Necrolord is the Covenant that will give you the most
survivability as well as the most sustained damage. The class ability,
Serrated Bone Spike, deals decent damage, is very cheap, and allows you not only to generate Combo Points from a distance, but also to keep dealing damage to an enemy who managed to get away from you. It is worth mentioning that it also works with the
Doomblade Legendary power. It is a great spell overall. The Covenant ability,
Fleshcraft, is a channeled ability that grants you a large shield and reduces all damage you take by 20% while channeling the shield. This is a very powerful defensive ability, especially with the
Ultimate Form passive that comes with one of the Soulbinds, as you will get a crowd control immunity and healing on top of the shield. The Necrolord Legendary,
Deathspike, grants you two additional charges of Serrated Bone Spike and allows it to also deal damage to nearby enemies. The cleave part is only useful in a few situations but the added charges allows you to burst down enemies in a very deadly way by using several charges back to back during your Shiv window.
- Night Fae is the Covenant that will give you the most mobility
and a lot of burst damage. The class ability,
Sepsis, deals good damage by itself, but since it is a Poison it benefits from
Shiv and
Well-Placed Steel. As a result it can end up dealing a surprisingly high amount of damage very quickly. However the Conduit
Septic Shock was nerfed by 50% in PvP combat this season making Sepsis much weaker. While it can still deal good damage it is no longer enough to be considered worth playing over Necrolord. Sepsis also allows you one use of a Stealth-based ability without being Stealthed, but as Assassination it is currently possible to use two. If you start with
Garrote it will silence the enemy as if you were in Stealth but will not consume the Sepsis buff, allowing you to also use
Cheap Shot,
Ambush, or
Sap. One of the Night Fae Soulbinds will also allow Sepsis to give you a significant Mastery buff, making it a nice addition to your burst. The Covenant ability,
Soulshape, is the reason why Night Fae is such a great Covenant for Rogues. It allows you to teleport 15 yards away every 4 seconds for 12 seconds. This is a great tool to escape lethal situations and go for re-Stealths. This gives you more mobility, allowing you to get re-Stealths more. Of course it can also be used to reach a target that has been kiting you. An instant teleport effect that can be repeated a few times while the enemy is using its mobility spells really is a boon to a class such as Rogue, as escaping damage and going back into
Stealth is really core to the gameplay. The Night Fae Legendary,
Toxic Onslaught, allows you to gain
Shadow Blades and
Adrenaline Rush once Sepsis expires.
- Kyrian has become a better option now that we will be able to use
a Covenant Legendary with
Unity. The Covenant ability,
Echoing Reprimand, deals moderate damage in PvP combat due to being heavily nerfed in PvP, so the only benefit you would get from it is the possibility of landing a 7 Combo Point
Envenom. This is not much, but the Legendary makes it a lot better. The Covenant ability is a spell that will summon a steward, and the steward will give you
Phial of Serenity. The cooldown on this heal is excessively long, and it does not start until you leave combat. It is not worth the healing from the Necrolord ability, or the ability to simply avoid damage by escaping provided by both Venthyr and NightFae. However it could be decent if Assassination Rogue and Feral Druid were very represented in the meta as it removes all of their DoTs. The Kyrian Legendary,
Resounding Clarity, is good and is what makes this Covenant good. With the Legendary equipped Echoing Reprimand allows you to overcharge your second, third, fourth and fifth Combo Points instead of a random one. Any offensive finisher used with an overcharged Combo Point will count as if used with 7 Combo Points. Being able to land several 7CP
Envenom every second Kidney Shot is powerful, and works particularly well with the
Doomblade Legendary.
- Venthyr is a Covenant that will give you burst damage.
The class ability,
Flagellation, deals large amounts of damage for every Combo Point spent, even more so with the
Lashing Scars Conduit. It also gives a bit of Haste, which is great as Assassination. This ability works particularly well alongside
Vendetta and
Marked for Death for heavy burst damage, since your burst rotation will include two
Envenom back to back, causing
Flagellation to deal a lot of damage in a very short period of time. The Covenant ability,
Door of Shadows, is decent as it allows you to escape a dangerous situation and may even allow you to re-Stealth, but it can be interrupted, making it unreliable when enemies have their interrupts ready. The Venthyr Legendary,
Obedience, allows to you lower the CD of Flagellation and to gain a bit of Versatility once it has lashed the target. This works well with the
Duskwalker's Patch Legendary, as you can manage to have both Vendetta and Flagellation on a near one-minute cooldown for frequent and powerful burst windows.
Best Soulbinds for Assassination Rogues in PvP
Soulbinds are unlocked as you progress your character with a Covenant. Each Covenant features 3 Soulbinds, and every Soulbind has its own set of passive effects. In every Soulbind you will have to choose a path, and that path is important as it determines what passives you get, and what kind of Conduits you can use.
Necrolord Soulbind
Here is the Soulbind and path you should take if you chose Necrolord.
This Soulbind gives you the Ooz's Frictionless Coating passive,
which will amount to quite a bit of healing overall despite its recent nerf in
PvP combat. You also gain the passive
Ultimate Form that allows
Fleshcraft to heal you and provide you with crowd control immunity for
a short period of time. This can be useful in many situations if you know the
enemy team is about to crowd control you.
Night Fae Soulbind
Here is the Soulbind and path you should take if you chose Night Fae.
This Soulbind gives you the Field of Blossoms passive. This will
allow you to gain 15% Haste when using
Sepsis as long as you remain
in the circle, greatly empowering your DoT damage. This is very powerful when
the target is in a
Kidney Shot. The passive
Dream Delver gives
you more sustained damage throughout the fight. The passive
Soothing Voice
is decent as it massively slows your targets after a Blind or a Sap, which can
sometimes be the extra second you need to land a kill. And lastly the Soulbind
offers
two defensive passives. The first one,
Waking Dreams, gives you a shield
every minute. It will help your healer with sustained healing. The second one
is the signature passive of this Soulbind,
Podtender. Upon receiving a
killing blow you become a Regenerating Wildseed. If your team is able to
prevent the seed from being killed for 10s, you come back to life. This will
sometimes
win you games.
As Night Fae you have a second powerful Soulbind that will give you more
Envenom damage on your burst window at the expense of DoT damage.
This Soulbind gives you the Grove Invigoration passive. This will
allow you to gain 300 Mastery when using
Sepsis, greatly increasing
the burst damage of your Bleeds and Poisons. This buff will become 450 Mastery
for the first 5 seconds thanks to
Bonded Hearts, the last passive, if
the condition is met, for even more burst damage.
Envenom counts as a
Poison too. You also get
Run Without Tiring, which is a bit of healing
when kiting away with
Soulshape. The passive
Survivor's Rally
also provides healing which is always a huge help in PvP.
Bonded Hearts also provides a bit of passive healing, but most
importantly allows
Sepsis to heal you and your allies upon use, which
can help your healer a little bit.
Kyrian Soulbind
Here is the Soulbind and path you should take if you chose Kyrian.
This Soulbind gives you the Combat Meditation passive. This will
allow you to gain Mastery when using
Echoing Reprimand, increasing the
burst damage of your bleeds and Poisons.
Envenom counts as a Poison,
so you gain a lot of burst damage with this passive. You also get the passive
Let Go of the Past, which is a small defensive bonus. The last two passives
are the
strongest of the Soulbind.
Path of the Devoted will reduce all incoming
damage by 20% after recovering from a crowd control effect once every 30
seconds. While this may be triggered by crowd control abilities that will not
hurt you
it could also trigger on very dangerous abilities such as
Kidney Shot
or
Storm Bolt. If you are the target it is likely that you will indeed
get value out of it as many crowd control attacks on you will be meant to kill
you. The last passive,
Newfound Resolve is a powerful damage increase
when you manage to get it, although it may not always be very practical to do
so while in PvP combat. Following this path allows you to put the Conduit
Prepared for All on the top right in order to pick
Phial of Patience
in match-ups that require more self-healing. You may also replace
Lethal Poisons
with
Reverberation, but the Conduit is heavily nerfed in PvP, so the
burst
damage increase will not be very high.
Venthyr Soulbind
Here is Soulbind and path you should take if you chose Venthyr.
This Soulbind gives you the Thrill Seeker passive. This will grant
you 20% Haste at times, and Haste is a great stat for Assassination Rogues. You
also gain
Agent of Chaos, allowing you to disorient enemies with Door of
Shadows. Beware, this will put the target on diminishing return for
Blind. You also gain the passive
Dauntless Duelist that will
slightly increase your damage to one target. Last but not least, the final
passive,
Fatal Flaw, is extremely powerful as it will give you 20%
Versatility once
Euphoria ends. This Soulbind only allows you to use
two Potency
Conduits, when three is better, but the passives provided are extremely potent
and
more than make up for it.
Best Conduits for Assassination Rogues in PvP
Conduits are passive buffs that you can use to fill empty slots in your Soulbind Trees. There are three types of Conduits: Potency, Endurance, and Finesse. Here are the best Conduits for each of those different types:
Best Potency Conduits for Assassination Rogues in PvP
- If you are Night Fae,
Septic Shock increases the damage of your
Sepsis, making the DoT much stronger.
- If you are Necrolord,
Sudden Fractures increases the overall damage of the
Serrated Bone Spike DoT by giving it a significant chance to trigger an additional time.
- If you are Kyrian,
Reverberation increases the damage of your
Echoing Reprimand, increasing your burst damage.
- If you are Venthyr,
Lashing Scars increases the damage of your
Flagellation, increasing your burst damage in a short period of time.
Well-Placed Steel causes the target you use
Shiv on to take more Nature damage. This is crucial for increasing your burst damage.
Lethal Poisons increases the damage of your weapon poisons by a substantial amount. This is a great Conduit to use when playing with
Deadly Poison and
Master Poisoner.
Maim, Mangle causes
Garrote to increase the damage of
Mutilate on the target. This is good to increase your sustained damage, especially with the
Doomblade legendary power. You can use it instead of Lethal Poisons if you play with Doomblade.
Best Endurance Conduits for Assassination Rogues in PvP
Recuperator makes
Slice and Dice heal you over time. This is good to help your healer with sustained healing as you will have Slice and Dice up most of the time.
Cloaked in Shadows allows Stealth to grant you a large shield for 4s. Stealth will not break to DoT damage as long as the shield holds. This Conduit is helpful when facing double DPS comps in 2s, such as Rogue/Mage, as you will often use
Vanish defensively in such match-ups and you want to remain stealthed until your healer is out of CC.
Best Finesse Conduits for Assassination Rogues in PvP
Quick Decisions reduces the cooldown of
Shadowstep and increases its range. This is great for both running down enemies or kiting away from them if you need to. Assassination is not an overly mobile spec so this Conduit definitely helps a lot.
Prepared for All reduces the cooldown of
Cloak of Shadows when you successfully interrupt a cast, and of
Evasion when you dodge an attack. It is not mandatory, but can be a good pick when you know you will get a lot of value out of it. The fact that you can have your defensives back off cooldown when the enemy thinks they are still unavailable can cause them to do mistakes.
Best Legendaries for Assassination Rogues in PvP
Legendaries have many different effects and some can alter how you should use some of your abilities. For more information on Legendaries, check out our general guide on them.
Here are the best Legendaries for an Assassination Rogues.
Duskwalker's Patch is a great pick. This allows you to reduce the cooldown of your
Vendetta by 1s for every 30 Energy spent. Vendetta is one of the best burst cooldowns in the game. With this Legendary you will have Vendetta back a lot faster which will greatly increase your overall damage output and pressure. But most importantly since you will get your Vendetta back under 2 minutes the enemy will not have a trinket for your Vendetta if they used it on the previous one. It also works well with the Venthyr Legendary if you play Venthyr, as the cooldown of both Vendetta and Flagellation will be between 1 minute and 1 minute 15 seconds, allowing for frequent bursts.
Doomblade is also great pick. This gives you an additional bleed and will result in
Envenom dealing more damage. It will both increase your sustained damage output and your burst damage output. It is worth mentioning that the bleed applied by
Serrated Bone Spike works with the Legendary, so using it as Necrolord is very valuable. It also works great if you are a Kyrian to empower the four 7CP Envenoms granted by the Kyrian Legendary, for a powerful burst.
Mark of the Master Assassin is a still decent Legendary despite the PvP nerf. It gives you 100% Critical Strike chance for 2.4 seconds after Stealth breaks. This gives you short windows to do large amounts of damage to enemy players. However, as Assassination your damage will not be high after you exit Stealth the first time as you will need to apply your bleeds to your target. That means that you need to sacrifice
Vanish offensively to get value out of this Legendary and in return you get one of the highest burst damage output in the game. You will use this Legendary only when you can afford to use
Vanish offensively. It is worth mentioning that if you are a Night Elf, you can trigger the Critical Strike buff by going in stealth with
Shadowmeld. This Legendary then gains a lot of value and can sometimes be used in games where you need to use Vanish defensively as you will use Shadowmeld to trigger the Legendary during your burst window and not Vanish.
Changelog
- 11 Dec. 2022: Reviewed for Dragonflight Season 1.
- 22 Nov. 2022: Updated for Dragonflight pre-patch.
- 05 Sep. 2022: Updated the Covenant selection.
- 28 Jul. 2022: Reviewed for Shadowlands Season 4.
- 01 Jul. 2022: Added a few changes and precisions.
- 31 May 2022: Reviewed for Patch 9.2.5.
- 10 Apr. 2022: Updated the Night Fae Soulbinds.
- 21 Feb. 2022: Updated for Patch 9.2.
- 10 Nov. 2021: Updated for Patch 9.1.5.
- 21 Jul. 2021: Added changes to Conduit picks.
- 03 Jul. 2021: Updated for Patch 9.1.
- 06 Apr. 2021: Rewritten by Shadenox and further updated for Patch 9.0.5.
- 12 Mar. 2021: Updated Best Covenants.
- Updated Best Conduits.
- Updated Best Legendaries.
- 29 Nov. 2020: Page added.
This guide has been written by Shadenox, an experienced Gladiator player who has achieved over 3,000 rating on Rogue. You can find him on his YouTube channel, where he creates guides and other informational content regarding Arenas.
- Upgrade Ranks Added for Mythic Gear in Patch 10.1.5
- Twitch Revises Branded Content Guidelines After Backlash
- Welcome Back Gear Gift for Unplayed Characters in 10.1.5
- Dragonflight Patch 10.1 Hotfixes, June 6th
- Mythic+ Now Has Extra Affixes (Bug)
- Dragonflight 10.1.5 PTR Notes: June 6th
- Blizzard on Catalyst Quest Becoming Available Earlier Than Expected
- Mythic+ Dungeons Re-Enabled on Live Servers