Fury Warrior DPS Rotation, Cooldowns, and Abilities (Legion 7.3)

Table of Contents

• +Introduction
  • 1. Class Overview
  • 2. Patch 7.3 Changes
  • 3. Patch 7.2.5 Changes
  • 4. Strengths
  • 5. Weaknesses
  • 6. Viability in the Current Patch
  • 7. Contents
  • 8. ChangeLog
• +Easy Mode
  • 1. The Basics
  • 2. Talent Choice
  • 3. Stat Choice
  • 4. Basic Rotation
  • 5. ChangeLog
• +Spell Summary
  • 1. Spell Summary
  • 2. Main Resource
  • 3. Basic Abilities
  • 4. Important Procs
  • 5. Offensive Cooldowns
  • 6. ChangeLog
• +Builds and Talents
  • 1. Talent Choices
  • 2. Talent Cheat Sheet
    • 2.1. Open World, Levelling and Questing
    • 2.2. Dungeons and Raids
  • 3. Tier 1 (Level 15) Talents
  • 4. Tier 2 (Level 30) Talents
  • 5. Tier 3 (Level 45) Talents
  • 6. Tier 4 (Level 60) Talents
  • 7. Tier 5 (Level 75) Talents
  • 8. Tier 6 (Level 90) Talents
  • 9. Tier 7 (Level 100) Talents
  • 10. ChangeLog
• +Artifact Traits and Relics
  • 1. Artifact Progression
    • 1.1. Early Progression
    • 1.2. Patch 7.2 Post 35 Trait Path
  • 2. Artifact Ability
  • 3. Relic Choice
  • 4. ChangeLog
• +Netherlight Crucible Relic Paths
  • 1. Optimization between Light/Shadow Tier 2 and Relic Tier 3 Choices
  • 2. Light/Shadow Tier 2 Options
    • 2.1. Best
    • 2.2. Good
    • 2.3. Weak
  • 3. Tier 3 Priorities
  • 4. ChangeLog
• ×Rotation, Cooldowns, and Abilities
  • 1. Single-Target Rotation
    • 1.1. Execute Usage
      • 1.1.1. With Tier 19 4-piece Bonus
      • 1.1.2. With Tier 20 4-piece Bonus
    • 1.2. Juggling Frothing Berserker during Execute
    • 1.3. Using Massacre with Soul of the Battlelord.
    • 1.4. Cooldown Rotation during Battle Cry
    • 1.5. Opening Rotation
  • 2. Multiple-Target Rotation
    • 2.1. Execute in Multiple-Target Situations
  • 3. Important Notes
    • 3.1. Tier 1 Talents
    • 3.2. Cooldowns
      • 3.2.1. Usage Order
      • 3.2.2. Battle Cry
      • 3.2.3. Bladestorm
      • 3.2.4. Odyn's Fury
  • 4. Mastering your Fury Warrior
    • 4.1. Rage Management
    • 4.2. Enrage
    • 4.3. Movement and Mobility
    • 4.4. Sustain and Defense
  • 5. Tier 19 Set Bonuses
    • 5.1. Tier 19 Trinkets
  • 6. Tier 20 Set Bonuses
    • 6.1. Tier 20 Trinket Optimization
  • 7. ChangeLog
• +Stat Priority
  • 1. Basics
    • 1.1. Getting a Better Understanding
    • 1.2. Statistics
    • 1.3. Breakpoints
  • 2. ChangeLog
• +Gems, Enchants, and Consumables
  • 1. Gems
  • 2. Enchants
  • 3. Consumables
  • 4. ChangeLog
• +Macros and Addons
  • 1. Macros
    • 1.1. Generic Macros for Warriors
      • 1.1.1. Bladestorm Cancelaura Macro
      • 1.1.2. Pummel Macro
      • 1.1.3. Heroic Leap Spam
    • 1.2. Specific Macros for Fury Warriors
      • 1.2.1. Bladestorm / Berserker Rage Macro
      • 1.2.2. Offensive Cooldown Macro
  • 2. Addons
    • 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 Fury Warriors
  • 3. ChangeLog
• +Gear, Legendaries, and Best in Slot
  • 1. Best in Slot List
    • 1.1. Extra Notes
    • 1.2. Trinkets
    • 1.3. Tier 19 & 20 Bonus Combinations
    • 1.4. Evaluating Upgrades with dynamic Item Levels
  • 2. Racial Bonuses
  • 3. Legendary Items
    • 3.1. 7.1.5 Legendaries
    • 3.2. 7.2 Legendaries
    • 3.3. 7.2.5 Legendaries
    • 3.4. Recommended Choices
  • 4. Loot Competition
  • 5. ChangeLog

General Information

On this page, we list your Fury Warrior core abilities and how they should be used together (rotation) in World of Warcraft Legion 7.3. We also explain when to use your various cooldowns. Then, we go deeper and present all the subtleties that you will need to know if you want to excel at playing a Fury Warrior.

The other pages of our Fury Warrior guide can be accessed from the table of contents on the right.

About Our Author and Reviewer

This guide has been written by Wordup, a frequent theorycrafter involved in a number of class communities. He is also an experienced player who has been in the world top 100 since the days of Sunwell, currently raiding in Echoes. You can also follow him on Twitter.

This guide has been reviewed and approved by Archimtiros, one of the best DPS Warriors in the world, who raids in Infinity. You can follow him on Twitter.

1. Single-Target Rotation

The Fury rotation on a single target can differ depending on talent choices as many have a significant impact on the flow of combat. General rules outlined below however should be optimal in a majority of situations.

1. Cast Charge if out of range of your target.
2. Cast Rampage if Enrage is absent or at 100 Rage (always cast at 100 rage if using Frothing Berserker.
3. Cast Bloodthirst if Enrage is absent.
4. Cast Odyn's Fury, try to sync this with short term buffs.
5. Cast Execute on targets sub 20% health with Enrage active.
6. Cast Bloodthirst even if already Enraged.
7. Cast Raging Blow.
8. Cast Whirlwind on Wrecking Ball procs if talented.
9. Cast Furious Slash if nothing else is available.

If talented, use Dragon Roar just before Battle Cry due to its guaranteed Critical chance, or just before casting Rampage. If you have taken Frenzy, use Furious Slash to maintain the buff if it is about to expire.

1.1. Execute Usage

Execute, only castable on targets under 20% Health, should be used to spend any excess Rage if already Enraged.

1.1.1. With Tier 19 4-piece Bonus

1. Cast Execute.
2. Cast Furious Slash once.
3. Cast Bloodthirst once.

With the 2 and 4-piece bonus from Tier 19, it becomes advantageous to trigger Enrage as often as possible. Due to this, Raging Blow is pushed out of the rotation during the Execute phase in favour of stacking up Taste for Blood via Furious Slash.

1.1.2. With Tier 20 4-piece Bonus

1. Cast Execute.
2. Cast Bloodthirst.
3. Cast Raging Blow.
4. Cast Furious Slash.

Much simpler than with Tier 19, you simply cast Execute as often as possible to stack Juggernaut as high as you can, whilst filling with other abilities to generate Rage and increase your chance to gain Enrage.

1.2. Juggling Frothing Berserker during Execute

It is currently beneficial to maintain your Frothing Berserker effect during the Execute phase, doing the following:

1. Cast Execute at 100 Rage.
2. Cast Bloodthirst.
3. Cast Raging Blow.

To empower your Execute phase the best, use this method to drop just below 100 Rage, and then generate back up to re-trigger the Frothing Berserker effect, then spend again to bounce between the two states. When Battle Cry is roughly 10 seconds away from being available or as the encounter is about to end, drop this and spend as much Rage as possible on Execute to build extra Juggernaut stacks leading into either your cooldown, or the end of the fight.

1.3. Using Massacre with Soul of the Battlelord.

When using the newly added Legendaring ring Soul of the Battlelord, you will gain the effects of the Massacre talent during Execute phases, which requires some additional nuance.

1. Cast Rampage with Massacre active when Enrage is about to end.
2. Cast Furious Slash (if taken) to maintain the buff if it is about to end.
3. Cast Execute.

This is done to increase Enrage uptime as much as possible during this crucial phase and also capitalise on the free Rampage when available. If taking Frenzy, Furious Slash is cast solely to maintain the buff during this period.

1.4. Cooldown Rotation during Battle Cry

With Reckless Abandon being standard, a rotation to denote how to manage your globals during this is warranted.

1. Cast Battle Cry, Avatar and immediately Rampage.
2. Cast Raging Blow.
3. Cast Odyn's Fury.
4. Cast Bloodthirst.
5. Cast Raging Blow.

This ensures you make best use of your highest damage skills whilst under the Enrage effect and juggling your separate ability cooldowns during your Battle Cry window.

1.5. Opening Rotation

1. Use your Potion just before the pull.
2. Cast Charge.
3. Cast Dragon Roar, Avatar and Bloodbath if taken.
4. Cast Battle Cry and Bloodthirst/ Rampage with Reckless Abandon to trigger Enrage.
5. Continue with single-target rotation.

2. Multiple-Target Rotation

Not a great deal changes from your standard rotation, however managing your Meat Cleaver activations to line up with Bloodthirst and Rampage to allow them to hit additional targets is vital.

1. Cast Charge if out of range of your target.
2. Cast Bladestorm if taken.
3. Cast Whirlwind to activate Meat Cleaver.
4. Cast Rampage if Enrage is absent or at 100 Rage with Meat Cleaver.
5. Cast Bloodthirst if Enrage is absent with Meat Cleaver.
6. Cast Whirlwind on Wrecking Ball procs if talented.
7. Below 4 targets, cast Raging Blow with Inner Rage taken.
8. Cast Whirlwind.

2.1. Execute in Multiple-Target Situations

When multiple targets are involved, Execute leaves the rotation unless you have Massacre is taken. Generally however, you will not take this talent if this is the case so it can mostly be ignored.

3. Important Notes

3.1. Tier 1 Talents

When selecting your talent on this tier, it s crucial to look at the encounter to identify the best choice. As War Machine requires additional small enemies to fuel its uptime, if you cannot guarantee chances to trigger the effect then Endless Rage will not only be the stronger option, but will also be significantly more consistent.

3.2. Cooldowns

Alongside the baseline Battle Cry, Fury has access to a number of additional cooldowns with varying durations through talents. Depending on your selections, you should always try to stack as many cooldowns as possible to enhance the impact of each.

3.2.1. Usage Order

1. Dragon Roar, due to being on the Global Cooldown and always Critically Striking.
2. Battle Cry immediately after, as it syncs well with the Dragon Roar effect.
3. Avatar & Bloodbath if taken at the same time, as they are off Global Cooldown.
4. Berserker Rage with Outburst also at the same time, to trigger enrage.

3.2.2. Battle Cry

Battle Cry is now a short 5-second (7 with Reckless Abandon) duration buff that raises your critical strike chance to 100% on a 1-minute cooldown. This should be used as frequently as possible, ideally when Enrage is inactive, or to guarantee an activation after use through Bloodthirst. Due to its short duration but low cooldown, lining it up with procs or periods of extremely high damage is crucial to squeezing out as much as possible from it.

3.2.3. Bladestorm

If using Bladestorm due to the fight having predictable AoE periods, it is incredibly important to sync it up with beneficial damage increases. In particular, the duration lines up well with Battle Cry for extremely powerful burst AoE in a short period making the already powerful cooldown even greater. It is however outclassed by Odyn's Fury by quite a bit, due to how front-loaded its damage is in comparison, which limits the choice even further, and is only really used in tandem when multi target situations outpace the cooldown of Odyn's Fury.

3.2.4. Odyn's Fury

Making use of this ability can be troublesome due to the decision making required. Due to it hitting all targets in range, holding it to line up with additional spawns is a great increase, especially if you can also line it up with short term buffs such as Battle Cry or Dragon Roar. Otherwise in single target, try to stack it up with as many buffs as possible at once as it deals a substantional instant hit to your target.

4. Mastering your Fury Warrior

The notes above provide an outline for general Fury play, below are some more in depth mechanical breakdowns of concepts vital to master if you want to squeeze out the best performance possible.

4.1. Rage Management

Rage is generated primarily through your auto attacks alongside Bloodthirst generating 10, and Raging Blow generating 5. It is used to fuel your most powerful abilities, Rampage to activate Enrage, and Execute on targets under 20% for extremely high damage.

The most important aspect of Rage management comes in the form of forcing extra Enrage uptime by timing Rampage casts during bad critical luck on Bloodthirst. It is vital to not waste any Rage by going over the cap, whilst still trying to preserve as much Enrage uptime as possible by not overwriting fresh procs from Bloodthirst unless you are at risk of going over 100.

4.2. Enrage

As Fury, your primary goal is to maintain an Enrage state as much as possible. You do this through Bloodthirst critical strikes, Rampage uses which guarantee activation when cast, but at a high Rage cost, or lastly Berserker Rage with Outburst talented. The additional attack speed granted by Enrage helps to fuel that cost, which is why maintaining it is so important. In addition, Mastery: Unshackled Fury increases damage dealt by abilities while Enrage is active, encouraging this even more.

Optimising the uptime of Enrage and increasing the number of activations is crucial to Fury, as the increased Rage provided by allows you to maintain the state further by enabling Rampage casts quicker. Depending on your Haste, you will get 2-3 casts within the 4 second Enrage window, so using as many high impact skills as possible during that brief impact has a significant impact on output.

4.3. Movement and Mobility

Warriors have a great deal of active tools through Charge and Heroic Leap that allow for instant movement across large distances. Finding ways to maximise your uptime on a target through intelligent use of these is crucial, as downtime is extremely detrimental to the flow of Fury's rotation. Consider talents such as Double Time and Bounding Stride if an encounter requires higher than usual movement.

4.4. Sustain and Defense

Fury's main tools for sustain in combat come from Bloodthirst, which heals for 4% of your total health, which in turn scales well with the increased base health you have. For active mitigation, Enraged Regeneration reduces all damage taken by 20% for 8 seconds. Note that whilst active it also causes Bloodthirst to heal for an additional 20% of your total health when cast. Over the 8-second duration you can always cast at least 2, so coupling these 2 abilities together can increase your sustain significantly whilst also reducing the impact of damage coming in.

Warriors also have access to Commanding Shout, granting all party and raid members 15% increased maximum health for 10 seconds, on a 3 minute cooldown. This is a great additional tool for not only your defense but your group as well, and should be used appropriately to co-ordinate additional survivability against key mechanics.

5. Tier 19 Set Bonuses

Both Tier 19 bonuses for Fury interact directly with the Enrage mechanic to increase its uptime significantly, but do not have a large impact on the overall rotation to make use of.

• 2-piece: Furious Slash increases the Critical Strike chance of Bloodthirst by an additional 15% per cast.
• 4-piece: Increases the duration of your Enrage effect by 1 second.

Both of these bonuses play themselves, increasing the effectiveness of your Enrage effect by allowing it to be activated more frequently and for longer. There are no alterations that need to be made to compliment it, but the bonuses are absolutely worth acquiring if you have no higher item level alternatives.

5.1. Tier 19 Trinkets

Following Patch 7.2.5 Draught of Souls has been nerfed significantly, and is no longer worth playing around since it is advised to not use it.

Convergence of Fates does not directly impact the rotation, but does alter management of cooldowns. Due to it reducing the cooldown of Battle Cry down to approcimately a 30 second cooldown, it is advisable to hold Odyn's Fury when it desyncs to make use of the Critical Strike bonus when it is available, as opposed to using it outside of the window.

Also note that whilst the Strength is beneficial when increasing the Item Level on the trinket, the raw cooldown reduction effect is the greatest part of this item, so you should not be worried about using lower Item Level versions. Just be wary that in some encounters Battle Cry will need to be delayed to deal with mechanics, which can hurt the effectiveness of the cooldown reduction effect.

6. Tier 20 Set Bonuses

Both Tier 20 bonuses focus on creating synergy between your Raging Blow and Bloodthirst casts, and are heavily oriented around single target situations.

• 2-piece: Bloodthirst Critical Strikes have a 50% chance to trigger Raging Thirst, increasing the damage of all Raging Blow casts for 8 seconds.
• 4-piece: Raging Blow increases the damage of your next Bloodthirst cast by 20% (50% with Inner Rage), stacking up to 10 times.

These bonuses are both worthwhile to aim for in the Tomb of Sargeras landscape, and you should actively pursue them assuming you are not sacrificing a significant amount of item level between various items. They also occur naturally within the rotation, and do not require any specific attention to capitalise upon outside of the standard priority list.

6.1. Tier 20 Trinket Optimization

Umbral Moonglaives provides the largest output when paired with Convergence of Fates from the Tomb of Sargeras options. Not only does it provide powerful single-target damage but also excels at burst AoE when coupled with Battle Cry, so should be the go to option in 7.2.5. This should only be used when Battle Cry is available, but due to the cooldown reduction of Convergence this should not cause much delay — if any.

Specter of Betrayal theoretically provides the highest raw damage, but it has such a significant requirement with predictive enemy positioning that it is simply not worth the effect in comparison to Moonglaives. If using it, you should use it on cooldown regardless of any situation due to the double dip effect of the Specter the initial cast leaves behind.

7. ChangeLog

+ show all entries - show only 10 entries

• 28 Aug. 2017: No changes needed for Patch 7.3.
• 13 Jun. 2017: Updated to clarify all new 7.2.5 additions, including new Tier 20 bonuses and Execute management, alongside Frothing Berserker management.
• 23 May 2017: Clarified Execute phase with Tier 19 4-piece bonus.
• 27 Mar. 2017: No changes needed for Patch 7.2.
• 29 Jan. 2017: Updated for Draught of Souls being on the GCD, and note on Rampage usage with Frothing Berserker.
• 10 Jan. 2017: Updated for 7.1.5 with new Nighthold information.
• 29 Aug. 2016: Updated for Legion's launch.
• 19 Jul. 2016: Improved explanations of Dragon Roar's usage.
• 19 Jul. 2016: Updated for the Legion pre-patch.