Subtlety Rogue DPS Spell List and Glossary — Dragonflight 10.0.7

If you are new to Subtlety, it is recommended you read this before proceeding! In this section we will discuss what abilities you have, what they are used for within the specialization, and how they interact with important cooldowns. If you have played this spec before or have already achieved a level of comfort playing this spec in a practical environment, it is recommended you skip this section and move on to the rest of the guide.

Energy is the main resource of Subtlety Rogues. Energy is generated passively, the rate of which can be increased by Haste, active abilities, talents, and procs.

Combo Points are another primary resource utilized by Subtlety Rogues. Some of your abilities generate Combo Points, while finishing moves spend them, dealing increased damage per Combo Point.

Cooldowns such as Shadow Dance and Vanish also function as rotational "resources" for Subtlety, as they enable you to use unique abilities that can only be activated in Stealth. Keeping careful track of these abilities, which will be discussed at greater length later in the guide, is just as important as managing your Energy and Combo Points.

This page lists spells that are used in our rotation, if you are interested in finding out more detailed information such as when you unlock these spells, make sure to check out the Rogue leveling page.

Ability	Abbreviation	Description/Effect
Backstab	-	Your main filler and Combo Point generator. It generates a single Combo Point per cast and deals 20% extra damage if you are behind your target. Costs 35 Energy.
Eviscerate	-	Finishing move that consumes your Combo Points and deals damage based on the number of Combo Points used. Costs 35 Energy.
Rupture	-	Finishing move that applies a damage over time effect that deals Physical damage, and lasts longer per Combo Point consumed. Costs 25 Energy.
Slice and Dice	SnD	finishing move that spends Combo Points and increases your attack speed by 50%. Lasts longer per Combo Point spent. Costs 20 Energy.
Shuriken Storm	-	Your main Combo Point generator in AoE situations.Deals damage to all targets within 10 yards, and generates 1 Combo Point per enemy hit. Costs 35 Energy.
Symbols of Death	SoD/Symbols	Generates 40 Energy and increases your damage done by 10% for 10 seconds. 30-second cooldown.
Stealth	-	Turns you invisible until canceled or upon attacking.
Sprint	-	Increases your movement speed by 70% for 8 seconds. Usable while Stealthed. 2-minute cooldown.
Cheap Shot	Cheap	Stuns your target for 4 seconds. Only usable from Stealth or during Shadow Dance.
Kidney Shot	Kidney	Finishing move that consumes your Combo Points and stuns the target for duration based on how many Combo Points was spent, up to maximum of 6 seconds. 20-second cooldown.
Crimson Vial	Vial	Heals you for 20% of your maximum health over 4 seconds. 30-second cooldown.
Kick	-	Interrupts targets spellcasting and prevents any spells from that school for 5 seconds. 15-second cooldown.
Distract	-	Throws a distraction, forcing enemies hit by it to face towards that direction for 10 seconds. Usable while stealthed.
Instant Poison	-	Coats your weapons with a lethal poison that lasts for 1 hour. Each attack has 30% chance to inflict nature damage to the target.
Wound Poison	Wound	Coats your weapons with a lethal poison that lasts for 1 hour. Each attack has 30% chance to inflict nature damage to the target and reducing their healing taken by 8% per stack, stacking up to 3 times.
Crippling Poison	Crippling	Coats your weapons with a non-lethal poison that lasts for 1 hour. Each attack has 30% chance to slow the enemy's movement speed by 50% for 12seconds.
Shroud of Concealment	Shroud	Provides Stealth for you and your party and raid members for 15 seconds. 6-minute cooldown.
Vanish	-	Vanishes you from sight and enters you into Stealth. Breaks all movement impairing effects and usable while in combat. 2-minute cooldown.
> Shuriken Toss	-	Throws a shuriken at your target from range, dealing low amount of damage and generating 1 Combo Point.

As part of the Dragonflight overhaul to the talent system, every specialization has received numerous new passive effects and active abilities. To attempt to break the list of every possible effect down into manageable chunks, we have grouped these abilities into active and passive effects, organized by the rows you will come across them from top to bottom in each tree.

If you would like to know more about which of these talents to select for your own Subtlety Rogue, please see the builds and talents section of our guide.

Ability	Abbreviation	Description/Effect
Shiv	-	Attack with your off-hand, dealing Physical damage, dispelling all enrage effects and applying a stronger form of your active Non-Lethal Poison. Costs 20 Energy and has a 25-second cooldown.
Blind	-	Disorients your target for 1 minute. Damage will interrupt the effect. 2-minute cooldown.
Sap	-	Incapacitates the target for 1 minute. Requires target to not be in combat and only works on Humanoids, Beasts, Demons and Dragonkin. Any damage will revive the target. Only usable while in Stealth and costs 35 Energy.
Evasion	-	Increases your Dodge chance by 100% for 10 seconds. 2-minute cooldown.
Cloak of Shadows	Cloak	Removes all harmful spell effects and causes you to resist all harmful spells for 5 seconds. 2-minute cooldown.
Numbing Poison	-	Non-Lethal Poison. Each attack has 30% chance to poison the enemy, reducing their attack and casting speed by 15% for 10 seconds. This is a choice node shared with Atrophic Poison.
Atrophic Poison	-	Non-Lethal Poison. Each attack has 30% chance to poison the enemy, reducing their damage by 3% for 10 seconds. This is a choice node shared with Numbing Poison.
Gouge	-	Incapacitates the target for 4 seconds and generates 1 Combo Point. Any damage will revive the target. Requires you to be positioned in front of your target, costs 25 Energy and has a 20-second cooldown.
Tricks of the Trade	Tricks/TotT	Redirects all threat generated by you to the targeted party or raid member, beginning with your next damaging attack within the next 30 seconds and lasting 6 seconds. Has a 30-second cooldown.
Shadowstep	Step	Teleports you behind your target and increases your movement speed by 70% for 2 seconds. 30-second Cooldown. If you already have Shadowstep talented, gain an additional charge.
Black Powder	BP	Finishing move that deals Physical damage to all enemies around you, doing damage based on how many Combo Points was spent. Deals additional 20% damage as Shadow to targets affected by Find Weakness. Costs 35 Energy.
Shadow Blades	SB	Causes your Combo Point generators to generate an additional Combo Point and makes them deal additional 50% damage as Shadow. 3-minute cooldown.

Ability	Abbreviation	Description/Effect
Master Poisoner	-	Increases the non-damaging effects of your weapon poisons by 20%.
Nimble Fingers	-	Reduces the Energy cost of your Feint and Crimson Vial by 10.
Blackjack	-	Causes enemies to deal 30% reduced damage and healing for 6 seconds after Blind or Sap ends on them.
Shadowrunner	-	Increases your movement speed by 20% while Stealth or Shadow Dance is active.
Improved Backstab	-	Increases Backstabs (and Gloomblades) Critical Strike chance by 15% and causes it to apply Find Weakness when it critically strikes from behind the target.
Improved Shuriken Storm	-	Increases Shuriken Storms Critical Strike chance by 15% and causes its Critical Strikes to apply Find Weakness.
Weaponmaster	WM	Causes your Backstab and Shadowstrike to have a 15% chance to strike twice.
Shadow Focus	SF	Reduces Energy costs by 15% while Stealth or Shadow Dance is active.
Quick Decisions	-	Reduces the cooldown of Shadowstep by 20% and increases its maximum range by 20%.
Relentless Strikes	-	Causes your finishing moves to generate 5 Energy per Combo Point spent.
Shot in the Dark	-	Causes your next Cheap Shot to cost no Energy after entering Stealth or Shadow Dance.
Premeditation	Premed	When you enter Stealth or Shadow Dance, causes your next Shadowstrike to grant you up to 10 seconds of Slice and Dice or generates 2 additional Combo Points if Slice and Dice is already active.
Silent Storm	-	Increases the Critical Strike chance of your next Shuriken Storm by 100% when you enter Stealth, Vanish or Shadow Dance.
Night Terrors	-	Causes your Shuriken Storm to reduce enemies movement speed by 50%.

Ability	Abbreviation	Description/Effect
Shadowstep	Step	Teleports you behind your target and increases your movement speed by 70% for 2 seconds. 30-second Cooldown. If you already have Shadowstep talented, gain an additional charge.
Gloomblade	-	Replaces Backstab. Damage type changes to Shadow and removes the positional requirement of Backstab.
Secret Technique	ST	finishing move that deals Physical damage to to your main target and reduced damage to other targets. Cooldown is reduced by 1 second for every Combo Point spent. 1-minute cooldown. Costs 30 Energy.
Shuriken Tornado	Tornado	Causes you to release a Shuriken Tornado every second for 4 seconds. Costs 60 Energy and has 1-minute cooldown.

Ability	Abbreviation	Description/Effect
Improved Wound Poison	-	Increases the maximum stacks of your Wound Poison by 2.
Fleet Footed	-	Increases your movement speed by 15%.
Iron Stomach	-	Increases the healing you receive from Crimson Vial, Healthstones and Healing Potions by 25%.
Improved Sprint	-	Reduces the cooldown of Sprint by 1-minute.
Prey on the Weak	-	Causes enemies disabled by your Cheap Shot or Kidney Shot to take 10% increased damage from all sources for 6 seconds.
Subterfuge	-	Allows you to use abilities that require Stealth for 3 seconds after Stealth breaks./td>
Virulent Poisons	-	Increases the damage of your weapon poisons by 10%.
Deadened Nerves	-	Causes you to take 3% reduced Physical damage.
Elusiveness	-	Changes your Evasion to also reduce all damage you take by 10% and also makes your Feint to reduce all damage you take by 20%. This is a choice node shared with Cheat Death.
Cheat Death	-	Any attack that would kill you instead reduces you to 7% of your maximum Health. For 3 seconds afterwards, you take 85% reduced damage. Can only trigger once per 6 minutes. This is a choice node shared with Elusiveness.
Rushed Setup	-	Reduces the energy costs of Kidney Shot, Cheap Shot, Sap and Distract by 20%.
Tight Spender	-	Reduces the Energy cost of finishing moves by 10%.
Deadly Precision	-	Increases the Critical Strike chance of your Combo Point generators by 5/10%.
Thief's Versatility	-	Increases your Versatility by 2/4%.
Nightstalker	-	Increases your damage dealt by 4/8% while Stealth or Shadow Dance are active.
Vigor	-	Increases your maximum Energy by 50 and your Energy regeneration by 10%.
Acrobatic Strikes	-	Increases the range of your melee attacks by 3 yards.
> Improved Ambush	-	Causes your Ambush and Shadowstrike to generate 1 additional Combo Point.
Improved Shadow Techniques	-	Causes Shadow Techniques to generate additional 3 Energy.
Stiletto Staccato	-	Causes Shadow Techniques to reduce the remaining cooldown of Shadow Blades by 1 second.
Veiltouched	-	Causes your abilities to deal 5% increased magic damage.
Swift Death	-	Reduces the cooldown of Symbols of Death by 5 seconds.
The First Dance	-	Causes you to gain 4 Combo Points when you cast Shadow Dance. This is a choice node shared with Master of Shadows.
Master of Shadows	-	Causes you to gain 25 Energy over 3 seconds when entering Stealth or casting Shadow Dance.
Deepening Shadows	-	Increases the cooldown reduction on Shadow Dance by 0.7 seconds per Combo Point spent.
Replicating Shadows	-	Causes your Rupture to deal an additional 20% damage as Shadow and applies to 1 additional enemy within 8 yards.
Shrouded in Darkness	-	Causes your Shroud of Concealment to increase movement speed of affected party and raid members by 100%.
Planned Execution	-	Causes your Symbols of Death to increase your Critical Strike chance by 5/10%.
Improved Shadow Dance	-	Increases the duration of Shadow Dance by 1/2 seconds.
Shadowed Finishers	-	Causes Eviscerate and Black Powder to deal an additional 40% damage as Shadow to targets affected by Find Weakness.
Inevitability	-	Causes your Backstab and Gloomblade to extend the duration of your Symbols of Death by 0.5 seconds per cast.
Without a Trace	-	Gives you an additional charge of Vanish.
Cloaked in Shadows	-	Causes your Vanish to grant you a shield absorbing 30% of your maximum Health for 6 seconds. This is a choice node shared with Fade to Nothing.
Fade to Nothing	-	Increases your movement speed by 20% and reduces damage taken by 10% for 8 seconds when casting Stealth, Vanish or Shadow Dance. This is a choice node shared with Cloaked in Shadows.
Secret Stratagem	-	Increases your maximum Combo Points by 1 and causes your finishers to deal 5% increased damage.

Ability	Abbreviation	Description/Effect
Cold Blood	CB	increases the Critical Strike chance of your next damaging ability by 100%. 45-second cooldown.
Echoing Reprimand	ER	Deals moderate amount of Arcane damage and charges one Combo Point with Animacharge. Damaging finishing moves that consume the same amount of Combo Points as the Animacharge function as if they consumed 7 Combo Points. Costs 10 Energy and has a 45-second cooldown.
Marked for Death	MFD	Marks your target and generates 5 Combo Points. If your target dies within 1 minute of being marked, the cooldown is reset. 30-second cooldown. This is a choice node shared with Deeper Stratagem.
Thistle Tea	-	Restores 100 Energy and increases Mastery by 19.6% for 6 seconds. Has 3 charges and 1-minute cooldown on recharging.
Shadow Dance	SD/Dance	Allows you to use abilities that would normally require Stealth for 6 seconds. If you are Subtlety, you have one charge baseline. Talenting into this gives you an extra charge. Maximum 2 charges and has a 1-minute cooldown on recharging.
Sepsis	-	Deals Nature damage to your target over 10 seconds. If the target survives its full duration, they take additional damage and allows you to use one Stealth ability. Cooldown reduced by 30 seconds if Sepsis does not last its full duration. Costs 25 Energy and has 1.5-minute cooldown.
Flagellation	Flag	Causes each of your finishing moves used within next 12 seconds to deal additional Shadow damage to the target and increasing your mastery by 2.5% per Combo Point spent. The Mastery bonus remains for additional 12 seconds after Flagellation ends. 1.5-minute cooldown.

Ability	Abbreviation	Description/Effect
Leeching Poison	-	Adds a Leeching effect to your Lethal poisons, granting you 12% leech.
Lethality	-	Increases your Critical Strike chance by 1/2%. Critical strike damage bonus of your Combo Point generators is increased by 10/20%.
Recuperator	-	Causes your Slice and Dice to heal you for up to 1% of your maximum Health every 2 seconds.
Alacrity	-	Grants your finishing moves a 5/10% chance per Combo Point spent to increase your haste by 1% for 15 seconds, stacking up to 5 times.
Soothing Darkness	-	Heals you for 30% of your maximum Health over 6 seconds after gaining Vanish or Shadow Dance.
Seal Fate	-	Causes your Combo Point generators have a 50/100% chance to generate an additional Combo Point on Critical Strike.
Deeper Stratagem	DS	Increases your maximum Combo Points by 1 and causes your finishers to deal 5% increased damage.
Find Weakness	FW	Causes your Shadow Strike and Cheap Shot to apply a debuff to your target that allows your abilities to bypass 30% of the targets armor.
Resounding Clarity	-	Causes your Echoing Reprimand to Animacharge 3 additional Combo Points. This is a choice node shared with Reverberation.
Reverberation	-	Increases damage done of Echoing Reprimand by 75%. This is a choice node shared with Resounding Clarity.
Perforated Veins	PV	Causes your Shadowstrike to increase the damage of your next Backstab or Gloomblade by 20/40%, stacking up to 5 times.
Dark Shadow	-	Causes your Shadow Dance to increase your damage by an additional 15/30%.
Deeper Daggers	-	Causes your Eviscerate and Black Powder to increase your Shadow damage dealt by 8/16% for next 8 seconds.
Invigorating Shadowdust	-	Causes your Vanish to reduce remaining cooldown of your other abilities by 10 seconds.
Lingering Shadow	-	After Shadow Dance ends, causes your Backstab and Gloomblade to deal additional 50/100% damage as Shadow, fading by 2.8/5.6% per second.
Finality	-	Causes your Eviscerate, Rupture and Black Powder to increase damage of the next same finishing move by 15/30%.
The Rotten	-	After activating Symbols of Death causes your next Shadowstrike, Backstab or Gloomblade to generate 4 additional Combo Points and is guaranteed to Critically Strike.
Danse Macabre	DM	Causes your Shadow Dance to increase the damage of your attacks that generate or spend Combo Points by 10%, increased by an additional 10% for each different attack used. Bonus resets when an attack is repeated.
Dark Brew	DB	Increases your Shadow damage by 10% and causes all of your abilities that deal either Nature or Bleed damage to deal Shadow damage instead.

Since nearly every single major ability for Subtlety Rogue interacts with each other, it can be difficult to figure out how they are meant to be prioritized. But, now that you know what they do, our rotation page can help you see how to manage all of your different resources.