Unholy Death Knight Frequently Asked Questions in Battle for Azeroth (BfA) 8.0.1

Table of Contents

• +Introduction
  • 1. Class Overview
  • 2. Patch 8.0.1 Changes for Unholy Death Knights
  • 3. Unholy Death Knight Strengths
  • 4. Unholy Death Knight Weaknesses
  • 5. Contents
  • 6. Changelog
• +Easy Mode
  • 1. Foreword
  • 2. The Basics of Unholy Death Knights
  • 3. Talent Choice for Unholy Death Knights
  • 4. Stat Choice for Unholy Death Knights
  • 5. Basic Rotation for Unholy Death Knights
  • 6. Multi-Target Rotation for Unholy Death Knight
  • 7. Cooldowns for Unholy Death Knights
  • 8. Azerite Traits
  • 9. Changelog
• +Spell Summary
  • 1. Introduction
  • 2. Main Resources of Unholy Death Knights
  • 3. Unholy Death Knight Basic Abilities
  • 4. Important Procs for Unholy Death Knights
  • 5. Cooldowns for Unholy Death Knights
• +Builds and Talents
  • 1. Talent Choices for Unholy Death Knight
  • 2. Tier 1 (Level 56) Talents for Unholy Death Knights
  • 3. Tier 2 (Level 57) Talents for Unholy Death Knights
  • 4. Tier 3 (Level 58) Talents for Unholy Death Knights
  • 5. Tier 4 (Level 60) Talents for Unholy Death Knights
  • 6. Tier 5 (Level 75) Talents for Unholy Death Knights
  • 7. Tier 6 (Level 90) Talents for Unholy Death Knights
  • 8. Tier 7 (Level 100) Talents for Unholy Death Knights
  • 9. PvP Talents (War Mode)
    • 9.1. Unholy Death Knight War Mode Talents
      • 9.1.1. General PvP Talents
      • 9.1.2. Unholy Death Knight PvP Talents
  • 10. Changelog
• +Azerite Traits and Armor
  • 1. Choosing Azerite Gear as an Unholy Death Knight
  • 2. Choosing Azerite Traits as an Unholy Death Knight
    • 2.1. How to Use this List
    • 2.2. Outer Ring Traits for Unholy Death Knight
    • 2.3. A Tier
      • 2.3.1. B Tier
      • 2.3.2. C Tier
    • 2.4. Middle Ring Traits for Unholy Death Knight
      • 2.4.1. A Tier
      • 2.4.2. B Tier
      • 2.4.3. C Tier
  • 3. Azerite Gear for Unholy Death Knight
    • 3.1. Pre-Uldir Gear
    • 3.2. Uldir Gear
  • 4. Azerite Trait Rotation Changes and Details for Unholy Death Knight
  • 5. Azerite Trait Simulations for Unholy Death Knights
    • 5.1. Single-Target
    • 5.2. 3 Targets (Mythic+, etc)
  • 6. Find Azerite Armor By Trait/Power
  • 7. Changelog
• +Rotation, Cooldowns, and Abilities
  • 1. Single Target Rotation for Unholy Death Knights
  • 2. Multiple Target Rotation for Unholy Death Knights
  • 3. Cooldown Usage for Unholy Death Knights
    • 3.1. Apocalypse
    • 3.2. Army of the Dead
    • 3.3. Dark Transformation
  • 4. Optional Read: Mastering Your Unholy Death Knight
    • 4.1. Runes and Runic Power
      • 4.1.1. Runes
      • 4.1.2. Runic Power
    • 4.2. Virulent Plague
    • 4.3. Festering Wounds
    • 4.4. Anti-Magic Shell Usage
    • 4.5. Abilities and Cooldowns from Talents
      • 4.5.1. Tier 4 Talents
      • 4.5.2. Tier 6 Talents
      • 4.5.3. Tier 7 Talents
  • 5. Changelog
• +Mythic+ Tips
  • 1. Unholy Death Knight in Mythic+
    • 1.1. Unholy Death Knight Mythic+ Rotation
    • 1.2. Unholy Death Knight Utility
    • 1.3. Mythic+ Talents for Unholy Death Knights
    • 1.4. Tier One Affixes
    • 1.5. Tier Two Affixes
    • 1.6. Tier Three Affixes
    • 1.7. Seasonal Affix
  • 2. Mythic+ Azerite Traits
  • 3. Changelog
• +Common and Worst Mistakes
  • 1. Capping Runes or Runic Power
  • 2. Casting Death and Decay with Low Festering Wound Stacks
  • 3. Casting Soul Reaper with 2 or more Runes
  • 4. Make Sure your Ghoul is Casting Abilities
  • 5. Refresh Virulent Plague close to the Expiration
  • 6. Using Anti-Magic Shell on Non-Magical Damage
• ×Frequently Asked Questions
  • 1. Battle for Azeroth Frequently Asked Questions
    • 1.1. Is There Any Way to Play Around the Random Application of Festering Strike?
    • 1.2. When Should I Cast Army of the Dead Before the Pull?
    • 1.3. How Much of X Stat Should I Have?
    • 1.4. Why is Summon Gargoyle Not the Best Talent When Dark Arbiter Was the Best in Legion?
  • 2. Changelog
• +Boss by Boss Strategies
  • 1. Introduction for Unholy Death Knight Boss Advice in Uldir
    • 1.1. Talent Cheatsheet for Unholy Death Knight in Uldir
  • 2. Taloc
    • 2.1. Suggested Talents for Unholy Death Knight on Taloc
    • 2.2. Unholy Death Knight Playstyle on Taloc
  • 3. M.O.T.H.E.R.
    • 3.1. Suggested Talents for Unholy Death Knight on M.O.T.H.E.R.
    • 3.2. Unholy Death Knight Playstyle on M.O.T.H.E.R.
  • 4. Fetid Devourer
    • 4.1. Suggested Talents for Unholy Death Knight on Fetid Devourer
    • 4.2. Unholy Death Knight Playstyle on Fetid Devourer
  • 5. Zek'voz, Herald of N'Zoth
    • 5.1. Suggested Talents for Unholy Death Knight on Zek'voz, Herald of N'Zoth
    • 5.2. Unholy Death Knight Playstyle on Zek'voz, Herald of N'Zoth
  • 6. Vectis
    • 6.1. Suggested Talents for Unholy Death Knight on Vectis
    • 6.2. Unholy Death Knight Playstyle on Vectis
  • 7. Zul, Reborn
    • 7.1. Suggested Talents for Unholy Death Knight on Zul, Reborn
    • 7.2. Unholy Death Knight Playstyle on Zul, Reborn
  • 8. Mythrax the Unraveler
    • 8.1. Suggested Talents for Unholy Death Knight on Mythrax the Unraveler
    • 8.2. Unholy Death Knight Playstyle on Mythrax the Unraveler
  • 9. G'huun
    • 9.1. Suggested Talents for Unholy Death Knight on G'huun
    • 9.2. Unholy Death Knight Playstyle on G'huun
  • 10. Changelog
• +Stat Priority
  • 1. The Basics of Stats for Unholy Death Knight
  • 2. Getting a Better Understanding of Unholy Death Knight Stats
    • 2.1. Statistics Priority
  • 3. Changelog
• +Gems, Enchants, and Consumables
  • 1. Gems for Unholy Death Knights
  • 2. Enchants for Unholy Death Knights
  • 3. Consumables for Unholy Death Knights
  • 4. Changelog
• +Macros and Addons
  • 1. Macros
    • 1.1. Generic Macros for Death Knights
      • 1.1.1. Raise Ally
      • 1.1.2. Mind Freeze
    • 1.2. Specific Macros for Unholy Death Knights
      • 1.2.1. Outbreak Mouseover Macro
      • 1.2.2. Dismissing Pet
    • 1.3. Generic Addons for Death Knights
      • 1.3.1. ElvUI
      • 1.3.2. Boss Mods: Deadly Boss Mods or Bigwigs
      • 1.3.3. GTFO
      • 1.3.4. Parrot or Mik's Scrolling Battle Text
      • 1.3.5. Weak Auras
      • 1.3.6. Recount / Skada / Details!
      • 1.3.7. mRunes
      • 1.3.8. Omen Threat Meter
      • 1.3.9. TellMeWhen
      • 1.3.10. Grid and GridClickSets (Optional)
    • 1.4. Specific Addons for Unholy Death Knights
  • 2. Changelog
• +Gear and Best in Slot
  • 1. The Importance of "Simming Yourself" as a Unholy Death Knight
  • 2. Azerite Gear for Unholy Death Knight
  • 3. Stats
  • 4. Trinket Simulation for Unholy Death Knight
  • 5. Changelog
• +Simulations
  • 1. Disclaimer Page
  • 2. Unholy Death Knight Racial Bonus Simulation
  • 3. Changelog

General Information

On this page, we list all of the frequently asked questions for an Unholy Death Knight in World of Warcraft Battle for Azeroth 8.0.1.

The other pages of our Unholy Death Knight guide can be accessed from the table of contents on the right.

About Our Author

This guide has been written by Abyssalwave, a top level Death Knight player. He is a former US #2 hardcore raider who currently raids with Club Camel. You can also check out his YouTube channel.

1. Battle for Azeroth Frequently Asked Questions

This section will go over several of the most frequently asked questions regarding Unholy Death Knights in Battle for Azeroth.

1.1. Is There Any Way to Play Around the Random Application of Festering Strike?

Yes. Festering Strike should only be cast when there are 0 Festering Wounds on your target. If there are any Festering Wounds on your target, you should be casting Scourge Strike or Clawing Shadows instead. This way, you never have to worry about overcapping your Festering Wounds. The only time when you should cast Festering Strike when you already have Festering Wounds on the target is when you are trying to generate at least 4 Festering Wounds for Apocalypse.

1.2. When Should I Cast Army of the Dead Before the Pull?

We have determined that around 5 seconds is the ideal time to cast Army of the Dead, as it will allow your Runes time to regenerate. Any variance close to 5 seconds should work very well, however.

1.3. How Much of X Stat Should I Have?

There are no currently stat caps for Unholy that you need to hit. Instead, we recommend that you sim your character in order to find your own stat weights that work best for you. While we have found that some stats are indeed better than others, item level will usually be the best decider when it comes to gear upgrades.

1.4. Why is Summon Gargoyle Not the Best Talent When Dark Arbiter Was the Best in Legion?

The rework of Dark Arbiter to Summon Gargoyle also changed how the ability works. It now has a 3-minute cooldown where Dark Arbiter had a 2-minute cooldown. Also 1 Runic Power increased Dark Arbiter's damage by 1%, where Summon Gargoyle takes 2 Runic Power to increase its damage by 1%, which is a huge hit even if the duration was raised to 30 seconds.

2. Changelog

• 12 Aug. 2018: Page added for Battle for Azeroth launch.