Masters of Stealth and deception, Subtlety Rogues are among the deadliest assassins that walk the face of Azeroth, preferring carefully planned Ambushes and direct powerful hits rather than the deadly poisons that their fellow Assassination Rogues brethren use. Those individuals perfected their craft to such an extent that they became attuned to the shadows, even being able to step through them and teleport behind their targets.
Subtlety Rogue in Cataclysm
Subtlety Rogues in Cataclysm see an overall far better performance and overall general approval than they did in the previous WotLK iteration of the game, with their overall gameplay massively improving.
In this current state, the specialization has an extremely viable Single-Target Rotation, besides a very powerful Burst Phase. The entire appeal of the specialization lies in the very big crits that result from Backstab and Ambush, with Subtlety now having a playstyle that revolves around upkeeping three distinct effects during their normal Single-Target rotation.
Backstab remains the bread and butter of the specialization, being the main Combo Points generator while Hemorrhage now acts as both a damaging tool and a powerful bleed effect thanks to a specific glyph, in addition to the old Bleed Damage empowering effect it provided. The gameplay now revolves around maintaining Rupture on the target through Eviscerate casts, upkeeing Slice and Dice, and lastly, maintaining the new Recuperate effect which acts as both a self-healing tool and an energy regeneration tool.
The Burst Phase is very similar to what it was like back in WotLK, with Preparation, Vanish, and Shadow Dance still representing the core of a Subtlety Rogue’s Burst Phase.
Subtlety Rogue Strengths & Weaknesses
Strengths
- Great Burst Damage/Consistent Single-Target DPS
Subtlety Rogues have a very decent Single-Target DPS, even if they are typically considered the underdogs of the three Rogue Specializations. Where they truly shine is their capacity to land huge critical strikes with Backstab and Ambush, with the specialization being renowned for having a very powerful short-duration Burst Phase.
- Easy Learning Curve
The Subtlety Rogue specialization has quite an easy learning curve once the player gets used to it, with only the Burst Phase itself requiring a bit of practice. The Single-Target rotation for Subtlety Rogue is fairly easy to learn, with many players being able to adapt it to their muscle memory extremely easily.
- Fun and Engaging Playstyle
Subtlety Rogues are extremely satisfying to play, as most of their abilities result in huge critical strikes. Additionally, their gameplay is quite spammy, with close to no downtime.
Weaknesses
- Gear Dependent
The specialization is rather underwhelming until it acquires the proper equipment. Once Subtlety Rogue gets access to powerful gear, the damage output skyrockets considerably.
- High APM Rotation
Just like with the other Rogue Specializations, quick hands and reflexes are required to properly perform when playing a Subtlety Rogue. Luckily, the specialization has an easy learning curve, even if a lot of button-mashing is involved.
- Low Utility
In terms of usable utility during an encounter, Subtlety Rogue falls short when compared to the rest of the specializations, boasting only three powerful utility tools, Tricks of the Trade, Honor Among Thieves, and Expose Armor plus a lot of crowd control that won’t be of much use.
Best Races
Horde
The horde has the better races from a PvE point of view, with most of their racial abilities providing direct damage-enhancing effects. The strongest available race for Subtlety Rogue is Troll as it has access to Berserking, followed by Orc with Blood Fury, and Goblin with Time is Money,.
- Troll: Berserking, Da Voodoo Shuffle, Regeneration, Beast Slaying, Bow Specialization, Throwing Specialization.
- Orc: Blood Fury, Axe Specialization, Hardiness, Command.
- Goblin: Time is Money, Rocket Barrage, Rocket Jump, Best Deals Anywhere, Better Living Through Chemistry.
- Blood Elf: Arcane Torrent, Arcane Resistance, Arcane Affinity.
- Undead: Will of the Forsaken, Cannibalize, Shadow Resistance, Underwater Breathing.
Alliance
The Alliance has stronger PvP racial effects than PvE racials, with most PvE racial effects being represented by passive effects. Worgen is the strongest race thanks to Viciousness, followed by Gnome due to Shortblade Specialization, and by Human with Sword Specialization & Mace Specialization.
- Gnome: Shortblade Specialization, Engineering Specialization, Escape Artist, Expansive Mind, Arcane Resistance.
- Human: Sword Specialization, Mace Specialization, Will to Survive, The Human Spirit, Diplomacy.
- Worgen: Darkflight, Flayer, Viciousness, Abberation.
- Dwarf: Stoneform, Explorer, Mace Specialization, Gun Specialization, Frost Resistance.
- Night Elf: Elusiveness, Quickness, Shadowmeld, Wisp Spirit, Nature Resistance.
Conclusion
We hope this guide has been able to help you decide if PvE Subtlety Rogue is the class/spec for you. Make sure to check out our other sections, such as talents, gear, gems, etc., to get more information on how to improve your performance as a Subtlety Rogue in Cataclysm!
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