World of Warcraft: Forever · class guide
Assassination Rogue: PvP
How Assassination Rogue fights other players in the open world: where it ranks on the PvP tier lists, and why.
Forecast. Rated from the client data and our research, before anyone has played it at this level on this build. Where the data stops, the write-up says what it assumed. Rated as of , build 1.60.1.70450.
Battlegrounds are not rated yet; builds, matchups and battleground roles are being written for this spec. Honor, ranks, gear and the battlegrounds themselves are on PvP in World of Warcraft: Forever.
Verdict
- At 60
- Ranked 1 of 28 on Open-World PvP
Cold Blood into 
Mutilate or Eviscerate from a 
Cheap Shot or 
Sap, then 
Kidney Shot to finish, with only three long escapes behind it. - While leveling
- Ranked 4 of 28 on Open-World PvP Leveling
A strong stealth opener from level 1, but nothing for two attackers before
Vanish at 22 and no stun before Cheap Shot at 26. - Battlegrounds
- Not rated yet.
Profile
The rubric the lists score on, 1 to 5 on each line, with the weight each line carries. The class’s other specs are shown at 60 for comparison.
| Criterion | Weight | At 60 | While leveling | Combat | Subtlety |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Burst and kill pressure | 25 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| Survival and escapes | 20 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 4 |
| Control | 15 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 5 |
| Fighting outnumbered | 15 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 3 |
| Choosing the fight | 10 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 |
| Sustain between fights | 10 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Group fights | 5 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Weighted score | 3.85 | 3.30 | 3.80 | 3.80 |
Strengths and weaknesses
At 60
| Strengths | Weaknesses |
|---|---|
| Cold Blood into a Mutilate or Eviscerate crit | Escapes on 5 minute cooldowns |
| Kidney Shot up to 6 s | No  Elusiveness |
 Improved Gouge and Improved Kidney Shot | No heal |
Picks every fight from  Stealth | No cleave |
| Sap on casters and healers | Daggers required for Mutilate |
Why it ranks where it does on Open-World PvP
Assassination opens from Stealth with Cheap Shot or Sap, then puts Cold Blood on Eviscerate or Mutilate. Mutilate hits with both daggers for 75% weapon damage a hand and does 20% more to poisoned targets, 
Seal Fate adds combo points and 
Venom adds 30% poison damage. Kidney Shot for up to 6 s is the kill window, and Improved Kidney Shot makes the target take 10% more from its poisons and attacks. Gouge reaches 5.5 s with Improved Gouge, and 
Crippling Poison slows.
A gank is its weak point: 
Evasion, Vanish and 
Sprint are all on 5 minute cooldowns, and it has no Elusiveness and no heal. Against two players, 
Blind and Gouge on one, Kidney Shot on the other and then Vanish let it survive long enough to leave, but it has no cleave. Stealth, Sap, Sprint and 
Distract let it pick every fight. For a group it saps casters and healers, kicks and scouts, but cannot heal or peel hard.
It is not S because its escapes are on long cooldowns, it has no heal, and it needs two daggers for Mutilate. A second player ends its fights more often than they end Subtlety's. 3.85 is 0.40 short of S.
While leveling
| Strengths | Weaknesses |
|---|---|
| Stealth from level 1 | No stun before 26 |
 Backstab at 4 and  Ambush at 18 | Nothing for two before 22 |
Sap at 10 and  Kick at 12 | No cleave at any level |
| Cold Blood at 25 | No heal |
| Vanish at 22 | Vanish needs Flash Powder |
Why it ranks where it does on Open-World PvP Leveling
Sinister Strike and Eviscerate work from 1, Backstab comes at 4, 
Garrote at 14 and Ambush at 18 with daggers, and the crit talents 
Remorseless Attacks, 
Malice and 
Lethality arrive between 10 and 24. Cold Blood comes at 25, Cheap Shot at 26 and Mutilate at 30. Gouge at 6, Sap at 10 (out of combat only), Kick at 12 and Crippling Poison at 20 are its control, and there is no stun at all before 26.
Evasion at 8, Sprint at 10 and Vanish at 22 are the whole escape kit, with no heal at any level, and Vanish costs Flash Powder. Before Vanish it has nothing for two attackers, and it never gets a cleave. Stealth from 1, 
Pick Pocket and Distract at 22 choose the fight. 
Poisons arrive at 20, it eats and bandages between fights, and Sap at 10 and Kick at 12 matter to a group.
It is not A because it has nothing for two attackers before 22 and no cleave at any level, and no stun comes before 26. 3.30 is 0.45 short of A.
Leveling timeline
The level each of Assassination’s PvP tools arrives. A talent shows at the earliest level a point can reach it; the Talented Legacy perk brings talents 5 levels sooner.
- Level 1 Stealth
- Level 6 Gouge
- Level 8 Evasion
- Level 10 Sap, Sprint
- Level 12 Kick
- Level 20 Crippling Poison
- Level 22 Vanish
- Level 25 Cold Blood (talent)
- Level 26 Cheap Shot
- Level 30 Kidney Shot
- Level 34 Blind
Races
The Rogue’s races as Races PvP ranks them, best first.
Alliance
Human: 
Will to Survive is the only full stun break in the game, and 
Ruthless and 
Perception add steady crit and stealth detection.
Dwarf: 
Stoneform is the strongest defensive racial of any race, and the widest class choice helps, but burst and mobility are the weakest.
Night Elf: 
Shadowmeld, extra stealth and speed give the joint best mobility of any race, and 
Elune's Light is a crit burst, but it breaks nothing.
Gnome: 
Escape Artist breaks roots and slows and its burst racial adds +10% damage, but Gnome lacks defense, mobility and class choice.
Skyborne (High Order): 
Wind Blessed gives steady haste, but High Order has no control break, no defensive and only a glide for mobility.
Horde
Undead: 
Will of the Forsaken breaks fear and charm and 
Touch of the Grave drains in combat, but it has the weakest burst and no mobility.
Orc: 
Blood Fury is the strongest burst cooldown of any race, and 
Hardiness and 
Shatter Curse give some breaks and defense, but no mobility.- Skyborne (Windshaper): Wind Blessed gives steady haste and
Skysight a 30 second sprint, but it has no control break and no defensive. 
Troll: 
Berserking is a burst for seven classes, but Troll has no control break or mobility and 
Rapid Regeneration works out of combat.
What we don’t know yet
At 60
Rated on assumptions:
- The level-60 build, including Venom at 40 and Seal Fate, is projected from the tree. Nothing past the beta cap of 30 has been played.
- Cold Blood into Mutilate as a kill window is projected; no kill time has been measured.
- Diminishing returns on Forever stuns, incapacitates and fears are not documented.
What would move it: Diminishing returns being documented, or play past 30 showing Mutilate and Venom hitting as projected.
While leveling
Rated on assumptions:
- Venom at 40 is projected from the own tree, and Mutilate at 30 is the last level played. Levels 31 to 60 are projected; nobody has played past the beta cap of 30.
- Blind at 34 and Sap rank 3 at 48 are client data and unplayed.
What would move it: Play past 30 showing Mutilate and Venom arriving at 30 and 40 as projected, or an answer to two attackers before 22.
PvP in the ability notes
- Sap: Changed: no longer breaks Stealth, though it still needs it (the client's stance data and the tooltip: "Requires Stealth"), so you can Sap one mob and still open on a second while staying hidden. Still out-of-combat Humanoids only, 65 energy; it can't trigger weapon procs. PvP only: Sapping a flagged player flags you.
Mind-numbing Poison: 40–60% slower casting; 75–150 charges, half again Classic's. Useful on caster packs and in PvP.
Wound Poison: Stronger: each stack reduces healing by more than Classic (67 at rank 1, 165 at rank IV, was 135). Mostly PvP.