This is rotation recommended by Simcraft xratedownz
actions+=/shadow_blades
actions+=/shadow_dance,if=energy>=75&buff.stealth.down&buff.vanish.down&debuff.find_weakness.down
That mean:
- Shadow Blades should use on cooldown
- Shadow Dance should use if energy >=75 and you are not instealth and debuff Find Weakness is not applied on target
- There no penalty to use Shadow Blades on Shadow Dance.
I've tested on my rogue Sub and I do more dps than simcraft say I would do. Same with Assassination. Only problem for me now is Combat doing 5% less dps than what Simcraft expecting and I'm trying to know why.
Just found that in skill-capped. They are not recommend shadow dance+shadow blades overlapping...
Burst Scenarios:
One thing that has changed a bit this expansion is the effectiveness of Eviscerate. Eviscerate now deals significant damage, especially when scoring a critical strike during Find Weakness. In Cataclysm, Ambush was our heavy hitting ability and Eviscerate was more or less used to take advantage of Relentless Strikes (ie- energy management). This isn't to say Eviscerate was weak or anything - but Ambush was ahead of it by a sizable margin. Nowadays, getting off as many Eviscerates as you can during a burst attempt will net you the most damage done to your target.
** All burst scenarios assume Slice & Dice and a Bleed Debuff are applied**
Find Weakness + Shadow Blades ? This is likely the ideal use of our new burst ability. The insane amount of combo points generated during Shadow Blades will result in several more Eviscerates hitting your target during the Find Weakness period. The additional damage from a Find Weakness Eviscerate over a typical Eviscerate is substantial.
Recommended for: Heavy burst openers, Vanish Swaps, Restealth opens
Shadow Dance ? Still one of our most potent burst mechanics. This ability has been changed slightly in Mists of Pandaria and it actually plays a HUGE role in the effectiveness of our burst. Shadow Dance now reduces our Ambush ability?s energy cost from 60 -> 40. Back in Cataclysm, we were able to talent this energy reduction for Ambush, but now it is only activated while Dancing. Ambushing outside of Shadow Dance will leave you energy starved in a hurry. When going for a burst attempt, I highly recommend refraining from using Ambush outside of Dance.
Recommended for: Heavy burst attempts when Find Weakness is NOT already applied to a target
Subterfuge ? This ability allows you to stay in stealth for 3 seconds after you perform an action or are attacked. Subterfuge can actually create ?mini-burst? windows with proper execution. A sizable chunk of your target's health pool will be gone before they even know there is a Rogue there! The effectiveness of the burst is highly dependent on proper usage of Premeditation. In my testing, I?ve found that using Premeditation in conjunction with Ambush creates the most fluid opener. The two most common Subterfuge burst openers I use are:
1. Garrote -> Premeditation Ambush -> Eviscerate
2. Cheap Shot -> 2 combo point Rupture -> Premeditation Ambush -> Eviscerate
In the second example, I like to pool energy and wait until Subterfuge is just about to expire prior to firing off my Premed Ambush. This ensures you can Eviscerate immediately after the Ambush lands, causing a noticeable quick-fire burst (especially if both crit). *Note ? This is how I use Subterfuge as a burst ability. I will typically spend points on Slice & Dice somewhere during the duration when not going for a burst attempt.
Recommended for: Restealth openers, Light burst openers
Backstab + Eviscerate Spam ? This is probably our least potent burst scenario, and should only be used when a target is low on health and CC has been applied to healer. Rogue damage outside of our burst cooldowns is pretty low in the current state of the game, so using energy spamming Backstab into a target won?t likely create much pressure. Find Weakness does increase the effectiveness of backstab + eviscerate spam by a decent margin, so if at all possible try and ensure this is up.
Recommended for: Restealth opens, low health enemies with CC on healer
Tips, Tricks and things to Avoid:
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I do not recommend overlapping Shadow Dance and Shadow Blades! In terms of our burst damage, the appeal of Shadow Blades is the increased combo point generation. While Dancing, combo points are pouring in very quickly as it is. A typical Dance rotation with Shadow Blades activated will likely result in wasted combo points, even if you are running with the Anticipation talent.
- Ambush outside of Shadow Dance should be avoided unless running with the Shadow Power talent. The energy cost is simply too high to be used effectively for a burst attempt. Cheap Shot or Garrote will proc Find Weakness and cost much less energy.
- If you?re looking to open really hard on a target to start a match, I would recommend using the Shadow Blades + Find Weakness burst method rather than Shadow Dance. Find Weakness will be already be applied when you open from stealth. I find that having access to Shadow Dance opens up more versatility, in that you can be ready to burst whenever your teammate is ready.
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