So I have been testing all of the Rogue specs, and at the moment I have come to a few conclusions, I want to see what other people have to say in response to this. Please note that this is my opinion and I may have not done a few things right, so if you do have any feedback please reply to this forum so I can do some further testing!
Now obviously we cannot take numbers into account, as Blizzard have not fully balanced every class and spec yet. However, I found that while playing both Sub and Outlaw, I was only pulling a maximum of about 15-20k DPS in the default 680 character that you get on the PTR. I then tested Assassination and I was able to pull off about 35-40k DPS. Now even though numbers are not set in stone, this is a considerable difference, and surely Blizzard couldn't of made the other specs that bad.. right?
I tested some other melee DPS specs and they all roughly did about 25-30k DPS in the 680 gear. So the DPS output of Outlaw and Sub compared to every other class I have played is a bit worrying. Of course this will hopefully change but for now it seems a bit weak.
So here are my opinions on each of the specs -
Outlaw: Too RNG, not stable for serious raiders who want to pull out good numbers and have reliable damage in burst phases. I absoloutely love the fantasy and idea of being a pirate, and I love the Dreadblades. I prefer swords to daggers greatly, however the spec just seems terrible, and really doesn't have any place in raiding or PvP to be completely honest, which really really saddens me. If there is someone who can give me a build that actually pulls off good numbers and works well, then you may make my day!
Assassination: In my opinion probably the best spec out of the 3. It plays very smoothly, has a good and reasonably high maintenance rotation and does some good numbers currently. I am quite pleased with this spec, and it plays very similarly to the sub rogue in WoD. However I feel that for sub Rogue players in WoD, it will get boring pretty fast and I feel that the main potential of this spec, will evolve around the Kingsbane poison you get with the Kingslayers.
Subtlety: I like it, but also hate it. I like the idea of it, however it is extremely clunky and not really very satisfying to play. It feels like pooling with this spec is a bit off at times, and to be honest I am really puzzled on what to take as a level 90 talent. I feel that it is only fun because of its mobility with Shadowstrike, however I think the Nightblade (I think that's what its called, but basically Rupture) duration is too short. I found myself having to reapply it so soon that I would barely get any Eviscerates off, which was kind of sad.
So that is my opinion on all of the specs, one thing to note. Death From Above, sorry but I hate this talent, it is the most dull and repetitive thing throughout all of the specs and its not even that great. Blizzard wanted to make the classes have more of a individual feel and theme to them, and on some classes they have done an excellent job. However they have really slacked on the level 100 talents for the Rogue. Nothing really impressive and just straight up dull talents that we have had since MoP. Really really sad.
ANYWAY thank you guys for reading and hope to see some feedback in the comments soon! Remember this is only my opinion and there are definitely much much better testers than me out there, and this is why I have made this thread to get their advice and results on the specs! I really want to see some remedies to my problems so far with the Rogue specs, specially for Outlaw because I really do love it, I just hate how RNG and terrible it is currently. So please, feel free to post your opinion in this thread!
- Apt