Combat Rogue guide for WoW Forever
The Combat Rogue in WoW Forever deals huge damage with auto attacks and has a strong burst with 
Blade Flurry and 
Adrenaline Rush. Forever folds all old weapon specializations into one talent, 
Hack and Slash, so every weapon type now works. Poisons can land critical strikes and scale with attack power, and Combat is the only Rogue spec that can cleave. This guide covers a level 30 build, two level 60 builds, the rotation, Energy, poisons, stats and races.
| Role | Melee damage with two weapons |
| Builds | Level 30 Combat, level 60 standard (18/33/0) and level 60 daggers (16/33/2) |
| Key talents |  Malice, Improved  Slice and Dice, Precision,  Dual Wield Specialization, Hack and Slash, Blade Flurry,  Aggression, Adrenaline Rush |
| Strength | Very high damage, strong burst, the only Rogue cleave, every weapon type |
| Weakness | Depends heavily on gear, especially weapons |
| Leveling | Rogue leveling guide, Rogue level build |
Strengths and weaknesses
Damage. Very high auto attack damage and a strong burst while Blade Flurry and Adrenaline Rush are up.
Every weapon. Hack and Slash works with swords, axes, daggers, fist weapons and maces, so you never need to respec for a new weapon.
Cleave. Blade Flurry is the only way a Rogue hits two monsters at once.
Crowd control. Kick, Gouge, 
Sap, 
Cheap Shot, 
Kidney Shot and Blind, plus poisons that slow, lengthen casts or lower healing.
Gear. Combat depends on gear more than anything, and on weapons most of all, because so much damage comes from auto attacks.
Level 30 build
At level 30 you have 21 points, and 
Talented adds 5. The build is about surviving and killing quickly: 
Deflection and 
Riposte cut down your rests, 
Improved Eviscerate and your auto attacks do the damage. Open the build in the talent calculator, Talented version with Hack and Slash 5/5. More in our Rogue leveling guide.
Level 60 standard build: 18/33/0
The beta stopped at level 30, but the talent trees for level 60 are in the game files. We checked this build point for point in our talent calculator. It goes all the way to Adrenaline Rush and takes Malice, Slice and Dice, Combo Points and Energy from Assassination.
| Talent | Points |
|---|---|
| Malice (Assassination) |
5/5 |
 Ruthlessness (Assassination) |
3/3 |
| Improved Slice and Dice (Assassination) |
3/3 |
 Relentless Strikes (Assassination) |
1/1 |
 Improved Expose Armor (Assassination) |
2/2 |
 Lethality (Assassination) |
4/5 |
| Improved Eviscerate |
3/3 |
 Improved Sinister Strike |
2/2 |
| Deflection |
3/3 |
| Precision | 3/3 |
| Endurance | 2/2 |
| Riposte |
1/1 |
 Improved Sprint |
1/2 |
 Flawless Execution |
1/1 |
| Dual Wield Specialization |
5/5 |
| Blade Flurry |
1/1 |
| Hack and Slash |
5/5 |
| Weapon Expertise | 2/2 |
| Aggression |
3/3 |
| Adrenaline Rush |
1/1 |
Level 60 dagger build: 16/33/2
The same path, but built around Backstab. Open the build in the talent calculator. Puncturing Wounds and a second point in Improved Sprint replace Deflection and Riposte, Lethality drops to 2/5, and 
Opportunity 2/2 in Subtlety makes Backstab and 
Ambush hit harder.
| Talent | Points |
|---|---|
| Malice (Assassination) |
5/5 |
| Ruthlessness (Assassination) |
3/3 |
| Improved Slice and Dice (Assassination) |
3/3 |
| Relentless Strikes (Assassination) |
1/1 |
| Improved Expose Armor (Assassination) |
2/2 |
| Lethality (Assassination) |
2/5 |
| Improved Eviscerate |
3/3 |
| Improved Sinister Strike |
2/2 |
| Puncturing Wounds | 3/3 |
| Precision | 3/3 |
| Endurance | 2/2 |
| Improved Sprint |
2/2 |
| Flawless Execution |
1/1 |
| Dual Wield Specialization |
5/5 |
| Blade Flurry |
1/1 |
| Hack and Slash |
5/5 |
| Weapon Expertise | 2/2 |
| Aggression |
3/3 |
| Adrenaline Rush |
1/1 |
| Opportunity (Subtlety) |
2/2 |
If another player in your group already lowers armor, you can move the points in Improved Expose Armor elsewhere.
What the key talents do
| Talent | What it does in Forever |
|---|---|
| Malice |
5% more critical strike chance with attacks and poisons |
| Ruthlessness |
Finishing moves have a 60% chance to add a Combo Point |
| Improved Slice and Dice |
Slice and Dice lasts 45% longer |
| Relentless Strikes |
Finishing moves have a 20% chance per Combo Point to restore 25 Energy |
| Lethality |
More critical strike damage for Sinister Strike, Gouge, Backstab and other generators |
| Improved Expose Armor |
Expose Armor costs 10 Energy less and gives 2 Combo Points back at 5 |
| Improved Eviscerate |
Eviscerate deals 20% more damage |
| Precision | 3% more chance to hit |
| Riposte |
After a parry: 150% weapon damage and a 6 second disarm |
| Flawless Execution |
Eviscerate costs 10 Energy less |
| Dual Wield Specialization |
Your off-hand weapon deals 25% more damage |
| Hack and Slash |
Swords and axes: 5% chance for an extra swing. Daggers and fist weapons: more critical strike chance. Maces: 15% armor penetration |
| Blade Flurry |
20% more attack speed, and your attacks also hit a nearby enemy, for 15 seconds |
| Weapon Expertise | Your attacks are dodged and parried 2% less often |
| Aggression |
Sinister Strike, Backstab and Eviscerate deal 6% more damage |
| Adrenaline Rush |
Energy regenerates 100% faster for 15 seconds |
Rotation
Single target
- Go into
Stealth. - Open with Ambush in the dagger build, or with
Garrote or Cheap Shot with any other weapon. - Use Sinister Strike as your generator, or Backstab in the dagger build.
- Use Blade Flurry on cooldown.
- Use Adrenaline Rush for burst, together with Blade Flurry where you can.
- At 5 Combo Points, cast Slice and Dice and renew it when it runs out.
- In long fights, cast Expose Armor at the next 5 Combo Points.
- Spend the rest on Eviscerate until Slice and Dice or Expose Armor needs renewing.
Several monsters
Blade Flurry is your only area damage: play your normal rotation while it is up and every attack hits a second monster. Never switch targets while you build Combo Points, or you lose them.
Stealth, Combo Points and finishing moves
Stealth slows you, up to 50% at low levels and 30% at level 60, so you use it against dangerous monsters rather than to travel. In Stealth you get openers: Ambush for a big hit, Garrote for a bleed, Sap and Cheap Shot to disable.
Sinister Strike stays your generator all the way to level 60, unless you play daggers. Slice and Dice comes first, it is your biggest damage boost. Eviscerate is the finishing move you use most, and Expose Armor joins in long fights. Combat does not use 
Rupture.
Energy
Energy now regenerates smoothly, 10 points per second. Adrenaline Rush doubles that to 20 per second for 15 seconds, and 
Thistle Tea gives a large amount back. Never use a generator at 5 Combo Points, do not finish with too few Combo Points, and do not spend Energy on Kick, 
Feint, Gouge or Blind without a reason.
Poisons
From level 20, a quest chain teaches you to make poisons. Use Instant Poison and Deadly Poison in most fights: Instant Poison on slow weapons, Deadly Poison on fast ones. Switch to Crippling, Mind-numbing or 
Wound Poison when a monster must be slowed, cast slower or healed less.
Survival
Sap one monster out of a group, preferably a caster. Open with Cheap Shot, follow with Kidney Shot, and stretch it with Gouge or Blind when you need Energy or cooldowns. Use Evasion when you must take hits, Kick every caster, and 
Vanish when nothing else works. Riposte in the standard build disarms a monster after a parry.
Stats and gear
Stat priorities for level 60 follow after the launch. Until then:
- Agility: 1 attack power per point, 1% critical strike chance per 29 Agility, 1% dodge per 14.5 Agility.
- Attack power, which now also raises the damage of your poisons.
- Critical strike chance, also for poisons.
- Strength: 1 attack power per point.
- Stamina for health, found on most gear.
- Spirit only for regeneration between fights.
Armor. 
Leather with the stats above. Sets such as Defias Leather and 
Embrace of the Viper are good while you level.
Weapons. Weapons are much stronger now at every level, and thanks to Hack and Slash every type works. They matter more for Combat than for any other Rogue spec.
Races and professions
| Faction | Race | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Alliance | Human | 2% critical strike chance from Ruthless, the best choice |
| Alliance | Night Elf | Elune’s Light, 10% critical strike chance for 15 seconds; Shadowmeld and better Stealth |
| Alliance | Gnome | Eureka! for burst, Engineering Specialization with Engineering |
| Alliance | Dwarf | Stoneform removes bleeds, poisons and diseases; weak for damage |
| Alliance | Skyborne | 3% haste from  Wind Blessed |
| Horde | Orc | 10% attack power from  Blood Fury, the best choice |
| Horde | Troll | 10% haste from Berserking and a survival tool |
| Horde | Undead | Better for PvP; Cannibalize saves time in the open world |
| Horde | Skyborne | 3% haste from Wind Blessed |
Leatherworking with Skinning is the best pair: strong leather gear at every level, armor kits, and the 
Camp Tent from camping that speeds up leveling. Engineering brings gadgets and explosives for more damage. Herbalism with Alchemy gives you elixirs, potions and flasks. For a poison build, see the Assassination Rogue guide, and for Ambush and bleeds the Subtlety Rogue guide.
Frequently asked questions
Is Combat Rogue good in WoW Forever?
Yes. Combat was the most popular PvE Rogue spec in Classic, and Forever makes it stronger. Hack and Slash replaces the old weapon specializations, so every weapon type works without a respec, and poisons can now land critical strikes and scale with attack power.
What does Hack and Slash do?
It replaces all the old weapon specialization talents. With swords and axes your attacks get a 5% chance for an extra swing, with daggers and fist weapons more critical strike chance, and with maces 15% armor penetration.
Does a Combat Rogue have area damage?
Only Blade Flurry: 20% more attack speed and every attack also hits one nearby enemy, for 15 seconds. It is the only cleave a Rogue has.
Do Combat Rogues use Rupture?
No. Keep Slice and Dice up, add Expose Armor in long fights and spend the rest on Eviscerate.
Which weapons should a Combat Rogue use?
Any type, thanks to Hack and Slash. Pick the best weapons you can find. The dagger build plays with Backstab instead of Sinister Strike and needs a dagger in the main hand.
Which race is best for a Combat Rogue?
Human for the Alliance, for 2% critical strike chance, and Orc for the Horde, for 10% attack power from Blood Fury. Night Elf and Troll are the second choices.