WoW Classic Assassination Rogue PvP Guide – Talents & Rotation

Assassination Rogues excel in PvP through high burst damage and strong control abilities. This Assassination Rogue PvP Spec focuses on maximizing Ambush damage from Stealth and controlling opponents with powerful crowd control tools like Kidney Shot and Blind.

The Assassination tree provides improved burst potential compared to other rogue specs, making it deadly in both 1v1 duels and team fights. Your goal is to pick vulnerable targets, apply pressure with poisons, and secure kills through strategic cooldown usage.

Assassination PvP Talent Build

Here’s the recommended 21/3/27 Assassination PvP build for WoW Classic:

This build maximizes your burst damage with Cold Blood while maintaining essential utility through Improved Kidney Shot and Improved Gouge.

Core Abilities and Their Usage

Understanding your toolkit is essential for effective Assassination PvP gameplay.

Openers from Stealth

Cheap Shot – Your primary opener that stuns for 4 seconds. Use this when you want to build combo points safely before committing cooldowns.

Ambush – Massive burst damage opener. Best used with Cold Blood for guaranteed critical strikes against cloth targets or when you need immediate pressure.

Garrote – Silences casters for 6 seconds. Essential against healers and casters to prevent them from casting defensive spells.

Control Abilities

Kidney Shot – Your main stun that scales with combo points. With Improved Kidney Shot, this becomes a 6-second stun at 5 combo points.

Gouge – 4-second incapacitate that breaks on damage. Use this to reset fights, apply poisons, or escape.

Blind – 10-second crowd control that removes you from combat. Perfect for resetting against multiple enemies or forcing trinkets.

Kick – Interrupts spellcasting and locks that school for 5 seconds. Critical against casters.

Finishing Moves

Eviscerate – Your primary damage finisher. Use at 5 combo points for maximum damage.

Slice and Dice – Increases attack speed by 40% at 5 combo points. Essential for sustained damage and energy regeneration.

Rupture – Bleed effect useful against targets that will survive your burst or to pressure healers over time.

Poison Setup for PvP

Your poison choice significantly impacts your effectiveness in different scenarios.

Main Hand: Instant Poison – Provides consistent damage on every attack. Best overall choice for assassination rogues.

Off Hand: Deadly Poison – Stacks 5 times and deals strong damage over time. With Vile Poisons, this becomes very threatening.

Alternative Off Hand: Crippling Poison – Use against mobile melee classes like warriors and other rogues to maintain uptime.

Situational: Mind-numbing Poison – Apply this against casters to slow their casting speed and increase pushback from damage.

For more details, check the WoW Classic Rogue Poisons Guide.

Standard Opener Rotation

Your opener sets the tone for the entire fight. Here’s the optimal sequence against most targets:

Against Cloth Targets (Mages, Warlocks, Priests):

1. Apply Instant Poison and Deadly Poison
2. Open with Cheap Shot from stealth
3. Use Cold Blood immediately
4. Ambush for guaranteed crit
5. Sinister Strike to 5 combo points
6. Kidney Shot at 5 points
7. Sinister Strike to 5 combo points
8. Eviscerate for the kill

Against Healers:

1. Open with Garrote to silence
2. Sinister Strike to 5 combo points during silence
3. Kidney Shot at 5 points
4. Cold Blood + Ambush
5. Build to 5 combo points
6. Eviscerate

Against Melee (Warriors, Paladins, Hunters):

1. Open with Cheap Shot
2. Sinister Strike to 5 combo points
3. Slice and Dice at 5 points
4. Build to 5 combo points
5. Kidney Shot
6. Cold Blood + Eviscerate

Sustained Combat Rotation

After your opener, you’ll need to maintain pressure while managing energy and combo points efficiently.

Priority System:

1. Keep Slice and Dice active at all times
2. Use Kidney Shot at 5 combo points when available
3. Spend excess combo points on Eviscerate
4. Build combo points with Sinister Strike
5. Use Gouge to reset and apply fresh poisons
6. Save energy for Kick interrupts

Energy Management:

Never cap at 100 energy. Always spend energy on combo builders when above 80 energy unless you’re waiting for a specific cooldown or control window.

Use Gouge strategically to regenerate energy during extended fights. This gives you 4 seconds to build energy while your opponent is incapacitated.

For more information on energy mechanics, visit the WoW Classic Rogue Energy Guide.

Cooldown Management

Cold Blood – Your 3-minute cooldown that guarantees your next finishing move crits. Best used with:

• Ambush during opener for massive burst
• Eviscerate at 5 combo points for execute damage

Adrenaline Rush – If you take Combat talents, this provides 15 seconds of unlimited energy. Combine with Slice and Dice for maximum damage output.

Evasion – Increases dodge by 50% for 15 seconds. Use against melee attackers or to survive burst windows.

Vanish – Your escape and reset button. Use to:

• Escape unfavorable fights
• Reset and re-open on the same target
• Drop combat and avoid dying
• Set up another Cheap Shot or Ambush

Learn more about Stealth mechanics in the WoW Classic Rogue Stealth Guide.

Blind – 10-second crowd control with a 5-minute cooldown. Strategic uses include:

• Splitting enemies in 2v1 situations
• Forcing PvP trinkets
• Resetting after a bad opener
• Buying time for cooldowns to come back

Sprint – Increases movement speed by 70% for 15 seconds. Use for gap closing, escaping, or repositioning in battlegrounds.

PvP Matchup Strategies

vs Mages

Mages are challenging due to Blink, Frost Nova, and Polymorph. Your goal is to maintain uptime and prevent them from creating distance.

Strategy:

• Open with Cheap Shot to prevent Blink
• Save Kick for Polymorph
• Use Sprint to chase through Frost Nova
• Blind if they Ice Block to reset
• Apply Mind-numbing Poison for slower casts

vs Warlocks

Warlocks have strong damage over time and a Voidwalker pet for protection. Focus on burst before their DoTs overwhelm you.

Strategy:

• Open hard with Cold Blood + Ambush
• Interrupt Fear with Kick
• Use Cloak of Shadows if available to remove DoTs
• Kill quickly before Death Coil becomes available
• Consider Blind on the Warlock while killing the Voidwalker

vs Priests

Priests can heal through your damage and use Psychic Scream to create distance. Silence is your best tool.

Strategy:

• Open with Garrote for 6-second silence
• Burst hard during silence window
• Save Kick for emergency heals
• Use Kidney Shot to extend control
• Apply Mind-numbing Poison

vs Warriors

Warriors deal massive damage but lack escape tools. Kiting and control are essential for survival.

Strategy:

• Keep Crippling Poison applied constantly
• Use Evasion during their burst cooldowns
• Blind when low on health
• Gouge to create distance
• Maintain Slice and Dice for sustained damage

vs Rogues

Mirror matches depend on who opens first and manages cooldowns better. Preparation and positioning are key.

Strategy:

• Use Perception if Human to detect them first
• If opened on, use Evasion + Gouge to reset
• Vanish to re-open if you lose control
• Win through better cooldown management
• Apply Crippling Poison to prevent escapes

vs Hunters

Hunters have range advantage and tracking abilities. Close the gap quickly and maintain pressure.

Strategy:

• Open from maximum range to minimize damage taken
• Use Sprint immediately if they create distance
• Kick Aimed Shot
• Kill the pet with Blind on the Hunter, or vice versa
• Maintain Crippling Poison to prevent kiting

vs Paladins

Paladins are difficult to kill due to Divine Shield and healing. This matchup requires patience and mana pressure.

Strategy:

• Use Mind-numbing Poison to slow healing
• Apply Rupture for consistent pressure
• Force Divine Shield with sustained damage
• Vanish and reset when they bubble
• Outlast their mana pool in extended fights

Battleground and World PvP Tips

In Battlegrounds:

Focus on defending nodes and killing enemy flag carriers. Your stealth allows you to:

• Ninja cap undefended bases
• Intercept enemy reinforcements
• Pick off healers in team fights
• Scout enemy movements safely

Target Priority:

1. Enemy healers (Priests, Druids, Paladins)
2. Cloth DPS (Mages, Warlocks)
3. Flag carriers or node defenders
4. Melee DPS last

World PvP:

Take advantage of terrain and surprise. Fight near obstacles to line-of-sight enemy casters. Use Vanish liberally to reset unfavorable fights.

Always carry consumables like healing potions, thistle tea for energy, and Free Action Potions against casters.

Essential Macros for PvP

Macros significantly improve your reaction time and efficiency in PvP situations. Here are the most important ones:

Cheap Shot + Sinister Strike Macro:

#showtooltip
/cast [stealth] Cheap Shot; Sinister Strike

Kick + Attack Macro:

#showtooltip Kick
/startattack
/cast Kick

Gouge + Bandage Macro:

#showtooltip Gouge
/cast Gouge
/use Heavy Runecloth Bandage

For a complete list of useful macros, visit the WoW Classic Rogue Macros Guide.

Gear Recommendations

Your gear should prioritize attack power, critical strike, and hit rating for reliable damage output.

Stat Priority:

1. Hit Rating (9% for special attacks)
2. Attack Power
3. Critical Strike
4. Agility
5. Stamina

Pre-Raid Best-in-Slot gear provides an excellent foundation for PvP. Check the WoW Classic Rogue Pre-Raid BiS Guide for detailed gearing information.

Key PvP Items:

• Insignia of the Horde/Alliance – Removes movement impairing and loss of control effects
• Resurgence Rod – Provides a powerful on-use heal
• Blackhand’s Breadth – Increases critical strike chance significantly

Weapon Considerations:

Fast weapons in main hand for instant poison procs. Slow weapons work for off-hand to maximize Backstab damage if using that ability.

Combo Points and Finisher Optimization

Understanding when to use finishers at different combo point levels is critical for maximizing damage and control.

5 Combo Points Always:

Use 5 combo points for all finishers whenever possible. The damage and duration scaling makes lower combo finishers inefficient.

3-4 Combo Point Exceptions:

Only use finishers at 3-4 combo points when:

• Target is about to die and you can’t generate more combo points
• You need an emergency Kidney Shot to interrupt
• Slice and Dice is about to expire and you’re in combat

For detailed combo point mechanics, check the WoW Classic Rogue Combo Points Guide.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Opening Without a Plan – Always know your kill sequence before engaging. Different targets require different approaches.

Wasting Energy – Don’t cap at 100 energy. Always be spending on combo builders unless waiting for a specific window.

Poor Cooldown Timing – Save Cold Blood for guaranteed kill opportunities, not random damage.

Ignoring Kick – Many rogues forget to interrupt crucial casts. Practice using Kick consistently.

Wrong Poison Selection – Adjust your poisons based on your opponent. Mind-numbing Poison against casters, Crippling Poison against melee.

Not Using Vanish Offensively – Vanish isn’t just an escape tool. Use it to re-open with Cheap Shot or Ambush during a fight.

Related Resources

For more comprehensive Rogue information:

• WoW Classic Rogue Guide – Complete overview of the Rogue class
• WoW Classic Assassination Rogue Guide – Detailed Assassination spec information
• WoW Classic Rogue Assassination PvE Guide – PvE-focused Assassination gameplay
• WoW Classic Rogue Talent Calculator – Plan your talent builds
• WoW Classic Rogue Leveling Guide – Level efficiently to 60

Frequently Asked Questions

Conclusion

Assassination Rogue excels in PvP through strategic burst windows, powerful control abilities, and lethal damage output. Master your opener sequences, manage cooldowns effectively, and adapt your poison selection to each matchup.

Focus on target selection in group PvP scenarios, prioritizing healers and cloth DPS. Practice energy management to maintain consistent pressure while having resources available for critical interrupts and finishers.

With proper execution and game knowledge, Assassination Rogue becomes one of the most feared specs in WoW Classic PvP. Study your matchups, refine your rotations, and dominate the battlefield.