Class dossier / Energy
Rogue Guide
An Energy melee class with stealth, combo points and stuns. Assassination uses poison pressure; Subtlety rewards controlled burst.
The rogue at a glance
An Energy melee class with stealth, combo points and stuns. Assassination uses poison pressure; Subtlety rewards controlled burst.
Demon Hunter represents the rogue in Arena of Champions. The class uses energy and offers Assassination and Subtlety specializations.
Prepare your first games
Begin with a practice match and identify three buttons: your main pressure or healing spell, a way to stop an opponent, and a defensive you can use when targeted. Put these on comfortable keybinds before adding more complicated sequences.
Arena of Champions has its own rules and numbers. Familiar Warcraft names are useful orientation, but do not assume a retail WoW build, diminishing-return category or damage rotation works identically here. Read the current talent text and test interactions in practice.
Agree on an opening target and on who follows your setup. A coordinated control sequence needs room for a partner to act and a plan for the moment the opponent answers.
Compare control recovery and sustain in actual practice; do not assume the same utility pair solves every matchup.
Stealth, control and reset rules must be checked in the current game. No WoW combo is assumed to work unchanged.
- Coordinate the opening rather than spending control independently.
- Avoid overlapping a partner’s control without a reason.
- Prepare a route to reset if an attack window closes.
For a first utility loadout, consider Gladiator's Medallion and a recovery option. A crowd-control break only helps if you use it with a plan: avoid breaking the first harmless control while an opponent still has a more dangerous follow-up. Adapt the second slot to the problems you observe in your own matches.
In team brackets, agree on a target, an interrupt order and a retreat signal before the gates open. Keep healing line of sight in mind as you chase. Pressure that forces your own healer into the open can cost more than it gains, particularly around pillars and elevation changes.
Use the next match to answer one specific question: did you lose access to your target, run out of your resource, miss an important interrupt, or overlap defensives with a teammate? Change one habit or one talent row at a time so that the result is easier to interpret.
Class spells
Explicit values from v0.21; “Not extracted” does not mean zero or instant.
| Spell | Availability | Cooldown | Range |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mutilate 355 direct damage; Combo Points. | assassination specialization | Not extracted | 3 units |
| Envenom 147 direct damage; Consume. | assassination specialization | Not extracted | 3 units |
| Vendetta Apply Vendetta (20 sec). | assassination talent | 120 s | 30 units |
| Marked for Death Combo Points. | assassination talent | 60 s | 30 units |
| Crimson Tempest 90 direct damage; Apply Crimson Tempest (2 sec). | assassination talent | Not extracted | Not extracted |
| Shadowstep Step Behind; Apply Shadowstep (2 sec). | subtlety specialization | 20 s | 25 units |
| Shadow Dance Apply Shadow Dance (8 sec). | subtlety specialization | 60 s | Not extracted |
| Ambush 655 direct damage; Combo Points. | subtlety specialization | Not extracted | 3 units |
| Symbols of Death Gain Resource; Apply Symbols of Death (10 sec). | subtlety talent | 30 s | Not extracted |
| Premeditation Combo Points. | subtlety talent | 30 s | 20 units |
| Preparation Reset Cooldown; Reset Cooldown; Reset Cooldown; Reset Cooldown. | subtlety talent | 180 s | Not extracted |
| Backstab 440 direct damage; Combo Points. | subtlety talent | Not extracted | 3 units |
| Hemorrhage 245 direct damage; Combo Points; Apply Hemorrhage (15 sec). | subtlety talent | Not extracted | 3 units |
| Ghostly Strike 240 direct damage; Combo Points; Apply Ghostly Strike (6 sec). | subtlety talent | Not extracted | 3 units |
| Sinister Strike 250 direct damage; Combo Points. | Shared baseline | Not extracted | 3 units |
| Eviscerate 175 direct damage. | Shared baseline | Not extracted | 3 units |
| Kidney Shot Apply Kidney Shot (1 sec). | Shared baseline | 20 s | 3 units |
| Cheap Shot Apply Cheap Shot (4 sec); Combo Points. | Shared baseline | Not extracted | 3 units |
| Kick Interrupt spellcasting. | Shared baseline | 15 s | 3 units |
| Gouge Apply Gouge (4 sec). | Shared baseline | 15 s | 3 units |
| Sprint Apply Sprint (8 sec). | Shared baseline | 60 s | Not extracted |
| Vanish Remove Controls; Apply Stealth (20 sec). | Shared baseline | 120 s | Not extracted |
| Sap Apply Sap (8 sec). | Shared baseline | Not extracted | 8 units |
| Blind Apply Blind (6 sec). | Shared baseline | 90 s | 15 units |
| Evasion Apply Evasion (10 sec). | Shared baseline | 120 s | Not extracted |
| Cloak of Shadows Dispel effects (up to 10); Apply Cloak of Shadows (5 sec). | Shared baseline | 90 s | Not extracted |
Recent changes
0.21Fresh Slate
Ratings reset to 1500 across all brackets. Matchmaking separates healers, Subtlety receives buffs, and several long controls become limited to one target. Mouse wheel binds, F1–F3 friendly targeting and full screen are added.
Duels
Adds town duels and raises every class’s health by 5%. Includes class balance adjustments.
The Long Game
Raises all class health by 25%, revises Subtlety Rogue and adjusts specialization balance.