Every day on the Rogue Forums I see people asking the same questions over and over. “Am I ready for Karazhan?” “Are my stats good enough for Karazhan?” “Am I Karazhan Ready?” Well, what does it really mean to be “Karazhan Ready”? Should your stats be a certain level? Should you be wearing any specific gear? And most importantly, what is the fastest and most efficient way to get geared up for Karazhan and other endgame content? This guide has been developed to answer all of those questions and more. Knowing how to gear yourself up and get fully prepared is what will separate your Rogue from the sea of scrubs out there competing for those few precious spots in an endgame raid.

Getting Prepared for Endgame Raiding

Getting ready for endgame raiding involves more than just reaching 70 and joining a guild. A Rogue who wants to excel in Karazhan and other endgame instances should be looking to maximize their gear for raid DPS. Any Rogue can be a leech, riding the coattails of other players on the gravy train to easy epics. But that isn’t what this guide is about. This guide is intended for the kind of Rogue who wants to have their gear in order BEFORE they start raiding endgame instances. Refer to the charts available at ShadowPanther.net when researching items listed in this guide.

Ideal Starter Set

Listed below is a good set of weapons, armor, enchantments and gems you can aim for as you approach level 70 and prepare for endgame raiding. While this list may not include all of the very best items you can get, it does a good job of laying out high quality items you can get for the least amount of effort - - many before you even reach level 70!

q Set of Season 2 (S2) Merciless Gladiator’s Weapons - 27,000 Honor Points + 40 Eye of the Storm marks

o Mongoose enchant x 2

q Helm of the Claw - Steamvault quest reward

o Glyph of Ferocity (Cenarion Expedition Revered)

o Relentless Earthstorm Diamond

o Rigid Dawnstone

q Earthen Mark of Razing - Nagrand quest series reward

q Expedition Scout's Epaulets (Alliance) / Talbuk Hide Spaulders (Horde) - Shattered Halls quest / Mag'har revered

o Greater Inscription of the Blade/Vengeance (Scryers/Aldor Exalted)

q Hauberk of Karabor - Shadowmoon Valley/Nagrand/Zangarmarsh/Netherstorm/Shadow Labyrinth quests

o Exceptional Stats enchantment

q Socrethar's Girdle (Scryers) / Naaru Belt of Precision - Netherstorm quests / Netherstorm/Botanica/Mech quests

q Fel Leather Leggings - Leatherworking craftable

o Cobrahide/Nethercobra Leg Armor

o Shifting Nightseye (to meet your metagem’s blue gem requirement)

o Rigid Dawnstone x 2

q Fel Leather Boots - Leatherworking craftable

o Dexterity/Cat’s Swiftness enchantment

o Glinting Noble Topaz, Rigid Dawnstone

q Spymistress's Wristguards - Shadow Labyrinth quest reward (can be solo stealthed)

o Shifting Nightseye (to meet your metagem’s blue gem requirement)

q Fel Leather Gloves - Leatherworking craftable

o Superior Agility enchantment

o Glinting Noble Topaz, Rigid Dawnstone

q Kaylaan's Signet (Aldor) / Band of Anguish - Netherstorm quest series / Shadowmoon Valley quest series

q Slayer's Mark of the Redemption - Shadowmoon Valley quest series reward

q Core of Ar'kelos - Netherstorm quest series reward

q Bladefist's Breadth - Hellfire Peninsula quest reward

q Cloak of the Craft - World drop BoE, usually available on the AH

o Greater Agility enchantment

q Felsteel Whisper Knives - Blacksmithing craftable

Total Stats (Approx.): 250-300 Hit Rating, 1400-1500 AP, 21-23% Crit using all pre-Heroic/pre-Karazhan gear

A complete list of the best pre-Heroic/pre-Karazhan gear can be found later in this guide.

Raiding Stats

A raiding Rogue’s armor should always have plenty of offensive stats like Hit Rating, Agility, Attack Power and Crit. Stamina should not be a determining factor. Many of the items I’ve recommended have little or no Stamina. In ideal raid situations your objective should be to maximize your DPS with the assumption that your tanks can hold aggro, and that if you take any damage (AOE's, environmental damage, etc.), your healers should be on top of it. However, you should try to keep a 2nd set of Stamina gear around, just in case you need more health for a specific encounter.

When evaluating raid gear, don’t focus on any particular offensive stat, like Hit Rating. Hit Rating is a very good stat, but it isn't the only stat. If you have access to an item that gives little or no Hit Rating, but gives you more DPS through Agi, AP, Crit, Haste, Expertise, and/or Armor Penetration, then get it. The MAEP values in my PVE Armor Chart should give you a general indication of the relative DPS output of items when planning your PVE upgrades. Does a Rogue need ideal stats to be successful in Karazhan? Of course not. But the better your stats, the better your DPS will be.

Road Map to Getting Karazhan Ready

Now that I’ve listed some easily accessible raiding gear, it’s time to show you the most efficient way to collect that gear as you’re leveling from 60-70 and getting yourself “attuned” for Karazhan (NOTE: As of the 2.4 patch, players no longer need to be attuned to enter Karazhan, however the gates to Karazhan still require the Master’s Key, so it’s still a good idea to complete the quest chain.)

If you already have a level 60 Grand Marshal/High Warlord (GM/HWL) main hand weapon, then you’ll be set weapon-wise all the way to 70. If not, then you’ll be scrounging around for good weapons in the 60-70 level range. For Rogue main hand weapons, a 60 GM/HWL weapon is just about the best weapon you can possibly wield from 60-70. Offhands and armor are a different story. You can replace 60 GM/HWL offhands/armor pretty easily in Outlands, so I don't recommend wasting your Honor points on those. However, the main hand is a good investment and will make your leveling experience from 60-70 much smoother. A 60 GM/HWL weapon should take about a week to get.

If you don't feel like PVPing, then consider Warden's Hammer, Shadowrend Longblade or Fist of Reckoning for your main hand. Shadowrend Longblade is a drop from Hellfire Ramparts. Warden's Hammer is a Zangarmarsh quest reward. Fist of Reckoning is a random world drop weapon you can start using at level 61. For offhand weapons, you’ll want to get a nice fast weapon that will help with poison application and Combat Potency. Some decent offhand weapons include Hanzo Sword, Dimensional Blade of the Monkey/Tiger/Bear, Hellfire Skiver, Madman's Blade and Blood-Guided Knife. A complete list of the best weapons you can use while leveling from 60-70 can be found in my Twink Weapons chart: http://shadowpanther.net/twinkweapons60-69.htm

The optimal build for leveling from 60-70 is a Sword/Mace/Fist Combat/Assassination spec for maximum sustained DPS and minimal downtime. More information on this build can be found here: http://shadowpanther.net/leveling.htm

Levels 60-65

Much of your time during levels 60-65 will be spent in Hellfire Peninsula, Zangarmarsh and Terokkar Forest. When you get to Terokkar Forest, you’ll find the major city hub of Shattrath City, where you’ll be given the choice to go Aldor or Scryers. For Rogues, Aldor is generally considered to be a marginally better choice due to having slightly better shoulder enchants and a better Shattered Sun Offensive (SSO) exalted reputation reward (Shattered Sun Pendant of Might). More information on Aldor vs. Scryers can be found here: http://www.wowwiki.com/Aldor_vs._Scryer

As you’re questing from 60-65, concentrate on Cenarion Expedition quests and rep, since you’ll eventually want to get up to Revered for the excellent helm enchant (Glyph of Ferocity). If you complete every Cenarion Expedition quest in these zones, as well as in Blade’s Edge Mountains and Netherstorm, that should put you about 2/3 of the way through Honored. Later on, you’ll have a chance to get to Revered with one or two Steamvault runs. More information on Cenarion Expedition rep can be found here: http://www.wowwiki.com/Cenarion_Expedition

Here’s a checklist of items to get during the 60-65 level range:

q Bladefist's Breadth - Hellfire Peninsula quest reward

q Main Hand: Shadowrend Longblade / Warden’s Hammer / Fist of Reckoning - HR Drop / Zang quest reward / AH

q Offhand: Hanzo Sword / Dimensional Blade / Hellfire Skiver / Madman's Blade / Blood-Guided Knife

Level 66

When you reach level 66, it’s time to start getting ready for endgame raiding. Unless you have a level 60 GM/HWL main hand weapon, then level 66 is the time when you should consider picking up some nice weapon upgrades (MH: Mag'hari Fury Brand / Nexus-Claw, OH: Void-Talon / Whistling Sword) and then switching to a Combat Fist, Combat Fist/Sword or Hemo Fist build for your last five levels.

A lot of your time around level 66 will be spent completing quests in the Nagrand zone, although you’ll probably want to hoof it up to Netherstorm to pick up your Fist Weapon(s). If you’re Horde, you should concentrate on Mag’har quests and Obsidian Warbead turn-ins to get your rep up to Revered for the Talbuk Hide Spaulders, which are available at level 70. More information on Mag’har rep can be found here: http://www.wowwiki.com/Mag'har

q Main Hand: Mag'hari Fury Brand / Nexus-Claw - Nagrand quest reward / Netherstorm weapon vendor

q Offhand: Void-Talon / Whistling Sword - Netherstorm weapon vendor / Blade's Edge Mountains quest reward

q Level 66 leveling builds: Combat Fists / Combat Fist/Sword / Hemo Fists

q Earthen Mark of Razing - Nagrand quest series reward

q Cloak of the Craft - World drop BoE, usually available on the AH

q Greater Agility enchant to your cloak

Level 67

You should be finishing up Nagrand and moving on to Blade’s Edge Mountains and Netherstorm around now. Netherstorm, in particular, will have several very good quest rewards you’ll want to pick up. If you’re Aldor, make sure you talk to Nether-Stalker Khay'ji at Area 52 to start the series of quests leading up to your Naaru Belt of Precision.

Level 67 is also the earliest that you can get the Helm of the Claw, but you’ll probably be better off waiting until later on when you can bundle that quest in with other Steamvault quests you’ll be picking up.

q Socrethar's Girdle (Scryers) - Netherstorm quest series

q Naaru Belt of Precision - Netherstorm/Botanica/Mechanar quests

q Fel Leather Gloves - Leatherworking craftable

q Superior Agility to your gloves

q Rigid/Glinting gems for your gloves

q Kaylaan's Signet (Aldor) - Netherstorm quest series

q Core of Ar'kelos - Netherstorm quest series reward

Level 68

Once you’ve completed your quests in Netherstorm, head over to Shadowmoon Valley where you’ll be working on getting one or both of your rings upgraded. Concentrate on completing Aldor/Scryers quest lines in this zone to increase your faction rep which will eventually lead up to some useful gear upgrades. Your goal is to get Exalted with Aldor/Scryers so that you can get the best shoulder enchants. Getting to Exalted should only take a few days.

While you’re in Shadowmoon Valley, you’ll want to work on the quest line for your Hauberk of Karabor, which will send you out to Nagrand, Zangarmarsh and Netherstorm. Eventually, you’ll get to the point in the quest line where you’ll need to head over to Shadow Labyrinth. Before you do that, you should get started on the Master’s Key quest line (formerly Karazhan attunement), which will also send you out to Shadow Labyrinth. This way, you can kill two birds with one stone. The Master’s Key quest chain starts at Deadwind Pass in Azeroth. More information on the Master’s Key quest chain can be found here: http://www.wowwiki.com/The_Master's_Key/In-Depth

q Band of Anguish - Shadowmoon Valley quest series reward

q Slayer's Mark of the Redemption - Shadowmoon Valley quest series reward

q Complete Shadow Labyrinth quests for gear and the 1st Key Fragment

q Spymistress's Wristguards - Shadow Labyrinth quest reward (can be solo stealthed)

q Assault enchantment to your bracers

q Shifting Nightseye for your bracers (to meet the blue metagem requirement of the helm you'll be getting)

q Hauberk of Karabor (69) - Shadowmoon Valley/Nagrand/Zangarmarsh/Netherstorm/Shadow Labyrinth quests

q Exceptional Stats to your chest

Level 69

Now is the time to knock out those Steamvault runs to A. Get your Helm of the Claw, B. Get your 2nd Key Fragment, and C. Get your Cenarion Expedition rep up to Revered. Rogues can do a stealth run for the 2nd Key Fragment, but since you have other objectives in there you’re better off just doing a full run. During the instance run, keep an eye out for “Orders from Lady Vashj”, a random drop quest item which opens up the repeatable turn-in quest for Coilfang Armaments. If you’re getting close to Revered with Cenarion Expedition, you can buy Coilfang Armaments off the AH.

Before you head out to The Steamvault, buy the other two pieces of the Fel Leather set, as well as gems and enchantments for them. When buying gems, keep in mind that you’re going to want to save up enough gold to get your flying mount for when you hit 70. If you have the gold to spare, then go ahead and fill all of the sockets with rare quality gems, otherwise you can just buy lesser quality versions to use as placeholder gems for the time being. Go ahead and get some gems for your Helm of the Claw while you’re at it. When socketing Relentless Earthstorm Diamond in your helm, make sure that two of your gems are blue, green or purple for the metagem requirement.

q Fel Leather Leggings - Leatherworking craftable

q Cobrahide/Nethercobra Leg Armor for your pants

q Fel Leather Boots - Leatherworking craftable

q Dexterity/Cat’s Swiftness enchant for your boots

q Rigid/Glinting gems for your pants/boots/helm

q Shifting Nightseye for the pants (to meet your metagem’s blue gem requirement)

q Complete The Steamvault quests for gear and the 2nd Key Fragment

q Helm of the Claw - Steamvault quest reward

q Glyph of Ferocity for your helm

q Relentless Earthstorm Diamond for your helm

Level 70

Congratulations! Now it’s time to finally get “Karazhan Ready”. There are so many things you’ll want to do, some being higher priority than others. You’ll want to buy a flying mount, finish up your Master’s Key quests and collect the last of your gear. Horde players can now get their Talbuk Hide Spaulders and Alliance should get their Expedition Scout's Epaulets.

But there’s one thing that’s more important than all of that stuff - - getting on an Arena team. The sooner you get on an Arena team and start saving up points, the sooner you’ll be able to put those points towards some high quality gear from Arena Seasons 3 & 4 (S3/S4). Even if you don’t like PVP, your team can virtually lose its way through 10 games a week and still earn points redeemable for endgame-quality raiding gear later on.

Having said that, now it’s time to finish up your Master’s Key quest chain. This means going through Arcatraz in Netherstorm for the 3rd Key Fragment. If you don’t feel like joining a 5-man group, you can stealth duo this with another Rogue or Druid. After that, you’ll need to head to the Caverns of Time in Tanaris to complete Escape for Durnholde Keep and Opening The Dark Portal in Black Morass.

Black Morass has some nice drops (Hourglass of the Unraveller, Latro's Shifting Sword, Sun-Gilded Shouldercaps & Handgrips of Assassination), so you might want to run this instance a few times to try and pick up those upgrades.

q Join/form one or more Arena teams to start saving for S3/S4 gear

q Buy your Flying Mount and a Riding Crop for your mount

q Felsteel Whisper Knives - Blacksmithing craftable

q Talbuk Hide Spaulders (Horde) - Mag'har revered

q Expedition Scout's Epaulets (Alliance) - Shattered Halls quest

q Get the 3rd Key Fragment from Arcatraz

q Complete Escape for Durnholde Keep and Opening The Dark Portal to complete the Master’s Key quest chain

What Now?

Getting to 70 is only the beginning. There are so many things you can still do to improve your Rogue. The remainder of this guide focuses on steps you can take to get your Rogue completely ready for endgame raiding after reaching 70.

Weapons

Upon reaching 70, the first thing you want to get in order are your weapons. That's where Arena and Battlegrounds (BGs) come into play. Even if you don't like PVP, it's well worth your effort do a minimal amount of BGs/Arena until your get yourself some endgame quality weapons. Initially, you'll want to spend a week or two farming BGs for a set of S2 weapons. Meanwhile, get onto one or more Arena teams to save up for superior S3/S4 weapons and gear.

When selecting weapons, Swords are generally considered to be the best weapons for PVE because the extra attack from Sword Spec puts out more DPS than other weapon specs. Fists and Daggers are the next best weapons for PVE, each having several raid-viable builds from which to choose. Maces, despite being the preferred weapon for PVP, are less effective for PVE, because Mace Spec does not put out as much DPS as the other weapon specs.

Main Hand Weapon

The first thing you’ll want to start farming BGs for is your main hand weapon - - your most important piece of gear. A Rogue's MH weapon should be hard hitting, with high DPS and a high average damage range for maximum special attack damage. I make that distinction, because some Rogues get carried away with top end damage for those screenshot moments, when it's the weapon's average damage that matters most. To determine your weapon’s average damage, take the (Top End + Bottom End) and divide by two. The higher the average damage, the harder your special attacks will hit.

Offhand Weapon

Once you've secured a hard hitting main hand weapon, you need to get yourself a quality offhand weapon. Generally, Rogues always want an offhand weapon with fast speed (1.6 speed or faster) for increased poison application and other procs. Speed is especially important for Combat Rogues due to the Combat Potency talent. Other factors to look for in a good offhand are nice stats and DPS. Picking your S2 offhand weapon should be fairly straightforward. Whatever weapon type you decide upon for your S2 main hand, you’ll usually want to get a matching S2 offhand weapon to go along with it. The exception to this rule is offhand Swords. Sword Spec is such a powerful spec that you can pair up a good, fast OH Sword with a hard hitting MH Mace or Fist weapon and do more damage (when properly specced) than you would with an equivalent Mace or Fist offhand.

Quality Placeholder Weapons

While waiting for your BG/Arena weapons, you have various options available to you for acquiring quality placeholder weapons. Most of the weapons listed below can be acquired within a week or two of reaching 70.

Main Hand Placeholder Weapons (Swords/Maces/Fist Weapons)
Weapon	Type	Source/Requirements	Pros	Cons
Drakefist Hammer	Mace	- BoP craftable Mace - 350 Blacksmithing - Master Hammersmith - 20 Primal Fire, 20 Primal Earth, 12 Eternium Bar, 8 Khorium Bar	- One of the best weapons you can wield the day you turn 70 - Haste effect is very useful - Upgrade potential	- Very expensive to level up Blacksmithing - Must remain Blacksmithing to wield - Mace Spec isn’t maximized for raiding - Doesn’t have any stats
Vindicator’s Brand (Aldor)	Sword	- Aldor Exalted - 207 gold	- You’ll want to get to Exalted anyway for the upgraded shoulder enchant - Nice stats	- Requires a considerable rep grind - Fairly expensive
Blinkstrike	Sword	- Epic world drop sometimes found on the Auction House	- Extra attack effect is very useful.	- Expensive - Doesn’t have any stats - Limited availability
Reflex Blades	Fist	- 10-20% drop from Dalliah the Doomsayer in The Arcatraz	- Doesn’t cost any gold - Nice stats	- Requires a 5-man group - Could take multiple runs for this to drop
Demonblood Eviscerator	Fist	- 10-15% drop from Warchief Kargath Bladefist in The Shattered Halls	- Doesn’t cost any gold - Nice stats	- Requires a 5-man group - Could take multiple runs for this to drop

Placeholder Daggers

If your preference is Daggers, then here’s a list of placeholder Daggers to help you get ready for endgame raiding:

Main Hand Placeholder Daggers
Weapon	Type	Source/Requirements	Pros	Cons
Riftmaker	Dagger	- Keepers of Time Exalted - 207 gold	- One of the best pre-raid daggers available - Nice stats - Slow effect can be useful	- Requires a lot of 5-man instance runs to acquire - Fairly expensive
The Night Blade	Dagger	- Epic world drop sometimes found on the Auction House	- Armor ignore effect is useful	- Expensive - Doesn’t have any stats - Limited availability
Whispering Blade of Slaying	Dagger	- 10-15% drop from Murmur in Shadow Labyrinth	- Doesn’t cost any gold - Nice stats	- Requires a 5-man group - Could take multiple runs for this to drop
Guile of Khoraazi	Dagger	- Consortium Exalted - 200 gold	- Nice stats	- Requires a considerable rep grind - Fairly expensive
Ced’s Carver	Dagger	- BoE weapon often found on the Auction House	- Nice stats	- Moderately expensive

Placeholder Offhand Weapons

An excellent instance to run for a good chance at offhand weapons is The Botanica (Warp Splinter’s Thorn, Stormreaver Warblades and Revenger). Here’s a complete list of decent placeholder offhands to consider:

Placeholder Offhand Weapons
Weapon	Type	Source/Requirements	Pros	Cons
Dirge	Dagger	- BoE craftable dagger	- Nice stats and DPS - Very fast	- Expensive to craft
Blackout Truncheon	Mace	- 10-15% drop from Grandmaster Vorpil in Shadow Labyrinth	- Doesn’t cost any gold - Sockets allow for customization - Haste effect is useful	- Requires a 5-man group - Could take multiple runs for this to drop
Latro’s Shifting Sword	Sword	- 10-15% drop from Aeonus in The Black Morass	- Doesn’t cost any gold - Nice stats - Very fast	- Requires a 5-man group - Could take multiple runs for this to drop
Fireguard	Sword	- BoP craftable sword	- Nice stats - Upgrade potential	- Very expensive to level up Blacksmithing - Must remain Blacksmithing to wield
Warp Splinter’s Thorn	Dagger	- 10-15% drop from Warp Splinter in The Botanica	- VERY fast - Nice stats	- Requires a 5-man group - Could take multiple runs for this to drop
Guile of Khoraazi	Dagger	- Consortium Exalted - 200 gold	- Nice stats	- Requires a considerable rep grind - Fairly expensive
Retainer’s Blade (Scryers)	Dagger	- Scryer Exalted - 208 gold	- You’ll want to get to Exalted anyway for the upgraded shoulder enchant - Decent stats	- Requires a considerable rep grind - Fairly expensive
Ashtongue Blade	Dagger	- Shadowmoon Valley quest series reward	- Doesn’t cost any gold - Nice stats - Very fast	- Requires a 2-3 person group to complete the last step of the quest chain
Stormreaver Warblades	Fist	- 10-15% drop from High Botanist Freywinn in The Botanica	- Doesn’t cost any gold - Decent stats	- Requires a 5-man group - Could take multiple runs for this to drop
Revenger	Sword	- 20-25% drop from Commander Sarannis in The Botanica	- Doesn’t cost any gold - Useful lifesteal effect	- Requires a 5-man group - Could take multiple runs for this to drop - Doesn’t have any stats

Armor

Now that you've built yourself a solid foundation around your weapons, it's time to get your armor in order. Looking at the list below, you’ll find a variety of craftables, quest items and even PVP gear. Normally, PVP gear is not optimized for PVE and vice versa, however the presence of customizable sockets and the sheer amount of stats on S2/S3/S4 & Vindicator/Guardian’s gear makes those items very attractive for your starter raiding gear. For this to be the case, you would need to socket/enchant those items with PVE gems/enchants (Hit/Agi/AP). Many people socket/enchant their PVP gear with PVP gems/enchants (Stamina/Health/Resilience) which would just devalue their use for serious PVE.

Listed below are some of the best pre-Heroic/pre-Karazhan items to get you ready for endgame raiding.

Maximum DPS Starter Gear Checklist

Head

q Deathblow X11 Goggles (Engineers only) - Requires 350 Engineering

q Merciless Gladiator's Leather Helm - Battlegrounds reward

q Helm of the Claw - Steamvault quest reward

q Gladiator's Leather Helm - Battlegrounds reward

q Cobrascale Hood - Expensive Leatherworking craftable

q Stealther's Helmet of Second Sight - Shadowmoon Valley quest series reward

Neck

q Shattered Sun Pendant of Might - Shattered Sun Exalted reward

q Guardian’s Pendant of Triumph - Battlegrounds reward

q Vindicator's Pendant of Triumph - Battlegrounds reward

q Earthen Mark of Razing - Nagrand quest series reward

q Natasha's Choker - Blade's Edge Mountains quest series reward

q Insignia of the Mag'hari Hero (Horde Only) - Nagrand quest series reward

q Talon Lord's Collar - Sethekk Halls quest reward

Shoulder

q Swiftstrike Shoulders - Very expensive Leatherworking craftable

q Merciless Gladiator's Leather Spaulders - Battlegrounds reward

q Expedition Scout's Epaulets (Alliance only) - Shattered Halls quest reward

q Gladiator's Leather Spaulders - Battlegrounds reward

q Talbuk Hide Spaulders (Horde only) - The Mag'har revered reward

q Blackened Leather Spaulders (Alliance only) - Kurenai revered reward

q Sun-Gilded Shouldercaps - 10-15% drop from Chrono Lord Deja in The Black Morass

Chest

q Terroweave Tunic - Very expensive BoE which you might be able to find on the AH

q Merciless Gladiator's Leather Tunic - Battlegrounds reward

q Primalstrike Vest (Leatherworkers only) - Requires 375 Leatherworking

q Shadowprowler's Chestguard - Expensive Leatherworking craftable

q Gladiator's Leather Tunic - Battlegrounds reward

q Auchenai Monk's Tunic - Terokkar Forest/Nagrand/Auchenai Crypts quest series reward

q Hauberk of Karabor - Shadowmoon Valley/Nagrand/Zangarmarsh/Netherstorm/Shadow Labyrinth quests

Waist

q Belt of Deep Shadow - Very expensive Leatherworking craftable

q Guardian’s Leather Belt - Battlegrounds reward

q Vindicator's Leather Belt - Battlegrounds reward

q Socrethar's Girdle (Scryers only) - Netherstorm quest series reward

q Naaru Belt of Precision - Netherstorm/Botanica/Mechanar quest series reward

q Primalstrike Belt (Leatherworkers only) - Requires 375 Leatherworking

Legs

q Fel Leather Leggings - Leatherworking craftable

q Clefthoof Hide Leggings - Blade’s Edge Mountains quest reward

q Oilcloth Breeches - Blade’s Edge Mountains quest reward

q Merciless Gladiator's Leather Legguards - Battlegrounds reward

Feet

q Boots of Utter Darkness - Very expensive Leatherworking craftable

q Guardian’s Leather Boots - Battlegrounds reward

q Fel Leather Boots - Leatherworking craftable

q Vindicator’s Leather Boots - Battlegrounds reward

q The Master’s Treads - World drop BoE, usually available on the AH

Wrist

q Guardian’s Dragonhide Bracers - Battlegrounds reward

q Guardian’s Leather Bracers - Battlegrounds reward

q Vindicator's Dragonhide Bracers - Battlegrounds reward

q Vindicator's Leather Bracers - Battlegrounds reward

q Shard-bound Bracers - Ogri’la exalted reward (daily quests)

q Primalstrike Bracers (Leatherworkers only) - Requires 375 Leatherworking

q Spymistress's Wristguards - Shadow Labyrinth quest reward (can be solo stealthed)

Hands

q Fel Leather Gloves - Leatherworking craftable

q Cobrascale Gloves - Expensive Leatherworking craftable

q Merciless Gladiator's Leather Gloves - Battlegrounds reward

Finger

q Ring of Reciprocity - Very expensive BoE which you might be able to find on the AH

q Guardian's Band of Triumph - Battlegrounds reward

q Vindicator's Band of Triumph - Battlegrounds reward

q Kaylaan's Signet (Aldor only) - Netherstorm quest series reward

q Slayer's Mark of the Redemption - Shadowmoon Valley quest series reward

q Band of Anguish - Shadowmoon Valley quest series reward

Trinket

q Hourglass of the Unraveller - 10-15% drop from Temporus in The Black Morass

q Figurine - Shadowsong Panther (Jewelcrafters only) - Very expensive Jewelcrafting craftable

q Assassin's Alchemist Stone (Alchemists only) - Very expensive Alchemy craftable

q Figurine - Khorium Boar (Jewelcrafters only) - Very expensive Jewelcrafting craftable

q Darkmoon Card: Crusade - Expensive Darkmoon Faire reward

q Darkmoon Card: Wrath - Expensive Darkmoon Faire reward

q Core of Ar'kelos - Netherstorm quest reward

q Bladefist's Breadth - Hellfire Peninsula quest reward

q Crystalforged Trinket - Ogri’la revered reward (daily quests)

Back

q Vengeance Wrap - Expensive Tailoring craftable

q Black-Iron Battlecloak - Very expensive BoE which you might be able to find on the AH

q Cloak of the Craft - World drop BoE, usually available on the AH

q Terokk's Might - Very expensive BoE which you might be able to find on the AH

q Delicate Green Poncho - Nagrand quest reward

Ranged

q Barrel-Blade Longrifle - Very expensive BoE which you might be able to find on the AH

q Spinesever - Random World Drop from pickpocketing Strong Junkboxes

q Felsteel Whisper Knives - Blacksmithing craftable

q Merciless Gladiator's War Edge - Battlegrounds reward

q Ornate Khorium Rifle - Engineering craftable

q Fitz's Throwing Axe - Nagrand quest reward

Enchantments

Once you get all of your weapons and armor in order, you’ll want to make sure that you get everything properly enchanted. Inexperienced Rogues often underestimate the value of quality enchantments. If you don't enchant your gear, it's like walking around with 2 or 3 broken pieces of armor. Listed below are the optimal enchants for each of your items. A complete list of Rogue enchantments can be found here: http://shadowpanther.net/enchantments-pve.htm

Weapons: Mongoose (or go with the less expensive +15/+20 Agility for placeholder weapons)

Head: Glyph of Ferocity (Cenarion Expedition Revered)

Shoulder: Greater Inscription of the Blade/Vengeance (Scryers/Aldor Exalted)

Chest: Exceptional Stats

Legs: Cobrahide Leg Armor (or Nethercobra if you can get it)

Feet: Dexterity (or Cat’s Swiftness if you can get it)

Wrist: Assault

Hands: Superior Agility

Back: Greater Agility

Gems

Much like with enchantments, you should maximize your gems for PVE to improve your Raid DPS, so that means focusing on gems that will improve your Hit Rating and Agility. Whenever possible, you usually want to match socket colors for the socket bonus to get the most out of your gear. If the socket bonus is terrible then feel free to ignore it and use whatever color gem works best for you. Blue Sockets are the weakest for PVE purposes. Once you’ve socketed two blue gems to meet your metagem bonus, you'll usually want to socket Rigid Dawnstones/Lionseyes in the rest of your blue sockets - - at least until you reach the Hit Cap. The Hit Rating Cap is 363 with 5/5 Precision against level 73 bosses and the Expertise Cap is 64 with 2/2 Weapon Expertise. Listed below are gems I recommend for each color socket. A complete list of Rogue gems can be found here: http://shadowpanther.net/gems-pve.htm

Meta Socket: Relentless Earthstorm Diamond

Yellow Sockets: Rigid Dawnstone/Lionseye

Red Sockets: Glinting Noble Topaz/Pyrestone

Blue Sockets: Shifting Nightseye/Shadowsong Amethyst x2 (Shifting Tanzanite if you run Heroic SV) for your metagem requirement in the 2 sockets that give you the best socket bonuses, then Rigid Dawnstones/Lionseyes in the rest

Consumables

When raiding, you should always have Battle Elixirs on hand - - either a Flask of Relentless Assault or Elixirs of Major Agility. Flasks are most effective when glass chewing new encounters, whereas Agility elixirs help you maximize your DPS in battles that you've already mastered and don't expect to be particularly troublesome. In addition to Battle Elixirs, you should have several stacks of Spicy Hot Talbuk (or Warp Burgers/Ravager Dogs as a decent alternative.)

For maximum burst damage potential, you'll want to get yourself plenty of Haste Potions. They're expensive to make but can be very potent. In addition to these consumables, Leatherworkers have access to the powerful Drums of Battle, which are highly valued for group buffing in raids. Also, Engineers can make explosives which are effective in AOE situations. If you aren’t an Engineer, you can either purchase Ez-Thro Dynamite II or farm Yellow and Red Power Crystals in Un’Goro Crater to turn into Crystal Charges to give you some extra AOE DPS. A complete list of Rogue consumables can be found here: http://shadowpanther.net/checklist-rogues.htm

Poisons, Stones & Windfury

In raiding situations, your optimal weapon configuration will usually be main hand Windfury and offhand Deadly Poison. Your main hand weapon can only receive the benefit of a Windfury Totem as long as that weapon does not have any poison applied to it. If you do not have a Shaman in your group dropping Windfury Totems, then your next best option is usually going to be Deadly Poison main hand and Instant Poison offhand. With that configuration you should expect to get a few early Deadly Poison applications from your instant attacks while your faster offhand weapon will proc more Instant Poison charges over time. If you’re fighting against poison-immune mobs, then bring along some Weight/Sharpening Stones.

Raiding Talent Specs

The best gear in the game won't do you any good if you choose a bad talent spec. In the past, any talent build that included points in Subtlety (other than 5 points in Opportunity for Combat Daggers) was considered suboptimal. However, with the buff to Hemorrhage and Dirty Deeds in the 2.3 patch, the 11/28/22 Hemo build became a viable raid option, acting in a support role to buff damage coming from the other melee DPS players in the raid.

Listed below are some sample talent specs for the most effective raid builds:

20/41 Combat Swords 20/41 Combat Fists 16/45 Combat Fist/Sword

20/41 Combat Maces 16/45 Combat Mace/Sword

11/28/22 Hemo Swords 11/28/22 Hemo Fists 11/28/22 Hemo Maces

15/41/5 Combat Daggers 41/20 Mutilate Daggers

Attack Rotations

For Sword/Fist/Mace Combat/Assassination builds, your ideal attack rotation is generally going to be 3s5r (or 1s5r with the 2 piece Netherblade bonus.) 3s5r means 3 pt. Slice and Dice > 5 pt. Rupture and works like so:

Opener: Garrote + Sinister Strike x 2 > 3 pt. Slice and Dice > Sinister Strike x 5 > 5 pt. Rupture/Eviscerate, then…

…If Ruthlessness procs: Sinister Strike x 2 > 3 pt. Slice and Dice > Sinister Strike x 5 > 5 pt. Rupture/Eviscerate

…If not: Sinister Strike x 3 > 3 pt. Slice and Dice > Sinister Strike x 5 > 5 pt. Rupture/Eviscerate

Always Rupture unless the mob is immune to bleeds or about to die, otherwise Eviscerate. Hemo builds use a similar attack rotation but need an extra point put into Slice and Dice to make up for the loss of Combat Potency. Combat Dagger builds generally use a 3s5s5r rotation (3 pt. Slice and Dice > 5 pt. Slice and Dice > 5 pt. Rupture).

Mutilate rotations, on the other hand, are tougher to script, due to variations in combo points and energy availability. Your main priority should be making sure that Find Weakness, Slice and Dice and Rupture are up at all times to maximize your DPS. The general order will go something like this:

Opener: Garrote > 1 pt. Slice and Dice > (poison check) Mutilate to 4/5 combo points > Slice and Dice, then…

…Mutilate until 4/5 combo points > Rupture/Eviscerate

…always making sure Find Weakness is up when attacking!

Regardless of your spec, Slice and Dice is your primary finisher and should be up at all times. Other techniques you can use to improve your DPS include “Effect Stacking” and “Energy Pooling”. Effect Stacking is when you pop Blade Flurry, Adrenaline Rush, Trinkets, Haste Potions, Drums of Battle, Heroism, etc. all at the same time, to maximize the stacking power of those effects. Energy Pooling is the process of letting your Energy build up (but never letting it go to waste!) so that you can take advantage of multiple damage boosting effects (like double Mongoose procs and the aforementioned Effect Stacking) by unloading several attacks all at once.

Farming Gold

Getting “Karazhan Ready” is going to be an expensive venture. Obtaining your flying mount, weapons and gear (along with gems and enchantments for everything) is going to drain your collection of gold. You can take shortcuts to save gold, like buying lesser versions of gems or enchantments, but in the end, if you really want to excel, then you’re going to want to pay that premium to get your gear maximized to the best of your ability.

In addition to gear expenses, you’re going to need a constant supply of gold to keep yourself stocked with plenty of consumables. Don’t be alarmed. Quests in Outlands pay a good deal of gold, and there are various ways to farm for things to sell for the gold you’ll need. In particular, farming Motes of Air/Fire/Water/etc. can be a very lucrative way to make gold. Another way to farm gold is to go back to those Aldor/Scryers farming areas in Netherstorm/Shadowmoon Valley and farm for Marks, Signets, Armaments and Tomes, which usually sell well on the AH.

To help replenish your gold supply, a variety of Daily Quests have been implemented as a regular way to earn gold each day. If you have a little down time, these quests are a great way to make some quick gold. Of particular value are the Shattered Sun Offensive daily quests, which are plentiful and grouped close together. More information on Daily Quests can be found here: http://www.wowwiki.com/Daily_quest

Heroics

Another way you can prepare your Rogue for endgame raiding is by running Heroic Mode Dungeons. You can find some nice, high quality drops in those tougher dungeons, especially Magisters’ Terrace. More importantly, if you keep raiding and running Heroic dungeons, you’ll eventually collect enough Badges of Justice to buy some superior T4/T5/T6-level gear. To get into most Heroic level dungeons, you’ll need to get your rep up to Honored with the associated faction. Using the road map I listed above, you should be able to easily get Honored with most of the major factions. More information on Heroic Mode dungeons can be found here: http://www.wowwiki.com/Heroic

Heroic Dungeon Gear Checklist

Listed below are the best PVE items available from each Heroic Instance (items on par with, or better than, items listed in the Starter Gear checklist above):

Heroic Hellfire Ramparts

q Chestguard of the Prowler - Nazan/Vazruden

Heroic Blood Furnace

q Wastewalker Tunic - Keli'dan the Breaker

q Icon of Unyielding Courage - Keli'dan the Breaker

Heroic Slave Pens

q Traitor's Noose - Mennu the Betrayer

q Midnight Legguards - Quagmirran

Heroic Underbog

q Bone Chain Necklace - The Black Stalker

q Dunewind Sash - Ghaz'an

Heroic Mana-Tombs

q Shaffar's Band of Brutality - Yor

Heroic Auchenai Crypts

q Wastewalker Shoulderpads - Avatar of Martyred

q Auchenai Death Shroud - Avatar of Martyred

Heroic Old Hillsbrad Foothills

q Epoch's Whispering Cinch - Epoch the Hunter

q Nightfall Wristguards - Epoch the Hunter

Heroic Black Morass

q Girdle of the Deathdealer - Aeonus

Heroic Magisters’ Terrace

q Distracting Blades - Selin Fireheart

q Cloak of the Coming Night - Vexallus (Normal and Heroic)

q Leggings of the Betrayed - Selin Fireheart (Normal and Heroic)

q Shard of Contempt - Priestess Delrissa

q Shoulderpads of the Silvermoon Retainer - Kael'thas Sunstrider

q Sunrage Treads - Kael'thas Sunstrider (Normal and Heroic)

Badge Upgrades

After you’ve saved up enough Badges of Justice from Heroics and/or raiding, you’ll want to start upgrading your gear through Badge purchases. Many Badge rewards are roughly T4/T5/T6-equivalent and will really help you get up to speed if you’re trying to break into T5/T6/Sunwell level raiding. Sunwell Plateau raiding, in particular, is very demanding with respect to gear requirements. If that’s your goal, then you’ll want to make sure that your gear, enchantments and gems are all maximized to the best of your ability. One great way to do that is to run Heroics and 10 man raids as often as possible so that you can save up a ton of Badges of Justice to purchase upgrades.

When planning out your Badge purchases, you should always try to get the most “bang for your buck”. Here are several factors you should take into consideration:

How big is the upgrade?
Are there more significant upgrades available for other gear slots?
How soon do you think you might get a comparable or better item for that slot through raiding?

One useful way to evaluate badge purchases is to compare the costs versus benefits, using MAEP differences as a general benchmark. For instance, let’s say you have Fel Leather Leggings and Fel Leather Gloves, both of which are the best pre-raid items for their respective slots. If you’re looking to upgrade one of those slots with your next Badge purchase, then the gloves (Trickster’s Stickyfingers) would only give you a 13 point MAEP increase whereas the pants (Trousers of the Scryers' Retainer) would give a whopping boost of 45 MAEP points. Now, the pants may cost nearly twice as much as the gloves, but the pants provide more than 3 times the MAEP increase. Essentially, what this means is don’t blow your Badges on a minor upgrade if you can save a bit longer for a much more significant upgrade. The same concept applies when upgrading your weapons. You almost always want to upgrade your main hand before you upgrade your offhand, if given the choice, even if it costs more Badges, Honor Points or Arena Points to do so.

Main Hand Placeholder Weapons (Swords/Maces/Fist Weapons)

Main Hand Placeholder Daggers

Placeholder Offhand Weapons

Head

Neck

Shoulder

Chest

Waist

Legs

Feet

Wrist

Hands

Finger

Trinket

Back

Ranged

Heroic Hellfire Ramparts

Heroic Blood Furnace

Heroic Slave Pens

Heroic Underbog

Heroic Mana-Tombs

Heroic Auchenai Crypts

Heroic Old Hillsbrad Foothills

Heroic Black Morass

Heroic Magisters’ Terrace