OPENING THE CODEX
Opening the Codex…
Gathering the requested field notes.
WORLD OF WARCRAFT: FOREVER / CLASS GUIDE
Rogue
Plan the opening. Spend precisely. Keep another answer ready.
Rogue rewards choosing how an encounter begins and deciding what to do after the first attack. Its current trees take that idea in three directions: poison and finishing-move interactions in Assassination, weapon pressure in Combat, and stealth, control and follow-up opportunities in Subtlety. The class profile is a guide to those choices, with the full talent browser available when you want the exact rank text.
Reviewed
Blizzard’s general World of Warcraft Rogue artwork, depicting a Worgen. Class illustration; see the guide for Forever’s playable races.
World of Warcraft class artwork© Blizzard Entertainment
GET TO KNOW YOUR CLASS
Rogue at a glance
- Assassination connects poisons, Combo Points and finishing moves.
- Combat develops weapon effects and periods of faster Energy use.
- Subtlety changes stealth access, control costs and attack follow-ups.
- The current tree is named Combat; its exact talent names and effects matter more than assumptions from another version of WoW.
THREE WAYS TO BUILD YOUR CLASS
Talent trees and playstyles
Compare the three trees and a few of their defining talents. Names, ranks, and descriptions below come from the attributed beta snapshot; the summaries are editorial guidance.
Datamined · source build 1.60.1.69876 [4]
Poisons and finishing moves
Assassination
Assassination builds links between attacks, poisons and Combo Points. Its highlights show both preparation for a poisoned target and ways to turn points into a continuing offensive effect.
Mutilate
1 rankRequires daggers, attacks with both weapons, awards two Combo Points and lists extra damage against poisoned targets.
Read talent description
60 Energy | Melee Range | Instant | Requires Daggers
- Rank 1
Instantly attacks with both weapons for 75% weapon damage plus an additional 13 with each weapon. Damage increased by 20% against Poisoned targets. Awards 2 Combo Points.
- Rank 1
Seal Fate
5 ranksCritical strikes from abilities that add Combo Points can award an additional point. The trigger is narrower than every critical attack.
Read all rank descriptions
- Rank 1
Your critical strikes from abilities that add Combo Points have a 20% chance to add an additional Combo Point.
- Rank 2
Your critical strikes from abilities that add Combo Points have a 40% chance to add an additional Combo Point.
- Rank 3
Your critical strikes from abilities that add Combo Points have a 60% chance to add an additional Combo Point.
- Rank 4
Your critical strikes from abilities that add Combo Points have a 80% chance to add an additional Combo Point.
- Rank 5
Your critical strikes from abilities that add Combo Points have a 100% chance to add an additional Combo Point.
- Rank 1
Venom
1 rankA finishing move that boosts poison damage and application chance. More Combo Points increase its duration.
Read talent description
25 Energy | 100 yd range | Instant
- Rank 1
Finishing move that increases the damage of your Poisons by 30% and your chance to apply Poisons by 10%. Lasts longer per combo point: 1 point : 9 seconds 2 points: 12 seconds 3 points: 15 seconds 4 points: 18 seconds 5 points: 21 seconds
Source-reported prerequisite: Mutilate. Required rank: unknown.
- Rank 1
Weapon pressure
Combat
Combat supports direct weapon attacks, off-hand damage and stronger offensive windows. Its weapon-family effects provide several ways to compare equipment without declaring one universally best.
Blade Flurry
1 rankTemporarily increases melee attack speed and makes melee attacks strike an additional nearby opponent.
Read talent description
25 Energy | Instant | 2 min cooldown
- Rank 1
Increases your melee attack speed by 20% and your melee attacks strike an additional nearby opponent. Lasts 15 sec.
- Rank 1
Hack and Slash
5 ranksOffers a different bonus for axes/swords, daggers/fists or maces. Read the branch that matches the weapon under consideration.
Read all rank descriptions
- Rank 1
Gives your melee weapon attacks a benefit depending on the weapon. Axe/Sword: Your successful melee attacks have a 1% chance to trigger an extra attack on the target. Dagger/Fist: Increases your critical strike chance by 1%. Mace: Your attacks ignore 3% of your target's armor.
- Rank 2
Gives your melee weapon attacks a benefit depending on the weapon. Axe/Sword: Your successful melee attacks have a 2% chance to trigger an extra attack on the target. Dagger/Fist: Increases your critical strike chance by 2%. Mace: Your attacks ignore 6% of your target's armor.
- Rank 3
Gives your melee weapon attacks a benefit depending on the weapon. Axe/Sword: Your successful melee attacks have a 3% chance to trigger an extra attack on the target. Dagger/Fist: Increases your critical strike chance by 3%. Mace: Your attacks ignore 9% of your target's armor.
- Rank 4
Gives your melee weapon attacks a benefit depending on the weapon. Axe/Sword: Your successful melee attacks have a 4% chance to trigger an extra attack on the target. Dagger/Fist: Increases your critical strike chance by 4%. Mace: Your attacks ignore 12% of your target's armor.
- Rank 5
Gives your melee weapon attacks a benefit depending on the weapon. Axe/Sword: Your successful melee attacks have a 5% chance to trigger an extra attack on the target. Dagger/Fist: Increases your critical strike chance by 5%. Mace: Your attacks ignore 15% of your target's armor.
- Rank 1
Adrenaline Rush
1 rankTemporarily increases Energy regeneration, creating a window with more resource available for ability use.
Read talent description
Instant | 5 min cooldown
- Rank 1
Increases your Energy regeneration rate by 100% for 15 sec.
- Rank 1
Stealth, control and follow-ups
Subtlety
Subtlety connects entry tools with ways to continue attacking after the opener. Stealth and control talents sit alongside a Rupture interaction and chances to use an attack outside its usual stealth condition.
Premeditation
1 rankAdds two Combo Points to the target, with a limited window to add to or spend them before they are lost.
Read talent description
20 yd range | Instant | 2 min cooldown
- Rank 1
Adds 2 Combo Points to your target. You must add to or use those combo points within 20 sec or the combo points are lost.
- Rank 1
Cutthroat
5 ranksBackstab can allow the next Ambush within the stated window to be used without Stealth.
Read all rank descriptions
- Rank 1
Your Backstab has a 3% chance to cause your next Ambush within 10 sec to not require Stealth.
- Rank 2
Your Backstab has a 6% chance to cause your next Ambush within 10 sec to not require Stealth.
- Rank 3
Your Backstab has a 9% chance to cause your next Ambush within 10 sec to not require Stealth.
- Rank 4
Your Backstab has a 12% chance to cause your next Ambush within 10 sec to not require Stealth.
- Rank 5
Your Backstab has a 15% chance to cause your next Ambush within 10 sec to not require Stealth.
- Rank 1
Thousand Cuts
1 rankRupture's periodic damage can stack an Energy discount for the next Hemorrhage or Backstab within the listed window.
Read talent description
- Rank 1
When your Rupture ability deals periodic damage, the Energy cost of your next Hemorrhage or Backstab ability within 10 sec is reduced by 3, stacking up to 5 times.
Source-reported prerequisite: Preparation. Required rank: unknown.
- Rank 1
TOOLKIT, CHOICES, AND ANNOUNCED CHANGES
Your Rogue in Forever
Beta talent snapshot
Two resources, different decisions
The talent text treats Energy and Combo Points separately. Improved Sinister Strike reduces an attack's Energy cost; Vigor raises maximum Energy; Seal Fate can add a Combo Point after qualifying critical attacks. Those effects influence the same fight through different resources.
Finishing moves create another layer. Relentless Strikes can restore Energy based on the number of Combo Points spent, while Improved Expose Armor names a specific refund condition at five points. A talent affecting one finishing move should not be read as changing every finisher.
Sources [4]
Beta talent snapshot
Three ways to develop the Rogue toolkit
| Tree | Main connections | A detail worth reading |
|---|---|---|
| Assassination | Poison application and damage, critical attacks, finishing moves. | Mutilate's bonus damage requires a poisoned target; Venom's duration depends on Combo Points. |
| Combat | Weapon effects, off-hand damage and offensive windows. | Hack and Slash changes its benefit by weapon family; Blade Flurry also hits a nearby opponent. |
| Subtlety | Stealth access, control, Rupture and attack follow-ups. | Dirty Deeds changes Garrote's positioning requirement; Thousand Cuts turns Rupture ticks into a later Energy discount. |
Sources [4]
Beta talent snapshot
Stealth and control have their own costs
Subtlety's early choices show that stealth is more than an opening damage bonus. Camouflage modifies movement and cooldown, Master of Deception modifies detection, and Improved Distract affects both area and detection. These describe different parts of approaching a target.
Other talents make control or recovery easier to use. Dirty Tricks lowers the Energy cost of Sap and Blind; Elusiveness shortens Vanish and Blind cooldowns; Combat's Improved Kick adds a silence effect to Kick. If you are interested in control, compare these named functions rather than judging the whole tree by one damage talent.
Preparation's snapshot wording is broad: it says it finishes other Rogue ability cooldowns. Read that as the supplied description. It does not independently prove that every interaction, exception or server restriction has been tested.
Sources [4]
Beta talent snapshot
Weapon choice and poison support
The snapshot makes weapon choice visible. Hack and Slash describes extra-attack chances for axes and swords, critical chance for daggers and fists, and armor bypass for maces. Ghostly Strike and Hemorrhage also have different weapon-damage values when a dagger is equipped. These are talent conditions, not a verified list of weapon training availability.
Assassination gives poisons several kinds of support. Vile Poisons modifies damage and resistance to dispelling; Improved Poisons affects applications and charge use. Venom then adds a finishing move that improves poison damage and application chance for a duration based on points spent.
Sources [4]
Official Rogue equipment artwork from Blizzard’s general World of Warcraft class guide.
World of Warcraft class artwork© Blizzard Entertainment
Playstyle guide
Making the class work for you
A useful first plan starts with the situations you want to control.
- For solo play, decide whether you enjoy arranging a stealth opening or developing pressure once the fight is already underway. Then compare the talents that support that preference.
- For groups, agree which target should stay controlled before using attacks that can hit another enemy. Blade Flurry's extra target is a choice with consequences.
- Keep Energy costs and cooldowns visible when comparing control tools. A lower-cost ability and an ability available more often solve different problems.
- Read the exact duration and trigger on a new interaction before building around it. A Rupture tick, a poisoned target and a critical builder are three distinct conditions.
Sources [4]
Forever announcement
Opening beta scope
The opening beta stops at level 20. The complete supplied trees extend beyond that range, so a visible talent or an experimental plan may describe a later stage of character progression.
Sources [5]
BETA / REVIEWED SEPTEMBER 23, 2026
Current beta notes
The opening beta supports characters through level 20. Blizzard plans to raise the cap to 30 later in testing, so a full tree preview includes talents beyond the opening playable range. [5]
Follow Blizzard’s known-issues thread for current reports affecting Rogue. Our beta report also covers shared issues that can affect every class.
EXPLORE YOUR BUILD
Plan your Rogue talents
Browse all 53 talents and 139 rank descriptions across the three trees. Inspect talent icons and pop-up descriptions, add or remove experimental points, and save or share a plan.
The planner uses an editable point budget. Required prerequisite ranks, tier requirements, level-by-level point rules, and Legacy interactions remain unverified, so a saved plan is an experiment to revisit as the beta develops.
- Talent source
- Talents Forever · CC-BY-4.0
- Source-reported build
- 1.60.1.69876
- Snapshot reviewed
READING AND REFERENCES
Sources and version context
The guide separates the Classic class foundation, Blizzard’s Forever announcements, and the attributed beta talent snapshot. Editorial playstyle advice explains how those pieces fit together.
Guide reviewed
- Historical Classic foundation · original game manual · Blizzard EntertainmentWorld of Warcraft Game Manual — original game Checked
- Historical Classic foundation · Classic Primer · Blizzard EntertainmentWoW Classic Primer for New Players Checked
- Official Blizzard source · Blizzard EntertainmentWorld of Warcraft: Forever What’s Next Panel Recap Published · Checked
- Datamined talent data · Talents ForeverTalents Forever data.json — September 20 corrected snapshot Published · Checked
- Official Blizzard source · Blizzard EntertainmentThe World of Warcraft: Forever Beta Now Live Published · Checked
- Official Blizzard source · Blizzard EntertainmentWoW Forever Beta Known Issues — September 18 Published · Checked