Rogue · Outlaw
Outlaw is a fast swashbuckler powered by Roll the Bones buffs. You build combo points with Sinister Strike, spend on Dispatch and Between the Eyes, and cleave with Blade Flurry under Adrenaline Rush.
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Guide contents
How Outlaw Rogue wins
Outlaw is a fast swashbuckler powered by Roll the Bones buffs. You build combo points with Sinister Strike, spend on Dispatch and Between the Eyes, and cleave with Blade Flurry under Adrenaline Rush.
- Role
- Melee DPS
- Stat lead
- Item Level / Agility then Haste to about 25%
- Single target
- Fatebound
- Cleave / AoE
- Trickster
Strong when
- Strong cleave via Blade Flurry
- Fast-paced and mobile
- Good burst and utility
Plan around
- Roll the Bones RNG
- Combo point flow management
- Maintaining the right buffs
What changed for this spec
Killing Spree changes how it plays: its duration no longer increases from combo points spent beyond your maximum, and each extra point instead adds 15% damage, which Blizzard explains as stopping those extra points from being devalued. Alongside that, its damage rises 60% outside PvP, Adrenaline Rush now speeds up its execution by 20%, and its shots prefer valid, non-immune targets. Blizzard frames the remaining talent work as build diversity and flexibility: Audacity adds 80% Ambush damage, Hidden Opportunity reaches full proc parity and cuts Ambush energy by 5, Heavy Hitter, Summarily Dispatched and Fast Action go up, while Improved Between the Eyes drops to 2.5x critical strikes and Zero In to 2% per stack. All damage is up 9% outside PvP, and new talent-tree connectors were added.
One thing on this page names an ability the patch changed
These are flagged, not corrected. Rewriting a priority list needs a source this page does not have, so what is shown is where the guide and the patch notes disagree.
- Killing Spree (rotation) The notes say "Killing Spree has been updated - Duration no longer increases from spending combo points beyond your maximum. Each combo point spent beyond your maximum increases damage by 15%.", so any rotation guidance built on extending its channel with extra combo points no longer matches the ability.
Source: Blizzard, Curse of Ula'tek content update notes (https://worldofwarcraft.blizzard.com/en-us/news/24293281). Transcript: docs/apps/wow-god/research/patch-12.1/12.1.0-CLASSES-section.txt
Not re-verified for Season 2. This ordering was checked for patch 12.0.7. Patch 12.1 raised max-level player health and creature damage by 25% and deliberately moved power out of cooldowns into steady-state damage, either of which can move secondary weights. Open question: no Season 2 sim source has been checked, so the order below is last season's and is shown unchanged rather than guessed at.
Stat priority and consumables
Item level and effect strength still matter. Use this ordering to break close choices, then re-check it after major gear swaps.
- 1.Item Level / Agility
- 2.Haste to about 25%
- 3.Critical Strike
- 4.Versatility
- 5.Mastery
Haste is the key breakpoint stat because Adrenaline Rush's global-cooldown reduction scales with it. Past the needed amount, stat value becomes gear-dependent; sim close upgrades and weapon/ring enchants.
Flasks, food, potions, weapon oils, and runes for this build.
Priority order is from patch 12.0.7 and has not been re-derived for 12.1. Individual lines naming an ability that 12.1 removed or redesigned are annotated above; lines that 12.1 only retuned are unchanged, because a damage number moving does not by itself reorder a priority list.
Opener and priority
Use these as decision priorities, not a rigid cast sequence. Re-evaluate whenever targets, resources, procs, or mechanics change.
Core principles
- Cooldowns on cooldown: Outlaw has a handful of minor cooldowns you want to send as they come up - the primary ones are Blade Rush, Adrenaline Rush, and Between the Eyes.
- React to procs while keeping pace: maintain a high rate of actions per minute while reacting to the two primary procs - Opportunity (an enhanced generator) and Ace Up Your Sleeve (Combo Points after casting Between the Eyes).
- Manage resources: Combo Points are the main resource you play with - avoid overcapping them as much as possible.
TricksterAdds Killing Spree to the priority and holds Keep It Rolling for a stage 3 or higher Roll the Bones.
Single-target priority
- 1.Roll the Bones - on cooldown if at stage 1 or less
- 2.Keep It Rolling - if you have a stage 3 or higher Roll the Bones active
- 3.Preparation - whenever Between the Eyes, Adrenaline Rush, and Blade Rush are all on cooldown
- 4.Adrenaline Rush - on cooldown at 2 or fewer Combo Points
- 5.Blade Rush - on cooldown
- 6.Between the Eyes - at 6 or more Combo Points
- 7.Killing Spree - at 5 or more Combo Points - cancel early if you are going to overcap Energy
- 8.Dispatch - at 6 or more Combo Points
- 9.Pistol Shot - if Opportunity has 6 stacks, or has 3 stacks while you are at 1-3 Combo Points
- 10.Sinister Strike - at 5 or fewer Combo Points
AoE priority
- 1.Blade Flurry - if 2 or more targets are in range and it is not already active; if active, recast at 4 or fewer Combo Points when there are 4 or more targets in range
- 2.Roll the Bones - on cooldown if at stage 1 or less
- 3.Keep It Rolling - if you have a stage 3 or higher Roll the Bones active
- 4.Preparation - whenever Between the Eyes, Adrenaline Rush, and Blade Rush are all on cooldown
- 5.Adrenaline Rush - on cooldown at 2 or fewer Combo Points
- 6.Blade Rush - on cooldown
- 7.Between the Eyes - at 6 or more Combo Points
- 8.Killing Spree - at 5 or more Combo Points - cancel early if you are going to overcap Energy
- 9.Dispatch - at 6 or more Combo Points
- 10.Pistol Shot - if Opportunity has 6 stacks, or has 3 stacks while you are at 1-3 Combo Points
- 11.Sinister Strike - at 5 or fewer Combo Points
Opener
- 1.Cast Adrenaline Rush.
- 2.Cast Roll the Bones.
- 3.Cast Slice and Dice.
- 4.Cast Keep It Rolling if at stage 3 or higher.
- 5.Cast Blade Rush.
- 6.Build with Sinister Strike and Pistol Shot until 6 or more Combo Points.
- 7.Cast Between the Eyes, then continue with the normal rotation.
FateboundDrops Killing Spree, spends Dispatch at 5 or more Combo Points, and uses Keep It Rolling already at stage 2.
Single-target priority
- 1.Roll the Bones - on cooldown if at stage 1 or less
- 2.Keep It Rolling - if you have a stage 2 or higher Roll the Bones active
- 3.Preparation - whenever Between the Eyes, Adrenaline Rush, and Blade Rush are all on cooldown
- 4.Adrenaline Rush - on cooldown at 2 or fewer Combo Points
- 5.Blade Rush - on cooldown
- 6.Between the Eyes - at 6 or more Combo Points
- 7.Dispatch - at 5 or more Combo Points
- 8.Pistol Shot - if Opportunity has 6 stacks, or has 3 stacks while you are at 1-3 Combo Points
- 9.Sinister Strike - at 5 or fewer Combo Points
AoE priority
- 1.Blade Flurry - if 2 or more targets are in range and it is not already active; if active, recast at 4 or fewer Combo Points when there are 4 or more targets in range
- 2.Roll the Bones - on cooldown if at stage 1 or less
- 3.Keep It Rolling - if you have a stage 2 or higher Roll the Bones active
- 4.Adrenaline Rush - on cooldown at 2 or fewer Combo Points
- 5.Blade Rush - on cooldown
- 6.Between the Eyes - at 6 or more Combo Points
- 7.Dispatch - at 5 or more Combo Points
- 8.Pistol Shot - if Opportunity has 6 stacks, or has 3 stacks while you are at 1-3 Combo Points
- 9.Sinister Strike - at 5 or fewer Combo Points
Opener
- 1.Cast Adrenaline Rush.
- 2.Cast Roll the Bones.
- 3.Cast Keep It Rolling.
- 4.Cast Dispatch.
- 5.Cast Blade Rush.
- 6.Build with Sinister Strike and Pistol Shot until 5 or more Combo Points.
- 7.Cast Between the Eyes.
- 8.Cast Preparation, then continue with the normal rotation.
Pre-combat checks
- Apply weapon poisons before combat begins.
- Eat food and check your flask - this applies to raids, dungeons, delves, and open-world content alike.
Major cooldowns
Adrenaline Rush
- While active you gain a dramatic increase to Energy regeneration and a lowered global cooldown that scales with Haste - down to 0.8 seconds from the base 1 second at 25% Haste, only 22% raw needed thanks to Alacrity.
- With Restless Blades as strong as it is, good play directly links to more Adrenaline Rush uptime.
Roll the Bones
- Each press gives a random stage of 4 possible outcomes, and each stage grants its bonus alongside all previous stages.
- Stage 1 is increased Opportunity chance; stage 2 makes Sinister Strike generate an additional Combo Point; stage 3 is increased Restless Blades effectiveness; stage 4 is increased Critical Strike chance.
- Recast it on cooldown whenever you are at stage 1 or less.
Keep It Rolling
- Despite the massive 6-minute listed cooldown, its effective in-combat cooldown is only around 1:15 thanks to Restless Blades.
- To avoid wasting casts, use it whenever Roll the Bones is on stage 2 or higher - as Trickster the priority holds it for stage 3 or higher.
Preparation
- Mostly autopilot: use it when Between the Eyes, Adrenaline Rush, and Blade Rush are all on cooldown.
- It does not interact with Restless Blades, so on fights with a known length you can place its casts deliberately - into a burn phase or an add phase - as long as holding it never costs you a use.
Import strings were built for patch 12.0.7 and have NOT been re-verified for 12.1. Nobody authoritative publishes import strings, so none was rewritten here rather than invented. Patch 12.1 moved or removed talents in several trees, so a string may import a build that no longer exists. Check the listed key talents against the 12.1 changes above before importing.
Talents and hero trees
Use Fatebound for the single-target profile below and Trickster when cleave or adds make its toolkit more valuable.
Recommended starting profiles
Single-target: Fatebound
Fatebound's coin flips reward frequent finishers for stronger single-target damage.
- Fatebound hero tree
- Stat priority: Agility > Haste
- Interrupt: Kick
Multi-target: Trickster
Trickster adds Unseen Blade and Coup de Grace for stronger AoE and burst on packs.
- Trickster hero tree
- Prioritize AoE and add-swap talents
- Interrupt: Kick
Talent builds and import strings
Start with the profile matching your content. Boss and dungeon tabs in the gear section show the exact loadout used for each ranked result.
Trickster - Single Target
Current default for single target. Keep finishers flowing to refund the cooldown package and convert Unseen Blade into Coup de Grace value.
CQQAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAgx2MYmZmZmtZmZmZMmNeAmZbaZw2MAAAAAgZbbmZGmZmZGzMz2AAAAwYAwYWMMkBmFWoF2YAmZwADTrickster - Cleave
Same hero-tree core with target-count adjustments. Keep Blade Flurry active whenever its cleave has value.
CQQAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAgx2MYmZMzsNzMzMzMzsBmZbaZw2MAAAAAgZbbmZGmZmZGzMz2AAAAwYAwYWMMkBmFWoF2YAmZwADComplete talent referenceshow
Every class, specialization, and hero-tree talent from Blizzard game data. Active and choice talents stay open; passive nodes remain searchable and expand on demand.
Complete talent referenceshow
Every class, specialization, and hero-tree talent from Blizzard game data. Active and choice talents stay open; passive nodes remain searchable and expand on demand.
Rogue class tree
Shared class talents, including throughput, control, defensives, and movement.
Active and choice talents
Passive talents
Outlaw specialization tree
Every Outlaw talent currently exposed by Blizzard game data.
Active and choice talents
Passive talents
Trickster
Trickster hero talents, including every active, choice, and passive node exposed by Blizzard.
Active and choice talents
Passive talents
Fatebound
Fatebound hero talents, including every active, choice, and passive node exposed by Blizzard.
Active and choice talents
Passive talents
Deathstalker
Deathstalker hero talents, including every active, choice, and passive node exposed by Blizzard.
Active and choice talents
Passive talents
Boss and dungeon loadouts
Switch between raid and Mythic+ to inspect the top player for every available encounter: exact talents, source link, item level, enchant and socket counts, and the player's gear.
Season 2 class set
datamined. Read out of the game's spell data and republished by Wowhead. Blizzard does not publish set bonus text, so there is no first-party version to compare it against.- 2-piece
- Dispatch damage increased by 15%.
- 4-piece
- Sinister Strike and Ambush have a 20% chance to cause your next Dispatch to be free and deal damage as if you spent the maximum combo points.
Source: Wowhead spell pages, retrieved 2026-09-05. spell 1296588, spell 1296589. Third party, not Blizzard. If one of these is wrong, check the overview page and tell us.
Pulling the top Warcraft Logs result, exact talents, and equipment for each boss.
Editorial acquisition targets
Use these slot targets when planning drops and crafted pieces. The encounter explorer above remains the source for the exact gear worn by each ranked player.
Season 1 acquisition targets, not re-verified for Season 2. The rows below name Season 1 items at their Season 1 item levels and are accurate as that; they are not Season 2 recommendations. Season 2's raid is The Venomous Abyss (8 bosses, Nek'zali the Soulcoiler through Ula'tek). Confirmed Season 2 raid item levels run 279 (Raid Finder, first boss) to 344 (Mythic, last two bosses and Very Rare drops), with Normal 292-302, Heroic 305-315 and the Great Vault paying 292/305/318/334 by difficulty. Open question: per-slot best-in-slot for Season 2 needs a sim source, and none was reachable.
Season 1 acquisition targets, not re-verified for Season 2. The dungeons named below are the Season 1 pool and are not in Season 2 rotation. Season 2 runs Altar of Fangs (new in 12.1), Murder Row, Den of Nalorakk, The Blinding Vale, Voidscar Arena, Temple of Sethraliss, Kings' Rest and Ruby Life Pools. Confirmed Season 2 keystone item levels: +2 through +3 pay 295 end-of-run and 305 in the vault, rising to 311 end-of-run and 318 in the vault at +10 and above. Open question: per-slot best-in-slot for Season 2 needs a sim source, and none was reachable.
Enchants
Choose enhancements after your equipment is settled. Secondary-stat enchant choices move with your current stat mix and the content you are preparing for.
Gems
Socket into the current stat priority, then re-check after major equipment swaps rather than treating a gem choice as permanent.
Embellishments
Crafted effects are capped at two equipped embellishments. Lock these in only after deciding which crafted slots survive your next raid or Mythic+ upgrades.
Utility, defensives, and movement
Your Rogue toolkit is part of the rotation whenever it prevents lost uptime, lethal damage, or an enemy cast.
Defensives
Movement
Cloak of Shadows is a magic immunity window that also clears magic debuffs; Shroud skips trash.
Interrupt: Kick - grab a focus-interrupt macro on the Outlaw macros page.
Interface and macros
Use interface changes only when they expose a decision sooner: resources, procs, defensives, dispels, interrupts, and encounter assignments.
Focus interrupt
#showtooltip Kick
/cast [@focus,harm,nodead][] KickWritten for patch 12.0.7. Patch 12.1 increased max-level player health and creature damage by 25% and made crowd-control diminishing returns reset after 20 seconds instead of 16, so defensive timing and crowd-control advice on this page is the most likely to have moved. Source: Curse of Ula'tek content update notes, https://worldofwarcraft.blizzard.com/en-us/news/24293281.
What improves results
- Keep Blade Flurry up on 2 or more targets
- Do not overcap combo points or Energy
- Recast Roll the Bones at stage 1 or less and spend Keep It Rolling on a high-stage set
- Use Between the Eyes on cooldown
Common mistakes
- Sitting on a stage 1 Roll the Bones instead of recasting it
- Overcapping combo points or Energy
- Blade Flurry off during cleave
- Ignoring Broadside extra combo points
FAQ
4 quick answersWhich races are best?
Tauren and Dwarf are leading raw-DPS choices through critical-damage value. Dwarf also brings Stoneform; Blood Elf's Arcane Torrent has niche utility. Race output remains close enough to choose useful utility.
When should I reroll Roll the Bones?
Use the current build's buff and Keep It Rolling rules. Do not chase perfect buffs at the cost of globals, Combo Points, or a pending cooldown.
Where does Blade Flurry earn the most in the Midnight raid?
Vaelgor & Ezzorak keeps both bosses in cleave range, so Blade Flurry should be active nearly full time. It also carries Lightblinded Vanguard's add waves. On Vorasius, control beats uptime: Blistercreeps only count when they die touching their crystal wall, so drop cleave rather than kill one in open floor.
How does Outlaw handle movement-heavy bosses?
Better than most specs. Restless Blades punishes every empty global, and Grappling Hook erases transitions - use it through Chimaerus' movement phases, into Fallen-King Salhadaar's positional soaks, and to reach the open lane before Vorasius' Void Breath. Keep pressing buttons while you reposition.
Guide Updates
- Aug 2, 2026Added the structured rotation block: core principles, Trickster and Fatebound priority lists, openers, pre-combat checks, and Adrenaline Rush / Roll the Bones / Keep It Rolling / Preparation cooldown notes from current specialist sources.
- Jul 31, 2026Editorial completion pass: added Midnight Season 1 encounter decisions for The Voidspire, The Dreamrift, Sporefall, and March on Quel'Danas, built around Blade Flurry control and Restless Blades uptime, and opened the guide update history.
- Jul 31, 202612.0.7 review: revalidated the Trickster single-target and cleave builds, the Roll the Bones and Keep It Rolling guidance, the Haste target, boss gear sources, enchants, and consumables against current specialist guidance.
- Jul 16, 2026Drafted the Midnight Outlaw guide with talents, target gear, stat priority, enchants, gems, consumables, and rotation guidance.
Talents by enemy class
Pick an opponent to see the pressure your PvP build must answer. The baseline comes from this spec's current arena build when one is published.
Grip setups, anti-caster pressure, and sustained melee uptime.
Mobility, anti-slow, and physical or magic mitigation.
Keep an answer for grip-based isolation and do not spend movement before the Death Knight commits their control chain.
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