Here is my rogue PVP WoW Cataclysm Guide, for subtlety spec.
Table of content:
1. What spec to use.
2. How to gear up and what items to use.
3. What abilities to use / keybinds.
4. Macros.
5. What poisons to use.
6. Basic openers.
1. What spec to use?
If you check the pvp ladders from the official WoW website, you will notice that almost all high rated rogues are Subtlety.
From what I heard, this spec does the most damage and it is very reliable for PVP.
Combat is mostly a PVE spec in the Cataclysm expansion.
Talents
Tier 1: “Subterfuge”, the best tier 1 talent, even for battlegrounds.
Tier 2: “Nerve Strikes”.
Tier 3: “Cheat Death” or “Elusiveness”.
Tier 4: “Shadowstep” or “Burst of Speed”.
Both are fun.
For battlegrounds, “Burst of Speed” seems better since you will be able to move very fast, “Burst of Speed” doesn’t have a cooldown, you can spam it, also run away from enemies since you won’t be slowed.
Tier 5: “Paralytic Poison” (great vs. melee) or “Prey of the Weak”.
Both are great but the poison is more fun.
Tier 6: “Shuriken Toss” vs. “Marked for Death”.
Both are great.
“Marked for Death” for arena, “Toss” for battlegrounds.
Try them and see which suits you better.
2. How to gear up and what items to use?
Do “Tol Barad”, it rewards with around 400-500 honor per win.
And random battlegrounds, you will get both honor and conquest points.
You can also check high rated rogue players, see what gear they use.
As a rogue, you will need daggers for PVP.
“Hit cap” and “expertise” cap: you need at least 3% for both.
3. What abilities to use / keybinds.
For “Subtlety”, you will use “Hemorrhage” as the basic attack that will build combo points.
“Backstab” for when you’re behind your enemy.
“Eviscerate” to burn the combo points.
“Slice and Dice” is required pretty much all the time.
“Shadow Blades” for when you burst.
“Kidney Shot” for when you need to stun, interrupt a player.
“Blind” for cc.
“Evasion”, defensive ability.
“Vanish”, for escaping mostly.
“Kick”, spellcasting interrupt.
“Garrote” as an opener vs. casters.
“Ambush” deals the most damage. You can use it in “Shadow Dance” but also in any opener.
“Shadowstep” and “Sprint” for movement.
Rogue PVP WoW Cataclysm Guide, subtlety Keybinds
These are my keybinds:
q for stealth.
mouse wheel down for “hemorrhage”
mouse wheel up for “backstab”
1 “shadow dance”
2 “slice and dice”
3 “kidney shot”
4 “blind”
tab “evasion”
e “eviscerate”
z trinket
r “vanish”
alt+a “feint”
shift+mouse wheel down “kick”
alt+mouse wheel up “shuriken toss” or “marked for death”
g “fan of knives”
f “preparation”
c “smoke bomb”
x “shadowstep”
sfhit+w burst (trinket, shadow blades etc)
alt+q “sprint”
4. Macros (notice that not all are for combat, PVP).
(mount while pressing the Eviscerate button)
/cast Eviscerate
/use Black War Tiger
(to combine both items for mega burst)
/cast Shadow Blades
/use Grievous Gladiator’s Badge of Conquest
(Vanish and remove dots, so you will remain in stealth)
/cast Vanish
/cast Cloak of Shadows
(blinds the focus target rather than your current target)
#showtooltip Blind
/StopCasting
/StopCasting
/StopCasting
/cast [@focus,exists][@target] Blind
(for opener, you get a free SaD for 17 seconds, you need to press the button twice)
/cast Premeditation
/cast Slice and Dice
(apply poison macro, need to press the button twice)
/use Alchemist’s Flask
/castsequence Wound Poison, Paralytic Poison
5. What poisons to use.
If you have the PVP set, you don’t have to use “Crippling Poison”.
What poisons you need are “Wound Poison” and “Mind-numbing Poison”.
If you have taken “Paralytic Poison” (the talent), use it instead of “Mind-numbing Poison”.
6. Basic openers for beginners.
“Premeditation” + “Slide and Dice” (see the macro), “Cheap Shot”, “Ambush” / build 5 combos, “Eviscerate”, “Shadow Dance”, “Ambush”, “Ambush”, “Eviscerate”.
A few last tips.
You need to practice to get used to the keybinds, get used to tunnel enemies that will try to kite.
Arena seems easier compared to battlegrounds or duels where the enemy player has much more space to kite.
If you have questions or other tips, leave in the comments.