Fans of Knives: April 18, 2017

Assassination

• Exsanguinate now causes your Bleed effects to bleed out 125% (was 100%) faster.
• Exsanguinate now costs 20 Energy.

Outlaw

Developers’ notes: Our overall goals here include smoothing out Energy regeneration and reducing the frequency of both resource drought and Energy capping.

• Adrenaline Rush Energy regeneration increase reduced to 50% (was 100%). Duration increased to 20 seconds (was 15 seconds).
• Combat Potency proc rate increased to 30% (was 20%), and Energy per proc reduced to 10 (was 15).
• Fortune Strikes redesigned. Now increases Combat Potency’s proc rate by 2% per point (was +1 Energy per Combat Potency proc per point).
  • Developers’ notes: The net result of the two Combat Potency and Fortune Strikes changes is that Combat Potency should generate half as much Energy, twice as often.
• Restless Blades has returned. Finishing moves reduce the remaining cooldown on Adrenaline Rush, Between the Eyes, Sprint, Grappling Hook, Cannonball Barrage, Killing Spree, Marked for Death, Death from Above, Vanish by 0.5 seconds per combo point spent.
• Roll the Bones
  • Developers’ notes: The distribution of the number of buffs you get from Roll the Bones has changed. On average, you will get fewer buffs. Our goal is to significantly reduce the desire to frequently recast Roll the Bones when you get 1 buff.
  • Broadsides now also increases the damage of your combo-point generating abilities by 20%.
  • Buried Treasure increases Energy regeneration by 30% (was 25%).
  • Shark Infested Waters now increases Critical strike chance by 20% (was 25%).
  • True Bearing causes Finishing moves to reduce the cooldown of many abilities by 1.0 seconds (was 2.0 seconds) per combo point.
• Slice and Dice’s Attack speed increase reduced to 80%.
• Slice and Dice increases Energy regeneration by 20% (was 15%).

Subtlety

Developers’ notes:Our overall goals are to remove uncontrolled player teleport from the baseline DPS rotation, to reduce the frequency of teleporting in PvP, to allow players to choose between more frequent or more impactful Shadow Dances, which equates to more frequent CC/utility or damage in PvP, to keep the PvE rotation engaging, and to make Symbols of Death more engaging.

• All damage dealt increased by 20%.
• Shadowstrike now hits at melee range (was a 15 yard range).
• Shadowstrike, when used out of combat, now deals 30% increased damage and teleports you up to 25 yards behind your target.
• Shadowstep now has 2 charges for Subtlety.
• Backstab base damage increased by 35%.
• Backstab damage bonus from being behind the target reduced to 20% (was 30%).
• The Quiet Knife (Artifact trait) now increases damage dealt by Backstab by 5% (was 3%) per point.
• Shadow Dance now has 2 charges (was 3).
• Shadow Dance is no longer on the global cooldown.
• Shadow Dance’s base duration increased to 4 seconds (was 3 seconds).
• Subterfuge’s duration increase to Shadow Dance reduced to 1 second (was 2 seconds).
• Deepening Shadows now causes your finishing moves to reduce the remaining cooldown on Shadow Dance by 1.5 seconds (was 3 seconds) per combo point spent.
• Enveloping Shadows redesigned. Deepening Shadows reduces the remaining cooldown of Shadow Dance by an additional 1.5 second per combo point spent. Shadow Dance gains 1 additional charge.
• Deep Shadows now causes all damage you deal to be increased by 35%.
• Master of Shadows moved to level 90 row.
• Premeditation moved to level 100 row.
• Marked for Death’s cooldown reduced to 40 seconds (was 60 seconds) for Subtlety.
  • Developers’ notes: This is to balance it against Premeditation, which is now on the same row. It’s a buff in a raid setting, where the talent was very weak.
• Symbols of Death redesigned. Costs 25 Energy and has a 30 second cooldown. Invoke ancient symbols of power, empowering the next cast of several of your abilities:
  • Shadowstrike: Generates 2 additional combo points.
  • Nightblade: Deals 30% increased damage.
  • Eviscerate: Critical strike chance increased by 35%.
• Focus Shurikens is a new passive talent available at level 70: Each enemy you hit with Shuriken Storm increases the damage of your next Eviscerate by 25%, stacking up to 5 times.
  • Developers’ notes: This aims to remove maintaining Nightblade on every target from your AOE rotation on 4+ targets. Instead, Subtlety will deal increased damage during AOE by focusing it into one target.