Come Here my Kitties!

 

How to AoE with a Death Knight

The following video shows how to gather a bunch of mobs and how to AoE it down with a Death Knight. This was done with a level 61 Death Knight, specced Unholy: 0/0/52. However, it’s pretty much the same for other specs, besides you won’t have the ghoul and unholy blight.

Basically, grab a bunch of mobs:

1. Use Icy Touch and/or Death coil to pull melee types to you
2. Use Death Grip and/or Strangulate to pull caster types to you
3. Once everything is nicely bunched up, use Icy Touch > Plague Strike > Pestilence > Blood Boil

And then simply pick the one with the highest HP (Turning name plates on helps) and Death Strike it. Keep targeting the one with the highest HP and Death Strike it, until it’s over. You can replace Death Strike by another ability (Scourge Strike, Obliterate, etc) if you don’t need healing at this point.
Once your blood runes are up again, use Blood Boil twice and everything should be dead, with you at nearly full HP.

Wham Bam, Thankyou Mam!!

Death Knight DPS Rotations

Many have been asking, so here they are – Death Knight Rotations to do the most possible DPS. Please keep in mind these are calculated with talent specs tailored for leveling, starting at level 61. Once you switch to a raiding spec, things will probably be different. 

____________________________________________________________________

Blood 

Talent Spec at level 61: Blood Leveling 61
Talent Spec at level 79: Blood Leveling 79 

The point of this build is to convert to Frost/Unholy runes to Death Runes, allowing for more Heart Strikes.

DPS Rotation used

1. Icy Touch –> Plague Strike –> Death Strike –> Heart Strike –> Heart Strike –> Death Coil –> Obliterate
2. Icy Touch –> Plague Strike –> Heart Strike –> Heart Strike –> Heart Strike –> Heart Strike –> Death Coil –> Obliterate –> Death Coil
3. Repeat Step 2. until mob dies

Death Strike is used instead of Obliterate whenever you need healing to stay above 75% HP because of Blood Gorged.

Note: The rotation changes at level 67 once you get Epidemic.

____________________________________________________________________

Frost
 

Talent spec at level 61: Frost Leveling 61
Talent spec at level 79: Frost Leveling 79 

Tests have revealed that Scent of Blood sucks for leveling, it doesn’t provide enough Runic Power to validate the use of 3 talent points. Instead, we go 5/5 Bladed Armor, which has nice Synergy with 5/5 Toughness.

DPS Rotation used

1. Icy Touch –> Plague Strike –> Blood Strike –> Blood Strike –> Obliterate –> Frost Strike –> Obliterate
2. Icy Touch –> Plague Strike –> Obliterate –> Frost Strike –> Obliterate –> Frost Strike –> Obliterate –> Restart cycle

The point of this build is to use Obliterate and Frost Strike as much as possible, using Blood of the North to convert Blood Runes into Death Runes, allowing for one extra Obliterate in step 2. 

Note: Whenever Rime procs, don’t forget to use Howling Blast. There are several points in the rotation where you can squeeze it in without messing up your rotation. At the end of Step 1. for example, or after the 2nd Obliterate in step 2.

____________________________________________________________________

Unholy

Talent Spec at level 61: Unholy Leveling 61
Talent Spec at level 79: Unholy Leveling 79 

DPS Rotation Used

Icy Touch –> Plague Strike –> Scourge Strike –> Blood Strike –> Blood Strike –> Death Coil –> Scourge Strike –> Death Coil –> Scourge Strike –> Scourge Strike –> Death Coil –> Restart Cycle

Note: When soloing an elite, it’s worth using Unholy Blight. The best moment to cast Unholy Blight is at the end of your rotation, skip the last two Death Coils in the rotation to make sure you have enough runic power to cast Unholy Blight. This changes once you get Butchery at level 63, then you only have to skip one Death Coil instead of two and still be able to cast Unholy Blight.

The Final Countdown!!

Just wanted to say that we are into the last couple of hours before the big event and I hope that you are all ready for several things;

1. Server que’s
2. Over the top prices on AH (good and Bad)
3. Quest items being looted by more people than ever before
4. General latency issue

So all you people out there going to the midnight launch and playing till the wee hours of the morning, enjoy (being in auz we have to wait even longer, damn it)