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Backstab

Backstab

35 Energy	Melee Range

Instant
Requires Rogue (Subtlety)
Requires level 40

Requires Daggers
Backstab the target, causing 160% Physical damage. Must not be in front of the target. Awards 1 combo point.

Spell Details

Duration

n/a

School

Physical

Mechanic

n/a

Dispel type

n/a

GCD category

Normal

Cost

35 Energy

Range

5 yards (Combat)

Cast time

Instant

Cooldown

n/a

GCD

1 second

Effect #1

Normalized Weapon Damage
Value: 1

Effect #2

Weapon Damage - %
Value: 160

Effect #3

Add Combo Points
Value: 1

Flags

Guides

Rogue DPS Guide (Assassination,
Combat, Subtlety)

Rogue PvE
compendium - the
do's and dont's

Warlords of Draenor
Rogue Changes

Comments

Comment by daPhil

It's 180% at this level.

Comment by Tigraine

You only see 180% written in your Spellbook because the default Blizzard UI applies the multiplier from your Opportunity Talent (http://www.wowhead.com/?spell=14075)

The 150% is just right.

Oh, and btw: This is the new Backstab. Rogues were previously only getting through the AQ20 book drop. With Patch 2.01 out now it's trainable at lvl 60.

EDIT: Clarification. —Arideni

Comment by Sebas

Backstab is the best skill for burst damage (besides ambush) for rogues who are not assassination specced. Grab improved backstab for +30% crit, Lethality for +30% crit damage, and opportunity for +20% damage and you'll be quite the death dealer with this skill. Assassination rogues with Seal Fate love this skill because of its insane crit chance. (Seal Fate is a talent that gives you an extra combo point when a skill that gives combo points crits)

Comment by DJTyrant

You can get this through your trainer now and no longer require getting the book from AQ20.

Comment by Saphirah

I still think this should be in the Assasination tree, but meh, that's just me, maybe even subtlety. But here is a good combat backstab build that maximizes your BS and Evis abilities as well as maximize your total DPS.

http://www.wowhead.com/?talent=ihZMeV00yz0rGRtV

Comment by starkill

Backstab is pretty nice if you can get the hit on someone it does crazy damage but ins takes 60 energy and you want to try to get as many points so dont use it every time. although it still is a very nice rogue spell.

Comment by nitrod

Note that attacks from behind can't be dodged or parried.

Comment by Imaculate

1350 ap Gladiator's shanker Mutilate spcc : i crit around 1,8 when kidney shot, can push it to 2.3k with Improved Expose armor. :)

Comment by Carlotta

I am a bit unsure how one counts the dmg. done by backstab, but this is what I got:

Comment by shadowarror

Only 45 energy if you improve it down the sub tree. Very useful indeed. In PvP, sometimes you don't hit the opponent or get close enough so you need an attack that consumes alot of energy and does alot of damage so you don't get "exess" energy. (I can't spell for sh!t)

Comment by Banehallow

Let's say we have a sub talented toon. %30 base crit rate, +Malice %5, +Puncturing Wounds %30 = %65 Backstab Crit Rate. With Opportunity %20 more damage.With 45 point talent -15 energy = 45 energy. With HAT, if you crit, you will get another CP. Sinister Calling will give %5 damage bonus.
In this theory, we cant get CQC.

Conclusion: Causes (%155 WD+465) x %120= %186 WD + 547 damage with %65 crit rate, awards 1 CP non-crit, 2 CP if you crit and costs 45 energy.

Edit: Ofc it depends on resi and armor >.< If you use the glyph you will get %20 more damage too.

Comment by butcher098

This is a powerful and useful ability, yet can be quite complicated and difficult to pull off in PvP without the target being stunned, since it requires you to be behind your target. personally i perfer Mutilate with poisons applied it can hit for around the same amount of damage depending on the weapons. you no longer need to be behind the target to use this ability as of a recent patch. However it does take 60 energy to pull off, which can be half of your total energy or more if you PvP. with the Slaughter from The Shadows talent in the sub tree, Backstab only takes 45 energy, granting more spare energy for other abilities.

If your confident that you can stay behind your target at all times in PvP (simple in PvE) then i highly recommend using backstab, if not then go with mutilate.

Comment by derax

This ability is crap. Blizzard should give some reward for using it. It does the same damage as hemo per energy with the top line daggers vs. top line maces or swords while hemoing. The only saving of this skill at all is the glyph of backstab with slaughter from the shadows and puncturing wounds which make it worth using if you have the chance. Then you have to ask yourself is it worth having to stand behind a stunned enemy to get the little bit of extra damage from those talents and glyph to use backstab not to mention in general your cp generation after initial stealth attacks is going to be about 50% slower than hemo.

Comment by Camalleon

You can use Gouge to hold the enemy for enough time to get yourself positioned behind him!

Comment by Wanky

Mutilate does more damage than Backstab if you are specced for it, but if you're Assassination and you specced points into Improved Kidney Shot and have Glyph of Backstab, you can effectively use Backstab for high damage during Kidney Shot stuns. So it's not an entirely useless skill even if you're specced for Mutilate.

Comment by GodofPudding12Q

It came from...behind...

Comment by nusmesa

I am wondering atm if u can buff up Backstab to do insane DMG in PVP.

With this build (still working at it) i think you can buff up Backstab to crit for a lot for its energy use.

Xtra Crit: Puncturing Wounds + Malice + Close Quarters Combat = 40% Extra Crit Chance on Backstab.
For extra DMG: Aggression + Opportunity + Sinister Calling = 45% Extra DMG on Backstab.
With Premeditation + Cheap Shot and 1Hemmo u could put up a 5cp rupture right out of stealth and then backstab ur target to death. With help of the Rupture / Backstab / Hemmo Glyphs.

Rupture will get buffed from Backstab, Rupture, BloodSpatter & Serrated Blades

Anyone has any ideas?

Comment by godseeker

anyone knows how much it crit ? with talents =
(http://www.wowhead.com/?spell=14137 , http://www.wowhead.com/?spell=61331 , http://www.wowhead.com/?spell=31126 , http://www.wowhead.com/?spell=32601 , http://www.wowhead.com/?spell=51689 , http://www.wowhead.com/?spell=14072 )

theorically it can hit for 20k+ but i dont know ,i didnt test it
someone clear us plz thx

Comment by cmarkec

i just love the new animation of ambush and backstab, that purple mangle thingy.

Comment by Vip3r

Rogues do it from behind... YEAH !

Comment by Ohera

A nice trick to know while leveling, if you get a little to close to an enemy he will turn and walk forward. during this about 0.5 sec duration you have a chance to Backstab the NPC.

Comment by TheMuffinMan

*ahem*
Gentlemen.

Comment by Tofuud

1 tauren = 4 gnomes stacked on top of each other trying to get 1 backstab. O.o

Comment by themguyman

so we have to w8 till lvl 18 to get this in cata that's going to suck

Comment by QFred

This ability is amazing, not only for the damage it causes and also because at least 3 talents increase its damage. Apart from assassination rogues, who should spam Mutilate and use Backstab to refresh Rapture (if they use that glyph), it is an amazing, albeit slow, way to get combo point and a good dps input.

Comment by MachinusNye

I'm not in the beta, so this is just some curiosity:
Looking at the calculators, they're adding some love (by which I mean, Two talents) to this ability in the Assass tree, so I'm just wondering if it's still better to use Mutilate over backstab, or if they're really making it useful for assass rogues.

Comment by Rozsudek

A Tauren Rogue can backstab you.

In the front.

Comment by nixslayer

Gentlemen.

Comment by rafagd

I wonder why this is a combat "spell" and why it's combat icon. I think it's pretty misleading...

Comment by cybele

"No matter how subtle a , a knife between the shoulder blades will seriously cramp his style."

Cookie if you guess where this is from.

Comment by ThatGuyAcross

Does anyone know how to use this in combat with anything, because if you attempt to kidnet shot, all of your energy goes away and wont come back for a backstab intul they actully wake up, and gouge doesnt work becuase wouldnt a poinson with damage count as an attack?

Comment by wrongheaded

I could be wrong but I think that this is now the only baseline ability that requires daggers.

Comment by asherkobin

I am a level 43 Rogue and my tooltip says: "265% weapon damage + 443" but mine hits for about 290-300. So something's wrong.

Comment by Tithanas

If this change makes it to live come MoP, Backstab will be a subtlety only ability. To replace assassination rogue's execute phase (below 35% hp) awesomeness, they now have a new ability called Dispatch since seems to have failed to make it to MoP.

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