[2.Trade]: Dummy LF DPS!

So you go use spreadsheets and get a base line of where your DPS should be at, but where to test it? Hrmm if there was only a big chuck of wood to test it on. Like one that was on par with level 80 NPC's and 83 raid bosses... Wait! There is! So for reasons beyond my realm of knowledge some don't use this nice in game DPS utility. So here I am to explain good uses for target dummies.

Practice makes perfect-

You might sit there and wonder why your DPS always seems off or you really can't put together a great rotation. First and foremost read up on your class, there is tons and tons of info on rotations out there. Second, go practice these rotations on target dummies. OMG the CONCEPT! Instead of just hitting random spells and abilities try to actually cap your DPS with the gear you have . To do so I suggest using Recount mod, once in-game set your self 5-7 min intervals of solid dps on the dummy. After which record the data you collected, then reset recount and try again. Try different rotations until you get to what you conclude as the best DPS rotation for you. Could you imagine if even 50% of Rogues out there actually tried practicing maxing DPS and getting good rotations?... scary thought.

Spreadsheet DPS v.s. In-game DPS-

So if you do spreadsheets you have a baseline by the math numbers of what you abilities up times are and what your overall DPS could be against certain bosses( Not taking into account some DPS loss for repositioning during fight ..blah blah.). Ablility up times show a percentage of during the fight how long abilities remain active and what amount of total damage it accounts for. All these numbers can be crunched and fine tuned, but execution is key so again hit the dummies and use recount/swstats to find out what your certain ability outputs and DoT time/dmg. Yeah I could go further into detail but finding out on your own is much more satisfying and its nothing that hasnt been cover already over at Elitist Jerks . So hopefully this info proves useful on your journey to becoming even better at DPS.

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Roguecraft Spreadsheets Tutorial: Round 1...FIGHT!

I figured it be a good idea to go over some spreadsheets for those that may be unaware of their purpose or have no idea where to begin understanding them. For starters the best program for viewing them is Excel and OpenOffice. There might be other ways to view these but from my experience others may not let you view drop down menus. Click here for Roguecraft spreadsheet , it can be a bit to soak in at first but once mastered is a valuable tool. The first tab at the bottom in version updates explaining what exactly they put in or changed. The next tab will be Talents & setting shown here(Click image for full size):

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As you can see column C is where you would input your talent point data. Column D shows max allow points for that talent. I suggest trying various spec's to see how it may affect your Total DPS at the top of the page. All on the right hand side in column I and J you can enter in other data about your toon. Also this has baseline data for your DPS target, so I suggest you look up content your currently clearing and pick a boss. Look up said bosses stats and enter them in the according boxes. Next will be the Gear spreadsheet shown here(Click for larger image):

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As you can see in the image that there are drop down menu's for each equipment slot. As well as gem and enchant boxes for each of the slots. So if you had a gem or an enchant on the item in that slot then you select the enchant from a drop down list next to the enchant box for corresponding piece of gear, same goes for the gem selection boxes. Down the rows will show you realated info to the gear. This is the perfect sheet to compare what you have now to what you might want to replace it with to see how it would affect your DPS. WoooHoooo! No more asking in trade chat if [Big Bronze Knife]or [Harpy Skinner] is better or not (Simply example). Other tabs like Buffs, Cooldowns, DPS and Cycles are tabs you can adjust according to what you feel is best. They take sometime to learn but in time once you master using these sheets you no doubt will further hone your DPS and rogue skill. Hope this was informative and now go forth and unleash hell, we are rogues hear us ROAR!!!!! /meow

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