Unholy Death Knight PvE Guide - Cataclysm Classic

Cataclysm Classic Unholy Death Knight Rotation

Unholy Death Knights gain Death Runes when using
Festering Strike
thanks to their
Reaping
passive. A high uptime on
Dark Transformation
will be crucial for optimal DPS. When your Ghoul is transformed, it won't gain stacks of
Shadow Infusion
, so having your Runic Power close to cap once
Dark Transformation
expires will critical for getting to 5 stacks quickly, and casting
Dark Transformation
again. As with any Death Knight specialization, proper Rune and Runic Power management and using
Death Coil
at the correct times to benefit from
Runic Empowerment
(altered to
Runic Corruption
) will also be extremely important.

Opener

1. Pre-cast
   Army of the Dead
   .
2. Pre-cast
   Horn of Winter
   .
3. Pre-pot
   Golemblood Potion
   .
4. Cast
   Death Coil
   whenever you have enough Runic Power until 5 stacks.
5. Cast
   Dark Transformation
   with all your cooldowns as soon as possible.
6. Cast
   Icy Touch
   .
7. Cast
   Plague Strike
   .
8. Cast
   Death and Decay
   .
9. Cast
   Festering Strike
   .
10. Cast
    Blood Tap
    .
11. Cast
    Scourge Strike
    .
12. Cast
    Scourge Strike
    .
13. Cast
    Empowered Rune Weapon
    .
14. Cast
    Festering Strike
    .
15. Cast
    Scourge Strike
    .
16. Cast
    Scourge Strike
    .
17. Cast
    Scourge Strike
    .
18. Cast
    Scourge Strike
    .
19. Cast
    Summon Gargoyle
    .
20. Cast
    Outbreak
    .
21. Proceed with single target rotation.

Single Target

1. Use
   Rune of the Fallen Crusader
   .
2. Be in
   Unholy Presence
   .
3. Maintain
   Horn of Winter
   if assigned.
4. Cast
   Army of the Dead
   . Best used before pull, or during non combat phases in encounters.
5. Cast
   Blood Tap
   . Best used when
   Dark Transformation
   is not active to minimize downtime.
6. Cast
   Unholy Frenzy
   . This does not stack with
   Bloodlust
   /
   Heroism
   .
7. Cast
   Summon Gargoyle
   .
8. Cast
   Empower Rune Weapon
   when all Runes are on cooldown and you won't cap on Runic Power.
9. Apply
   Frost Fever
   and
   Blood Plague
   with
   Outbreak
   or
   Icy Touch
   and
   Plague Strike
   if it's on cooldown. Maintain them with
   Festering Strike
   .
10. Cast
    Death Coil
    to get to 5 stacks of
    Shadow Infusion
    .
11. Cast
    Dark Transformation
    when at 5 stacks of
    Shadow Infusion
    . Aim to have close to Runic Power cap when it ends so you can maximize uptime.
12. Cast
    Death and Decay
    or
    Scourge Strike
    if it's on cooldown when both Unholy Runes or Death Runes are up.
13. Cast
    Festering Strike
    when both Frost Runes and Blood Runes are up.
14. Cast
    Death Coil
    when
    Sudden Doom
    procs or to avoid capping on Runic Power.
15. Cast
    Death and Decay
    or
    Scourge Strike
    if it's on cooldown.
16. Cast
    Festering Strike
    .
17. Cast
    Horn of Winter
    .

AoE

For large pulls

1. Be in
   Frost Presence
   .
2. Cast
   Outbreak
   to apply
   Blood Plague
   and
   Frost Fever
   or
   Icy Touch
   and
   Plague Strike
   if it's on cooldown.
3. Cast
   Pestilence
   to spread them.
4. Cast
   Dark Transformation
   when at 5 stacks of
   Shadow Infusion
   . Aim to have close to Runic Power cap when it ends so you can maximize uptime.
5. Cast
   Death and Decay
   or
   Scourge Strike
   if it's on cooldown when both Unholy Runes or Death Runes are up.
6. Cast
   Blood Boil
   .
7. Cast
   Death Coil
   when
   Sudden Doom
   procs or to avoid capping on Runic Power.
8. Cast
   Icy Touch
   .

Otherwise

9. Perform single target rotation, but use
   Pestilence
   to spread diseases.

Cataclysm Classic Unholy Death Knight Talents

Standard Build

Cataclysm Classic Unholy Death Knight Glyphs

Prime:
Raise Dead
,
Scourge Strike
,
Death Coil
Optional: For AoE, replace
Scourge Strike
and
Death Coil
with
Icy Touch
and
Death and Decay
Major:
Blood Boil
,
Pestilence
,
Anti-Magic Shell
Minor:
Blood Tap
,
Horn of Winter
,
Death's Embrace

Cataclysm Classic Unholy Death Knight Best Consumables

Flasks and Elixirs

Best:
• Flask of Titanic Strength

Food

Best:
• Seafood Magnifique Feast
  ,
• Beer-Basted Crocolisk
  ,
• Fortune Cookie

Alternatives:
• Broiled Dragon Feast
  ,
• Hearty Seafood Soup

Potions

Best:
• Golemblood Potion

Cataclysm Classic Unholy Death Knight Best Races

Alliance

1. Worgen:
   Viciousness
   and
   Darkflight
2. Human:
   Sword Specialization
   and
   Mace Specialization
3. Gnome:
   Shortblade Specialization
4. Dwarf:
   Mace Specialization
5. Draenei:
   Heroic Presence

Horde

1. Orc:
   Axe Specialization
   ,
   Blood Fury
   , and
   Command
2. Troll:
   Berserking
3. Goblin:
   Time is Money
   ,
   Rocket Barrage
   , and
   Rocket Jump
4. Blood Elf:
   Arcane Torrent

Cataclysm Classic Unholy Death Knight Best Professions

1. Engineering:
   Synapse Springs
   .
2. The rest of the professions are very close in power, with Blacksmithing becoming better with epic gems in T13.