Frost Deathknight Playstyle and Rotation Guide

Breath of Sindragosa Opener

1. Remorseless Winter
2. Obliterate (Use Howling Blast after if you get a Rime proc)
3. Obliterate (Use Howling Blast after if you get a Rime proc)
4. Horn of Winter
5. Pillar of Frost, Breath of Sindragosa, Raise Dead
6. Chill Streak
7. Use Breath of Sindragosa Priority List until Pillar of Frost has <=1 seconds remaining
8. Use Chains of Ice (If talented into Cold Heart) when Pillar of Frost has 1 second remaining
9. Use Frostwyrm’s Fury after Pillar of Frost has ended

Continue Breath of Sindragosa Priority List after this opener.

Breath of Sindragosa Priority List

1. Chill Streak
2. Soul Reaper (if talented and the target has =>35% health)
3. Obliterate if you have more than 3 Runes
4. Remorseless Winter (if you have the Gathering Storm talented)
5. Howling Blast if you have a Rime proc and are at 50+ of Runic Power
6. Obliterate if you have 3 or more Runes or if you have less than 45 Runic Power
7. Empower Rune Weapon when at <50 Runic Power and 1-2 Runes remaining
8. Abomination Limb when you need more Rime procs to sustain Breath of Sindragosa
9. Arcane Torrent (if Blood Elf) when you have no Runes left and are at <30 Runic Power
10. Remorseless Winter

Horn of Winter usage varies a lot and should be used based on your current Runes & Runic Power, check the Horn of Winter section in ‘Cooldowns & When to Use Them’ below.

Continue General Priority List Outside of cooldowns after.

Single Target Obliteration Opener

1. Abomination Limb
2. Fyr’alath the Dreamrender if you have the legendary (make sure you have at least 1 stack of Mark of Fyr’alath applied to your target before using)
3. Remorseless Winter & Raise Dead 
4. Chill Streak
5. Pillar of Frost, Howling Blast & Empower Rune Weapon
6. Obliterate / Frostscythe (AoE)
7. Frost Strike / Glacial Advance (Cleave) or Howling Blast if you have a Rime proc
8. Obliterate / Frostscythe (AoE)
9. Repeat Frost Strike / Glacial Advance (Cleave) or Howling Blast > Obliterate / Frostscythe rotation until <=1 seconds remaining on Pillar of Frost
10. Use Chains of Ice (If talented into Cold Heart) when Pillar of Frost has 1 second remaining
11. Use Frostwyrm’s Fury after Pillar of Frost has ended

Continue Obliteration Window Priority List after.

AoE Obliteration Opener

1. Abomination Limb
2. Remorseless Winter & Raise Dead
3. Chill Streak
4. Pillar of Frost, Howling Blast & Empower Rune Weapon
5. Death and Decay
6. Obliterate / Frostscythe (AoE)
7. Frost Strike / Glacial Advance (Cleave) or Howling Blast if you have a Rime proc
8. Obliterate / Frostscythe (AoE)
9. Repeat Frost Strike / Glacial Advance (Cleave) or Howling Blast > Obliterate / Frostscythe rotation until <=1 seconds remaining on Pillar of Frost
10. Use Frostwyrm’s Fury when Pillar of Frost has 1 second remaining
11. Fyr’alath the Dreamrender on a priority target once you have 4-5 Marks of Fyr’alath applied to multiple targets.

Continue Obliteration Window Priority List after.

Obliteration Window Priority List

1. Chill Streak
2. Death and Decay if you are hitting 2+ targets (ideally use after Pillar of Frost)
3. Obliterate / Frostscythe (AoE) if you have Killing Machine
4. Soul Reaper (if talented and the target has =>35% health)
5. Howling Blast if you have a Rime proc to trigger Killing Machine
6. Frost Strike at 5 stacks of Razorice (when playing with Shattering Blade) or when you are about to lose Unleashed Frenzy to trigger Killing Machine.
7. Frost Strike / Glacial Advance (Cleave) to trigger Killing Machine

Continue General Priority List Outside of Cooldowns after.

General Priority List Outside of Cooldowns

1. Use Chains of Ice to consume Cold Heart when at 20 stacks at the end of your Pillar of Frost (when playing Breath of Sindragosa)
2. Use Chains of Ice to consume Cold Heart when at 20 stacks when you are buffed with Enduring Strength (when playing Obliteration)
3. Chill Streak
4. Soul Reaper (if talented and the target has =>35% health)
5. Fyr’alath the Dreamrender if you have the legendary and it’s off cooldown (make sure you have at least 1 stack of Mark of Fyr’alath applied to your target before using)
6. Remorseless Winter 
7. Obliterate / Frostscythe (AoE) if you have a Killing Machine proc or have 3+ Runes
8. Frost Strike at 5 stacks of Razorice (when playing with Shattering Blade) or when you are about to lose Unleashed Frenzy 
9. Howling Blast if you have a Rime proc
10. Frost Strike / Glacial Advance (Cleave) if you have 75+ Runic Power (to avoid overcapping on Runic Power)
11. Obliterate / Frostscythe (AoE)
12. Frost Strike / Glacial Advance (Cleave)

Important Buff Management

Icy Talons

This buff is important to maintain throughout an encounter, not only for auto attack damage but also for gaining Runic Power from Runic Attenuation and potential Killing Machine procs from crit auto attacks. You will want to spend Runic Power through Frost Strike, Glacial Advance or Breath of Sindragosa to sustain this buff. When playing with Breath of Sindragosa you will easily be able to sustain Icy Talons because it is constantly spending Runic Power, so by sustaining Breath of Sindragosa you also sustain Icy Talons.

Unleashed Frenzy

Unleashed Frenzy works exactly the same as Icy Talons and you sustain it in the exact same way. If you are maintaining Icy Talons then you are also maintaining Unleashed Frenzy. 

Rune of Razorice

This is the most important debuff that you must maintain on your targets, dropping your Razorice stacks is a major throughput loss. So make sure to keep an eye on the debuff and make sure you are using your Rime procs (with Avalanche) as often as possible so that you don’t drop your Razorice stacks on your targets. 

If you are not using Avalanche (which is generally not advised) then you will want to use Glacial Advance to apply Razorice stacks (this talent is only good in cleave scenarios with Obliteration) or you will want Rune of Razorice on your main hand weapon over Rune of Hysteria when dual wielding or Rune of the Fallen Crusader when using 2H weapons (although losing Rune of the Fallen Crusader is also a significant loss so I generally don’t recommend not using Avalanche, especially when playing with 2H weapons). If you do decide to not use Avalanche and apply Razorice with your main hand weapon, then make sure you also target swap on AoE/Cleave scenarios to sustain the stacks across your targets.

If you are playing with Shattering Blade then this will alter your Razorice stack management, as you will want to make sure you Frost Strike as soon as you reach 5 stacks of Razorice, so you don’t waste any stacks/overcap and waste potential Shattering Blade value.

Gathering Storm

It can be difficult to sustain Gathering Storm outside of Empower Rune Weapon or Bloodlust because it does take a lot of Runes to keep ramping up Remorseless Winter with Gathering Storm. However, you should always strive to maintain as many stacks and uptime on Gathering Storm as possible, especially in AoE/Cleave scenarios. 

Everfrost

If you are playing Everfrost then the importance of extended Remorseless Winter with Gathering Storm is even more important. Everfrost lasts 7 seconds, so you want to extend your Remorseless Winter enough so that you can recast it in time before the debuff drops from your targets. As long as you can extend your Remorseless Winter buff until it has 6 seconds left on your next Remorseless Winters cooldown, then you will be able to refresh your Everfrost stacks in time. Just like Gathering Storm, this is especially important in AoE/Cleave scenarios.

Cooldowns & When to Use Them

Pillar of Frost

You will always want to use Pillar of Frost on cooldown. If you are playing Obliteration then make sure to pool 3-4 Runes before Pillar of Frost, so you are not Rune starved during your main damage window. Sometimes you may want to delay Pillar of Frost slightly to align it better with a Chill Streak, or Breath of Sindragosa but generally you want to use it on cooldown to get as much uptime as possible, especially when playing with Icecap so you don’t waste any potential cooldown reduction.

Chill Streak

This should be used on cooldown as often as possible. You want to get as much value out of the new tier set bonus as possible, so there is no need to hold back on using Chill Streak unless you want the damage buff from the 4 set bonus for a specific moment/target during a boss encounter.

Empower Rune Weapon

You generally use your Empower Rune Weapon with Pillar of Frost when playing Obliteration. Empower Rune Weapon should always be used as a cooldown ‘enhancer’ as it were, it’s not a very strong cooldown on its own but has a great impact on your other cooldowns. 

If you are using the Breath of Sindragosa build, you will want to delay using Empower Rune Weapon for as long as you can until your Runic Power is <50 and you are running low on Runes. Then you use Empower Rune Weapon to give you a steady flow of Runes so you can keep your Breath of Sindragosa going. This will allow you to have longer Breath of Sindragosa windows.

However, if you are only going to be getting a short Breath of Sindragosa window (AoE nuking an important group of enemies) then you should not delay anything and use Empower Rune Weapon with Breath of Sindragosa.

Breath of Sindragosa

You will always want to use Breath of Sindragosa on cooldown, and ideally in conjunction with Pillar of Frost. You should also make sure that you will have an Empower Rune Weapon charge ready when you need it.

Horn of Winter

Generally you will use this when you are low on Runes and Runic Power, it acts as a great way to keep Breath of Sindragosa going when you don’t not have Empower Rune Weapon active. You should try and use it on cooldown so you don’t miss any potential uses, but make sure you do not overcap on Runes of Runic Power when using it, otherwise you’re just wasting resources. If you are playing Horn of Winter with Obliteration, then make sure to top yourself up with Runes (without overcapping) if you are lacking before you use Pillar of Frost, so you have a healthy amount of Runes for a decent Obliteration window.

Death and Decay

You will only be using Death and Decay when you are in cleave/AoE scenarios. You want to use it so your Obliterate casts can benefit from Cleaving Strikes. Ideally you always want to pair Death and Decay with Pillar of Frost, because that is when your Obliterate casts will be dealing the most damage. When playing with Icecap the timings vary a lot more so you want to always make sure you hold a Death and Decay charge ready for your next Pillar of Frost. 

If you are in a cleave scenario and about to reach 2 charges of Death and Decay, and your Pillar of Frost is not off cooldown until <= 30 seconds, then you can just use one so you get the most cleave value possible. Another scenario where you might want to use both Death and Decay charges back to back is when you are using all of your cooldowns and want the most AoE burst possible. This typically will be the case in big Mythic Plus pulls; just remember that after your first 2 Death and Decay charges are used on a pull, then you will want to hold the third one until Pillar of Frost is back off cooldown. If none of these conditions apply, then follow the general rule of always having a charge ready for Pillar of Frost.

Frostwrym’s Fury

Normally this should always be used with as many buffs as possible (such as Rune of the Fallen Crusader) at the end of your Pillar of Frost window but with the Season 2 Set Bonus you will want to use Frostwyrm’s Fury after Pillar of Frost has ended so you get the 4 Set Bonus value during Enduring Strength. However, when there are a lot of targets that need to be bursted down then ignore this and use it as normal (on the last second of Pillar of Frost). If the boss will die before Pillar of Frost is back off cooldown, then use it (ideally at least with a Rune of the Fallen Crusader proc) so you do not waste a potential use.

Cold Heart

If you are playing with Icecap then this is fairly simple and you will want to use your Chains of Ice to consume your Cold Heart stacks at the end of every Pillar of Frost window, because the cooldown reduction from Icecap should naturally align well with Cold Heart and you will hit 19-20 stacks by the end of every Pillar of Frost if you use it on cooldown. 

If you are not using Icecap then this ability has very specific timings to follow, and if you miss the timings you will lose a lot of value from this talent, so it is essential that you get the timing right. You will wait to use your first Chains of Ice at the end of your first Pillar of Frost window and then use it again when you have 10 stacks of Cold Heart, and your Pillar of Frost has around 28-30 seconds left on its cooldown. After that, you should let it stack, and it should reach 20 stacks at the end of your next Pillar of Frost window. This is the cycle you will want to follow when using Cold Heart without Icecap.

Abomination Limb

You will always want to use Abomination Limb with your cooldowns, mainly because it will supply you with a steady flow of Rime procs which will help with stacking and sustaining Razorice stacks. You should always line up Abomination Limb with Breath of Sindragosa, or Pillar of Frost & Empower Rune Weapon if you are playing the Obliteration build. The only other time that you may use it differently is if you are using it as utility during an encounter that involves gripping multiple targets, but typically in these scenarios you will be using your cooldowns anyway to cleave the targets down.

Fyr’alath the Dreamrender (legendary weapon):

Before using this ability, you want to make sure you always have a Mark of Fyr’alath applied to your target to benefit from the 10% increased damage from consuming Mark of Fyr’alath, up to 50%. In AoE scenarios you will want to have as many Marks of Fyr’alath applied to targets as possible so you don’t lose any potential damage from the on use ability.

For Frost DK, there is no best time to use it apart from on cooldown. The only caveat to that however is that you will want to make sure you never use it during a Pillar of Frost, as you do not gain any additional damage to the effect while under the effects of Pillar of Frost.

In Mythic+ you will want to try and spread the DoT this axe applies to multiple targets before you use the on use effect. You will want to use this after your cooldowns to finish off any big priority targets within the pack, as you won’t be doing much AoE once you’ve used everything so you may as well send the weapon on a big prio target within the pack.

Utility/Defensive Abilities

Anti-Magic Shell

This is one of the best abilities in a Death Knight's toolkit. It makes you immune to many magic auras and debuffs and prevents heavy amounts of magic damage when used correctly. If you pre-use Anti-Magic Shell before walking over a magic-based floor effect, it will make you completely immune to the damage and any additional effects it may apply to you while walking over it. It's important to note that using Anti-Magic Shell only prevents the application of magic debuffs and does not remove them once they have already been applied to you. So make sure you use Anti-Magic Shell before a debuff is applied. When absorbing magic damage with this ability, you also gain Runic Power, which can also be used offensively to sustain Breath of Sindragosa. When in magic damage based fights Anti-Magic Shell is insanely strong, and taking the talent Anti-Magic Barrier allows you to use it more frequently, as well as increasing its duration and absorb amount.

Icebound Fortitude

This is your main heavy mitigation ability that makes you immune to stun effects. This can be very useful in encounters that have stun mechanics. It does have a lengthy cooldown, however, so use it wisely. The cooldown of this ability can also be reduced to 2 minutes if you talent into Acclimation.

Anti-Magic Zone

It is still a helpful raid cooldown that can help your raid team. It loses value based on how many allies are within it, so it will not be as strong in raids, but it's worth using along with some other healing cooldowns as an extra safety measure.

Lichborne

On its own, it's only beneficial in niche situations where you will be Feared, Charmed, or put to Sleep. However, when using the talent Unholy Endurance it becomes a valuable extra mitigation ability that you will want to use in high-damage encounters.

Death Grip

Death Grip is an iconic Death Knight ability that makes them stand out from other classes in the game. No other class can grip enemies into specific positions, making Death Knight very strong in add control encounters. Make sure to always keep an eye out for enemies outside of the rest and grip them in so your group and cleave them down with the rest. It's also an effective way to interrupt a target from casting, even if they are uninterruptible, as it counts as a form of CC and not an interrupt.

Death's Advance

A Death Knight's main weakness is mobility. Death's Advance usage is a key part of what makes a good Death Knight player. It's your only mobility spell if you are not talented into Wraith Walk, so it is crucial to use it at the right time. It also makes you immune to knockback effects which can be incredibly strong in certain encounters.

Raise Ally

Along with Druids and Warlocks, Death Knights are one of the only classes in the game that can resurrect an ally during combat. Raise Ally is an instant cast, so it is generally the best combat res if you need to get somebody back into the fight ASAP.

Death Strike

After taking a heavy hit of damage, you can heal a significant amount after using Death Strike, making your healer's life a lot easier. Ensure to utilize this ability after taking a large amount of damage if you are out of Spiritual Healing Potions and Healthstones.

Chains of Ice

Another helpful tool for Death Knights to use is Chains of Ice, which is very strong when an add needs to be slowed or kited by your tank. However, it does come at the cost of a rune, so using this too much will often leave you rune starved. Make sure only to use it when it's needed or called for. If you have multiple targets that need to be slowed simultaneously, consider using the talent Grip of the Dead instead of applying Chains of Ice to multiple targets. If you are using the Cold Heart talent, then you shouldn’t use Chains of Ice as a utility cooldown unless it's absolutely necessary.