Where to start with PvP?

[Kalgrim]

Hi guys, I've been playing WoW casually for a while now and for the most part stopped doing any sort of PvP since WotlK. For the record, I play Horde on Area 52 US. I'm curious to give PvP a go with a rogue because from what I've experienced, rogues seem like a fun and good solo PvP class (I am thinking of benching my warrior, I really don't like how they are/play in WoD, in PvE at least). I would probably continue to be a filthy casual. Unfortunately, all I have read about PvP thus far has been overly negative. Everyone always complains about it - I know - but it seems especially bad with everyone going Alliance since WoD? So how bad is it, really? And furthermore, BGs used to always be the way to gear, but now I have read that Ashran is the way to go, and maybe arena skirmishes? What's the best way to gear now? And how does PvP gear work vs PvE gear? (Would I need to equip a blue PvP set instead of using my LFR hero gear?) And how good is the PvP building for the garrison? The idea sounds fantastic but I feel like I never see anyone from the other faction out in WoD.

TL;DR - want try casual pvp, would like input on rogues, the state of pvp, garrison pvp bulding, and how to gear up

[Saladfork]

Rogues are a good choice and are doing fine in the current patch (and will be doing fine in the next patch). Play combat this patch (for this final week), and try out mutilate next patch.

As for the feedback--any PvP forum is going to be filled with complaints. It is rare to see people asking for help (occasionally people will ask for comps/strategies), but most of this forum is dedicated to expressing anger and sharing it with your fellows who may have unsubbed by now. Honestly, you should ignore what other people say and try it out for yourself. It isn't something you should feel inclined to do, but I definitely think PvP is worth giving a shot. It is definitely going to be rough at first and you'll probably want to move over to keybinding if you haven't already, but it can still be fun and rewarding, especially when played casually.

(1) Alliance since WoD - This mostly concerns arenas and rbg's. It is still possible to find horde for arenas/rbg's/ashran, but there are definitely more people on alliance. I have been pretty unsuccessful in finding healers on horde (for 3's) but I think rbg's and ashran are still easy to get into.
(2) Garrison - The gladiator's sanctum is a pretty nice building. If you have space, you might as well build it. When you go into ashran, you'll pretty much get bones automatically. But it isn't necessary. It has some nice perks when you upgrade it for world PvP, and you can get titles for killing 500 of a certain race.
(3) Gearing - I personally prefer bg's. Ashran is boring IMO, even when I find a group. But I would mix it up occasionally. You should definitely try out ashran (you'll probably want to find a group for it through group finder), but don't focus too much on getting the next piece. Ashran can definitely be good for gearing, but the gearing journey is kinda fun in its own respect--so you should do a little of both. I personally don't think you should bother with skirmishes unless you have someone to run you through. It is pretty easy to get honor quickly from it, but it definitely is a grind. And don't queue with a healer in skirmishes if you end up going that route (not until you're geared at least), it'll just be way too slow.
(4) PvP gear vs. PvE gear - PvP gear is scaled up and the set bonuses are pretty critical for most classes. I would take blue gear vs LFR gear, but you can check for yourself.

As for gearing, technically you should be able to just farm for conquest gear (you likely have a really large cap). But the season is ending soon, and unless you have a friend who is willing to run you through 2's, it probably won't be too enjoyable grinding that out. Start off with bg's and have fun.

[Deleted]

I wouldn't go into skirmishes anytime soon. Most people there are completely geared and only do it out of boredom (I was doing it while drunk with my 2k partner, and we met a team of 2.6k rated players one night.)

Just stick to BGs where you have (hopefully) a few full geared player on your side and you can kinda play along. If you want to cap conquest, most people say that they can get geared very quickly in Ashran, but that depends if the fraction on your server is winning or losing.

Regarding the negativity - that happens when people feel that the development company completely neglects them. If you are playing it casually or not high rated, PvP is probably ok for you - still among the best within MMO's I'd argue. But if you've played for a long time and have a deeper understanding of PvP you'll get really frustrated because it could be so much better if Blizzard would actually care about it. But as a new (PvP) player this shouldn't concern you very much.
Rogues are also great this season/probably expansion (read: borderline retarded playstyle and damage output coupled with endless cc possibilities) so you should enjoy it.

[Rorke]

Don't do anything yet until 6.2 launches. Everything done now is a waste of time if you aren't full geared because the next patch will have honor gear that's higher item level wise than current conquest gear.

Alliance since WoD? So how bad is it, really?

Alliance is the superior pvp faction and will retain that rank the entire expansion. Play Alliance if you want to be good or you're looking to be competitive. Otherwise, you can play Horde only if you really want to play Horde.

I personally hate Horde and if Undead were able to choose a faction, I would be Alliance every time.

And furthermore, BGs used to always be the way to gear, but now I have read that Ashran is the way to go, and maybe arena skirmishes? What's the best way to gear now?

Ashran is the way to go for the current patch. I'm not really sure how good its going to be in 6.2 with the Raid/Party changes. What makes Ashran so effective for gearing right now is that you can just join dominant Raid groups through group finder and grab easy honor/boxes from winning events. Unfortunately, with the removal of Raid forming in 6.2 for Ashran, gearing in Ashran might be harder because you won't be able to freely join dominant groups anymore.

Either way it doesn't matter because the Devs are forcing everyone who wants to PvP to play Ashran because they're locking a weekly conquest box behind it. So whether you like Ashran or not, they will make you like it. If I were you I would just gear through Ashran no matter how terrible the queue times are or how bad your faction is. I personally, will probably gear through random bg's this time around.

And how does PvP gear work vs PvE gear? (Would I need to equip a blue PvP set instead of using my LFR hero gear?)

Unless you have Mythic gear, PvP gear is superior to any PvE gear in a PvP setting. This is because your gear will scale up when you engage in PvP combat only.

And how good is the PvP building for the garrison? The idea sounds fantastic but I feel like I never see anyone from the other faction out in WoD.

The Gladiator's sanctum sucks unless you want the Nemesis titles/Lord/Lady of War title. I really wish the Gladiator's Sanctum was passive much like the Herb Garden/Fishing Shack is but without the passive benefits.

[Thelxi]

Before you do anything, get gear. Save yourself the frustration and get gear. I cannot stress the importance of gear in PvP enough!

Also, you are on the right path. Rogue is absolutely top tier when it comes to solo casual PvP which I assume you mean random BGs and world PvP by. They are pretty much immortal as long as you save a vanish for survival, and have plenty of burst and control.

About the gear specifically, don't bother with it now. The next season starts soon so it will be extremely easy to get on the same power level as everyone else. Conquest gear will be sold for honor, and I think I read somewhere that even this season's blue honor gear will scale up to CP gear levels next season. So in short, once the new season hits make sure you have full honor gear and get on the CP treadmill capping every week so your power level stays the same as everybody else's.

[rda]

Switch to Alliance.

[Kalgrim]

Thanks for all the feedback, guys! I'll be leveling a new rogue in the next couple of weeks, it seems. Unfortunately, I forgot that Area 52 is a PvE server... So world pvp would not be much of an option - something that I would like to do. Given that, are there any servers you guys could recommend that have a good community?

[Saladfork]

Well you can still do Ashran on a PvE server. That is where most of the world PvP happens. Apart from that, you may get some around the apexis areas, but usually people just leave each other alone. It might not be necessary to switch servers.