@Ithy: I guess you can’t take the 30%+critdmg from Lethality to calculate the white damage auto hits, cause lethality only affects abilities.

So you should calculate noncrit 1000 crit 2500 (2000 + 25% prey the weak )

Fist
35% crit
65 swings non-crit (65000)
35 swings crit (87500)
Total 152500

Swords
30% crit
70 swings non-crit (70000)
30 swings crit (75000)
5 extra swings (we’ll assume 1,5 crit ;) ) 7250
Total 152250

damage difference: 0,16%

the difference is even smaller, but as you said, not shocking.

now you could add 100 abilitystrikes, lets say 2000 noncrit and the crits 4000 +55% due lethality and prey on the weak at 6200

Fist
35 swings Crit (2170000)
65 swings noncrit (130000)
Total 347000

Swords
30 swings crit (186000)
70 swings noncrit (140000)
5 extra swings ( 1,5 crit ) 16300
Total 342300

damage difference: 1,37%

now you can say whatever, 200 whitestrikes with 100 abilitystrikes and get

fists 652000
swords 646800

which makes a total difference of 0,8%

so far you’re right. at the moment swords have a small advantage in white damage, fist got the advantage of abilities in damage, neutralizing each other. with prey on the weaks the whole thing isn’t balanced any more and the advantage’s on the fist side of life. but as you said, the difference won’t have big effects on gameplay. just my 2 cents, if i’m wrong somewhere correct me ;)

I admit right now the way the new subtlety is looking shifting back to daggers (Which as having been mutilate and combat daggers I have no problem with getting behind and facing) I will be enjoying the change of pace.

I have to admit the new assassination is just as brutal and will most likely be just as unloved as always. Though nomming off a debuff for free and getting a damage boost is niiiiice. Turn the tables will be nice for soloing just as much as PvP and personally is one of the talents I look forward to the most. Though the shift seems like they are becoming more poison heavy then even before. This makes sense for mutilate, but the way it seems to be set up, however nice the trick can be with whatever you do with your poisons, it’s not going to stack up with dealing more damage, imo right now poison tallents in sin are useless.. we’ll see how that changes and if they add any new interesting poisons.

There are a few pressing questions I have for the combat tree, When using ‘murder spree’, why would someone not just switch to a slow offhand before using it and pwn face that much more? Or would murder spree have a chance to proc combat potency like shiv can? Prey on the Weak will be interesting for the fact that it will be like the new lethality combat rogues, but does this mean fist weapons (with their higher crit chance) would over take swords as a favorite?

I’m not math wiz and won’t profess to be one (Ever) but taking an example
We’ll assume a combat rogue has a crit chance of 25% with some decent gear, 5% from lethality and 5% from fist specialization

We place him against a swords rogue with the same gear and assume the weapons have the same speed and damage range. And for sake of my brain we will make each attack a nice even 1000 damage.
This would be the result of making 100 attacks of white damage. Also for this example we will assume for sake of ‘prey on the weak’ that the rogue is consistently above the mobs health. This is a 55% crit increase total with lethality. So a crit for 2000 normally goes to 3100.

Fists
35% crit
65 swings non-crit (65000)
35 swings crit (108500)
Total 173500

Swords
30% crit
70 swings non-crit (70000)
30 swings crit (93000)
5% extra swing (we’ll assume 2 crit) 9200
Total 172200

Not a shocking difference in Damage, but once you factor in instant strikes, slice and dice, and other things I have a feeling it would edge out swords by a bit more.

I know this doesn’t factor in a lot of game play elements but simple algebra is what I used, if there are flaws in it feel free to point them out, I have no objection to constructive feedback.