Project Lore

Part 2 of our series on the basics of melee DPS (Part 1 - Melee DPS 101: The Hit Cap) brings us to the category that confused me the most, Expertise.  When I began looking up Wrath of the Lich King's changes to my class' required stats, I was expecting to find pretty clear cut answers.  That was not the case for Expertise. My initial research confused me something fierce due to my own stupidity.  I kept coming across a pair of vastly different numbers that were recanted as the expertise needed for dual and single wielding DPS.  Then the compact fluorescent light bulb went off, the synapse was crossed and I put the final piece of the puzzle together. Expertise and Expertise Rating are convertible statistics, not the same thing.  It really is quite simple and works like Hit and Hit Rating.  The more Hit Rating you have, the more you will connect with your target.  I do not know why this confused me for the length of time that it did, but I never claimed to be Einstein. Let's get to the facts now that you know how slow I can be without my morning tea.  Expertise is a very easy to understand requirement that is the same for all melee DPS classes.  For starters, Expertise is the statistic that will help minimize a mob's ability to Dodge or Parry your attacks.  Once again, our focus for the discussion will be on boss mobs.  Before we begin, it should be noted that all DPSing should be done from behind the target.  This will cut out the need for additional rating, since the mob will have its Parry attribute removed from the equation table. Assuming that you are "hitting it from behind," a melee DPSer will require 214 Expertise Rating or 26 Expertise (you can check this on your character sheet).  Roughly 33 ER or the equivalent of 4 expertise will reduce a mobs chance to dodge/parry by 1%.  If you hit those numbers, you will surpass the 6.5% Dodge chance those pesky Boss mobs are handed and maximize your DPS potential. Here's another "at a glance" guide for easy reference.

All Melee DPS:

Expertise/Expertise Rating = 26 and 214 respectively. You just need to hit one of these numbers to negate a mob's chance to Dodge or Parry (when attacking from behind).  Expertise is generally gained from various talents (Vitality, Combat Expertise, Weapon Expertise, etc) or racial traits (Humans gain 3 Expertise for Swords and Maces), while Expertise Rating is typically obtained from item bonuses. 1 Expertise = 0.25% Dodge reduction, 32.79 Expertise Rating = 4 Expertise = 1% Dodge Reduction and the numbers you are trying to overcome are 6.5% Dodge and 12-15% Parry (Parry percentage remains in debate).  Don't forget, Parry can be ignored if you are attacking from behind.

Tanks:

I am not sure what the sweet spot is for tanking, but it is higher than Melee DPS.  Since a tank is obviously in front of the mob, they don't benefit from dropping Parry from the calculation table.  Therefore they would need additional Expertise/ER to drop negate a the other half of the Expertise equation.  However, if you are generating enough threat per second, you may be able to perform sufficiently with the DPS numbers above, since TPS is a tank's primary concern. I hope this clears up any confusion out there.  Remember to always attack from behind for the avoidance mitigation!  Brownie points to the commentator who can give us the necessary tank numbers.  Next up, all the other statistics out there.

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