Introduction to the Blood Death Knight
The Blood specialisation has an engaging play style, using self-healing through Death Strike as a primary source of damage mitigation. Blood has a versatile defensive toolkit and is effective in the full range of current content.
Blood Death Knights can be a force to be reckoned with, particularly in fights with infrequent, high, but not lethal physical damage. Their toolkit is also varied, and seasoned players will find answers to almost every situation they might get into in Mythic+.
Below you will find a beginners guide to the Blood Death Knight, you can click on highlighted abilities, for a more in depth description of them.
Strengths and Weaknesses of the Death Knight
Strengths
- High self-healing
- Specialised defensive cool downs
- Lots of utility with
Gorefiend’s Grasp - Two separate taunts with
Dark Command and 
Death Grip
Weaknesses
- Not very mobile
- Reactive mitigation model, leading to spiky health
- Reactive self-healing does not take into account environmental or self-inflicted damage, for example in Mythic+ Dungeons
Talents
Rotation for the Death Knight
- Use
Marrowrend if your 
Bone Shield is about to expire.
- Use
Death Strike if your health is low.
- Click
Blooddrinker.
- Use
Blood Boil if enemies do not have your 
Blood Plague disease.
- Use Marrowrend if you have 6 of Bone Shield.
- Cast
Death and Decay if you are fighting at least 3 enemies.
- Use
Heart Strike if you have 3 or more Runes.
- Use Blood Boil, on cooldown.
Survival Cooldowns
Anti-Magic Shell absorbs up to 30% of your maximum health in magic damage over 5 seconds,
Dancing Rune Weapon increases your chance to parry attacks by 40%. It also significantly increases your damage and resource generation.
Vampiric Blood increases your maximum health and the amount of healing you receive by 30% for 10 seconds. It should be used either proactively in anticipation for high amounts of damageor reactively when low on health.
Icebound Fortitude reduces all damage taken by 30% for 8 seconds. It should mostly be used proactively when you anticipate taking high damage.
Stat Priority
The stat priority for Blood Death Knights is:
- Item Level
- Versatility
- Haste
- Critical Strike
- Mastery
Pro Healer (If I’m tabbed in), otherwise a total Moob