Uploaded March 2019 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago

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-- Summary

This showcases two Bow/Bow Stamina Nightblade Rotations. The first is the one which I believe to be optimal for getting the best DPS in a trial situation and the second is a simpler one that also works pretty well too.

To get the best DPS on a Bow/Bow Stamblade, in most cases, it is essential to play sometimes/mostly at melee range - with exceptions. I will discuss this later, with reasons why.

I'd never really considered Bow/Bow before the change of the Shadow Silk synergy distance from 18m to 12m this patch. I had to learn the ins and outs of Bow/Bow, and as a result, the parses here are fully self-buffed (crazy, right?).

Raid-ready Build as seen in video - https://i.imgur.com/Op8QaxK.jpg
First rotation - Melee Bow/Bow CMX Parse (56.2k) - https://i.imgur.com/zTt0Q9R.jpg
Second rotation - Ranged Bow/Bow CMX Parse (56.1k) - https://i.imgur.com/PS1yxCy.jpg

Theres a lot more I wanted to say but I ran out of space, as usual, so do ask in the comments.


-- Why play Bow/Bow at melee range?

First, something to clarify: Unlike as seen in the video's first rotation, in a situation where Shadow Silk synergies are frequently given, the player should retreat to 12 metres to grab the synergy on cooldown, and return to melee when activated. Alternatively, for some fights stay at range and go melee to incap and trap for best results.

The only advantage of playing at long range is from the 'Long Shots' Bow passive (Gives you a damage bonus of up to 12% against enemies at longer range). It's cool, but you lose out on a lot of things:

1. Group buffs
In the current meta, buffs are usually concentrated in melee range.
- Olorime Circle and Major Courage
- Major Slayer from Nightblades/Templars
- Sentinel of Rkugamz, which provides great sustain
- Orbs (and Shards) from Healers (and Templars) - more efficient for the healers to throw them in one general area
- Warhorn, Major Force, Minor Brutality (in extreme cases)

2. Gear/Abilities
- Velidreth is the BiS stamina monster helm. One proc can hit multiple times on the same enemy. Staying at range means that the Velidreth spores will spread out/not even reach melee range. Velidreth spores can provide ~6k+ DPS in certain fights. As Bow/Bow, no other set will never give such competitive numbers.
- Rearming Trap. Tzogvin's Warband is a set introduced this patch which gives Minor Force. Although possibly the best set to use in a Bow/Bow setup, Rearming Trap is rarely used in the Bow/Bow builds I've seen so far. Aside from providing Minor Force, it's a strong Single Target DOT ability; worth more than 1 cast of Snipe, when you factor in the channel time, and the knock-on effect of fewer light attacks and bow procs.
- Incap Strike works really well in raid scenarios on all Nightblades. Since it is a melee ability, it can be quite difficult to use when you are playing primarily at ranged.

3. Healing
In the current meta, healing is concentrated in melee range. If healing is required at range, then there is less healing for the majority of the group, and the tank etc.


-- Why not just use Dual Wield?

Bow/Bow is being considered now in competitive raiding, and it's really mostly due to the change to the Shadow Silk synergy mentioned earlier. This synergy alone can provide 10k+ DPS in a raid alone in an organised group. The one big advantage that Bow/Bow users have, is their ability to do their full rotation at range, waiting for the synergy, then coming back to melee once they receive it, which shouldn't be for a long time when efficient.

In many fights, a dual wield user may only have a very short window to activate a Shadow Silk synergy (when on their Bow bar throwing Hail, Caltrops and Poison injection), before having to return to melee range. This alone has potential to make Bow/Bow a better setup than Dual Wield. The caveat is that the more Bow/Bow users there are, the higher the likelihood that they are starved of Shadow Silk synergies.

Also, playing with 2 bows is cool, and the aesthetics are extremely important to some players.


-- Rotation

The backbar rotation is identical to that of a Dual Wield Stamina Nightblade. Hail - Caltrops - Poison Injection - Incap/Ballista. On the front bar, if possible, reapply rearming trap as soon as it runs out. If there is a bow proc ready to use, use it. Otherwise light weave Snipe.

Bows are clunky. Light attacks, Snipe, Endless Hail - clunky. You'll notice how it can be pretty awkward to barswap snipe - if you mistime it, it might not come out at all. To avoid this hassle, and for a smoother rotation in general, when considering a barswap from front to back, light attack on the front bar before switching to your backbar to cast endless hail. Light attack - Barswap - Endless Hail.

To get the most out of incap, cast it early on the front bar, and load up Snipes and bow procs.

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