How to Become One with the Shadows: A Guide to the Rogue
So, I decided to try my hand at making some character optimization guides, starting with Barbarian. I’ll mostly be focusing on optimization and not roleplay, so there’s always more room to add flavor to your character. Now, let’s cut right to the punch/knife/arrow.
This thread will be updated every so often. I won't have all of this ready right away, so I'll be adding to it in individual posts.
Throughout this guide, I'll be using colors to denote how useful a certain ability/race etc. is. Here's the scale:
Gold is a must have, at least in my opinion.
Green is a very good ability, but could maybe be replaced with something else.
Blue is a solid choice, but there are perhaps better ones.
Black is just average.
Red is most likely useless, or almost useless.
Gray is something that is rarely useful, but can be surprisingly good in some situations.
Rolls for later that you don't need to worry about:
Currently playing in: Quest for the Shunned City, Coliseum of Conquest, DragonDenn's Dragonlords, Shipwrecked on Fugue, Tomb of Annihilation, Razor's Lost Mine of Phandelver, The Lost Kenku & One Grung Above
Currently DMing: Princes of the Apocalypse, Out of the Abyss, Coliseum of Conquest—The Arena (Sometimes)
Rogue is a stealth oriented class that performs well as both a melee fighter or a ranged fighter. Unlike most melee classes, it doesn't get Extra Attack, but it makes up for that in terms of damage with Sneak Attack. Rogue's main strengths are incredibly consistent burst damage, and surprisingly good defenses.
Pros:
Absolutely ridiculous damage output, especially at higher levels. As long as you're hidden or you have an ally within 5 feet of your target, you're going to be dealing damage almost equal to a Paladin's divine smite, but without expending any spell slots.
Good defenses, due to Uncanny Dodge and Evasion, as well as high Dex saves.
Great skills, due to Expertise and Reliable Talent. The only class better at being a skill monkey is Bard, but not by too much.
Great movement, due to Cunning Action.
The only class in the game that grants proficiency in Thieves' Tools, so Rogue is your go to for lockpicking.
Cons:
Only average hit points, with a d8 as a hit dice.
Somewhat low AC (especially at lower levels).
If you don't have Sneak Attack, rather poor damage.
Currently playing in: Quest for the Shunned City, Coliseum of Conquest, DragonDenn's Dragonlords, Shipwrecked on Fugue, Tomb of Annihilation, Razor's Lost Mine of Phandelver, The Lost Kenku & One Grung Above
Currently DMing: Princes of the Apocalypse, Out of the Abyss, Coliseum of Conquest—The Arena (Sometimes)
As a rogue, you're mainly going to want Dexterity and Con. However, Wisdom, Int and Charisma will be useful to you as well, depending on how you build your character.
Strength: This will almost always be your dump stat. You don't need this for anything, as you'll be using Dexterity for all your weapon attacks.
Dexterity: This is, hands down, your most important ability. You need it for your attack bonus, damage, and AC, as well as Dex saving throws. Dex saving throws are probably the most common type of saving throw, and often the most important.
Constitution: Always important for any character, but not as much a priority as Dexterity.
Intelligence: Useless except for Investigation. However, becomes much better if you're an Arcane Trickster.
Wisdom: Never a bad choice, especially if you go for Inquisitive. You'll also probably be one of the most perceptive members of your party (due to expertise), so a decent Wisdom bonus is good. Probably doesn't need to be higher than 14.
Charisma: Not bad, especially as a Swashbuckler. If you want to be a little more of a rakish ladies' man (*ahem* Jarlaxle), go for it.
Currently playing in: Quest for the Shunned City, Coliseum of Conquest, DragonDenn's Dragonlords, Shipwrecked on Fugue, Tomb of Annihilation, Razor's Lost Mine of Phandelver, The Lost Kenku & One Grung Above
Currently DMing: Princes of the Apocalypse, Out of the Abyss, Coliseum of Conquest—The Arena (Sometimes)
As a rogue, any race that gives you a Dex bonus is great. Other good stats include Con, Int or Wisdom, sometimes Charisma if you're a Swashbuckler. Really the only score you don't want an increase in (depending on your subclass) is Strength.
PH Races:
Dragonborn: Not worth it. Charisma isn't the best, and Strength is quite bad. Breath Weapon and a damage resistance aren't good enough benefits to make this race worth it.
Mountain Dwarf: Better than Dragonborn, but still not worth it. Dwarven Resilience is nice, but Strength isn't. If you really want to play a dwarf rogue, you're going to want to go . . .
Hill Dwarf: While there's no Dex bonus, Wisdom and Con are always welcome. Dwarven Toughness also increases your survivability a fair bit, but there are definitely better choices out there.
Dark Elf (Drow): A very good choice, especially for a Swashbuckler or other rogue who wishes to be charismatic. Faerie fire and darkness are both powerful spells if used correctly, and Sunlight Sensitivity isn't too bad considering you like to stay in the shadows anyways. However, the times that Sunlight Sensitivity can really screw you over keep this race from being amazing.
High Elf: Another very good choice, especially as an Arcane Trickster. An extra cantrip is always nice, and Elven Weapon Training gives you longbow proficiency you wouldn't have otherwise. If you're not an Arcane Trickster, you're probably better off with either drow or . . .
Wood Elf: Imo, the best elf for rogue (unless you're an AT), and possibly the best race period. Dex and Wisdom are great, Fey Ancestry can actually be very useful sometimes, and Mask of the Wild allows you to hide more often.
Forest Gnome: Quite good, especially for Arcane Tricksters. Minor illusion is a great spell to have in your arsenal, especially considering how few cantrips you'll get.
Rock Gnome: Forest gnome but worse. Con is good, but no Dex is bad. The +2 Int bonus isn't worth it, even for an Arcane Trickster. That being said, there are worse choices.
Half-Elf: Good for Swashbucklers and other Charisma based rogues. You're probably better off with the half wood elf or half drow variant, however.
Lightfoot Halfling: Great, especially for Charisma based rogues. Better hiding is great, and Lucky is fantastic. If you don't want Charisma, this becomes not quite as good.
Stout Halfling: Also a very good option, for much the same reasons. Not as good as Lightfoot unless you don't want Charisma.
Half-Orc: Why are you in the shadows and not smashing things in the front lines? Pretty much any race that gives a Strength bonus is useless to you.
Human: Meh. You're much better off with . . .
Variant Human: Rogues have access to some really great feats, and starting with one at level 1 is great.
Tiefling: Not a bad choice. No Dex bonus, but some powerful spellcasting abilities. Feral tiefling is a better choice, however.
EEPC Races:
Aarakocra: If your DM allows these, a very good choice. Flight is a great added mobility bonus to an already mobile class, and you get some nice bonuses to Dex and Wis.
Air Genasi: A good choice. Constitution and Dex are good bonuses, and [Tooltip Not Found] is a situational but still decent spell.
Fire Genasi: A meh choice for Arcane Tricksters, a bad choice for anyone else. The spellcasting and resistance isn't bad, although.
Water Genasi: Meh. Wisdom and Con aren't too good or bad, spellcasting is meh, and acid resistance is decent. There are better choices out there.
Deep Gnome: A great choice for an Arcane Trickster. Advantage on stealth checks in certain terrain is amazing, Dex and Int are good, and all the Gnome racial abilities are good.
Goliath: Useless. You don't need Strength or a Powerful Build.
VGtM Races:
Fallen Aasimar: Not worth it. Necrotic Shroud and damage resistances are great, but Charisma, Strength and no Dex aren't.
Protector Aasimar: Better than Fallen, but still not worth it. No Dex bonus.
Scourge Aasimar: Possibly the best Aasimar, but still not too great. Con is better than Wisdom, but self damage isn't. Really not worth it if you're going to be concentrating on spells (due to the self damage causing concentration checks).
Bugbear: An interesting choice, and not all together a bad one. Strength is meh, but Long-Limbed and Ambusher are useful, coupled with stealth proficiency and a Dex bonus.
Firbolg: Strength and no Dex just isn't worth it. You aren't a druid.
Goblin: A decent choice, with abilities that mesh well with rogue (although Cunning Action makes Nimble Escape useless).
Hobgoblin: Useless unless you're going Arcane Trickster. There are still better options even if you are, although the ability to be proficient in longbows is nice.
Kenku: Very decent rogues, especially if you plan on going a more support role. Expert Forgery and Mimicry are great for your Roguely duties, and you get good bonuses as well.
Kobold: Pack Tactics meshes extremely well with Sneak Attack, and you get a -2 to your dump stat. The only downside is Sunlight Sensitivity, but you want to stay in the shadows anyways. Especially great in something like an Underdark campaign, where you won't be seeing much (if any) sun.
Lizardfolk: Meh. No Dex bonus, a Str based melee, and natural armor. Only not bad because of natural armor being better even than studded leather.
Orc: Nope. Aggressive is worse cunning action, you might want Int, and you don't care about Strength.
Tabaxi: Very good. Feline Agility allows for ridiculous movement when combined with Cunning Action, a climbing speed is great, and Perception and Stealth are must have skills for Rogues.
Triton: Mostly useless spells and mostly useless bonuses. Damage resistances are always nice.
Yuan-Ti: Why is this race so good? No other race has immunity to a damage type, especially not combined with Magic Resistance and useful spellcasting. That being said, no Dex bonus isn't great. Becomes better if you're going Arcane Trickster.
SCAG Races:
Aquatic Half-Elf: Meh. As usual, not useful unless you're in an aquatic campaign.
Drow Half-Elf: Nice! Dark elves without Sunlight Sensitivity (sort of).
High Half-Elf: Better just to go full high elf, but not bad.
Wood Half-Elf: Better just to go full wood elf, but not bad.
Ghostwise Halfling: A not as useful (usually) bonus and telepathy. Not a bad choice, but both of the other halflings are better.
Feral Tiefling: Whoo boy. Tieflings but with more useful ability score bonuses, and Devil's Tongue can add some nice social spells if you want it. A flying speed is also great. If you're an Arcane Trickster, becomes up there with high elves.
MToF Races:
Githyanki: You don't care about Strength, but misty step and Decadent Mastery aren't bad.
Githzerai: Meh. Not bad, not good. Really only meant for monks.
Baalzebul Tiefling: Normal tiefling with worse spells. There's no reason to take this, pretty much ever.
Dispater Tiefling: Better than Feral Tiefling for non Arcane Tricksters. Disguise self is a great spell to have as a rogue.
Fierna Tiefling: Meh. Not worth the lack of Dex bonus.
Glasya Tiefling: Even better than Dispater Tiefling. Invisibility is amazing for obvious reasons.
Levistus Tiefling: Armor of Agathys and darkness are both good spells, but no Dex bonus isn't too great.
Mammon Tiefling: Useless spells. Pretty much completely useless spells, and no bonus to Dex. If you really want another Arcane Trickster tiefling...
Mephistopheles Tiefling: Good spells, although Feral Tiefling is probably better. Not worth it for non-Arcane Tricksters.
Zariel Tiefling: Although smite spells could be fun with sneak attack, strength isn't worth it.
Again, these races aren't necessarily always bad, just bad for rogues. Ravnica, Eberron and Tortles were not covered since I don't have those supplements, although I will say that from what I know, there are good rogue races in there.
Currently playing in: Quest for the Shunned City, Coliseum of Conquest, DragonDenn's Dragonlords, Shipwrecked on Fugue, Tomb of Annihilation, Razor's Lost Mine of Phandelver, The Lost Kenku & One Grung Above
Currently DMing: Princes of the Apocalypse, Out of the Abyss, Coliseum of Conquest—The Arena (Sometimes)
Now, let's talk about the class features you'll get. Here's some rating and info about rogues' base class features (not subclass features):
Hit Points
D8s are pretty much the average hit dice, so it's not bad. You won't be completely fragile, but you're no barbarian.
Proficiencies
Pretty much has all you need. Doesn't have medium or heavy armor, but you won't need that. Only downside is no longbow, which is unfortunate but not too hard to work around. If I'm not mistaken, rogues learn the highest number of skill at level 1 (bards actually only learn 3, and then 3 instruments), so you're good to go there. Intelligence saving throws are meh, but Dex saving throws are some of the most common in the entire game.
Expertise
Absofreakinglutely ridiculous, especially with higher levels. Taking expertise in Stealth is an absolute necessity, and Perception, [skill]Acrobatics[/spell] and Thieves' Tools are other great options. Once you have a +6 proficiency bonus (and probably Reliable Talent at that point as well), you literally can't roll lower on a stealth check than 27. Really your only weakness at that point is creatures with blind or truesight, such as dragons.
Sneak Attack
Sneak Attack is probably one of my favorite abilities of all time (which makes sense, since rogue is one of my favorite classes) (so yes, I might be a little biased), and your class defining ability. Think of it basically as much more consistent, much weaker divine smite. While you can't technically have it assured every turn, as long as you're using your amazing stealth skills and working with your teammates, you'll be golden (just like this ability). As a side note, you'll end up doing as much damage as a base level fireball with a level 15 sneak attack.
Thieves' Cant
Can very rarely be useful. That being said, you don't really need another great ability at level 1 after getting Sneak Attack and Expertise.
Cunning Action
Whoooooooooboy. Want to never get hit by AoOs again? Take an almost free Disengage. Want to be able to move and hide just after revealing your position with a perfectly placed arrow shot? Take an almost free Hide. What makes this even better is that most Rogue features don't use bonus actions, so unless you're using dual wielding, you'll almost never use your bonus action for anything else.
Ability Score Increase
This would be better except for Fighters. That being said, rogue actually has one more ASI than any other class (except for Fighters, obviously).
Uncanny Dodge
This is your first really good defensive ability, and it's a doozy. Don't be afraid to use this ability whenever possible, it's not always worth it just to save it for a big hit. Make sure that you understand one downside though—this only works with abilities that use attack rolls, not any effect that requires nothing or a saving throw. That's Evasion's job (well, saving throws at least).
Expertise (Again)
Not quite as good as it was the first time (since you should already have stealth), but now you can pick up some other ones. If you're a Charismatic rogue, might be worth choosing something like Persuasion or Deception. If not, you're probably best with Perception or Acrobatics if you don't have them already.
Evasion
This is your next big defensive ability, and it's another good one. Sure, it's only for Dexterity, but Dexterity saving throws are the most common, and often the most deadly. And, as a rogue, you're going to end up with a good bonus to that.
Reliable Talent
Ever rolled a 1 on your stealth check? Well, you won't anymore. At the level you get this, you'll most likely have a stealth bonus of +13 (20 Dex, +4 prof x2), so you'll have an automatic 23. Also very good with charisma skills, especially if you have expertise in those as well.
Blindsense
Really the first meh ability that you get. It's not bad, but it's pretty situational. If you're going to be fighting monsters like drow or duergar, definitely becomes more useful.
Slippery Mind
More saving throw proficiencies are never a bad idea, especially Wisdom saving throws. Many Wisdom saves are "save or suck" effects, such as confusion, hypnotic pattern, hold person, and many others.
Elusive
Ever been annoyed or screwed over by pack tactics? Or something akin to that, like a sahuagin's Blood Frenzy? Well, not anymore.
Stroke of Luck
Do I really need to explain why this is good? I don't think I do.
Arcane Trickster:
Type: Support, Defense, kind of anything you want it to be
Well, strap in, because this is gonna be a long one. Arcane Tricksters are the only rogues that can learn spells, and function much like Eldritch Knights. This is overall a very good class, and especially good if you want to multiclass into wizard (I could see either Bladesinger or School of Illusion/Enchantment working very well). You're mainly going to be using your spells for field control and things like suggestion or charm person, although you can always grab fireball if you really want to. I'll cover what I think about the spells you have access to in a spoiler at the end of this one.
Spellcasting
Self-explanatory, and black simply because it's not really the kind of feature you rate. Make sure to use your four non enchantment/illusion spells wisely.
Mage Hand Legerdemain
While this may seem meh at first glance, it's actually extremely useful. All those tasks that once held risk if you failed (disarming traps, pickpocketing) now are much safer. Probably the best benefit of this is the ability to disarm traps at range, or do things like open doors without getting hit by any unnoticed traps.
Magical Ambush
Considering how easy it is for you to be hidden, this is kind of ridiculous. This is especially potent with strong effects like confusion, hold person or hypnotic pattern.
Versatile Trickster
Free advantage and sneak attack is never not a good thing. Even more reliable than just hiding again.
Spell Thief
An interesting ability, but kind of situational for a capstone. Most useful for just negating the effects of the spell, rather than the actual stealing part.
Spells for Arcane Trickster:
I'm not going to cover every single spell you can learn, but I will cover all the Illusion and Enchantment ones, as well as pull out a few that I think are worth learning for your non conformist spells.
Cantrips:
Acid Splash: Meh damage, but almost unique among cantrips due to it being an AoE spell. Still not really worth taking due to the mediocre damage, especially considering it doesn't apply any debuff. (Acid Splash)
Blade Ward: Overall meh, since it costs an action. Really the only time this spell is any good is if you're a sorcerer with Quicken Spell, and you know you're gonna be taking a beating. (Blade Ward)
Booming Blade: Overall pretty decent, but considering your limited amount of cantrips, probably not the best choice. Useless to an archer, but best at keeping enemies still so they can't avoid getting flanked by your teammate, and thus avoid your sneak attack. (Booming Blade)
Chill Touch: A very good support spell with decent damage and great range, especially if you know the enemies have a healer of some sort. Necrotic damage isn't too common a resistance as well. (Chill Touch)
Control Flames: Flavorful, but useless. (Control Flames)
Create Bonfire: While the damage isn't as good as [Tooltip Not Found], it's better for controlling space. Could be good combined with (someone else's) booming blade or hold person. (Create Bonfire)
Dancing Lights: Worse more mobile light. This isn't ever necessary. (Dancing Lights)
Fire Bolt: A true classic, and for a reason. Good range, great damage, meh damage type, no other effects. (Fire Bolt)
Friends: Not bad if you have a decent Charisma score, and a fast running speed. (Friends)
Frostbite: Meh damage and range, and many high leveled monsters have good Con, but disadvantage is very powerful when used right. Not bad overall. (Frostbite)
Green-Flame Blade: The only other AoE cantrip, and not a half bad one. You're probably better off with booming blade, but it's not a bad choice. (Green-Flame Blade)
Gust: Useless, useless, and more useless. There is no circumstance in which you should ever take this cantrip. (Gust
Infestation: It's frostbite but with a worse secondary effect. There are worse choices. (Infestation)
Light: If you don't have darkvision, go for it. If you do, and even if you don't, this is probably someone else's job. (Light)
Lightning Lure: Meh. Decent for positional advantage, but not great. (Lightning Lure)
Mage hand is an automatic choice, so not gonna bother going over it.
Mending: Very situational and mostly useless, and this is probably someone else's job. (Mending)
Message: Not a bad spell, but it is pretty situational. You're probably better off with something else. (Message)
Minor Illusion: This is pretty much a must have for any self respecting Arcane Trickster. Just use your imagination with it, and you'll be golden. (Minor Illusion)
Mold Earth: Slightly more useful than the other spells like it, since it can create or destroy difficult terrain. Still not really that useful. (Mold Earth)
Poison Spray: Not bad, but mediocre range and a Con saving throw make it overall kind of meh. (Poison Spray)
Ray of Frost: Not bad. The debuff isn't too great, but it's got decent range and damage. (Ray of Frost)
Shape Water: Pretty much useless. The only possible use would be crossing a body of water by freezing it. (Shape Water)
Shocking Grasp: Not too bad a choice. You probably aren't going to be using spells at melee range, however. (Shocking Grasp)
Sword Burst: Meh. You're not going to actually use this for anything, most likely. (Sword Burst)
Thunderclap: Same as sword burst, except it doesn't look as cool and has a more commonly resisted damage type. (Thunderclap)
Toll the Dead: Not a bad choice for a damage cantrip. Actually has the potential for highest damage of any cantrip that has a range of more than 10 feet, at 1d12. (Toll the Dead)
True Strike: You can either take a turn to gain advantage on an attack, or just attack twice. It's generally better to just attack twice. The fact that this is concentration makes it even more useless. (True Strike)
1st Level:
Illusion and Enchantment Spells:
Charm Person: Decent, if you don't have a bard in your party. If you do, this isn't your job. (Charm Person)
Color Spray: Also not a bad choice. It would be better if the duration wasn't so short. (Color Spray)
DisguisePerson: Another spell that's good unless you have a bard in your party. ([Tooltip Not Found])
Illusory Script: Interesting, but not worth learning given your limited amount of spells. (Illusory Script)
Silent Image: Not too bad. Then again, you're probably better off using your slots for something else. (Silent Image)
Sleep: Good at lower levels, but at higher levels almost useless. Enemies will just have too many hit points for this to be effective. (Sleep)
Find Familiar: Familiars allow for easy advantage and easy sneak attack. Enough said. (Find Familiar)
Mage Armor: This will give you a better AC than any light armor, so a good choice until you get magic armor. (Mage Armor)
Shield: This spell is always good, no matter what class you are. (Shield)
2nd Level:
Illusion and Enchantment Spells:
Blur: Very nice, especially since you're still slightly squishy at this point. Only downside is concentration. (Blur)
Crown of Madness: This spell is quite meh. Enemies can just move so they don't have any allies within reach. (Crown of Madness)
Hold Person: This spell is great, as long as they don't get lucky on their saving throw. Automatic crit sneak attack is never a bad thing. (Hold Person)
Invisibility: Do I really need to explain why being invisible as a rogue is good? (Invisibility)
Magic Mouth: I'm not entirely sure why you'd ever need this, or even when you'd ever use it at all. (Magic Mouth)
Mirror Image: I'm not entirely sure if WotC were trolling when they created this spell or not. This strong of a protective spell? Without concentration? (Mirror Image)
Phantasmal Force: Other spells in this level outshine this, but this could still be a very fun and creative spell to pick up. (Phantasmal Force)
Shadow Blade: Another great spell to pick up. Good damage, and you're going to be hanging around in darkness a lot, allowing the advantage to give you sneak attack.
Suggestion: The sky's the limit with this spell, pretty much. Not being able to make other saves to avoid being controlled for the duration is ridiculous. (Suggestion)
Good choices for other spells:
Misty Step: A good GTFO option, if you get in too deep. You could just use a bonus action disengage or dash for pretty much the same effect, albeit with slightly worse action economy. (Misty Step)
Scorching Ray: Not a bad option, if you want another damage spell. I'd advise waiting until fireball. (Scorching Ray)
Spider Climb: This could actually be quite useful, allowing you to stage expert ambushes from the walls. Much less useful if you're a melee rogue. (Spider Climb)
3rd Level:
(Thank you Chrome for crashing and making me redo this section.)
Enchantment and Illusion:
Catnap: Not worth it. This is situational and not your job. (Catnap)
Enemies Abound: Now this is a great spell. It's especially useful against less Intelligent enemies like beasts or undead in large groups. This is basically much lower level dominate monster as long as the other PCs stay out of the way. (Enemies Abound)
Fear: Another good debuff spell. Frightened is a powerful condition, and the fact that it's AoE makes it even better. (Fear
Hypnotic Pattern: This is basically sleep but with a saving throw instead of hit point restrictions. While this can make it less reliable, it will actually be more reliable at higher levels. It's also much more reliable as an AoE. (Hypnotic Pattern)
Major Image: Interesting, but not enough so to be worth getting over all the other great spells you get at level 3. (Major Image)
Phantom Steed: While this does allow for great mobility, you have good mobility already as a rogue. There are worse choices, but there are certainly better ones as well. (Phantom Steed)
Other spells:
Fireball: What kind of wizard would you be without this? (Fireball)
Fly: Great for hit and run, especially if you disengage as a bonus action. (Fly)
Thunder Step: A great GTFO option for when you have no other options. (Thunder Step)
4th Level:
Enchantment and Illusion:
Charm Monster: Not too bad. However, not too great when measured against the rest of the spells. (Charm Monster)
Confusion: One of the greatest save-or-suck effects in all of 5e. Definitely worth getting. (Confusion)
Hallucinatory Terrain: Pretty useless. Not worth wasting your limited spells. (Hallucinatory Terrain)
Phantasmal Killer: Decent, but if you want a damage spell you'll probably just use fireball. (Phantasmal Killer)
Other spells:
Banishment: A great spell for dividing and conquering. Use when you're fighting two powerful enemies so you only have to fight one at a time. (Banishment)
Polymorph: Probably best to use this on someone else. That being said, still a great spell. Your fighter's always wanted to be a T-Rex, so oblige him. (Polymorph)
(I'll post the other subclasses in another post, since this one is so long.)
Currently playing in: Quest for the Shunned City, Coliseum of Conquest, DragonDenn's Dragonlords, Shipwrecked on Fugue, Tomb of Annihilation, Razor's Lost Mine of Phandelver, The Lost Kenku & One Grung Above
Currently DMing: Princes of the Apocalypse, Out of the Abyss, Coliseum of Conquest—The Arena (Sometimes)
Assassin makes Rogue into one of the burst damage characters in the game. Granted, these abilities only apply in certain circumstances, but I can't think of any time when possibly having 4x damage isn't a good thing.
Bonus Proficiencies
More proficiencies are always nice. Do we really care about them that much? Not really.
Assassinate
Whew boy. This is what is known as a (sub)class defining feature, and it's a doozy. Granted, you might not always have surprise, but it will be much easier with a rogue. Most monsters aren't going to be able to make a DC 20 Perception check, which isn't that hard to get with expertise in stealth.
Infiltration Expertise
Awesome! Very flavorful! And so situational that it's almost completely useless!
Imposter
You could either put 13 levels into rogue, or you could be a kenku. One seems easier than the other.
Death Strike
Assassinate, but with double the double damage. Not as good on larger creatures with better Con bonuses, but still extremely powerful. You could end up doing something like 158 with a nonmagical weapon, max dex, and at least a level 19 rogue. That's more than meteor swarm, and doesn't cost a 9th level spell slot.
Inquisitive:
Type: Damage/Support
Inquisitive is a nice, balanced class. Its damage output doesn't get quite as insane as Assassin does, but it's much more reliable. You also get some nice bonuses and the like to Perception and Insight checks for both in and out of combat situations. This class is well suited as a front-line scout in a dungeon, adept at searching for traps and ambushes.
Ear for Deceit:
Good at lower levels (albeit situational), but trash at higher levels when you'll have Reliable Talent anyways.
Eye for Detail:
Very nice, although you'll most likely be using your bonus action to Hide.
Insightful Fighting:
This is what makes this class actually useful, instead of just a jumble of situational bonuses. Basically a Swashbuckler's Rakish Audacity but better. You'll probably want expertise in Insight for this.
Steady Eye:
Very good for detecting traps, since you most likely wouldn't be moving anyways. This also encourages your party to take a slower, safer pace.
Unerring Eye:
This ability is almost really good, except for that tiny qualifier about not knowing what's actually hidden. Very meh overall.
Eye for Weakness:
As much as I love Death Strike, this is probably better simply because it's so much more reliable. 3d6 might not seem like much, but it stacks up.
Mastermind:
Type: Useless Support
Want to play a class that is almost completely situational in every single thing they do? Well, here you go. This is (imo) one of the most useless subclasses out of all the 12 classes.
Master of Intrigue
Never going to complain about bonus proficiencies. That doesn't mean they matter that much.
Master of Tactics
Now, this? This is nice. If the rest of this class was as good as this feature, or built around it, it would be a good class. Sadly, it is neither.
Insightful Manipulator
Why do you care? You could find out the same information with some digging and good enough Insight/Persuasion/Deception checks without using up a class feature.
Misdirection
Horribly situational and rather cruel to your friends, if you care about them. Really only good if you're a halfling or gnome, and even then it's still not good.
Soul of Deceit
Not bad, but how often do your thoughts get read? Probably not that often. This isn't a bad ability necessarily, it's just definitely not a level 17 subclass capstone ability.
Scout:
Type: Damage
First thing to note is that this class should probably not be chosen by a melee rogue. All of its abilities function very well with archers in mind. You're probably best off multiclassing into Fighter or Ranger with this subclass, not going full rogue.
Skirmisher
While this may not seem like much, it's actually very useful. This is basically a free way to not incur an AoO moving out of melee range to avoid ranged attack disadvantage.
Survivalist
Never going to complain about bonus proficiencies, especially when they come with free expertise. Especially good when combined with the perks a ranger gets for tracking and the like.
Superior Mobility
More speed (especially as a ranged fighter) is always good, especially when combined with Skirmisher. My only issue with this is that it doesn't feel like a level 9 ability (although tbf it's better than most level 9 rogue subclass abilities, they're usually more flavorful/situational).
Ambush Master
This is very nice, especially if you combine it with something like Gloom Stalker's Dread Ambusher. This also allows you to fulfill a little more of a support roll.
Sudden Strike
Double sneak attack? This is basically Assassinate but every turn without nearly as many qualifiers. Even just getting an automatic bonus action attack is amazing.
Swashbuckler:
Type: Damage, Social
This is one of my favorite subclasses of all time, just because of how flavorful it is (and because Jarlaxle is one of my all-time favorite favorite fantasy characters). Swashbucklers excel at moving quickly around the battlefield, and taking down isolated targets with ease. They're not the strongest class, but they're a good bet if you just want to have some fun (especially roleplay wise).
Fancy Footwork
This is basically just giving you half of the Mobile feat for free. Note that you don't actually have to hit the attack to gain the benefit, you just have to make an attack.
Rakish Audacity
Charisma modifier to initiative? Meh. However, the second part of this ability is what makes Swashbucklers distinct. This does require a fair amount of planning and battlefield control (and is easier to use if your DM is using a tactical map, most likely), but you should be able to pull it off fairly easily.
Panache
Not entirely sure why this subclass has a free compelled duel built into it, but I'll take it. Especially good with Expertise. Be careful using this so you don't end up with a pissed off big bad only attacking you when your friends are elsewhere.
Elegant Maneuver
Very situational, but can be very useful for escaping grapples. Overall still kind of meh.
Master Duelist
This ability isn't bad, but it does pale when compared with Sudden Strike, Death Strike or Eye for Weakness.
Thief:
Type: Support??????
Honestly, there's not much reason to pick this class. It has its uses, but they're very niche and situational. You're probably better off with Scout if you want a super stealthy rogue.
Fast Hands
Meh. Very situational, and not that useful. You're not often going to need to pick a lock as a bonus action.
Second-Story Work
Ehh, not really worth it. Compare this to all the other level 3 subclass abilities (even Mastermind), and it's really not good.
Supreme Sneak
Do you really not want to ever be seen? Well, we've got something for you. This is pretty overkill, considering Reliable Talent and Expertise in stealth.
Use Magic Device
Very situational, although the level restriction removal could be interesting in very specific instances.
Thief's Reflexes
Do I really need to explain why taking two turns is useful? Didn't think so.
Currently playing in: Quest for the Shunned City, Coliseum of Conquest, DragonDenn's Dragonlords, Shipwrecked on Fugue, Tomb of Annihilation, Razor's Lost Mine of Phandelver, The Lost Kenku & One Grung Above
Currently DMing: Princes of the Apocalypse, Out of the Abyss, Coliseum of Conquest—The Arena (Sometimes)
While just pure rogue is powerful on its own, Rogue is probably one of the classes that benefits the most from multiclassing, whether it's for Extra Attack, Fighting Styles, or even bard spells. Here's my evaluation of all possible classes:
Rogue/Barbarian:
Not bad. You can see my Barbarian guide for a few more details, but basically sneak attack doesn't require you to use the finesse property, just to have it.
Rogue/Cleric:
Not too bad, especially as an Inquisitive (since you're already going to need decent Wisdom). Still probably not the most optimal choice.
Rogue/Druid:
Hmmmm. Honestly not sure about this one. I can't see it being amazing, but it's probably not bad.
Rogue/Fighter:
Most weapon-based classes work will with Fighter, and Rogue is no exception. Works even better with archers, since they get access to multiple attacks and the Archery fighting style.
Rogue/Monk:
This could be interesting. If you were to do this, I'd recommend Way of Shadow monk and either Assassin or Inquisitive rogue.
Rogue/Paladin:
Strength is your dump stat, but if you want to try a dex paladin this might not be a bad choice.
Rogue/Ranger:
Another great combination for archers. You get ranger spells, as well as the Archery fighting style and Extra Attack. Your best bet for archers beside Fighter.
Rogue/Sorcerer:
Meh. You don't use charisma that much unless you're a Swashbuckler, and you're probably better off with Wizard if you want to multiclass into a spellcaster.
Rogue/Warlock:
Basically the same reasons as Sorcerer.
Rogue/Wizard:
Your best spellcasting option, as you can be an Arcane Trickster and multiclass. This will give you some much needed spell slots and spell variety. Becomes no where near as good without Arcane Trickster.
Here's a few examples of some builds you could make:
The Why Does This Deal So Much Damage Archer:
Pretty straight forward Fighter 11/Rogue 9 build. I used Scout for Skirmisher and Arcane Archer for . . .well, archery. Took Sharpshooter and Elven Accuracy, which is a ridiculous combination on any archer. You could also make this with slightly different amounts of levels in each, or use Variant Human to get Sharpshooter early (but lose out on EA). Variant Human is typically only recommended if you roll for stats and get a 17 or 18, since Sharpshooter is meh early on due to a lower attack bonus.
A Bard 15/Rogue 5 blend. Probably more appropriate in a bard guide, but thought I'd at least mention it. You've got Jack of All Trades, 6 Expertise, and enough charm to charm the money out of anyone. I also gave him War Caster (for concentration in melee, and for spell opportunity attacks) and booming blade for AoOs (from Magical Secrets). I also took shadow blade for obvious reasons, and fireball in case you need a large amount of things dead.
Ranger 15/Rogue 5 build. I used Monster Hunter as the subclass, but it would work just as well with really anything but Beast Master. Same concept as the Rogue/Fighter archer, but with ranger instead.
Currently playing in: Quest for the Shunned City, Coliseum of Conquest, DragonDenn's Dragonlords, Shipwrecked on Fugue, Tomb of Annihilation, Razor's Lost Mine of Phandelver, The Lost Kenku & One Grung Above
Currently DMing: Princes of the Apocalypse, Out of the Abyss, Coliseum of Conquest—The Arena (Sometimes)
Rogues are often assisted greatly by feats. Here are some of the best ones you can choose:
Normal feats:
Actor: Unless you're a Swashbuckler, this is not your job. If you are a Swashbuckler, still kind of meh.
Alert: Not a bad feat to take as a rogue, since you'll already have a decent init bonus. Becomes amazing if you're an Assassin due to Assassinate giving you advantage if the enemy hasn't taken a turn yet.
Athlete: This isn't your job, and doesn't really matter.
Charger: This would be decent, but you can dash as a bonus action already. Not necessary to take in really any circumstance as a rogue.
Crossbow Expert: If you want to use crossbows, go for it! Especially good with a Fighter or Ranger multiclass (I'm looking at you, Shmitty).
Defensive Duelist: Better defenses as a rogue are always nice. Not worth it as an archer or dual-wielder for obvious reasons.
Dual Wielder: If you use dual wielding, you'll pretty much always want this. Especially good with a dip into some class that can give you the Two Weapon Fighting Style.
Dungeon Delver: Very nice, if this is your job. Especially good as an Inquisitive or Scout.
Durable: Not really too worth it. You should be trying to avoid damage, not heal it.
Elemental Adept: Unless you're an Arcane Trickster, you probably don't cast spells. Even if you are, most spells you have access to don't deal elemental damage.
Grappler: Strength is your dump stat.
Great Weapon Master: Why are you using a heavy weapon?
Healer: This is not your job.
Heavily Armored: Do you want disadvantage on stealth? Didn't think so.
Heavy Armor Master: Déjà vu, anyone?
Inspiring Leader: This probably isn't your job, unless you're part bard.
Keen Mind: This doesn't need to be anyone's job.
Lightly Armored: You already have this.
Linguist: If you want this so badly, just be an Arcane Trickster and get comprehend languages.
Lucky: This is always good, no matter what.
Mage Slayer: Not bad, although heavily situational. Especially potent when combined with Evasion.
Magic Initiate: You could take this for find familiar for easy sneak attack. Not a bad option.
Martial Adept: Also not bad. You're probably best off with some combination of Parry, Precision Attack, and maybe Riposte.
Medium Armor Master: If you have proficiency in medium armor from another class, might be worth getting. Really the only reason not to wear medium armor as a rogue is lack of proficiency and disadvantage on stealth.
Mobile: Very good unless you're a Swashbuckler, in which case it's redundant.
Moderately Armored: Not worth the ASI. It's much better to get proficiency with medium armor through a Fighter or Ranger multiclass.
Mounted Combatant: If you have a horse, go for it. Perhaps your paladin could lend you his.
Observant: Very good for an Inquisitive, or maybe even a Scout.
Resilient: Not worth it. You'll get Wisdom saving throw prof eventually anyways, and that's the only one that would be worth getting.
Ritual Caster: Not bad for an Arcane Trickster. Maybe worth it simply for find familiar for other subclasses.
Savage Attacker: Meh. Not that useful, since it appears that RAW it wouldn't apply to sneak attack damage.
Sentinel: This encourages people to attack you, and you really don't that. It's other benefits make it not completely useless.
Sharpshooter: A necessity for higher level archers.
Shield Master: Why are you using a shield again? And why do you need this when you already have Evasion?
Skilled: This could be useful, but chances are you already have enough skills.
Skulker: Very useful for archers. Not as good as Elven Accuracy or Sharpshooter, but worth getting especially if you don't have access to Elven Accuracy.
Spell Sniper: You don't need this. This is someone else's job.
Tavern Brawler: This is someone else's job.
Tough: Not that bad, but this is probably someone else's job.
War Caster: Really only useful if you're an Arcane Trickster. It's decent if you are.
Weapon Master: You could use this to get longbow proficiency, but there are easier ways to do that.
Racial feats:
Bountiful Luck: If you're a halfling, go for it. This is never a bad thing.
Dragon Fear and Dragon Hide: Why are you a dragonborn?
Drow High Magic: Not too bad. It's probably better to get something else.
Dwarven Fortitude: This is not your job. Why are you a dwarf?
Elven Accuracy: I really don't understand why they made this feat so good. Just, why?
Fade Away: A nice panic option for an Arcane Trickster. You could do much worse.
Fey Teleportation: Teleportation is nice, but why are you a high elf?
Flames of Phlegethos: If you have a decent amount of fire spells as an Arcane Trickster for some reason, go for it. Just try not to hawk up spitballs on your DM while trying to say this.
Infernal Constitution: This isn't your job.
Orcish Fury: Why are you a half-orc?
Prodigy: Not a bad idea, although also not necessary given your already ridiculous amount of skills.
Second Chance: Do I really need to explain why this is good?
Squat Nimbleness: Unless you're getting grappled a lot, Mobile gives you more speed and better benefits.
Svirfneblin Magic: These are all good spells, and Svirfneblin make good rogues. Not a bad option.
Wood Elf Magic: Pass without trace is absolutely ridiculous on a rogue, and longstrider isn't bad. Go for it, if you have ASIs left after taking Elven Accuracy.
Currently playing in: Quest for the Shunned City, Coliseum of Conquest, DragonDenn's Dragonlords, Shipwrecked on Fugue, Tomb of Annihilation, Razor's Lost Mine of Phandelver, The Lost Kenku & One Grung Above
Currently DMing: Princes of the Apocalypse, Out of the Abyss, Coliseum of Conquest—The Arena (Sometimes)
Currently playing in: Quest for the Shunned City, Coliseum of Conquest, DragonDenn's Dragonlords, Shipwrecked on Fugue, Tomb of Annihilation, Razor's Lost Mine of Phandelver, The Lost Kenku & One Grung Above
Currently DMing: Princes of the Apocalypse, Out of the Abyss, Coliseum of Conquest—The Arena (Sometimes)
Thanks! Bard is winning now, but was not when I finished this guide and started the next one. Bard is on the next poll though, and seems like it'll win so far.
Currently playing in: Quest for the Shunned City, Coliseum of Conquest, DragonDenn's Dragonlords, Shipwrecked on Fugue, Tomb of Annihilation, Razor's Lost Mine of Phandelver, The Lost Kenku & One Grung Above
Currently DMing: Princes of the Apocalypse, Out of the Abyss, Coliseum of Conquest—The Arena (Sometimes)
Pretty straight forward Fighter 11/Rogue 9 build. I used Scout for Skirmisher and Arcane Archer for . . .well, archery. Took Sharpshooter and Elven Accuracy, which is a ridiculous combination on any archer. You could also make this with slightly different amounts of levels in each, or use Variant Human to get Sharpshooter early (but lose out on EA). Variant Human is typically only recommended if you roll for stats and get a 17 or 18, since Sharpshooter is meh early on due to a lower attack bonus.
I chose Arcane Archer mostly for shadow arrow, or whatever it’s called. Samurai would work just as well, but Arcane Archer is just a little more focused around, well, archery.
Currently playing in: Quest for the Shunned City, Coliseum of Conquest, DragonDenn's Dragonlords, Shipwrecked on Fugue, Tomb of Annihilation, Razor's Lost Mine of Phandelver, The Lost Kenku & One Grung Above
Currently DMing: Princes of the Apocalypse, Out of the Abyss, Coliseum of Conquest—The Arena (Sometimes)
Currently playing in: Quest for the Shunned City, Coliseum of Conquest, DragonDenn's Dragonlords, Shipwrecked on Fugue, Tomb of Annihilation, Razor's Lost Mine of Phandelver, The Lost Kenku & One Grung Above
Currently DMing: Princes of the Apocalypse, Out of the Abyss, Coliseum of Conquest—The Arena (Sometimes)
Currently playing in: Quest for the Shunned City, Coliseum of Conquest, DragonDenn's Dragonlords, Shipwrecked on Fugue, Tomb of Annihilation, Razor's Lost Mine of Phandelver, The Lost Kenku & One Grung Above
Currently DMing: Princes of the Apocalypse, Out of the Abyss, Coliseum of Conquest—The Arena (Sometimes)
Thank you so much for this. Has helped me no end in choosing how to set up my new rogue.
Um....is it far too late and far too rude to point out this? [skill]Acrobatics[/spell] is in the Rogue Base Class Features (when you click on the spoiler). Should it be [skill]Acrobatics[ /skill ] (obviously without the spaces)?
Fey Teleportation asked why you would play a high elf when you rated High Elf so umm well “High”, for an Arcane Trickster. Learning the Misty Step here frees up your non illusion/enchantment selection for something else. Since it is on the wizard spell list you can cast it for spell slots after you use your free cast.
Ritual Casting should be gold since as noted above you don’t get many non illusion/enchantment spells. This feat lets you double the spells you have access to and only Phantom Steed is illusion afaik.
3rd level put Fireball at Gold. Without the spell slots to cast this at higher level it is going to be lacklustre by the time you can cast it.
The true Gold level 3 spell is Haste. Having haste self cast gives you consistent twice a turn sneak attack which is worth way more then Fireball or Fly imo. (Bonus hide - hasted SA - ready attack for familiar’s help action - SA a second time).
Currently playing in: Quest for the Shunned City, Coliseum of Conquest, DragonDenn's Dragonlords, Shipwrecked on Fugue, Tomb of Annihilation, Razor's Lost Mine of Phandelver, The Lost Kenku & One Grung Above
Currently DMing: Princes of the Apocalypse, Out of the Abyss, Coliseum of Conquest—The Arena (Sometimes)
I am not sure why you rate Booming Blade as only blue. It is hands down the best cantrip (maybe even spell) for a rogue. You are only making one attack anyway, so having BB just increases your dpr. Then you throw in cunning action (disengage as a BA) and they have to take even MORE damage if they want to attack you with melee (you would be surprised how many monsters lack ranged attacks, and it is still great for control. you can become a pseudo tank), then combined with warcaster? oh boy. I am phil swift, and to show you the power of booming blade i attacked your enemies. Now THATs a lotta damage.
How to Become One with the Shadows: A Guide to the Rogue
So, I decided to try my hand at making some character optimization guides, starting with Barbarian. I’ll mostly be focusing on optimization and not roleplay, so there’s always more room to add flavor to your character. Now, let’s cut right to the punch/knife/arrow.
This thread will be updated every so often. I won't have all of this ready right away, so I'll be adding to it in individual posts.
Throughout this guide, I'll be using colors to denote how useful a certain ability/race etc. is. Here's the scale:
Gold is a must have, at least in my opinion.
Green is a very good ability, but could maybe be replaced with something else.
Blue is a solid choice, but there are perhaps better ones.
Black is just average.
Red is most likely useless, or almost useless.
Gray is something that is rarely useful, but can be surprisingly good in some situations.
Rolls for later that you don't need to worry about:
Ability scores: 11 5 14 11 14 1527Ability scores: 8 16 11 13 12 15Ability scores: 8 8 11 10 12 11Ability scores: 17 13 12 13 16 12 (sigh)Ability scores: 15 7 14 7 14 16Ability scores: 10 10 15 9 11 14Ability scores: 13 11 17 14 14 16Ability scores: 15 14 9 14 10 9Ability scores: 13 15 12 6 13 11
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Class Guides: Barbarian, Rogue, Sorcerer, Bard General Guides: PvP
Currently playing in: Quest for the Shunned City, Coliseum of Conquest, DragonDenn's Dragonlords, Shipwrecked on Fugue, Tomb of Annihilation, Razor's Lost Mine of Phandelver, The Lost Kenku & One Grung Above
Currently DMing: Princes of the Apocalypse, Out of the Abyss, Coliseum of Conquest—The Arena (Sometimes)
What is a Rogue?
Rogue is a stealth oriented class that performs well as both a melee fighter or a ranged fighter. Unlike most melee classes, it doesn't get Extra Attack, but it makes up for that in terms of damage with Sneak Attack. Rogue's main strengths are incredibly consistent burst damage, and surprisingly good defenses.
Pros:
Cons:
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Class Guides: Barbarian, Rogue, Sorcerer, Bard General Guides: PvP
Currently playing in: Quest for the Shunned City, Coliseum of Conquest, DragonDenn's Dragonlords, Shipwrecked on Fugue, Tomb of Annihilation, Razor's Lost Mine of Phandelver, The Lost Kenku & One Grung Above
Currently DMing: Princes of the Apocalypse, Out of the Abyss, Coliseum of Conquest—The Arena (Sometimes)
Ability Scores
As a rogue, you're mainly going to want Dexterity and Con. However, Wisdom, Int and Charisma will be useful to you as well, depending on how you build your character.
Strength: This will almost always be your dump stat. You don't need this for anything, as you'll be using Dexterity for all your weapon attacks.
Dexterity: This is, hands down, your most important ability. You need it for your attack bonus, damage, and AC, as well as Dex saving throws. Dex saving throws are probably the most common type of saving throw, and often the most important.
Constitution: Always important for any character, but not as much a priority as Dexterity.
Intelligence: Useless except for Investigation. However, becomes much better if you're an Arcane Trickster.
Wisdom: Never a bad choice, especially if you go for Inquisitive. You'll also probably be one of the most perceptive members of your party (due to expertise), so a decent Wisdom bonus is good. Probably doesn't need to be higher than 14.
Charisma: Not bad, especially as a Swashbuckler. If you want to be a little more of a rakish ladies' man (*ahem* Jarlaxle), go for it.
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Class Guides: Barbarian, Rogue, Sorcerer, Bard General Guides: PvP
Currently playing in: Quest for the Shunned City, Coliseum of Conquest, DragonDenn's Dragonlords, Shipwrecked on Fugue, Tomb of Annihilation, Razor's Lost Mine of Phandelver, The Lost Kenku & One Grung Above
Currently DMing: Princes of the Apocalypse, Out of the Abyss, Coliseum of Conquest—The Arena (Sometimes)
Races
As a rogue, any race that gives you a Dex bonus is great. Other good stats include Con, Int or Wisdom, sometimes Charisma if you're a Swashbuckler. Really the only score you don't want an increase in (depending on your subclass) is Strength.
PH Races:
Dragonborn: Not worth it. Charisma isn't the best, and Strength is quite bad. Breath Weapon and a damage resistance aren't good enough benefits to make this race worth it.
Mountain Dwarf: Better than Dragonborn, but still not worth it. Dwarven Resilience is nice, but Strength isn't. If you really want to play a dwarf rogue, you're going to want to go . . .
Hill Dwarf: While there's no Dex bonus, Wisdom and Con are always welcome. Dwarven Toughness also increases your survivability a fair bit, but there are definitely better choices out there.
Dark Elf (Drow): A very good choice, especially for a Swashbuckler or other rogue who wishes to be charismatic. Faerie fire and darkness are both powerful spells if used correctly, and Sunlight Sensitivity isn't too bad considering you like to stay in the shadows anyways. However, the times that Sunlight Sensitivity can really screw you over keep this race from being amazing.
High Elf: Another very good choice, especially as an Arcane Trickster. An extra cantrip is always nice, and Elven Weapon Training gives you longbow proficiency you wouldn't have otherwise. If you're not an Arcane Trickster, you're probably better off with either drow or . . .
Wood Elf: Imo, the best elf for rogue (unless you're an AT), and possibly the best race period. Dex and Wisdom are great, Fey Ancestry can actually be very useful sometimes, and Mask of the Wild allows you to hide more often.
Forest Gnome: Quite good, especially for Arcane Tricksters. Minor illusion is a great spell to have in your arsenal, especially considering how few cantrips you'll get.
Rock Gnome: Forest gnome but worse. Con is good, but no Dex is bad. The +2 Int bonus isn't worth it, even for an Arcane Trickster. That being said, there are worse choices.
Half-Elf: Good for Swashbucklers and other Charisma based rogues. You're probably better off with the half wood elf or half drow variant, however.
Lightfoot Halfling: Great, especially for Charisma based rogues. Better hiding is great, and Lucky is fantastic. If you don't want Charisma, this becomes not quite as good.
Stout Halfling: Also a very good option, for much the same reasons. Not as good as Lightfoot unless you don't want Charisma.
Half-Orc: Why are you in the shadows and not smashing things in the front lines? Pretty much any race that gives a Strength bonus is useless to you.
Human: Meh. You're much better off with . . .
Variant Human: Rogues have access to some really great feats, and starting with one at level 1 is great.
Tiefling: Not a bad choice. No Dex bonus, but some powerful spellcasting abilities. Feral tiefling is a better choice, however.
EEPC Races:
Aarakocra: If your DM allows these, a very good choice. Flight is a great added mobility bonus to an already mobile class, and you get some nice bonuses to Dex and Wis.
Air Genasi: A good choice. Constitution and Dex are good bonuses, and [Tooltip Not Found] is a situational but still decent spell.
Earth Genasi: Useless, except for pass without trace.
Fire Genasi: A meh choice for Arcane Tricksters, a bad choice for anyone else. The spellcasting and resistance isn't bad, although.
Water Genasi: Meh. Wisdom and Con aren't too good or bad, spellcasting is meh, and acid resistance is decent. There are better choices out there.
Deep Gnome: A great choice for an Arcane Trickster. Advantage on stealth checks in certain terrain is amazing, Dex and Int are good, and all the Gnome racial abilities are good.
Goliath: Useless. You don't need Strength or a Powerful Build.
VGtM Races:
Fallen Aasimar: Not worth it. Necrotic Shroud and damage resistances are great, but Charisma, Strength and no Dex aren't.
Protector Aasimar: Better than Fallen, but still not worth it. No Dex bonus.
Scourge Aasimar: Possibly the best Aasimar, but still not too great. Con is better than Wisdom, but self damage isn't. Really not worth it if you're going to be concentrating on spells (due to the self damage causing concentration checks).
Bugbear: An interesting choice, and not all together a bad one. Strength is meh, but Long-Limbed and Ambusher are useful, coupled with stealth proficiency and a Dex bonus.
Firbolg: Strength and no Dex just isn't worth it. You aren't a druid.
Goblin: A decent choice, with abilities that mesh well with rogue (although Cunning Action makes Nimble Escape useless).
Hobgoblin: Useless unless you're going Arcane Trickster. There are still better options even if you are, although the ability to be proficient in longbows is nice.
Kenku: Very decent rogues, especially if you plan on going a more support role. Expert Forgery and Mimicry are great for your Roguely duties, and you get good bonuses as well.
Kobold: Pack Tactics meshes extremely well with Sneak Attack, and you get a -2 to your dump stat. The only downside is Sunlight Sensitivity, but you want to stay in the shadows anyways. Especially great in something like an Underdark campaign, where you won't be seeing much (if any) sun.
Lizardfolk: Meh. No Dex bonus, a Str based melee, and natural armor. Only not bad because of natural armor being better even than studded leather.
Orc: Nope. Aggressive is worse cunning action, you might want Int, and you don't care about Strength.
Tabaxi: Very good. Feline Agility allows for ridiculous movement when combined with Cunning Action, a climbing speed is great, and Perception and Stealth are must have skills for Rogues.
Triton: Mostly useless spells and mostly useless bonuses. Damage resistances are always nice.
Yuan-Ti: Why is this race so good? No other race has immunity to a damage type, especially not combined with Magic Resistance and useful spellcasting. That being said, no Dex bonus isn't great. Becomes better if you're going Arcane Trickster.
SCAG Races:
Aquatic Half-Elf: Meh. As usual, not useful unless you're in an aquatic campaign.
Drow Half-Elf: Nice! Dark elves without Sunlight Sensitivity (sort of).
High Half-Elf: Better just to go full high elf, but not bad.
Wood Half-Elf: Better just to go full wood elf, but not bad.
Ghostwise Halfling: A not as useful (usually) bonus and telepathy. Not a bad choice, but both of the other halflings are better.
Feral Tiefling: Whoo boy. Tieflings but with more useful ability score bonuses, and Devil's Tongue can add some nice social spells if you want it. A flying speed is also great. If you're an Arcane Trickster, becomes up there with high elves.
MToF Races:
Githyanki: You don't care about Strength, but misty step and Decadent Mastery aren't bad.
Githzerai: Meh. Not bad, not good. Really only meant for monks.
Baalzebul Tiefling: Normal tiefling with worse spells. There's no reason to take this, pretty much ever.
Dispater Tiefling: Better than Feral Tiefling for non Arcane Tricksters. Disguise self is a great spell to have as a rogue.
Fierna Tiefling: Meh. Not worth the lack of Dex bonus.
Glasya Tiefling: Even better than Dispater Tiefling. Invisibility is amazing for obvious reasons.
Levistus Tiefling: Armor of Agathys and darkness are both good spells, but no Dex bonus isn't too great.
Mammon Tiefling: Useless spells. Pretty much completely useless spells, and no bonus to Dex. If you really want another Arcane Trickster tiefling...
Mephistopheles Tiefling: Good spells, although Feral Tiefling is probably better. Not worth it for non-Arcane Tricksters.
Zariel Tiefling: Although smite spells could be fun with sneak attack, strength isn't worth it.
Again, these races aren't necessarily always bad, just bad for rogues. Ravnica, Eberron and Tortles were not covered since I don't have those supplements, although I will say that from what I know, there are good rogue races in there.
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Class Guides: Barbarian, Rogue, Sorcerer, Bard General Guides: PvP
Currently playing in: Quest for the Shunned City, Coliseum of Conquest, DragonDenn's Dragonlords, Shipwrecked on Fugue, Tomb of Annihilation, Razor's Lost Mine of Phandelver, The Lost Kenku & One Grung Above
Currently DMing: Princes of the Apocalypse, Out of the Abyss, Coliseum of Conquest—The Arena (Sometimes)
Class Features
Now, let's talk about the class features you'll get. Here's some rating and info about rogues' base class features (not subclass features):
Hit Points
D8s are pretty much the average hit dice, so it's not bad. You won't be completely fragile, but you're no barbarian.
Proficiencies
Pretty much has all you need. Doesn't have medium or heavy armor, but you won't need that. Only downside is no longbow, which is unfortunate but not too hard to work around. If I'm not mistaken, rogues learn the highest number of skill at level 1 (bards actually only learn 3, and then 3 instruments), so you're good to go there. Intelligence saving throws are meh, but Dex saving throws are some of the most common in the entire game.
Expertise
Absofreakinglutely ridiculous, especially with higher levels. Taking expertise in Stealth is an absolute necessity, and Perception, [skill]Acrobatics[/spell] and Thieves' Tools are other great options. Once you have a +6 proficiency bonus (and probably Reliable Talent at that point as well), you literally can't roll lower on a stealth check than 27. Really your only weakness at that point is creatures with blind or truesight, such as dragons.
Sneak Attack
Sneak Attack is probably one of my favorite abilities of all time (which makes sense, since rogue is one of my favorite classes) (so yes, I might be a little biased), and your class defining ability. Think of it basically as much more consistent, much weaker divine smite. While you can't technically have it assured every turn, as long as you're using your amazing stealth skills and working with your teammates, you'll be golden (just like this ability). As a side note, you'll end up doing as much damage as a base level fireball with a level 15 sneak attack.
Thieves' Cant
Can very rarely be useful. That being said, you don't really need another great ability at level 1 after getting Sneak Attack and Expertise.
Cunning Action
Whoooooooooboy. Want to never get hit by AoOs again? Take an almost free Disengage. Want to be able to move and hide just after revealing your position with a perfectly placed arrow shot? Take an almost free Hide. What makes this even better is that most Rogue features don't use bonus actions, so unless you're using dual wielding, you'll almost never use your bonus action for anything else.
Ability Score Increase
This would be better except for Fighters. That being said, rogue actually has one more ASI than any other class (except for Fighters, obviously).
Uncanny Dodge
This is your first really good defensive ability, and it's a doozy. Don't be afraid to use this ability whenever possible, it's not always worth it just to save it for a big hit. Make sure that you understand one downside though—this only works with abilities that use attack rolls, not any effect that requires nothing or a saving throw. That's Evasion's job (well, saving throws at least).
Expertise (Again)
Not quite as good as it was the first time (since you should already have stealth), but now you can pick up some other ones. If you're a Charismatic rogue, might be worth choosing something like Persuasion or Deception. If not, you're probably best with Perception or Acrobatics if you don't have them already.
Evasion
This is your next big defensive ability, and it's another good one. Sure, it's only for Dexterity, but Dexterity saving throws are the most common, and often the most deadly. And, as a rogue, you're going to end up with a good bonus to that.
Reliable Talent
Ever rolled a 1 on your stealth check? Well, you won't anymore. At the level you get this, you'll most likely have a stealth bonus of +13 (20 Dex, +4 prof x2), so you'll have an automatic 23. Also very good with charisma skills, especially if you have expertise in those as well.
Blindsense
Really the first meh ability that you get. It's not bad, but it's pretty situational. If you're going to be fighting monsters like drow or duergar, definitely becomes more useful.
Slippery Mind
More saving throw proficiencies are never a bad idea, especially Wisdom saving throws. Many Wisdom saves are "save or suck" effects, such as confusion, hypnotic pattern, hold person, and many others.
Elusive
Ever been annoyed or screwed over by pack tactics? Or something akin to that, like a sahuagin's Blood Frenzy? Well, not anymore.
Stroke of Luck
Do I really need to explain why this is good? I don't think I do.
Arcane Trickster:
Type: Support, Defense, kind of anything you want it to be
Well, strap in, because this is gonna be a long one. Arcane Tricksters are the only rogues that can learn spells, and function much like Eldritch Knights. This is overall a very good class, and especially good if you want to multiclass into wizard (I could see either Bladesinger or School of Illusion/Enchantment working very well). You're mainly going to be using your spells for field control and things like suggestion or charm person, although you can always grab fireball if you really want to. I'll cover what I think about the spells you have access to in a spoiler at the end of this one.
Spellcasting
Self-explanatory, and black simply because it's not really the kind of feature you rate. Make sure to use your four non enchantment/illusion spells wisely.
Mage Hand Legerdemain
While this may seem meh at first glance, it's actually extremely useful. All those tasks that once held risk if you failed (disarming traps, pickpocketing) now are much safer. Probably the best benefit of this is the ability to disarm traps at range, or do things like open doors without getting hit by any unnoticed traps.
Magical Ambush
Considering how easy it is for you to be hidden, this is kind of ridiculous. This is especially potent with strong effects like confusion, hold person or hypnotic pattern.
Versatile Trickster
Free advantage and sneak attack is never not a good thing. Even more reliable than just hiding again.
Spell Thief
An interesting ability, but kind of situational for a capstone. Most useful for just negating the effects of the spell, rather than the actual stealing part.
Spells for Arcane Trickster:
I'm not going to cover every single spell you can learn, but I will cover all the Illusion and Enchantment ones, as well as pull out a few that I think are worth learning for your non conformist spells.
Cantrips:
Acid Splash: Meh damage, but almost unique among cantrips due to it being an AoE spell. Still not really worth taking due to the mediocre damage, especially considering it doesn't apply any debuff. (Acid Splash)
Blade Ward: Overall meh, since it costs an action. Really the only time this spell is any good is if you're a sorcerer with Quicken Spell, and you know you're gonna be taking a beating. (Blade Ward)
Booming Blade: Overall pretty decent, but considering your limited amount of cantrips, probably not the best choice. Useless to an archer, but best at keeping enemies still so they can't avoid getting flanked by your teammate, and thus avoid your sneak attack. (Booming Blade)
Chill Touch: A very good support spell with decent damage and great range, especially if you know the enemies have a healer of some sort. Necrotic damage isn't too common a resistance as well. (Chill Touch)
Control Flames: Flavorful, but useless. (Control Flames)
Create Bonfire: While the damage isn't as good as [Tooltip Not Found], it's better for controlling space. Could be good combined with (someone else's) booming blade or hold person. (Create Bonfire)
Dancing Lights: Worse more mobile light. This isn't ever necessary. (Dancing Lights)
Fire Bolt: A true classic, and for a reason. Good range, great damage, meh damage type, no other effects. (Fire Bolt)
Friends: Not bad if you have a decent Charisma score, and a fast running speed. (Friends)
Frostbite: Meh damage and range, and many high leveled monsters have good Con, but disadvantage is very powerful when used right. Not bad overall. (Frostbite)
Green-Flame Blade: The only other AoE cantrip, and not a half bad one. You're probably better off with booming blade, but it's not a bad choice. (Green-Flame Blade)
Gust: Useless, useless, and more useless. There is no circumstance in which you should ever take this cantrip. (Gust
Infestation: It's frostbite but with a worse secondary effect. There are worse choices. (Infestation)
Light: If you don't have darkvision, go for it. If you do, and even if you don't, this is probably someone else's job. (Light)
Lightning Lure: Meh. Decent for positional advantage, but not great. (Lightning Lure)
Mage hand is an automatic choice, so not gonna bother going over it.
Mending: Very situational and mostly useless, and this is probably someone else's job. (Mending)
Message: Not a bad spell, but it is pretty situational. You're probably better off with something else. (Message)
Minor Illusion: This is pretty much a must have for any self respecting Arcane Trickster. Just use your imagination with it, and you'll be golden. (Minor Illusion)
Mold Earth: Slightly more useful than the other spells like it, since it can create or destroy difficult terrain. Still not really that useful. (Mold Earth)
Poison Spray: Not bad, but mediocre range and a Con saving throw make it overall kind of meh. (Poison Spray)
Prestidigitation: Like minor illusion but worse. There are still some creative applications for it. (Prestidigitation)
Ray of Frost: Not bad. The debuff isn't too great, but it's got decent range and damage. (Ray of Frost)
Shape Water: Pretty much useless. The only possible use would be crossing a body of water by freezing it. (Shape Water)
Shocking Grasp: Not too bad a choice. You probably aren't going to be using spells at melee range, however. (Shocking Grasp)
Sword Burst: Meh. You're not going to actually use this for anything, most likely. (Sword Burst)
Thunderclap: Same as sword burst, except it doesn't look as cool and has a more commonly resisted damage type. (Thunderclap)
Toll the Dead: Not a bad choice for a damage cantrip. Actually has the potential for highest damage of any cantrip that has a range of more than 10 feet, at 1d12. (Toll the Dead)
True Strike: You can either take a turn to gain advantage on an attack, or just attack twice. It's generally better to just attack twice. The fact that this is concentration makes it even more useless. (True Strike)
1st Level:
Illusion and Enchantment Spells:
Charm Person: Decent, if you don't have a bard in your party. If you do, this isn't your job. (Charm Person)
Color Spray: Also not a bad choice. It would be better if the duration wasn't so short. (Color Spray)
Disguise Person: Another spell that's good unless you have a bard in your party. ([Tooltip Not Found])
Illusory Script: Interesting, but not worth learning given your limited amount of spells. (Illusory Script)
Silent Image: Not too bad. Then again, you're probably better off using your slots for something else. (Silent Image)
Sleep: Good at lower levels, but at higher levels almost useless. Enemies will just have too many hit points for this to be effective. (Sleep)
Tasha's Hideous Laughter: A very good debuff spell. Always a solid choice. (Tasha's Hideous Laughter, Hideous Laughter)
Good choices for other spells:
Find Familiar: Familiars allow for easy advantage and easy sneak attack. Enough said. (Find Familiar)
Mage Armor: This will give you a better AC than any light armor, so a good choice until you get magic armor. (Mage Armor)
Shield: This spell is always good, no matter what class you are. (Shield)
2nd Level:
Illusion and Enchantment Spells:
Blur: Very nice, especially since you're still slightly squishy at this point. Only downside is concentration. (Blur)
Crown of Madness: This spell is quite meh. Enemies can just move so they don't have any allies within reach. (Crown of Madness)
Hold Person: This spell is great, as long as they don't get lucky on their saving throw. Automatic crit sneak attack is never a bad thing. (Hold Person)
Invisibility: Do I really need to explain why being invisible as a rogue is good? (Invisibility)
Magic Mouth: I'm not entirely sure why you'd ever need this, or even when you'd ever use it at all. (Magic Mouth)
Mirror Image: I'm not entirely sure if WotC were trolling when they created this spell or not. This strong of a protective spell? Without concentration? (Mirror Image)
Nystul's Magic Aura: Might have some very niche uses, but you probably won't use it. At all. (Nystul's Magic Aura, Arcanist's Magic Aura)
Phantasmal Force: Other spells in this level outshine this, but this could still be a very fun and creative spell to pick up. (Phantasmal Force)
Shadow Blade: Another great spell to pick up. Good damage, and you're going to be hanging around in darkness a lot, allowing the advantage to give you sneak attack.
Suggestion: The sky's the limit with this spell, pretty much. Not being able to make other saves to avoid being controlled for the duration is ridiculous. (Suggestion)
Good choices for other spells:
Misty Step: A good GTFO option, if you get in too deep. You could just use a bonus action disengage or dash for pretty much the same effect, albeit with slightly worse action economy. (Misty Step)
Scorching Ray: Not a bad option, if you want another damage spell. I'd advise waiting until fireball. (Scorching Ray)
Spider Climb: This could actually be quite useful, allowing you to stage expert ambushes from the walls. Much less useful if you're a melee rogue. (Spider Climb)
3rd Level:
(Thank you Chrome for crashing and making me redo this section.)
Enchantment and Illusion:
Catnap: Not worth it. This is situational and not your job. (Catnap)
Enemies Abound: Now this is a great spell. It's especially useful against less Intelligent enemies like beasts or undead in large groups. This is basically much lower level dominate monster as long as the other PCs stay out of the way. (Enemies Abound)
Fear: Another good debuff spell. Frightened is a powerful condition, and the fact that it's AoE makes it even better. (Fear
Hypnotic Pattern: This is basically sleep but with a saving throw instead of hit point restrictions. While this can make it less reliable, it will actually be more reliable at higher levels. It's also much more reliable as an AoE. (Hypnotic Pattern)
Major Image: Interesting, but not enough so to be worth getting over all the other great spells you get at level 3. (Major Image)
Phantom Steed: While this does allow for great mobility, you have good mobility already as a rogue. There are worse choices, but there are certainly better ones as well. (Phantom Steed)
Other spells:
Fireball: What kind of wizard would you be without this? (Fireball)
Fly: Great for hit and run, especially if you disengage as a bonus action. (Fly)
Thunder Step: A great GTFO option for when you have no other options. (Thunder Step)
4th Level:
Enchantment and Illusion:
Charm Monster: Not too bad. However, not too great when measured against the rest of the spells. (Charm Monster)
Confusion: One of the greatest save-or-suck effects in all of 5e. Definitely worth getting. (Confusion)
Greater Invisibility: You wanted a better invisibility? Well, here you go. (Greater Invisibility)
Hallucinatory Terrain: Pretty useless. Not worth wasting your limited spells. (Hallucinatory Terrain)
Phantasmal Killer: Decent, but if you want a damage spell you'll probably just use fireball. (Phantasmal Killer)
Other spells:
Banishment: A great spell for dividing and conquering. Use when you're fighting two powerful enemies so you only have to fight one at a time. (Banishment)
Polymorph: Probably best to use this on someone else. That being said, still a great spell. Your fighter's always wanted to be a T-Rex, so oblige him. (Polymorph)
(I'll post the other subclasses in another post, since this one is so long.)
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Class Guides: Barbarian, Rogue, Sorcerer, Bard General Guides: PvP
Currently playing in: Quest for the Shunned City, Coliseum of Conquest, DragonDenn's Dragonlords, Shipwrecked on Fugue, Tomb of Annihilation, Razor's Lost Mine of Phandelver, The Lost Kenku & One Grung Above
Currently DMing: Princes of the Apocalypse, Out of the Abyss, Coliseum of Conquest—The Arena (Sometimes)
Class Features Cont.
Assassin:
Type: Damage
Assassin makes Rogue into one of the burst damage characters in the game. Granted, these abilities only apply in certain circumstances, but I can't think of any time when possibly having 4x damage isn't a good thing.
Bonus Proficiencies
More proficiencies are always nice. Do we really care about them that much? Not really.
Assassinate
Whew boy. This is what is known as a (sub)class defining feature, and it's a doozy. Granted, you might not always have surprise, but it will be much easier with a rogue. Most monsters aren't going to be able to make a DC 20 Perception check, which isn't that hard to get with expertise in stealth.
Infiltration Expertise
Awesome! Very flavorful! And so situational that it's almost completely useless!
Imposter
You could either put 13 levels into rogue, or you could be a kenku. One seems easier than the other.
Death Strike
Assassinate, but with double the double damage. Not as good on larger creatures with better Con bonuses, but still extremely powerful. You could end up doing something like 158 with a nonmagical weapon, max dex, and at least a level 19 rogue. That's more than meteor swarm, and doesn't cost a 9th level spell slot.
Inquisitive:
Type: Damage/Support
Inquisitive is a nice, balanced class. Its damage output doesn't get quite as insane as Assassin does, but it's much more reliable. You also get some nice bonuses and the like to Perception and Insight checks for both in and out of combat situations. This class is well suited as a front-line scout in a dungeon, adept at searching for traps and ambushes.
Ear for Deceit:
Good at lower levels (albeit situational), but trash at higher levels when you'll have Reliable Talent anyways.
Eye for Detail:
Very nice, although you'll most likely be using your bonus action to Hide.
Insightful Fighting:
This is what makes this class actually useful, instead of just a jumble of situational bonuses. Basically a Swashbuckler's Rakish Audacity but better. You'll probably want expertise in Insight for this.
Steady Eye:
Very good for detecting traps, since you most likely wouldn't be moving anyways. This also encourages your party to take a slower, safer pace.
Unerring Eye:
This ability is almost really good, except for that tiny qualifier about not knowing what's actually hidden. Very meh overall.
Eye for Weakness:
As much as I love Death Strike, this is probably better simply because it's so much more reliable. 3d6 might not seem like much, but it stacks up.
Mastermind:
Type:
UselessSupportWant to play a class that is almost completely situational in every single thing they do? Well, here you go. This is (imo) one of the most useless subclasses out of all the 12 classes.
Master of Intrigue
Never going to complain about bonus proficiencies. That doesn't mean they matter that much.
Master of Tactics
Now, this? This is nice. If the rest of this class was as good as this feature, or built around it, it would be a good class. Sadly, it is neither.
Insightful Manipulator
Why do you care? You could find out the same information with some digging and good enough Insight/Persuasion/Deception checks without using up a class feature.
Misdirection
Horribly situational and rather cruel to your friends, if you care about them. Really only good if you're a halfling or gnome, and even then it's still not good.
Soul of Deceit
Not bad, but how often do your thoughts get read? Probably not that often. This isn't a bad ability necessarily, it's just definitely not a level 17 subclass capstone ability.
Scout:
Type: Damage
First thing to note is that this class should probably not be chosen by a melee rogue. All of its abilities function very well with archers in mind. You're probably best off multiclassing into Fighter or Ranger with this subclass, not going full rogue.
Skirmisher
While this may not seem like much, it's actually very useful. This is basically a free way to not incur an AoO moving out of melee range to avoid ranged attack disadvantage.
Survivalist
Never going to complain about bonus proficiencies, especially when they come with free expertise. Especially good when combined with the perks a ranger gets for tracking and the like.
Superior Mobility
More speed (especially as a ranged fighter) is always good, especially when combined with Skirmisher. My only issue with this is that it doesn't feel like a level 9 ability (although tbf it's better than most level 9 rogue subclass abilities, they're usually more flavorful/situational).
Ambush Master
This is very nice, especially if you combine it with something like Gloom Stalker's Dread Ambusher. This also allows you to fulfill a little more of a support roll.
Sudden Strike
Double sneak attack? This is basically Assassinate but every turn without nearly as many qualifiers. Even just getting an automatic bonus action attack is amazing.
Swashbuckler:
Type: Damage, Social
This is one of my favorite subclasses of all time, just because of how flavorful it is (and because Jarlaxle is one of my all-time favorite favorite fantasy characters). Swashbucklers excel at moving quickly around the battlefield, and taking down isolated targets with ease. They're not the strongest class, but they're a good bet if you just want to have some fun (especially roleplay wise).
Fancy Footwork
This is basically just giving you half of the Mobile feat for free. Note that you don't actually have to hit the attack to gain the benefit, you just have to make an attack.
Rakish Audacity
Charisma modifier to initiative? Meh. However, the second part of this ability is what makes Swashbucklers distinct. This does require a fair amount of planning and battlefield control (and is easier to use if your DM is using a tactical map, most likely), but you should be able to pull it off fairly easily.
Panache
Not entirely sure why this subclass has a free compelled duel built into it, but I'll take it. Especially good with Expertise. Be careful using this so you don't end up with a pissed off big bad only attacking you when your friends are elsewhere.
Elegant Maneuver
Very situational, but can be very useful for escaping grapples. Overall still kind of meh.
Master Duelist
This ability isn't bad, but it does pale when compared with Sudden Strike, Death Strike or Eye for Weakness.
Thief:
Type: Support??????
Honestly, there's not much reason to pick this class. It has its uses, but they're very niche and situational. You're probably better off with Scout if you want a super stealthy rogue.
Fast Hands
Meh. Very situational, and not that useful. You're not often going to need to pick a lock as a bonus action.
Second-Story Work
Ehh, not really worth it. Compare this to all the other level 3 subclass abilities (even Mastermind), and it's really not good.
Supreme Sneak
Do you really not want to ever be seen? Well, we've got something for you. This is pretty overkill, considering Reliable Talent and Expertise in stealth.
Use Magic Device
Very situational, although the level restriction removal could be interesting in very specific instances.
Thief's Reflexes
Do I really need to explain why taking two turns is useful? Didn't think so.
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Class Guides: Barbarian, Rogue, Sorcerer, Bard General Guides: PvP
Currently playing in: Quest for the Shunned City, Coliseum of Conquest, DragonDenn's Dragonlords, Shipwrecked on Fugue, Tomb of Annihilation, Razor's Lost Mine of Phandelver, The Lost Kenku & One Grung Above
Currently DMing: Princes of the Apocalypse, Out of the Abyss, Coliseum of Conquest—The Arena (Sometimes)
Multiclassing
While just pure rogue is powerful on its own, Rogue is probably one of the classes that benefits the most from multiclassing, whether it's for Extra Attack, Fighting Styles, or even bard spells. Here's my evaluation of all possible classes:
Rogue/Barbarian:
Not bad. You can see my Barbarian guide for a few more details, but basically sneak attack doesn't require you to use the finesse property, just to have it.
Rogue/Cleric:
Not too bad, especially as an Inquisitive (since you're already going to need decent Wisdom). Still probably not the most optimal choice.
Rogue/Druid:
Hmmmm. Honestly not sure about this one. I can't see it being amazing, but it's probably not bad.
Rogue/Fighter:
Most weapon-based classes work will with Fighter, and Rogue is no exception. Works even better with archers, since they get access to multiple attacks and the Archery fighting style.
Rogue/Monk:
This could be interesting. If you were to do this, I'd recommend Way of Shadow monk and either Assassin or Inquisitive rogue.
Rogue/Paladin:
Strength is your dump stat, but if you want to try a dex paladin this might not be a bad choice.
Rogue/Ranger:
Another great combination for archers. You get ranger spells, as well as the Archery fighting style and Extra Attack. Your best bet for archers beside Fighter.
Rogue/Sorcerer:
Meh. You don't use charisma that much unless you're a Swashbuckler, and you're probably better off with Wizard if you want to multiclass into a spellcaster.
Rogue/Warlock:
Basically the same reasons as Sorcerer.
Rogue/Wizard:
Your best spellcasting option, as you can be an Arcane Trickster and multiclass. This will give you some much needed spell slots and spell variety. Becomes no where near as good without Arcane Trickster.
Here's a few examples of some builds you could make:
The Why Does This Deal So Much Damage Archer:
Pretty straight forward Fighter 11/Rogue 9 build. I used Scout for Skirmisher and Arcane Archer for . . .well, archery. Took Sharpshooter and Elven Accuracy, which is a ridiculous combination on any archer. You could also make this with slightly different amounts of levels in each, or use Variant Human to get Sharpshooter early (but lose out on EA). Variant Human is typically only recommended if you roll for stats and get a 17 or 18, since Sharpshooter is meh early on due to a lower attack bonus.
Character Sheet Link: https://ddb.ac/characters/9142540/9itBAQ
The Seductive Swordsman:
A Bard 15/Rogue 5 blend. Probably more appropriate in a bard guide, but thought I'd at least mention it. You've got Jack of All Trades, 6 Expertise, and enough charm to charm the money out of anyone. I also gave him War Caster (for concentration in melee, and for spell opportunity attacks) and booming blade for AoOs (from Magical Secrets). I also took shadow blade for obvious reasons, and fireball in case you need a large amount of things dead.
Character Sheet Link: https://ddb.ac/characters/6740002/5ZEhYm
The Rogue in its Natural Habitat:
Ranger 15/Rogue 5 build. I used Monster Hunter as the subclass, but it would work just as well with really anything but Beast Master. Same concept as the Rogue/Fighter archer, but with ranger instead.
Character Sheet Link: https://ddb.ac/characters/6801962/zyxz3Z
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Class Guides: Barbarian, Rogue, Sorcerer, Bard General Guides: PvP
Currently playing in: Quest for the Shunned City, Coliseum of Conquest, DragonDenn's Dragonlords, Shipwrecked on Fugue, Tomb of Annihilation, Razor's Lost Mine of Phandelver, The Lost Kenku & One Grung Above
Currently DMing: Princes of the Apocalypse, Out of the Abyss, Coliseum of Conquest—The Arena (Sometimes)
Feats
Rogues are often assisted greatly by feats. Here are some of the best ones you can choose:
Normal feats:
Actor: Unless you're a Swashbuckler, this is not your job. If you are a Swashbuckler, still kind of meh.
Alert: Not a bad feat to take as a rogue, since you'll already have a decent init bonus. Becomes amazing if you're an Assassin due to Assassinate giving you advantage if the enemy hasn't taken a turn yet.
Athlete: This isn't your job, and doesn't really matter.
Charger: This would be decent, but you can dash as a bonus action already. Not necessary to take in really any circumstance as a rogue.
Crossbow Expert: If you want to use crossbows, go for it! Especially good with a Fighter or Ranger multiclass (I'm looking at you, Shmitty).
Defensive Duelist: Better defenses as a rogue are always nice. Not worth it as an archer or dual-wielder for obvious reasons.
Dual Wielder: If you use dual wielding, you'll pretty much always want this. Especially good with a dip into some class that can give you the Two Weapon Fighting Style.
Dungeon Delver: Very nice, if this is your job. Especially good as an Inquisitive or Scout.
Durable: Not really too worth it. You should be trying to avoid damage, not heal it.
Elemental Adept: Unless you're an Arcane Trickster, you probably don't cast spells. Even if you are, most spells you have access to don't deal elemental damage.
Grappler: Strength is your dump stat.
Great Weapon Master: Why are you using a heavy weapon?
Healer: This is not your job.
Heavily Armored: Do you want disadvantage on stealth? Didn't think so.
Heavy Armor Master: Déjà vu, anyone?
Inspiring Leader: This probably isn't your job, unless you're part bard.
Keen Mind: This doesn't need to be anyone's job.
Lightly Armored: You already have this.
Linguist: If you want this so badly, just be an Arcane Trickster and get comprehend languages.
Lucky: This is always good, no matter what.
Mage Slayer: Not bad, although heavily situational. Especially potent when combined with Evasion.
Magic Initiate: You could take this for find familiar for easy sneak attack. Not a bad option.
Martial Adept: Also not bad. You're probably best off with some combination of Parry, Precision Attack, and maybe Riposte.
Medium Armor Master: If you have proficiency in medium armor from another class, might be worth getting. Really the only reason not to wear medium armor as a rogue is lack of proficiency and disadvantage on stealth.
Mobile: Very good unless you're a Swashbuckler, in which case it's redundant.
Moderately Armored: Not worth the ASI. It's much better to get proficiency with medium armor through a Fighter or Ranger multiclass.
Mounted Combatant: If you have a horse, go for it. Perhaps your paladin could lend you his.
Observant: Very good for an Inquisitive, or maybe even a Scout.
Polearm Master: No polearm is a finesse weapon.
Resilient: Not worth it. You'll get Wisdom saving throw prof eventually anyways, and that's the only one that would be worth getting.
Ritual Caster: Not bad for an Arcane Trickster. Maybe worth it simply for find familiar for other subclasses.
Savage Attacker: Meh. Not that useful, since it appears that RAW it wouldn't apply to sneak attack damage.
Sentinel: This encourages people to attack you, and you really don't that. It's other benefits make it not completely useless.
Sharpshooter: A necessity for higher level archers.
Shield Master: Why are you using a shield again? And why do you need this when you already have Evasion?
Skilled: This could be useful, but chances are you already have enough skills.
Skulker: Very useful for archers. Not as good as Elven Accuracy or Sharpshooter, but worth getting especially if you don't have access to Elven Accuracy.
Spell Sniper: You don't need this. This is someone else's job.
Tavern Brawler: This is someone else's job.
Tough: Not that bad, but this is probably someone else's job.
War Caster: Really only useful if you're an Arcane Trickster. It's decent if you are.
Weapon Master: You could use this to get longbow proficiency, but there are easier ways to do that.
Racial feats:
Bountiful Luck: If you're a halfling, go for it. This is never a bad thing.
Dragon Fear and Dragon Hide: Why are you a dragonborn?
Drow High Magic: Not too bad. It's probably better to get something else.
Dwarven Fortitude: This is not your job. Why are you a dwarf?
Elven Accuracy: I really don't understand why they made this feat so good. Just, why?
Fade Away: A nice panic option for an Arcane Trickster. You could do much worse.
Fey Teleportation: Teleportation is nice, but why are you a high elf?
Flames of Phlegethos: If you have a decent amount of fire spells as an Arcane Trickster for some reason, go for it. Just try not to hawk up spitballs on your DM while trying to say this.
Infernal Constitution: This isn't your job.
Orcish Fury: Why are you a half-orc?
Prodigy: Not a bad idea, although also not necessary given your already ridiculous amount of skills.
Second Chance: Do I really need to explain why this is good?
Squat Nimbleness: Unless you're getting grappled a lot, Mobile gives you more speed and better benefits.
Svirfneblin Magic: These are all good spells, and Svirfneblin make good rogues. Not a bad option.
Wood Elf Magic: Pass without trace is absolutely ridiculous on a rogue, and longstrider isn't bad. Go for it, if you have ASIs left after taking Elven Accuracy.
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Class Guides: Barbarian, Rogue, Sorcerer, Bard General Guides: PvP
Currently playing in: Quest for the Shunned City, Coliseum of Conquest, DragonDenn's Dragonlords, Shipwrecked on Fugue, Tomb of Annihilation, Razor's Lost Mine of Phandelver, The Lost Kenku & One Grung Above
Currently DMing: Princes of the Apocalypse, Out of the Abyss, Coliseum of Conquest—The Arena (Sometimes)
And, this brings my rogue guide to a close! Feel free to post any comments, suggestions, or questions you might have. I hope you found this helpful!
I'll be making a sorcerer guide next. Bard and sorcerer are currently tied in the poll, but I'm more familiar with sorcerer.
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Class Guides: Barbarian, Rogue, Sorcerer, Bard General Guides: PvP
Currently playing in: Quest for the Shunned City, Coliseum of Conquest, DragonDenn's Dragonlords, Shipwrecked on Fugue, Tomb of Annihilation, Razor's Lost Mine of Phandelver, The Lost Kenku & One Grung Above
Currently DMing: Princes of the Apocalypse, Out of the Abyss, Coliseum of Conquest—The Arena (Sometimes)
My IPad says Bard is winning. Maybe I’m just unable to read?
also, nice job!
Extended Signature! Yay! https://www.dndbeyond.com/forums/off-topic/adohands-kitchen/3153-extended-signature-thread?page=2#c21
Haven’t used this account in forever. Still a big fan of crawling claws.
Thanks! Bard is winning now, but was not when I finished this guide and started the next one. Bard is on the next poll though, and seems like it'll win so far.
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Class Guides: Barbarian, Rogue, Sorcerer, Bard General Guides: PvP
Currently playing in: Quest for the Shunned City, Coliseum of Conquest, DragonDenn's Dragonlords, Shipwrecked on Fugue, Tomb of Annihilation, Razor's Lost Mine of Phandelver, The Lost Kenku & One Grung Above
Currently DMing: Princes of the Apocalypse, Out of the Abyss, Coliseum of Conquest—The Arena (Sometimes)
Why not just use Samurai for the advantage as a bonus action? Why Arcane Archer?
This is a great guide, though. Thanks!
"Halt your wagging and wag your halters, for I am mastercryomancer!"
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I chose Arcane Archer mostly for shadow arrow, or whatever it’s called. Samurai would work just as well, but Arcane Archer is just a little more focused around, well, archery.
Check out my Extended signature here
Class Guides: Barbarian, Rogue, Sorcerer, Bard General Guides: PvP
Currently playing in: Quest for the Shunned City, Coliseum of Conquest, DragonDenn's Dragonlords, Shipwrecked on Fugue, Tomb of Annihilation, Razor's Lost Mine of Phandelver, The Lost Kenku & One Grung Above
Currently DMing: Princes of the Apocalypse, Out of the Abyss, Coliseum of Conquest—The Arena (Sometimes)
I think this is very helpful being a rogue and such and just saying assassins are by far the best so yeah
I’m glad it helped.
I cannot in good conscience say that assassins are the best. They’re much too situational for me.
Check out my Extended signature here
Class Guides: Barbarian, Rogue, Sorcerer, Bard General Guides: PvP
Currently playing in: Quest for the Shunned City, Coliseum of Conquest, DragonDenn's Dragonlords, Shipwrecked on Fugue, Tomb of Annihilation, Razor's Lost Mine of Phandelver, The Lost Kenku & One Grung Above
Currently DMing: Princes of the Apocalypse, Out of the Abyss, Coliseum of Conquest—The Arena (Sometimes)
Please keep this thread on topic.
Check out my Extended signature here
Class Guides: Barbarian, Rogue, Sorcerer, Bard General Guides: PvP
Currently playing in: Quest for the Shunned City, Coliseum of Conquest, DragonDenn's Dragonlords, Shipwrecked on Fugue, Tomb of Annihilation, Razor's Lost Mine of Phandelver, The Lost Kenku & One Grung Above
Currently DMing: Princes of the Apocalypse, Out of the Abyss, Coliseum of Conquest—The Arena (Sometimes)
Thank you so much for this. Has helped me no end in choosing how to set up my new rogue.
Um....is it far too late and far too rude to point out this?
[skill]Acrobatics[/spell] is in the Rogue Base Class Features (when you click on the spoiler).
Should it be [skill]Acrobatics[ /skill ] (obviously without the spaces)?
Homebrew: | Races | Items | Monsters | Spells | Backgrounds | Feats
Good guide but I saw a couple of inconsistencies.
Fey Teleportation asked why you would play a high elf when you rated High Elf so umm well “High”, for an Arcane Trickster. Learning the Misty Step here frees up your non illusion/enchantment selection for something else. Since it is on the wizard spell list you can cast it for spell slots after you use your free cast.
Ritual Casting should be gold since as noted above you don’t get many non illusion/enchantment spells. This feat lets you double the spells you have access to and only Phantom Steed is illusion afaik.
3rd level put Fireball at Gold. Without the spell slots to cast this at higher level it is going to be lacklustre by the time you can cast it.
The true Gold level 3 spell is Haste. Having haste self cast gives you consistent twice a turn sneak attack which is worth way more then Fireball or Fly imo. (Bonus hide - hasted SA - ready attack for familiar’s help action - SA a second time).
Agree with all of these. Not sure what I was thinking with fireball.
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Class Guides: Barbarian, Rogue, Sorcerer, Bard General Guides: PvP
Currently playing in: Quest for the Shunned City, Coliseum of Conquest, DragonDenn's Dragonlords, Shipwrecked on Fugue, Tomb of Annihilation, Razor's Lost Mine of Phandelver, The Lost Kenku & One Grung Above
Currently DMing: Princes of the Apocalypse, Out of the Abyss, Coliseum of Conquest—The Arena (Sometimes)
I am not sure why you rate Booming Blade as only blue. It is hands down the best cantrip (maybe even spell) for a rogue. You are only making one attack anyway, so having BB just increases your dpr. Then you throw in cunning action (disengage as a BA) and they have to take even MORE damage if they want to attack you with melee (you would be surprised how many monsters lack ranged attacks, and it is still great for control. you can become a pseudo tank), then combined with warcaster? oh boy. I am phil swift, and to show you the power of booming blade i attacked your enemies. Now THATs a lotta damage.
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“I will take responsibility for what I have done. [...] If must fall, I will rise each time a better man.” ― Brandon Sanderson, Oathbringer.