Rogue Guide - Classes in Dungeons and Dragons 5e

[@chrisv.h.2307]

One of the players who recently joined my campaign is playing a very unusual rogue: a strength-based goliath thief with the healer and actor feats and expertise in athletics. I'll never forget the first session he joined our table. While the rest of the party engaged in fairly typical combat, he stole the arrows directly out of the enemy drow archers' quivers, administered triage with his healing kit as a bonus action, grappled rival spies and moved them into plain sight for the rest of the party, and imitated the voice of the commander to send a group of reinforcements the wrong direction. It was months before he made his first attack roll, and only then because his character had partaken of a few too many drinks and embraced his violent side. Moral of the story: clever players can do a LOT with the rogue's skill set.

[@berkpick]

So cool

[@lanecordy4248]

THAT MAN IS A GOD OF THE CHEESE!!!! I salute that cheeky bastard and wish him many successful campaigns

[@Quandry1]

People greatly under estimate the thief archetype in combat with their list of mostly nondamage abilities. For example they are the only one that can pull off the reverse pick pocket the grenade trick mid combat.

[@twilightgardenspresentatio6384]

Chris V.H. Amazing

[@FtonDavid]

@@Quandry1 I thought Arcan Trickster could too. Legerdemain: - You can stow one object the hand is holding in a container worn or carried by another creature. PHB p.98

[@Peter-xs2mu]

Table of contents: 1:39 - Why play a rogue? 3:16 - Party role" 4:48 - Get inspired 10:26 - Building a rogue 11:23 - Ability Scores 14:06 - Races 17:49 - Proficiencies 22:37 - Sneak Attack 27:01 - Cunning Action 28:35 - Roguish Archetypes

[@alucardbunche4197]

Thank you

[@itsyaboidante3088]

This individual is a true hero

[@celta6117]

May the ancient bless you

[@doctordonutdude]

God's work

[@Super-Saiyan9665]

Legend

[@theyoutubeidiot6203]

If only you knew of Grogg the Roguish Orc, that put all his points into intimidation instead of stealth and every time he got caught he would yell “You do not see Grogg!”. And he would be on his way.

[@reaverrogue7142]

"Only two things see Grogg. Dead things, and things that know better."

[@countkingpen]

I’ve actually done this before with a half orc actually, he screamed at people and they didn’t see him!

[@fortieznoshortiez]

LMFAO oh my god

[@JefAlanLong]

I wanted to click like but you’re running straight fives

[@bigloser5104]

Grogg the orc: "YOU DID NOT SEE ME" Horrified town guard: "Yeah, totally"

[@witchBoi_Connor]

19:54 “Hey rogue, can you intimidate this guy!” Says the meat head halforc barbarian “Nope. Can you disarm the trap you’re about to walk into?” Says the rogue with a high perception. “What-?!” Says the downed barbarian who shouldn’t antagonize the rogue.

[@SH-qs7ee]

"hey rogue, can you intimidate this guy?" *rogue rolls deception* "yes I can..."

[@LordNumbnutsthe1st]

As the idiot barbarian who literally got himself in trouble with the whole party doing that very thing, I can confirm. Do not, and I mean NEVER piss off the rogue. You'll pay in ways you can only BEGIN to imagine.

[@creepykiller2876]

My mother actually plays a tabaxi rogue, and one of her flaws is that she is extremely easily distracted, much like a regular cat would be. She role plays as if she is a cat and it is both hilarious and annoying because she sometimes does it at inopportune times.

[@Comicsluvr]

Please allow me to state how cool it is that A) Your mom plays D&D and B) you're praising her for it. Good on you!

[@dharmeshmistry342]

That’s the exact vibe I’m going for with my Tabaxi Rogue for our second campaign. Can’t wait to play it!

[@hithere4719]

“Enemy wizard uses Prestidigitation to make a single, red point of light appear on the floor…roll a new character meow”

[@ImperfectHestia]

"Ignorance killed the cat, curiosity was framed."

[@TheBeelzboss]

One can only overcome ignorance via curiosity though

[@Bigred073]

@@TheBeelzboss Hence why curiosity was framed...

[@TheBeelzboss]

Curiosity is the driving force. To have been framed it would have to be barely involved, not completely. Curiosity most definitely killed the cat in his quest for knowledge.

[@brunobeltranbelmonte755]

I killed a cat for curiosity does that count

[@FtonDavid]

Very nice, I have it as a quote in my Facebook Bio: "Ignorance killed the cat, Sir; curiosity was framed!" - C.J. Cherryh (Company Wars Book 6 "Tripoint")

[@danieldosso2455]

Honestly I would put Han Solo as more of a bard, with his great one-liners R2-D2 is the Star Wars Rogue, he's always disarming traps and opening locked doors. R2-D2 also technically has Thieve's Cant in his "Droid Speak"

[@DungeonDudes]

R2-D2 really IS kind of a Rogue! I totally see it! Bards need not have the monopoly on great one-liners, but they are the masters of it!

[@kalebmantegani5922]

not gonna lie, this might be my favorite youtube comment ever

[@GuardianCitadel]

And a good example of a rogue that doesn't 'sneak' or have high dex. R2 is more of a tools/perception/insight/knowledge expertised rogue.

[@gwillis637]

Also, I'd add that it's clear Artoo has fantastic one liners it's just that only C3PO and Luke (for some reason) can understand them. From context, you can tell he's a total smartass

[@skunk12]

Chopper is my favorite Star Wars droid rogue!

[@alexistoran2181]

"Choosing a race with darkvision is a gigantic advantage when it comes to being stealthy, especially if you're fighting regular humans." I'd argue it's more important when your enemies have darkvision. If there's one thing Phandelver taught me, it's that there's no bigger giveaway for a rogue than being the only person who needs a lantern to see where they're going!

[@Kaeyeima]

Lol 😆

[@abelsampaio389]

I made a charlatan rogue for a one-shot who was your regular burglar, and once broke in the house of a commandant who was really mean, had no friends even in his army, and always fought with his helmet on. He didn't want to, but the fool reacted to the assault and was killed in a lucky shot. My character then killed the only servant he had, took his armor and identity, buried the body and asked his lord to go on a diplomatic mission to another realm, nominating another soldier in his place for the time being. He never came back, and to this day he pretends to be this retired army commandant.

[@lordzaboem]

Great rogue story

[@DarthVadersHeart]

What about Westley from Princess Bride aka the dread pirate Roberts. That I'd say is the ultimate Swashbuckler/Rogue/Noble archetype. Everything he did was for his Love of Buttercup.

[@pyron5277]

God that's a good movie

[@SeanBlader]

"Hallo, my name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die." Who was also a rogue, and would be a great swashbuckler with an Inheritor background. That movie/book is filled with great rogues, Vizzini (mastermind), as well.

[@gestergarcia9568]

Add the buccaneer feat if your DM allows primitive guns and its freaking Fun

[@danielessex2162]

Wasn't that the diabetic horse that died in half baked?

[@maxchristensen5966]

Or Ezio Auditore from Assassins creed, noblemen turned rogue in chase for revenge.

[@hikikomicklori9290]

When I think of a rogue with a noble background I default to Zorro.

[@DungeonDudes]

Absolutely classic!

[@immortalwolf3055]

or robin hood

[@alanschaub147]

I thought if the movie, “Zorro, the Gay Blade”. I think it would be fun to play a D&D version of that character.

[@CriminalApes]

Yeah they list Robin Hood as a Ranger but I would consider him a Rogue

[@toribiogubert7729]

To me Robin Hood would be a multi class. And a classic Rogue Noble is Bruce Wayne.

[@Morathor]

My first 5E character was a rogue, and I have to say, NOTHING was as fun as using cunning action to dart by a boss and stab it as I passed. That was so good.

[@xezzee]

I have yet to see any of Rogue players use Cunnin action to not stand next to enemy my self included :D hilarious how people can fail like that. Then again you don't think it in game. It is like my friend playing warlock standing in open with no cover and getting attacked from range complaining that why they target him, the only person who has done dmg past 3 turns as everyone else keeps missing ~

[@NachoBran_CandyCabbage]

I remember a session that my friends and I played where the DM gave us a challenge to make characters with races/playstyles that we were not used to. One of the other players at the table made a bugbear thief/rogue that (with the appropriate feats) used medium armor and dual-wielded a rapier and a longsword. It was WAY more effective than it deserved to be. Or at least it was more effective than my lizardfolk transmutation/wizard and our other player's kobold circle of the coast/druid. He was able to fight enemies at a distance thanks to the bugbear's 'long limbed' feature and then flee if he needed to. On top of that, because he had expertise with stealth and acrobatics on top of the thief's better mobility made him really good at sneaking around despite being the largest member of the party. The DM describing a 350 lb bugbear parkouring across the rooftops in a drow city in the underdark is one of the stranger things I've heard described in a game. He also had a really high strength score (17 I think) that let him carry an absurd amount of loot thanks to his 'powerful build' feature. There was one memorable moment from the session happened after our first combat encounter with some drow, it went something like this, Rogue: "What armor are they wearing?" DM: "what was once intricately designed dark leather armor is now covered in blood and thoroughly ruined. One set is also slightly melted thanks to your larger scaled companion." *I shrug* Rogue: "I take all of it." DM: "But it's not worth much now..." Rogue: "But I can carry it all right?" DM: "Yes, but-" Rogue: "I hesitate for a moment and take all of it because I'm a klepto." Oh he also had the acolyte background and was a devout follower of Tiamat because why not.

[@DungeonDudes]

What an awesome character! Bugbears are really interesting, they are brutes, thugs, but surprisingly sneaky. Sounds like a fantastic character.

[@tylermaberry3172]

Made my day😂

[@sea_triscuit7980]

These stats are too damn high! Haha I don't get why players want to make such powerful builds, weaknesses are usually where the fun happens

[@TheBeelzboss]

I did something like this with a group of mine but went about it differently. I had them all make a character of a different class with back stories, before we started I had them roll a die. That die roll chose the character they played, three of them got new ones. The fourth had created a character they weren't used to playing anyway so it worked out perfectly.

[@joeholtz5395]

I don’t want to pee in your Cheerios. If you guys had fun that is all that counts. I don’t see a huge bugbear in party as fun. You can’t enter cities. You can’t go in a LOT of small rooms or entrances. You can’t clamber across a lot of terrain. Regular people would attack immediately out of sheer fear. No way are you stealthy. You’re always going to be suspected of everything that goes wrong. You cannot camouflage yourself in society. It seems that ONLY certain dungeon crawling would be possible. It would be very challenging for the player and the party and the DM. But if he custom tailored everything then sure. It would rock

[@stuffnthings3174]

couldn't spell DnD last week but my wife asked me to play and I LOVE IT. I didn't realize how fun this game could be. now I feel bad for making fun of the kids that played it when I was in high school almost 20 years ago. lol. loving your videos guy learning alot from you 2. keep it up

[@DungeonDudes]

Welcome to the game my friend!

[@MEmoosetrax]

“One of us! One of us!’

[@raikirah975]

One of my favorite games to run is actually the proverbial Rogues Gallery you all mentioned toward the beginning of the video. Each player chooses a unique sub-class, which then becomes their "specialty" -- why they were hired or brought on by the group. So you have the Thief, who's the second-story man and physical infiltration specialist, and the Assassin who's great at social engineering and espionage. You have the Arcane Trickster, who specializes in dealing with magical threats/obstacles, and the Swashbuckler who serves as a distraction and muscle. Finally, you've got the Mastermind who put the entire group together, plans their heists/jobs, and generally serves as the glue holding the party together. It makes D&D feel like Ocean's 11, or Leverage -- fantastic fun.

[@WhiteSekii]

Am i missing something or isn't Loki (avengers) a good example of an arcane trickster ?

[@DungeonDudes]

We agree! Although you'd be forgiven for seeing him as more of a full spellcaster as well.

[@ChristnThms]

Yeah. The amount of magic Loki uses would burn through even a full caster’s slots fast. He’s like a lvl 30 Whisper Bard.

[@fhuber7507]

Actually Loki is a demigod or a god. Not limited by the norms that apply to mortals. The adaptations for the comic books show him limiting his own powers to entertain himself.

[@chunkytheclown3422]

I see Loki more as a wizard (potentially sorcerer depending on whether or not being an Asgardian deity inherently grants you specific abilities from birth or if everyone just kinda developed their own thing) that's multiclassed into Rogue. He has WAY more magic than an Arcane Trickster has available (or a full D&D wizard, honestly) and thus I don't really think he could be limited to just that category. His Rogue subclass most certainly would be Arcane Trickster, though, as that falls perfectly in line with how he acts when he's on screen (especially in the MCU), but his worldview, motivations, and the full scope of his powers fall far more in line with a wizard or sorcerer. Also, obviously he's from an entirely different universe so stuff like D&D's own magic system, levels, and specific class abilities wouldn't apply to him. This is just more like the closest thematic equivalent to his character if you wanted to create him in D&D.

[@okerutakehashi706]

@@chunkytheclown3422 or just trickery domain cleric

[@anthonynaimo9507]

Been playing a black dragonborn Strength-based rogue (swashbuckler) with my dump stat being Dexterity. Inefficient, but he’s a lot of fun to play because of that. Melting locks with my breathweapon and smashing it with my hilt, using finesse weapons but choosing to take the strength mod for sneak attack, actively exploiting the environment around me to get that edge in battle/social settings.

[@karsten69]

hey now, Assassin's get proficiency with disguise kit, poisoner's kit and can create a false persona for themselves, in a cloak & dagger or intrigue game, that's highly valuable.

[@AllThingsFascinate]

So fun.

[@Nexsyana]

Thing is, charlatan background gives you practically the same. I prefer Thief and Swashbuckler and Scout over Assassin...IMO Assassin is the weakest

[@cyruslupercal9493]

But what if you don't want charlatan background? Also, Assassinate is the DM's nightmare. Specialy when you get the Alert and/or Sharpshooter feat(s). Far from being the weakest.

[@johnbaker1901]

@@cyruslupercal9493 multi class into ranger gloom stalker and add your wisdom modifier to your intiave also. It will take a little bit to come online but by lv 6 everything starts to come together

[@nicholas3141]

Cyrus Lupercal monk assassin, fighter assassin, even paladin assassin a lot of damage they can do

[@kotanagant9768]

Just got into a new D&D session and my character so far is a halfling rogue that I am planning to run as a thief archetype and roleplay as a "Jack Sparrow" type where I will basically do whatever I feel like doing. I liked that part where you mentioned "I won't screw my friends over, but I don't care for everyone else", that is also something I plan on integrating into my character. Can't wait to see how it plays out.

[@DungeonDudes]

Sounds great! The most important thing with such a character is finding their motivation. Greed and lust are powerful motivators when playing a character that ‘doesn’t care about anyone else’. You still want to have a reason to go on the adventure after all! Let us know how your new character does!

[@pantherapardus8192]

Funny thing Jack Sparrow is very Charismatic but does also screw his friends over ,lucky thing he is not evil ,more like chaotic nutral , chaotic good by the standards of good in the rules of D&D 5 edition .

[@naninuna7440]

Ive been doing the same thing, got a new character who is a halfling Rougue similar to Jack Sparrow 😭

[@Hawntbawt]

“Hears the Arya Stark shoutout” *immediately checks video release date*

[@benm5913]

Same bro, same.

[@ATG3192]

Honestly, the fact that the Longsword is one of the few specifically listed weapon proficiencies for Rogues lends credence to the thought I've had that the Longsword should be a weapon with the Finesse and Two-Handed properties (and reclassify the current Longsword as a Bastard Sword).

[@gabrielgaron6476]

To be fair, I've yet to see a DC unwilling to add Finesse to the longsword if you remove the Versatile ability from it.

[@Warblade357]

My wife and I loved this video. We play a Master/Blaster style team, her halfling rouge arcane trickster with my half-orc barbarian berserker. I'm old school D&D 1st edition started playing in 1977, she's dabbled here and there but really jumped in with 5E. Bree owes Brawn a life debt (he saved her from a fate worse than death), he loves her, platonically, because she's his "cousin" (INT of 9 vs. CHR of 15, easily convinced) and she was the first to show him compassion and kindness and love. He defers to her in decisions for them and protects her. She looks after him and steals to support them. Their combat dynamic has been lacking until we watched this video and really started understanding Sneak Attack. When you explained it so in depth you could see the light bulbs over our heads! Brawn standing toe to toe with the enemy weilding his greataxe (1d12+6), her flitting around with a short sword, advancing on the enemy, striking with a SA (3d6+5), Cunning Action to Disengage. If they follow her without Disengaging from me, Attack of Oppurtunity! Oh the woes we are about to unleash on unsuspecting foes!!!

[@unholyxeras8182]

if you pick up the sentinel feat, disengage wont prevent them provoking an attack of opportunity and if your attack of opportunity hits you set their movement to 0 so they cant escape

[@Warblade357]

@@unholyxeras8182 Our DM and 2 of our players are new and we all agreed to not use feats to try and keep things simpler. You are right though this combo would be devastating.

[@skyenyx8972]

The Thief archetype has some alarmingly crazy optiions due to Quick Hands. Things that are objects you can use as a bonus action - Magic Items - A Healer's Kit (I've played a thief recently who had some crazy back up functionality as a party healer with the Healer feat.) - Caltrops - Ball Bearings - Tools you're proficient with.

[@johnhodges2760]

I do appreciate the Thief's Fast Hands ability, but using or activating magic items is unfortunately not one of its uses. Per p.141 of the DMG under Activating an Item: "If an item requires an action to activate, that action isn't a function of the Use an Item action, so a feature such as the rogue's Fast Hands can't be used to activate the item."

[@g80gzt]

Magic item counts as DOEW. GEYSER EM UP WITH A BONUS

[@killerfudgetastic]

I think one of my favorite moments playing a rouge was an encounter my party had when exploring a dungeon. We had defeated some flaming skulls earlier and retreated to have a short rest to recover from the battle, without realizing that unless the skulls were properly taken care of they would revive in an hour. When we returned to continue exploring, the skulls were waiting for us, and as soon as we opened the door to their room they hit us with three fireballs. I made all my saves and avoided taking any damage, the barbarian tanked it as they do, and the rest of the party dropped. The barbarian charged in to deal with the skulls while I closed the door behind him and began frantically administering healing potions to everyone. I’d never been so happy to have evasion, and just love the image of my wood elf rouge bouncing around to avoid three fireballs.

[@gamewalker91]

One of my favourite characters I’ve ever built was a prissy little loxodon noble swashbuckler. My eyes lit up when you listed the noble swashbuckler in your video, because everything you said about it applied to my character! The roleplay was too funny! My dm and I going back and forth about this 300 lbs elephant doing acrobatics and stealthy maneuvers had the party laughing endlessly!

[@benjaminfrost2780]

Just as a note separate from the other to focus on Arcane Trickster. Arcane Trickster is probably the highest damage output and most survivable Rogue without multi-classing. You can get booming blade or green flame blade for a good chunk of added damage and making your attack magical. You can shield to make you even harder to hit and absorb elements which can help you chop down magical damage even more in tandem with evasion. Big one is you can cast Shadow Blade which does a good chunk of psychic damage at 2d8 I believe as a melee weapon which is HUGE for a 1 handed weapon especially with it being psychic damage. It is SOOOOO much fun and it is stronger than Assassin for full stop damage output over the course of a fight. My arcane trickster was a folk hero that stole from the rich to support the poor in his local town. Was a fun "heroic" rogue to play. He also hated the undead because they killed his Mage adopted father. So when faced by undead he saw red and almost got himself killed to learn from it.

[@johntyler6923]

Bang on, guys! 40 minutes to cover a hella topic. My Thieves and Assassins (I am far older than the Rogue) have been the most adapted and adaptive classes in all my campaigns. Whatever form they take, they are always essential to any party. As new editions and other materials emerge, I pick and choose the bits that fit, make them into viable choices for the players, and try to keep the potential OP in check. It is refreshing for me to look just at 5e and what a Rogue is and can be as the rules stand now. Oh, and a big thanks for this: my newest player is really enthusiastic but not a big reader, so I've started sending him links to you guys rather than tackle some of his broader questions. As ever, great work, guys!

[@DungeonDudes]

Yes, I really like how the modern 5e Rogue encapsulates and had a nod to the roots of the class in older editions. It's a really well-designed piece that shows off a lot of what 5e is all about. So happy to hear our videos are useful to your player! This is EXACTLY what we were hoping to do when we started as we have players with similar tendencies (very enthusiastic and excellent role-players, but not big on reading about the rules or game ideas) at our own tables.Please let us know if they have some questions we might cover in a future episode. Cheers! - monty

[@ramaravade]

This is very late, but I feel like you undersold the thief's usefulness in a city or wooded environment. Second story work has proved itself very useful for me, being able to take shots with my bow from the tops of buildings and trees and then gracefully hop to the next one and hide. This is also very useful for setting ambushes, infiltrating and gathering information from rather chatty guards. I do agree that assassin and arcane trickster may be better for combat, but I think that thief provides more role utility in both roll playing, with being able to disable traps while in initiative for example and climbing stuff, and in general combat with being able to say use literally any magic item regardless of requirements or having advantages on stealth roles making it easier to hide again. Personally I prefer this to scout, since I like grabbing a couple of levels in gloom stalker and I feel like there's a lot of overlap there. This probably won't get read but, you guys are great keep up the good work.

[@manuelkipka]

Some read it. That is what counts.

[@3thhackz531]

I would like to put my love letter to arcane since it was undersold too and yours is surprisingly high in the comments lol no mention of free invisible trap disarming, lockpicking, pickpocketing invisible mage hand or the spell steal ability. These combined with the spell choices and resource management it adds really does make a amazing and complete feeling to the class that so many only feel after multi classing. This is something I never knew how much I’d love till I found it with trickster. If it be in a group or setting where I’d care about the rp implications of multiclassing, a group that worries about people trying to power game or am surrounded by people multiclassing and power gaming as you alone approach cap stone with a amazing Swiss army of a class that just never feels bad at any point in the campaign. Lastly unlike a lot of the rogue base stuff which kinda depends on the setting and dm for them to shine trickster and what it brings will find a place to shine regardless of either in and out of combat making it a great option for going in blind or with a DM that you know would struggle to naturally give you those situations.

[@galnium]

I'm currently playing a game with a group of friends and one of them is playing a rogue. First session they stole most of my money, used it to buy us drinks, then gambled it to get about seven times the original amount. We had many good laughs that session.

[@DungeonDudes]

What a great scheme! Sorry I stole your money! I got you more, plus booze though!

[@seppalasiberian77]

PigsCanFly 4312 FB

[@PaiOeShi]

Just started playing a Inquisitive (once I hit 3) who is an aspiring detective. Feels like batman. So much fun to RP. Went with magic initiat; Message, Find Familiar (owl), Green Flame Blade human Variant and its lovely.

[@NoNameBoi9987]

Personally, my favorite go to rogue is the swashbuckler, not only does the high charisma allow you to become a good face of the party, but the availability to sneak attack in one on one combat means you're going to get that chance to sneak attack A LOT more often.

[@jaspermooren5883]

Yeah, Arcane Trickster is awesome. Forrest Gnome Arcane Trickster is even more awesome (+2 int, +1 dex, minor illusion and darkvision). That Mage Hand that can use thief's tools and those illusion spells are super awesome. But honestly, minor illusion is the rogues best friend. With the Forrest Gnome Arcane Trickster I played, it helped me out by creating so many distractions or just fun roleplaying situations. He was a bit of a prankster, and having an invisible hand and the ability to create illusions is such a great combo for pranks.

[@agsilverradio2225]

I made a forest gnome archne trickster rogue. She is a chaotic-good graphiti-artest, who grew up in the slums.

[@lordzaboem]

I just started in a campaign as a Forrest Gnome Rogue, 1st level. I took a skill prof which was not even mentioned in this video, Animal Handling. I thought it would go well with the gnomish ability to speak with small animals. Then again, a DM might never call for a check involving that skill, so it's a gamble. Got any advice for me regarding how to get more utility out of a Rogue Gnome?

[@BrianComradovichRadovich]

I had a fun addition to the rogue guide that I tested out this week: Rock Gnome with the Inquisitive Package from XGtE at 3rd level and the City Watch Variant: Investigator from SCAG as a background. Standard Array gives you: 14, 15, 14, 14, 10, 8. Take the Observant feat at 4th. Proficiencies are Acro, Insight, Investigation, Perception, Sleight of Hand, and Stealth. Expertise starts with Thieves' tools and Perception, pick up Investigation and Stealth at 6th. Buy tinker's tools and a 10' pole in town. I know the stats look average, but 5th level my party utility was freakish. Rock Gnome proficiency with tinker's tools meant I could compensate for the Sorc rolling a 1 and blasting a hole in the rowboat we were standing in. I also get advantage on 3 savings throws against magic, and Artificer's Lore on top of my package bonuses. At 5th level, my passive perception was 21. We ran Saltmarsh's Abbey dungeon. Spoiler: There's a few traps. AL DM gave up trying to roll and just drew the traps in on the map for me. I was so good at finding loot we made out like BANDITS. Combat plays like Robert Downey Jr. as Sherlock Holmes... Sherlock Gnomes. I attack anyone, make a wisdom check as a bonus action, and now I can sneak attack them for the rest of combat even if I'm the only one engaging. After 3rd level, they can't turn invisible to escape from me. When we hit town, my background lets me instantly build rapport with guards, and I can find both the local law enforcement offices and every shady operation in town. If you're not murder-hoboing it, this is a really strong contender for AL play.

[@jekubfimbulwing5370]

Just a note on Blbo Baggins, I remember Basic D&D, Elves were Sword mages, Dwarfs were warriors and Halflings were thieves. So Gary Gygax agrees with you!

[@danielkeelerii2227]

I love the swashbuckler archetype, you guys left out the fancy footwork ability, epic.

[@pmrobin8]

I’m about to start my first D&D campaign as an elf rogue. This video was massively helpful.

[@johnr7279]

Cool leveling-up comments on Arya Stark! She went from young royal to street urchin to assassin. DEFINITELY a rouge all the way.

[@DungeonDudes]

We are huge Game of Thrones nerds, and it's a great source for really clear examples of low-level character development!

[@tattoorocker]

I totally agree with this

[@cdfreester]

Your choice of races is pretty much standard and expected. My first 5th edition character was/is a dwarf rogue. You're right: having Darkvision is very helpful, plus I did not have to worry about Constiution so I was free to spend more points in other areas like Dex and Wis. I know what you're thinking, but I like to go against type.

[@tattoorocker]

when I was still playing 4e I had a kid play a dwarf rogue in full plate armor

[@MaryAlice08]

Actually from the start of your comment saying these races were standard, I was thinking “They clearly ‘aren’t like other rogues’” lol Not sure what you were expecting when you clicked on video saying “rogue guide” though. If they did the section on races and just said “you can be any race” that doesn’t help someone who is looking for suggestions on how to build a rogue. These guys are pretty good about encouraging people to create the characters that speak to them. The title and intro of this video say to me it’s going to go over rogues more broadly, not look at race selection in detail. Its pretty unrealistic to expect them to go through less standard races and explain how you could make them work, that’s a different video mate 🤷‍♀️

[@btuthill9653]

I apologize for the late post. I am getting back to playing after a long absence. I am looking at a Dwarven Rogue build. I was looking at 1) how best to play the dwarf (I’m thinking very similar to Eliot in Leverage) and 2) as a dwarven rogue, can the character use hammers or axes? The dwarf gives proficiency but the rogue usually deals with finesse weapons…

[@cdfreester]

@@btuthill9653 1) play the character however the player wants to. I played my dwarf rogue as George Costanza from Seinfeld. 2) The class does not limit the race, so yes, a dwarf rogue in 5e can use dwarven weapons.

[@btuthill9653]

@@cdfreester thanks!

[@ericpeterson8732]

I have a rogue whose whole concept is based on the idea that a-holes don't deserve nice things. Retributive justice. If you're a good person you deserve good things, but jerks deserve to be robbed.

[@Scaramanga7]

eric peterson My current Rogue/Thief is much the same. He was a runt in a mining town, and was thrown out of his family, so he only steals what he thinks someone can afford to lose.

[@corcolinos]

Something like Santa Claus :D

[@mylesprower3254]

I want to roll a similar rogue, maybe even subclass into paladin of some sort that embodies this robin hood mentality

[@sea_triscuit7980]

Robin hood was my childhood hero so yeah definitely. I know he classified as a ranger of sorts but overall he holds the same ideals as a rogue.

[@davidfasthands474]

Robin Hood

[@fudgethemonkey3980]

This is one of the only channels that I can always watch and relax while doing so! Your guy’s personalities are just…so alluring! You’re so knowledgable, entertaining and enthusiastic! Keep going guys, I love your channel!

[@DungeonDudes]

Thank you :)

[@DunantheDefender]

Okay, before you actually started talking about it, I was thinking a perfect example of an unusual rogue is Zorro. And I figured he would be rogue + noble + swashbuckler.

[@Logan_Baron]

Definitely Noble Background. Rogue Class. Subclass Swashbuckler.

[@jonathanthompson1795]

For a recent lvl 10 one-shot with some friends I was playing a rogue that was based of a recent unearthed arcana subclass the Soul Knife Rogue. I went with a bit of the more assassin-type battlefield control combat style and to do so I did need to multi-class and talk with the dm to see if I could get a specific item. (The DM was allowing 1 magic item per character but for this to completely work I needed to have a slightly modified version of one). Funnily enough I ended up taking more levels into the multi-classed choice than rogue. So enough background here's the way it went: - Soul Knife Rogue Lvl 3: So if you read this subclass it allows for the character to create psychic daggers as a bonus action basically giving an unlimited supply of either a close or ranged attack option when needed. Add on Expertise in stealth , sneak attack, and the cunning action. This subclass also comes with some neat things like optional speed or health boost, or telepathy. All the Rogue goodies. - Shadow Monk Lvl 7: This choice allowed me to get some really good buffs such as move speed, ac, evasion as well as the all important Flurry of Blows and the ability to cast Darkness/Silence/Pass w/out Trace/and Darkvision with Ki. Need advantage? Need to hide? All done and ready to go.( Explained in next point) - Modified Goggles of Night: The whole plan really wouldn't have worked if it weren't for these as the modification was that instead of being 60ft regular Dark-vision it became 30ft Magical Dark-vision and you can imagine where that goes with a rogue in Magical darkness. This basically allows permanent advantage and always able to go into stealth w/ bonus action hide. - Race: Variant Human- This was to get the Healer feat to allow some more versatility in case some healing was needed. On the feat topic I also went with the skulker feat just so I didn't need to waste ki for Darkness all the time and still be able to retain stealth if I miss a range attack.

[@NicolasGonzalez-nf6ww]

Drinking game: take a shot every time Monty says “right?”

[@DungeonDudes]

We cannot be held responsible for the inevitable alcohol poisoning which will result from playing this game.

[@chrisdanieks6875]

Or drink for every time they say " we'd be remiss if we dont mention"

[@ClintLowe]

I died 3 times from alcohol poisoning

[@torpedodeuce]

Fighters aren't the "big damn hero." That line belongs to Malcolm Reynolds, who is clearly a rogue.

[@Lobomaru02]

I can't believe you didn't mention Ezio Auditore!

[@DungeonDudes]

D'oh! How did we miss that one! I blame Kelly, he's the big AC fan :)

[@DungeonDudes]

Kelly here, I’m actually horrified by this! I’m Literally wearing an assassins creed jacket right now because I love those games so much. I also blame me. Big miss.

[@marcosguedes8885]

My new rogue is based in AC! “We work in the dark to serve the light” “Nothing is true, everything is permitted”

[@notapersonjones9145]

Ezio also multiclasses as a bard. "Lucrezia Lurcrezia had many lovers..."

[@cjnogamesplayed259]

Yeah man i was going crazy like out my mind lol

[@greglensink5265]

I'm about to start playing a rogue for the 1st time in a new campaign, and as usual, watching one of your videos leaves me feeling much more confident to start the campaign. Great ideas and great tips. Thanks guys!

[@tarvox14]

My first ever rogue, I used my really sleight of hands skill to secretly give money to my party members while stealing from baddies

[@boyfromoz7]

Swashbuckler's are awesome. All their abilities are useful (make sure you have some charisma to work with). You have to try hard to NOT get sneak attack, you add charisma to initiative at 3rd, panache at 9th allows you to ensure an enemy creature gets disadvantage on anyone but you which is great when your healer or wizard are at deaths door, use you bonus action to get advantage on all acrobatics and athletic checks at 13th and at 17th to turn a miss into another roll with advantage every short rest is broken. Played more rogues than any other class in 5e and this sub-class was absolutely the best . Loads of roll play options as well. I played a pirate (sailor) background half elf to get that charisma. Highly recommend.

[@user-jv9sh1ts9g]

That story you told about the rogue stealing the diamonds out of the eyes and triggering a trap is from the starter campaign(Lost Mines of Phandelver) that I just ran for some friends.

[@grrfilter]

I am in the middle of that campaign now :/

[@pharrigan-hikes]

Just played that last week. My rogue was going to do it, but our wizard beat me to it haha.

[@animistchannel2983]

I think my favorite rogue is actually Lord Vetineri, the Patrician of Ankh-Morpork in Diskworld. He combined super-smart stealth, misdirection, controlling information, masterminding plans, choosing his timing & opportunities wisely, and manipulating others into doing his will for him and thinking it was their own idea or ends -- all while keeping himself embedded quietly in the establishment until he was literally in charge of it. He also managed to fulfill his own goals while actually benefitting most of the people most of the time. Best case example of a "lawful good" rogue.

[@akrinornoname2769]

I'd say he's more lawful neutral

[@jamiedavies3810]

So my brother recommended you guys to me a few days ago, and I am so glad I checked this video out. Thanks for the tips fellas!

[@DungeonDudes]

Rock on! Thanks to you and your brother for checking out our videos!

[@koreanbbq2376]

Dont know if this was mentioned but Sneak Attack specifies once per turn so that means when it isnt your turn and you have an ability that lets you attack as a reaction, such as Sentinel or the one battlemaster ability that lets you make a reactionary attack if an opponent misses you, you are able to get another sneak attack on that reaction provided the proper conditions are met

[@Rincewind_The_Wizzard]

The battlemaster maneuver you are talking about is Riposte. I have it on my 17 swash/3 battlemaster along with parry and distracting strike.

[@yiklongtay6029]

I disagree with your interpretation. Reactions shouldn't be treated like an additional turn. This would mess up other spells and features that describes their effects ending on your next turn. Does using sentinel cause my stunning strike to end prematurely? Justifying a second SA due to your reactions opens up an unwanted can of worms.

[@koreanbbq2376]

@@yiklongtay6029 It isnt an interpretation. You are literally allowed to in the rules, this was also confirmed by Jeremy Crawford.

[@moliak]

Love your channel. Just recently began playing 5e. Grew up playing 1st addition in late 70’s early 80’s. Been on a 30 year hiatus, now I’m back. Thanks for helping me learn the intricacies and rules of this amazing game. Arcane Trickster all the way.

[@Comicsluvr]

I think the Inquisitive Rogue is a solid foundation for a Witch Hunter type of character. You're very perceptive (good for finding Witches, Vampires, Necromancers etc) and yet you're certainly not helpless when it comes to putting them down. Sneak up on that Ghoul, Hand Crossbow with the special Holy Water tips, and watch that sweet Sneak Attack damage take them down with a single shot!

[@DungeonDudes]

Love this character concept, I agree, I think it would work especially well in an urban horror campaign where *finding* the villains and monsters is as difficult as actually *fighting* them.

[@Comicsluvr]

My GF is running a Rogue currently, likely will go Inquisitive at lvl 3 for the bonuses to find hidden things. Somewhere down the line dip into Ranger (for Preferred Target: Undead) and maybe Paladin for Smiting and Divine Sense.

[@RylanBones1]

I generally don't comment, but this time I'm going to make an exception to share one of my favorite characters I have ever made (warning: it's a long one) First and foremost, I didn't want to play as an assassin (kinda like how I don't want to take eldritch blast as a warlock -- too mainstream). I then thought about how I really didn't want to be evil, either. I then set out to be a chaotic good rogue. I made the backstory first; I rolled on a random trinket table and got a doll and a note. I decided that the doll belonged to my daughter, and the note was from my son. The reason I carry them around is as a memorandum, as they were murdered in a raid on my village. This is the part where I had to pick a race and a background, and I decided that I wanted to play a tabaxi, mostly cause it sounded cool and it fit the bill pretty well. As for the background, most of the normal ones were boring to me, so I went with the folk hero, where my calling card was what I did as a rogue (see the next paragraph); It's less like I'm revered and more like I'm respected. People see that I'm doing the right thing, so they try to help me out in whatever way they can. I was desperate for a way to live after my village was raided, and a gentleman extended his hand to me. He said that if I was to use my natural instincts to hunt down this one guy and bring him to justice, then he would give me a considerable sum of money. I, being a family man, was hesitant, but I was in a rough spot. I asked him what this man did to deserve to die, and was told that he was the head of a smuggling ring. I agreed that this particular man wasn't going to be brought to justice any other way, so I agreed to talk to him and see what he said. Using my natural speed and agility as a tabaxi, I hunted the man down and caught him alone in his room, with the guards outside oblivious to my presence. The guy was, of course, startled that there was somebody sent to kill him in the room, but I told him that if I really wanted him dead, I could have killed him already. I explained my situation and asked for his side of the story. He told me that he was, indeed, the head of a smuggling ring, and he didn't plan on getting caught any time soon. I then asked him if he understood why he had to die, to which he said yes. I left a note with his body explaining why he was taken out for his family because no one deserves to lose a loved one and not know why. Mechanically, assassins need to have surprise, and my rogue only kills his marks after they know he's there, meaning a thief is much better suited to his skill set, as he picks locks, is super sneaky and mobile, blah blah blah. That brings me to the traits of my character. Traits: Reminiscent Somber Ideals: justice - he eventually wants to know why his family was killed, not necessarily bring about some sort of self-righteous justice. Bonds: the doll is my daughter's, and I carry it with me to remind me to be caring and gentle, like her. the note is my sons, and I carry it with me to remind me to be emotionally strong because it says that I'm the strongest superhero alive. Flaws: creed - I will only ever kill a target if they know why they must die. I also always leave a note explaining it for their family. Essentially, I made this character to be a killer that fights to be good. He wants to make sure that if people HAVE to die, their families have as much closure as possible, and he leaves his kills in as high a standing as possible so it's easier to digest for those around them. His major goal is just to find the killers of his children and find out why; he doesn't even know what he'll do when he finds them. The first kill is kind of shaky, but he was so much fun to roleplay at the table. He was definitely my favorite character I've ever played, plus the ability to move at 120 feet in a round then attack was really satisfying, mechanically. That's just my little nostalgic piece of D&D history, I hope I did it justice.

[@vdsora32]

Cool character

[@telemperor]

Mat Cauthon from Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time is definitely a rogue and by the end is a General, a perfect example of a high level rogue.

[@nathanschubert3048]

Remember though, rogues don't have to steal things to be a rogue. Had a good aligned party member who needed an upgrade to his otherwise good knowledge of roleplay.

[@shinybugg9156]

I am playing a rogue who joined the party as a favor from a general they helped. She's the royal army's best spy/assassin and lawful good. She's all about helping her people with her amazing skills, and always follows orders from higher ranking officials.

[@karenwoolley4279]

Level 10, never stole a thing, but have l00ted so many crypts/temples that it's basically the same thing.

[@Logan_Baron]

I had a rogue in 3rd edition that would be offended to be called a thief. He fell more into the spy, or spy for hire description. Absolutely no skill points in pick pocket. More infiltration specialist. Specializing in disarming traps and picking locks.

[@Logan_Baron]

@@karenwoolley4279 If looting crypts is stealing then all the party members are thieves, not just the rogue.

[@karenwoolley4279]

@@Logan_Baron I'm just saying my guy can't take on airs, we have taken everything from enemies that is not nailed down and a few things that were. Sure I'm a rogue that never used sleight of hand, pick pocket, or any of that, but he got rich and it wasn't from tending a shop

[@Whimsical_Realist]

I'm playing an eladrin arcane trickster rogue in a campaign I'm in right now. (In-built misty step and the boost to dex are good.) Instead of thievery, I'm a private eye, with expertise in investigation and stealth. I don't like the tendency for corruption in the government, so the only laws I enforce are my moral compass. I tend to fight the criminal underground, but I am not above working with it if I think it's the right thing to do. This is a wonderful example of the narrative versatility of the class. You don't have to steal, or even be morally questionable, to be a rogue.

[@Blaize24]

So a Spencer type of rogue. I like.

[@Shahakazaramesh]

I'm playing a scout in a campaign at the moment, and looked at this video on a lark - great video! I loved the discussion of rogues in fiction, as well as the flaws. Related to the lust/gluttony/greed flaw, I conceived of mine as a gambling addict. Part of why he has to take all sorts of jobs, and why he wants to scout up ahead of the party.

[@anthonyhines1644]

I'm playing in a hell's campaign where my party are devils that work jobs from people who summon us. Im playing a tabaxi arcane trickster. This is a lot of fun. My GM found the idea from someone else but this is so cool he is giving the party some hellish tricks which we activate with hit dice. We've been playing for About a year now. Im 9 lvl arcane trickster with an additional 2 lvl in wizard. Highest lvl character I've ever had. Love this game.

[@lt.branwulfram4794]

A Rogue's versatility makes them a good combination when multiclassing with Fighter. I've now got a level 14 Rogue(6)/Fighter(6)/Ranger(2) that's become a gunslinger.

[@peterrasmussen4428]

One thing that is very important about the sneak attack, is that there is a difference between turn, and round. In one round, each combatant has one turn, that means one round contains many turns. That means if you find some way to attack outside of your own turn, you can still apply sneak attack, even if you have already sneak attacked on your own turn. The simplest way for this to happen is opportunity attack. But there are other ways too. All the ways to attack outside your turn that I know of, require you to spend your reaction, and you only get one of those per round, so in that way you are still limited.

[@wolfskinchanger]

How do you speak of rogues in video games and not mention Sly Cooper? The skills he learned from the Thievius Raccoonus make him a perfect example of an arcane trickster.

[@devingilliam5601]

My first d&d character I made was a wood elf rogue. I made his major flaws the two that I have: arrogance, and I enjoy drinking. So seeing this now and looking back at this video makes me want to revisit that character and play with him so more. I put a lot of myself into that character and felt the most connected to him. Love your guys’ videos on the different classes and really going through all the aspects of them. Your bard video really helped mold mine for the campaign my friends and I are starting this coming week and for that you have my thanks. All the best!

[@DarkNog]

38:01 Rogue, noble, swashbucklers are essentially who the Three Musketeers are, aren't they? It completely works.

[@KuittheGeek]

I have just started playing within the last year, and I started a halfling rogue. One of our best moments to date was when our small party (3 PC's) was battling some sirens, and my other party members were unconscious. I really needed a hit to kill one of the sirens, and I rolled a nat 1. Halfling luck and I reroll a nat 20 dealing some devastating critical damage and killed the siren out right. My DM couldn't believe it, and my party burst out cheering. Such a great time and so much fun.

[@foxfire7]

One of my first character in 5th edition DnD was Thief Rogue with the Acolyte Background, he was an elf trying to recover the relics and items of his people scattered around lands now being encroached on by humans civilizations and such. I even took the feats that let you pick spells (I picked Cleric spells) (along with the arcane trickster subclass)

[@jamesstaton3265]

Biggest reason I like the Arcane Trickster/Thief archetypes is that they let you make a ninja. Not like a pop culture ninja, but like an actual quiet, support oriented type that primarily contributes by gathering info and setting the stage for everyone else.

[@richgoetz7525]

Picked a rogue as my first character in my first campaign (still learning) and I intended to make it a kind of comedic/dumb character that would probably die pretty quickly but at least let me get a feel for the game. Problem was I rolled way too high for attributes during the creation of the character with the DM so my lowest attribute was strength with a 14 and now I'm stuck being like a rogue tank for the party. No idea how this happened but it's been pretty amusing and fun so I can't complain.

[@Ralyx0]

Notably, Rogues can make Sneak Attacks on reaction attacks. With the right build, you can pretty reliably output two Sneak Attacks per round.

[@tkeleth2931]

Yeah, there's a distinct difference between "once per turn" and "once per round" that I think gets overlooked sometimes

[@eruditecaptain3117]

Harrison Ford: Literally every character he plays is a rogue.

[@eruditecaptain3117]

29:00 I find it funny when people say they always see the Assassin and not other subclasses, because my groups have never had an Assassin in them. I had one player play as three different rogues over the course of three campaigns/one-shots and he played as a Scout, a Swashbuckler, and a Thief. Another player who frequently plays rogue has played every subclass besides Assassin and refuses to play Assassin because, quote, "it just sounds so boring". Personally, I mixed Mastermind into my Battelmaster and was a commander of our little micro-legion.

[@laschicvalisca2481]

I think one of the greatest Mastermind rogue characters from TV was Nathan Ford from the show "Leverage." He came up with all the plans and assigned jobs for everyone to accomplish goals to make what they wanted happen. The key skills he had from the archetype would be Master of Tactics, Insightful Manipulator, and Soul of Deceit.

[@Druid4099]

Yes excellent points! To add on to the Mastermind archetype I would say Professor Moriarty from Sherlock Holmes would be a great example of a Mastermind rogue!

[@kritique777]

Rogue Noble - Zuko, Avatar the Last Airbender is a good example

[@thehalfa95]

Zuko would make a great Kenku Rogue. Just keeps shouting “MY HONOR!!!” At people for most of the campaign until he memorized enough Iroh quotes.

[@delicathvrenitah4282]

@@thehalfa95 xD

[@jeremybrooks7415]

I think you guys forgot the best pair from literature: Fafryyd and the Grey Mouser.

[@brunobeltranbelmonte755]

More cool rogue characters for inspiration: Tom cruise from mission impossible. Puss in boots from Shrek. Loki from Thor (as a rougue he would be an arcane trickster but also can be a wizard warlock or whatever). And probably the best of this list: Miguel and Tulio from El Dorado. or Sherlock Holmes

[@MrGoulio]

In El Dorado, one was a rogue, the other a bard. Can't recall which, but they definitely weren't both rogues.

[@ivansakal1224]

We just started a new campaign. I made a sherlock holmes like character with mentalist like backstory. Can't wait to get into the plot!

[@SH-qs7ee]

For me the prefect rogue was Jimmy the Hand, from Raymond E Feist's Riftwar Saga. Guy was everything you expect a stereotypical thief to be; he was skilled, had a cocky brashness mixed with a healthy dose of caution when required.

[@jmiles86]

I once made a Ranger/Rogue named Jericho that was a merc that was rude and mean to anyone he didn't like, but he was honest, nice and selfless for his friends, kids and animals. He was raise in a circus as a knife thrower, and one time I killed a frost giant in a single hit, then I rolled a Nat 20 to intimidate a second frost giant. The DM said "the other giant is so scared of you that he has a heart attack and dies."

[@dylanlewis3038]

Let me get this straight: a Rogue can sneak attack an enemy if their ally is within 5ft. So, if a Rouge is at maximum crossbow range, and a Barbarian is attacking a Bugbear, the Rogue can sneak attack the Bugbear, with scaling d6’s? That’s a lot of damage. Sniper Rogue sounds awesome! Sneak attack doesn’t only triggers on the first hit when dual wielding, so the second hit would just be normal damage, right?

[@tkeleth2931]

I realize this is late, but for anyone curious - yes, the sneak attack only works once per turn - but please note that you can get sneak attacks during someone else's turn in the same round, with an opportunity attack

[@mhail7673]

@@tkeleth2931 you can sneak attack multiple times in a turn, but you cannot sneak attack the same target twice. If the party is split and each party is 100 feet away (at night) from each other and the rouge is sitting at 50 feet from both parties he could hit attacker in both groups then move 15ft each way to hide from Both groups to sneak attack again. (Requires night vision and possibly sharpshooter and speed potion if low lvl)

[@andstephen1416]

I’m playing a Rogue / Fighter character at the moment and I love playing him so much he can do so much and we’ve worked him as the party’s primary damage dealer now just because his sneak attack combined with the alert feat is OP

[@carlosrivera9047]

Would love to see a guide specific to Arcane Trickster. Spell choices, etc.

[@katherineminor3402]

Mirror image invisible sleep disguise self find familiar blur fly mage hand dancing lights prestidignston shocking grasp hold person hypnotic pattern confusion

[@tkeleth2931]

if you have more than one other melee player in your group, you can live without find familiar - and depending on your DM, you might really, REALLY need feather fall :)

[@sparks3705]

The Arcane Trickster is hands down the most versatile rogue, imo. Illusion magic plus rogue stuff equals lots of fun. I've played every rogue type mentioned in this video except the assassin. I always look at it... and every time I think I might play it, I think it's just a one trick wonder that may or may not even get to do the trick. The arcane trickster can get a familiar to do a help action, make himself invisible, cast fairy fire, and lots of other useful things to give himself advantage. The owl is the perfect familiar for utilizing the help action with since it can't provoke an attack opportunity. The arcane trickster can disguise himself with magic and do his thing while looking like someone else. The list of usefulness the arcane trickster can do is almost endless. Then you look at the assassin... So bland... Great video, guys. I know I'm late to the party, but it's been fun watching you two chat about D&D.

[@nightflame69]

Wouldn’t Laura Croft be considered a rogue?

[@SH-qs7ee]

I was thinking the same, either that or ranger, especially in the newer gamers

[@RoadsideCouch]

The mentioned tomb robber in the opening.

[@gregoryroth5527]

I always played and have only played a thief/assassin in D&D and AD&D (80s and 90s); I loved the role and lived it (in the game of course)! Have not yet played 5e but getting back to my roots. Just found your channel and love it... Great content and presentation guys. Subscribed! Go Rogues!

[@WayneBraack]

Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser .. more influence on DnD than almost anything. From the novels of Jack Vance, taking place in the world of Nehwon which had it's own mythos in the original Deities and Demigods. It was quickly removed on copyright grounds as was the Melnibonean mythos or the world of Elric for those who've never read the tales of the eternal champion. I have a copy with both mythos. I'm that old school kids.

[@QuiescentPilot]

Long comment about subclasses (if you read anything, the 2nd and 3rd paragraphs are what you should look at most): Personally, I think that in terms of subclass, a lot of people look at the name more than the abilities when it comes to Rogues, which is why Assassins are the most common, and if they pick Assassin based on their estimation of the subclass abilities, they will overestimate it because they are imagining their character in a bubble, with no one else in the party. They'll think "wow, so I have expertise in Stealth; I'll always get a surprise round!," and then later realize that with a whole party of characters, getting them all to sneak up op an encounter successfully is SUPER rare. In fact, it's more common for the party to be surprise attacked. And, since the Rogue is weak in terms of defense, they can't just go ahead on their own; they'll just die without their allies! My favorite Rogue, by far, is the Arcane Trickster. I feel that where it's sister subclass, the Eldritch Knight (still a solid choice, but it pains me to make one), is so painful to build, the Arcane Trickster is awesome. The main problem with both is that they are limited in what spell schools they can select. With a Fighter, you get Abjuration (which is probably the best you could get, but doesn't have that many spells to pick), and Evocation (and Evocation is NOT what you want on a Fighter. Dealing damage is already what you're good at; what you want are utility spells to help buff you/use outside of combat. Plus, with Evocation, you need to have a high INT to use them effectively, which makes you very MAD), so you're limited to just Abjuration spells, and one more spell per spell level of any school. With the Arcane Trickster, you get Illusion and Enchantment. While Enchantment spells almost invariably rely on INT to determine a save DC, making you a bit MAD, Illusion is just PERFECT. There are a bunch of Illusion spells, and they're all useful outside of combat. I've even seen Rogues cast Minor Illusion with their action so that they could hide behind a giant rock with Cunning Action when there's nowhere to hide on the battlefield. Their Improved Mage Hand is super useful both in and out of combat (see that caster over there, about to nuke the fighter with a Fireball? I'll use Mage Hand to steal his component pouch! Let's see you cast that Fireball now, without your bat guano!). They can improve their defenses with Mirror Image, sneak around with Invisibility, and more! Plus, without the Extra Attack feature, they benefit GREATLY from the Booming Blade cantrip from SCAG; and they can Cunning Action Disengage to make it's secondary damage more likely to activate. Minor Image is good on any character, and can help your Rogue greatly (with no verbal component, you can use it to make it so that enemy guards hear sounds from the other direction if they're about to find you, or you can make something to hide behind if need be. All in all, the Arcane Trickster is incredibly versatile, and gets a LOT of mileage out of its spellcasting. Another point about the AT Rogue that I think very few people think of, is that it's a great class for a new player who wants to play something with magic. They can spend the first two levels learning the mechanics of the game, and how it works, and when they reach 3rd, you can start showing them how spells work, and if they have trouble figuring it out, they still have all the normal stuff of the Rogue that they're used to to fall back on.

[@domlewis4461]

I Really like the idea of a sherlock style character with the inquisitive sub class and taking more wisdom and intelligence over dexterity and with the insightful fighting ability i just imagine that moment in the fight pit scene in the robert downey jr sherlock film, im thinking of playing this style of character the role play would be so fun.

[@stuartlaws9977]

Oh man this is great. I always saw a shadow monk 6/ inquisitive as Batman. But with way of the open hand is definitely wing chun six pack Sherlock

[@kevinmorris9362]

I was running a Swashbuckler rogue in a campaign and was surprised by how useful the additional sneak attack criteria was. It let me get up to isolated enemy casters and still sneak attack them to drop them before they became a problem.

[@pokemaster5461]

The Swashbuckler is perfect for both Pirates and Fencers like Gomez Addams and Henry Jones Jr. from Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

[@patricklyons794]

+ImmaFatMan Please! Indiana.

[@Rincewind_The_Wizzard]

They are also good for some more unusual ones. I'm currently playing a swashbuckler who is Arabic looking, uses 2 scimitars, and instead of taking an instrument with outlander my DM let me learn to "blade dancer"( I completely forgot swords bard existed). He doesn't care about stealing (not even proficient in slight of hand) and is on a quest to become a sword master before he returns to his village.

[@CouchMonkeyPumper]

Sorry for all the comments guys, loving this whole video. My brother's rogue is an entertainer background, actor feat, mastermind, charisma focused. He started a theater company and wormed his way into Waterdeep society he then became the head of the offical waterdeep theater company, by level three he was a principle character in waterdeep society. Never once did he win a combat, he was the sort of character that hits people over the head with flower vases.

[@cirquedumushroom]

Didnt talk about many inspirations in books, like the lies of locke lamora and the way of shadows series. Lamora being that great hiest and thief example, and kyler stern being the ultimate and complex assassin.

[@RJThyme]

I play a 6th level rogue. It was interesting to hear you talk about the alcoholic rogue. My character is addicted to smoking the devils weed. When done this triggers a random effect. It's been such a fun way to make the game more unexpected for everyone that a few other charcters started doing it with mine in game... it's gotten us into and out of a lot of trouble but keeps things interesting and creates a really nice character arch. Great video!

[@benjaminfrost2780]

Rogues do end up getting reliable talent though that makes a natural 1 and by proxy the "lucky" halfing trait as a moot point unless you house rule/homebrew natural ones as a fail no matter what. Humans make a great rogue with the variant. Just need to either get a pair of goggles of night or dip 2 levels into warlock and get devil sight. Can shore up your saving throws by having a relatively high int and wis as your 2nd and 3rd stats after Dex.

[@icare8899]

Rock Gnome rouge with thief archetype is going to make some crazy tinkering tools for help. Just started this one!

[@erin0033]

Hey, you guys are fantastic! When can we expect the Monk Guide?

[@DungeonDudes]

We're aiming to finish all the class guides this summer, so perhaps we will see the Monk Guide in June? Kelly is playing a Shadow Monk right now, so we've got LOTS of great advice!

[@erin0033]

Can't wait!

[@AlkisGD]

I'm two sessions into my first P&P D&D campaign (after years of playing RPGs on PC) and this video was both educational and inspirational. My rogue is a failed merchant Verdan thief who just couldn't stand seeing adventurers with cool shiny gear, living the life, while he and his family traveled from place to place, trading. He loves his family and wants to prove to his folks that he can make it as an adventurer. His flaw is that he wants the best of everything, now. My initial inspiration was the goblin Styx from the series of stealth games, but reading about the Verdan made me change a lot about the character, especially in terms of personality. I've been playing rogues in video games for over 20 years now, and I honestly believe I could go for 200 if I had the lifespan. I simply cannot get enough of the archetype! And there's so much variety in the different flavors of rogue that 200 years might not even be enough :p

[@blinddog4288]

I played a rogue as my first 5th E character and got booted from my group because I was not a blood thirsty killer. I was a 1/2 elf named Thorin. He was born to a elven mother and human father. His parents worked for a mining company were his mother was a wizard that specialized in gemology and his father a mining engineer. He was an only child and spoiled while he was young. As he aged and the town's miners went off to work, Thorin would bed their wives. His parents eventually wanted him took take a job and timing couldn't had been better as a few of the men started wondering about his doings... To entice this women, Thorin wore a disguise of a popular merchant and sign his name to rent rooms and pay for wine. The merchant started receiving notes of debt and knew he wasn't the one charging these so he hired the thieves guild to investigate. They found Thorin, beat him to near death, and while waiting for the merchant to show up to decide his final fate, Thorin excaped on his horse named Apple Jacks. His top ability was Char 18 and dex was 14 (Lover not a fighter) with the Charlatan background. All other personality choices were flattery and falls in love quickly.... Thorin is VERY vain! Our first combat was with a patrol of orcs and I hide behind everyone using my rapier to only poke an orc after he was dead. This way he would claim to have killed them (blood on the blade) but never actually attacked anyone. The play was absolutely fun!!! But my friends are only blood thirsty players and they were made at me, so I just stopped playing all together with them.

[@rezonpokemon3854]

A little late. But i believe if a rougue picks a feat. Mobile is a must. Atttack an enemy, you get a free disengage, move back. Cunning action hide. And the extra movement speed is always usefull. If there anyone who will be a sole survivor. It is a rouge with mobile. And if its a tabaxi. OH BOY, that dragon aint gonna reach you. Run like the wind.

[@Scaramanga7]

Rogue noble = Arsene Lupin!

[@majorfokker658]

Thomas Crown. Basically a bored billionaire, who does it because he can.

[@ZelsisiA]

I just made my first character which is a Rogue. I’m not really going for the whole thief throng since I don’t want a character like that. Part of the aspects I have were inspired by Grand Admiral Thrawn from Star Wars. I’m loving the character. She’s very much a loner since she lost a friend or two during battle and she doesn’t want to get emotionally hurt again and just tries to stay calm all the time and have multiple plans. But she’s also an assassin/spy kind of person. I mainly chose the class cause of Stealth since I’m not that big on fighting people. It just seemed an interesting concept to me. But this helps a lot as does everything else you guys have especially since I’m really new to this.

[@NightdrifterDK]

10/10 I'm always going for the Arcane Trickster cause I love spells

[@xezzee]

Which spells do you prefer, beside Find Familiar?

[@NightdrifterDK]

@@xezzee Prestidigitation, , Minor Illusion, Shape Water, Silent Image, Invisibility, Misty Step. Basically just a bunch of utility stuff

[@xezzee]

@@NightdrifterDK Neat I found my self liking Sleep and Find familiar most ^_^ having 100% uptime as melee on sneak dmg is handy and taking weak minions or one caster out at the start is quite useful. How would you use Shape water spell?

[@travisholt7561]

So you mention it once in the video when you said all the archetypes but then didn't talk about your thoughts on the Swashbuckler archetype? Opinions? I'm currently running a human variant with feat Duel Wielder and absolutely loving the front line capabilities of this rogue type, and unless at disadvantage you always get to use sneak attack. AND if you attack someone they do not get an opportunity attack as you walk away. (I love arcane trickster but the swash buckler also needs a great mention.)