Sub-Classes: Alternative ‘Rogue’ Builds
Combining different species, classes, and backgrounds with proficiency and feat selection allows most people to make characters close to their original vision. But, sometimes, a character concept is original, or complex, and requires a unique look at character options to build it. There are often many ways to build characters with similar abilities, and finding the best option(s) to choose can be challenging, but challenging can be fun and rewarding. In the substitute classes (Sub-Classes) features we will look at ways to make different classes work in similar ways through combinations of backgrounds and class and subclass selections along with class feature and spell selection. These explorations won’t be to optimize them, but to develop interesting and unique characters with the abilities you want them to have. We will only provide example paths of up to 3rd level when you can get a subclass and recommendations of your first Feat you might get at 4 or 5 depending on multiclassing.
This time we will look at how to build characters similar to the rogue class: a martial melee weapon martial fighter with stealth, mobility, many skills, and the ability to increase their damage.
Rogues are known primarily as damage dealers that use stealth and other ways to add Sneak Attack damage to their attacks. But a big part of a rogue’s repertoire is a number of skill proficiencies and Expertise. Being able to have a lot of options in both role-playing and combat will be an important part of trying to duplicate what a rogue can bring to the party.
Builds
Here are a few recommendations for alternative rogue builds.
Backgrounds & Origin Feats
Depending on your table and group, you may or may not be able to create Custom Backgrounds. First are recommendations of Origin Feats that are useful and relevant Backgrounds.
Alert. Getting a higher Initiative to get the jump on your enemies. Select Criminal or Guard backgrounds.
Savage Attacker. Rerolling damage dice to get higher results helps deal more damage. Select the Soldier background.
Skilled. This can help classes that only get 2 skill proficiences, and a skill selection that doesn’t include ones like Stealth, get a repertoire like rogues get. Select Charlatan. Noble, or Scribe backgrounds.
If you are not looking for a specific Origin Feat, these Backgrounds can help with flavor, proficiencies that work for a rogue (namely stealth or thieves’ tools), or even the best Ability score selection (DEX):
Artisan (DEX)
Entertainer (DEX)
Guide (Stealth and DEX)
Sailor (DEX)
Wayfarer (Stealth, Thieves’ Tools, DEX)
Classes
These are suggestions on routes to take for your class and subclass, including multi-class options which can really open up combination possibilities to achieve your goal.
These first ones are the most straightforward paths to build a non-paladin magical melee:
Bard: They get almost as many proficiencies and are not limited to their selection so you can pick up Stealth and other skills. They are a Dex-based class. At level 2 they get Expertise and Jack-of-All Trades to surpass a rogue’s skill access at this point. Their access to spells can make up for some lack of rogue-like abilities for damage and mobility and add illusion spells that can help with subterfuge including True Strike, Charm Person, Comprehend Languages, Disguise Self, Longstrider, Silent Image, Sleep. College of Dance can add more melee damage and mobility and College of Valor can also improve melee combat abilities. Overall, Bard is a great option to build a character with rogue-like abilities without taking rogue levels.
(Add a level of Fighter for Weapon Mastery and Fighting Style.)Fighter: Fighting Styles and Weapon Masteries give you more damage and special attack effects. Level 2’s Tactical Mind can help with proficiency checks. Battle Master can really help with subterfuge and damage by taking Maneuvers like: Ambush, Evasive Footwork, Feinting Attack, Lunging Attack, Precision Attack, and Tactical Assessment.
(Multi-class Bard or Ranger, especially dipping level 1, for more proficiencies or 2 levels of Monk for maneuverability)Monk: They are a DEX-based martial class that has access to Stealth proficiency and high mobility and evasiveness. They can still use light weapons along with their unarmed attacks. This is a great option for a class to gain rogue-like abilities. Warrior of Shadow’s use of darkness makes them a shadow-powered roguish character.
(Multi-class Ranger to share DEX and WIS and gain more proficiencies and Weapon Masteries and a Fighting Style at level 2)Ranger: They are a DEX-based martial class that gets 3 skill proficiencies including access to Stealth. Weapon Mastery, Fighting Style and Favored Enemy’s free Hunter’s Mark spell add attack effects and damage. Their spells, like Bard, can assist with mobility and damage including: Ensnaring Strike, Jump Hail of Thorns, and Longstrider. Gloomstalker, like Warrior of Shadow monk, can make you even more dangerous in the darkness.
(Multi-class Monk for more non-spell mobility.)Warlock: As we are seeing with many of these alternative builds, Warlock is very flexible. Start with Pact of the Blade Invocation to gain a martial weapon proficiency with your CHA modifier added to attack and damage rolls and take Agonizing Blast with a melee spell like True Strike, Green-Flame Blade or Booming Blade for extra damage and the option to eldritch smite later for extra damage akin to Sneak Attack. The Lessons of the First Ones invocation can give you the Origin Feat Skilled for more Proficiencies. Archfey patron can add mobility.
(Multi-class Fighter for Heavy Armor,Weapon Master with your Pact Weapon, and Fighting Style, Bard to align with CHA spells and the benefits already mentioned, or monk)
These are ways to mold other classes into savage martial characters that may not be as straightforward or effective as the ones above:
Barbarian: They are lightly or unarmored, get extra melee damage, extra movement, and Danger Sense is nice but they are not very subtle.
Druid: Is really only a viable option if you consider Wild Shape usage to turn into different beasts that could provide the subterfuge abilities and melee combat especially if you go Circle of the Moon. You could essentially be a rogue in beast form (minus doing things like picking locks or disarming traps).
Cleric, Sorcerer and Wizard (with the Free/PHB 2024 options) are too spell-focused to function as a rogue, especially in combat, even if they pick up proficiencies that give them rogue-like abilities. Trickery Domain clerics get magic that can help with subterfuge. Paladins are just too focused on armor and spells that don’t help with subterfuge.
Feats
Though we provide input mostly for 1st level and up to 3rd, here are some you can get at 4th level to amp up your roguish traits, focusing mostly on ones that also provide a bonus to DEX:
Charger for speed and DEX.
Dual Wielder for more attacks and DEX.
Piercer or Slasher depending on your main weapon’s damage type.
Poisoner to add melee attack effects and DEX.
Sentinel for more chances for Opportunity Attacks and DEX.
Skill Expert for more skills and Expertise.
Skulker for better Stealth and DEX.
Speedy for mobility and DEX.
Weapon Master to gain a weapon Mastery without multi-classing and DEX.
Cwain: A Roguish Warrior
I have chosen Fighter in my attempt to build a roguish character, one who excels at martial combat—both melee and ranged—with ways to increase his damage and add control to his attacks. We will see how we can add cunning and subterfuge to his repertoire.
Meet Cwain, a human fighter who operates adjacent to the criminal world if not fully criminal himself. As a human, he has an advantage to start building his abilities with extra proficiencies and origin feat though other races can give their own benefits towards being .
Species
Cwain is a human. His species will help with some of the things fighter will lack compared to rogue, namely additional proficiencies (at least 1 extra plus the ability to select Skilled Origin Feat for more). He also gets a Heroic Inspiration for Advantage every Long Rest. I give him Stealth proficiency (which he won’t get from his class or Orign) and the Alert Origin Feat for higher Initiative.
Origin Background/Feat
Charlatan. This background gives him two important things for the roguish warrior build: Dexterity as an ability score to increase and the Skilled Origin Feat. He gets proficiency in Deception and Sleight of Hand to add to Stealth which he already has as good roguish skills as well as with a Forgery Kit tool. He will add +2 to DEX and +1 to CHA. The Skilled Feat gives us three more proficiencies and I select: Athletics and Persuasion plus Thieves’ Tools.
Class: Fighter 1
Proficiencies: Insight and Perception.
Fighting Style: Two-weapon Fighting (so he can add his DEX bonus to all attacks when fighting with two weapons, with a high DEX this is better than +2 for a single weapon from Dueling)
Weapon Masteries (3): Scimitar (Nick), Short Sword (Vex), and Whip (Slow). I could have taken Light Crossbow for Slow instead of Whip but he operates in urban environments without a lot of opportunities for ranged attacked (and you can swap when he takes a Long Rest if need be).
He also gets Second Wind for some HP, but will be more useful when he gains a level.
Ability Scores
Using our house rule array I chose this setup:
STR 12, DEX 16 (+2 Background), CON 8, INT 10, WIS 14, CHA 13 (+1 Background)
for these final scores
STR 12, DEX 16, CON 8, INT 10, WIS 14, CHA 14
At first level he already has a lot of what we need to perform close to a rogue: proficiency in Stealth, Sleight of Hand, plus Thieve’s Tools and Forgery Kit as well as Deception, Insight, Perception; and Athletics and Persuasion to boot. He can attack twice and still get a bonus action using Nick from his Scimitar and his Short Sword will Vex to add Advantage to his next attack and he will add his +4 Dex to both his primary and second attacks. He doesn’t really have a use yet for his Bonus Action other than to heal but rogues don’t get options until 2nd level either.
Level 2: Fighter 2
He gets Action Surge to get an extra action one per Short or Ling Rest, while this normally would be used for an extra Attack Action, he could use it to Disengage, Hide, etc. He also gets Tactical Mind with which he can use his Second Wind to add 1d10 to an ability check which can help with skill checks.
Level 3: Fighter 3
He gets to choose his subclass and with Fighter we are taking Battlemaster. This gives him another skill proficiency and a tool proficiency: I give him History and Calligrapher’s Tools (he is sort of a gentleman’s rogue with some education). He also gets three Manuevers which use his four available 1d8s per Short or Long Rest. I select: Ambush (which increases his Stealth or Initiative), Feinting Attack (which gives him Advantage PLUS the 1d8 to damage) and Lunging Attack (Bonus Action Dash and add the 1d8 to the attack)
At 3rd level he has 16 AC (Studded Leather) and 19 HP and combat would look like this:
He has a +6 to Initiative and could use Ambush to increase that.
If he is out of melee range he could use Lunging Dash to move in quickly and add 1d8 Superiority die damage.
Otherwise he would Feint to get advantage on his attack with his Scimitar for 1d6+4 plus 1d8, and with its Nick property get his shorts word attack without using a Bonus Action for 1d6+4 and if it hits give his next attack (his Scimitar on his next turn) Advantage.
Level 4+
We could consider multi-classing to get some other abilities, Ranger could give Hunter’s Mark for more damage or Monk for mobility and an additional unarmed attacks for three attacks. But we already have really all the skill and tool proficiencies we want and probably want Fighter’s Extra Attack at 5th Level plus a Feat at 4th. So we go Fighter 4 and get a Feat. I would look at Dual Wielder or Sentinel both which would give him an extra attack as well as DEX +1. Since Sentinel only works on Opportunity Attacks, I take Dual Wielder which gives him a Bonus Action Attack (which does not add his ability modifier). This means that with a Nick weapon he can take the Attack Action, Attack with the Nick Weapon and get another Light Weapon attack without a Bonus Action then on his Bonus Action get another so he gets three attacks per round. We also get one more Weapon Mastery to select each Long Rest and now would probably take Light Crossbow (Slow).
At 5th Level, he gets Extra Attack which says he can attack twice when he takes the Attack Action so he gets two Attacks with his Attack, his Nick attack and his Dual Wielder Bonus Action Attack for four attacks per turn, three of which add his +4 DEX modifier so he could do 1d6+4, 1d6+4, 1d6+4 and 1d6 plus probably add a 1d8 to his first attack from a Superiority die Maneuver. On average this would be 28 points of damage if all hit, minimum of 17 and up to 44.
Summary
Out of combat he has all the skills and tools needed to function as a rogue. While he does not get Sneak Attack, he gets more chances to attack each round due to Weapon Masteries plus Fighting Style which rogues don’t have access to and he can use Superiority Dice to add 1d8 to up to 4 attacks per Short rest which is usually all one battle, maybe missing 1-2 rounds if it goes 5-6 rounds..
