Best Baldur’s Gate 3 Rogue build guide – skills and traits in BG3

Looking for the best Baldur’s Gate 3 Rogue build? Having a Rogue in your party can make short work of traps and treasure. They’re great at sneaking about and catching enemies off guard as well.

For a more offensive approach, consider our best Baldur’s Gate 3 Warlock build guide. Our Baldur’s Gate 3 classes guide has even more details on class features and unique abilities. You’re in the right place if you’ve been hunting for a comprehensive breakdown of this versatile BG3 class.

Baldur’s Gate 3 best Rogue build

Rogues in Baldur’s Gate 3 are tailored to slip in and out of combat and tricky situations. While they’re great at picking locks and staying in the shadows, their Sneak Attacks and Cunning Actions make them a threat in combat too. Sneak Attacks require Rogues to master positioning themselves as they can only be used when you have an advantage over an opponent. This means using darkness and climbing to another floor can make fights easier for your party. 

Here are some ways to have an advantage in Baldur’s Gate 3:

• Hidden from enemy via stealth or darkness
• An ally within 1.5m of the target
• Prone target
• Spell or ability that grants advantage
• Height
• Enemy being asleep or drunk

Cunning Actions let you use a bonus action for tasks that would have consumed a regular action. They let you Dash, Disengage, or Hide before attacking enemies on the same turn. Remember that stealth is near-essential as Rogues aren’t known for high-health pools.

Rogue class proficiencies

Here’s a list of the skills that you can be proficient in as a Rogue in BG3:

• Rogue Armour Proficiencies: Light Armor
• Rogue Saving Throws: Dexterity & Intelligence
• Rogue Skill Proficiencies: Acrobatics, Athletics, Deception, Insight, Intimidation, Investigation, Perception, Performance, Persuasion, Sleight of Hand, & Stealth
• Rogue Weapon Proficiencies: Simple Weapons, Hand Crossbow, Longsword, Shortsword, Rapier

Best Race for Rogue in Baldur’s Gate 3

The best race to pick as a Rogue character in BG3 is the Wood Half-Elf. Fleet of Foot raises your movement to 10.5m, letting you position yourself better in combat. In addition, Mask of the Wild offers proficiency in Stealth. This makes your Rogue even harder to spot while they’re up to some mischief.

Best Background for Rogue in Baldur’s Gate 3

We prefer the Charlatan background in BG3 for Rogues as it offers proficiency in Deception and Sleight of Hand. While you won’t necessarily be talking your way out of things, Sleight of Hand is a good bonus. This lets you pickpocket key quest items without engaging in combat or discussions. The Criminal is a good pick too with its Deception and Stealth proficiencies. So is the Urchin.

Best Equipment for Rogues in Baldur’s Gate 3

Light Armour like the Drow Armour you get in the Underdark is a good fit for the Rogue in Act 1 of Baldur’s Gate 3. Items that build on your strengths are the way to go in Baldur’s Gate 3. This means getting your hands on rings that enhance your Stealth and Sleight of Hand checks.

As for weaponry, we recommend dual-wielding Finesse weapons. This lets you deal damage with an Off Hand Attack using a bonus action. It’s a great way to finish enemies off or deal extra damage. 

Here are some other items we recommend for the Rogue in BG3:

• Shadow of Menzoberranzan: Gives Shrouded in Shadow
• Gloves of Archery: You gain Proficiency with longbows and shortbows. In addition, your ranged weapon attacks deal an additional 2 damage
• Disintegrating Night Walkers: Can’t be Enwebbed, Entangled, or Ensnared and can’t slip on grease or ice. Grants Misty Step
• The Joltshooter: When the wielder deals damage using this weapon, they gain 2 Lightning Charges
• Shifting Corpus Ring: Gain access to the Invisibility and Blur spells
• Gontr Mael: On a hit, possibly inflict Guiding Bolt upon the target. This object shines with a glowing light in a radius of 6m. Cast Celestial Haste once per Long Rest. Here are some other Baldur’s Gate 3 Legendary items.

Baldur’s Gate 3 Rogue Ability Scores

Here’s our ideal ability score distribution for the Rogue in BG3:

• Strength: 8
• Dexterity: 17
• Constitution: 14
• Intelligence: 12
• Wisdom: 14
• Charisma: 10

Bring a sweet talker like a Bard or a Warlock along because the Rogue isn’t going to win anyone over with a Charisma of 10. Unless they get really lucky with the dice, of course.

Baldur’s Gate 3 Best Rogue Subclass

We recommend the Assassin subclass for the Rogue in Baldur’s Gate 3. Considering the Rogue’s shortcomings in the durability department, it makes sense to pick a subclass that deals damage right from the start. 

The Assassinate feature at level 3 lets you get an advantage on attack rolls on foes that haven’t taken a turn. It also lets you deal critical hits to surprised enemies, which is an insane amount of damage. Add an extra attack to this at higher levels and you can see why the Rogue is excellent at clearing areas if they maintain stealth.

Baldur’s Gate 3 Rogue Assassin Build explained

At level one, utilize Sneak Attacks to deal extra damage. It can take a while to get used to, considering that you’ll need an advantage like height or stealth for them. Once you get to level 2, Cunning Action lets you Dash or Hide as a bonus action. This lets you exit stealth, deal damage, and enter stealth again.

Level 3 is when you get to pick your subclass. While I recommend the Assassin, the Thief subclass is a good pick too. Their resistance to fall damage and Fast Hands (extra Bonus Action) are neat perks. While the Arcane Trickster subclass has access to spells, your low Intelligence and Wisdom scores won’t do them any favours. Your Assassin also has Assassin’s Alacrity, which lets them start combat with an Action and Bonus Action.

Level 4 is when you get to pick from Baldur’s Gate 3 feats. Ability Improvement to improve Dexterity or balance out other abilities is a good idea. Alternatively, you can go all-in on a melee build with a Dual Wielder feat. This grants +1 Armour class while dual-wielding and lets you use two Rapiers at once.

Level 5 brings in Uncanny Dodge. This greatly enhances the survival of your Rogue by halving incoming damage. In level 6, you get to add Expertise and gain proficiency in two skills. While Stealth and Sleight of Hand can help in combat and stealth checks, Deception and Acrobatics can help with world interactions. Level 7 aids defence further with Evasion. This lets you suffer only half damage from a failed Dexterity Saving Throw and no damage from a successful one against spells. And level 8 offers yet another feat.

Tips for playing as the Rogue in Baldur’s Gate 3

Here are some ways to optimize your capabilities as a Rogue in Baldur’s Gate 3:

• Positioning is key. Try getting to a higher platform or enter stealth or darkness before entering combat.
• Hide whenever you can. Remember that you can use a bonus action to Hide thanks to Cunning Action.
• Use Potion of Speed for an extra turn. Use Fire Arrow for more damage. Even better, use an exploding arrow to push enemies off cliffs.
• Gain an advantage whenever you can to make use of Sneak Attacks.
• Use Cunning Action Disengage if you’re swarmed by enemies and need to retreat to safety.
• Rely on your allies. Mages can cast darkness and melee classes like the Fighter and Barbarian can protect you.

That covers everything you need to know about the best Rogue build in Baldur’s Gate 3. Use the darkness and heights to your advantage as you rack up a body count with Sneak Attacks and Cunning Actions. Ambush foes and use Evasion against magic spells. Sneak Attack damage can further be boosted by the Sharpshooter feat. 

A Rogue is particularly useful in exploring the Baldur’s Gate 3 Arcane Tower. And if you want to try something besides a high-DEX Wood Elf, check out the other Baldur’s Gate 3 races for yourself. The Drow’s Darkvision trait is particularly tempting. PC Players have been exploring the world of Faerun for its secrets and PlayStation 5 players can get in on the action fairly soon. Microsoft has also revealed that the game will arrive on Xbox Series X|S consoles this year.

What are the proficiencies of Rogues in BG3?

Rogues in BG3 have proficiency in Simple weapons, hand crossbows, longswords, rapiers, shortswords, and Light Armour.

Is Intelligence or wisdom better for Rogues?

Intelligence is good for an Arcane Trickster Rogue that uses spells in Baldur’s Gate 3.