Need help playing rogue

[Suslik]

I have played archmage till the end of far east. Every time I started over I have easily completed a few basic vaults, got lvl like 15-20 and proceeded to the more complex ones. I really gotten used to archmage mechanics - shields, aegis, ranged combat, kiting. Whenever I tried to switch to any other class I failed, you know, badly. The only class that I got into relatively easily(from like 5th attempt, lol) was corruptor. Almost completed the game with him.

But I really wish to unlock the last thief class, and I have heard that in order to do so, I need to beat some boss with rogue. If I am wrong, just give me a hint, please no spoils. And I cannot even complete the very basic vaults with him - every time I encounter some random creature a few levels higher than I am, I get killed really easily.

Ok, my strategy is as follows:
- stack accuracy. It matters for the thieves.
- if I am 100% sure I can beat the foe, I use melee, otherwise, use traps.
- always use stealth.

So my damage output is relatively fine. But I have serious survivability problems - every time I'm hit, neither I can protect myself, nor flee effectively(loved phase door and tons of archmage's shields).

And I usually die at like level 12-15 from some rare badass spawn. I try not to die till at least lvl25, because I know I will die in dreadfell more than once.

Please any hints?

[SageAcrin]

It's not beating a specific boss. You need to achieve a (fairly basic, though rather complicated for the class) basic achievement with Rogue (or Shadowblade, next version-I don't think that was in when b42 was released though), to unlock the final Rogue class.

(Not sure how I can give a better hint than that without outright telling you what to do.)

As to survivability? Barrier runes are something I found hugely important in that level range-when I played, I found myself playing Skeleton just for not only the synergy in general, but specifically for Bone Shield being extremely helpful for them as well. (Of course, then you eat every status ever, so it's a matter of what you dislike dealing with.) I'm not the only one. I believe half the Rogue winners in the vault are Skeletons.

Generally speaking, there's always going to be some holes in your durability, as a Rogue. Stealth will eventually fill them somewhat, once you get going with it(Common practice to optimize stealth is to not only heavily invest in the tree, but also to put a bonus Category point into it.), and Misdirection should help a fair deal later in the game(And Nimble Movements gives you at least a basic mobility option).

But yeah, Rogues are not easy, is the simplest way to sum that up. They're one of the hardest classes to get off the ground, and their durability being flaky is a big part of that. You're never going to be good, relatively, at taking a punch to the face. You need to be careful when and where you break stealth, so that you take out the largest threat in the area and that there's not more than you can handle nearby. And if you ever get into a situation where stealth isn't enough, due to either enemies detecting you easily or due to just being out muscled, get out of there fast and try to kite them from a more safe position.

[Suslik]

I haven't unlocked skeleton either. Any slight hint on how to do that? Please as slight as that rogue-achievment thing above.

Shileding runes help indeed, but I usually fail even earlier than find my first one lol.

[phantomglider]

Skeletons are unlocked by beating a certain boss. I'm surprised that you're talking about getting to the end of the far east and almost having beaten the game without already having unlocked skeleton.

Stun is very important for early-game rogue survivability. 4/5 Dual Strike and 1/5 Dirty Fighting is enough to keep a single enemy permanently stunned, which cuts their damage output by over 2/3. Rogues are also extremely good at hit-and-run tactics; Shadowstrike boosts their damage high enough that they can kill or nearly kill a lot of enemies in one attack, and then you can teleport rune or movement infusion away to heal and get ready for the next pass. Deadly Strikes is probably better than you think, since it's a melee attack that doesn't take any time, so it can be used to boost your burst damage even higher. Putting a single point in it is enough for quite a long time, though.

[peaceoutside]

Skeleton is unlocked the same way ghoul is unlocked.

It's a coin flip whether that action unlocks skeleton or ghoul.

I think it may be possible that you can 'roll' ghoul multiple times even if you have it unlocked, but don't have skeleton unlocked. I'm not 100% sure though.

[Suslik]

Thanks a lot guys. I think I'm gonna try human rogue with a category point spent in an additional infusion(movement or shield).

And I will try to beat *that* dude one more time to unlock skeleton.

[bricks]

You should have both Undead classes after beating the Master twice.

The rogue-specific class unlock is one of the most challenging in the game, partly because of the challenge associated with the rogue class (fragile melee), partly because of the unintuitive nature of the unlock. It's one unlock that you wouldn't just stumble upon in regular play unless you happened to play rogue a lot. Furthest I got was to the Master's second life... That was a sad day.

Incidentally I unlocked this class when testing +stealth equipment in debug mode. Whoops.

[Suslik]

Whoops, that was a lil' bit spoilerish. But now I know which direction to go if I want to unlock the last rogue class.

And it seems I did not beat *that* boss the second time with my corruptor - b42 came out and the character was lost.

[jenx]

Unlock poisons, as that will help unlock last rogue class

[bricks]

Whoops, that was a lil' bit spoilerish. But now I know which direction to go if I want to unlock the last rogue class.

Maybe not as spoilerish as you think. I didn't state anything that would directly lead you to the unlock.