Rogue Guide 5e: Sneak Attack, Thief, and Complete Builds

A Rogue makes one good opening matter. You bring precise weapon damage, unusually strong skills, and the ability to change position without spending your whole turn. The central question is where you can land a qualifying Sneak Attack while remaining useful and alive when the enemy responds.

This guide uses 2014 D&D 5e. Thief is the SRD subclass used for the three complete builds. Scores use 27-point buy and ordinary racial bonuses. Optional later features such as Steady Aim are not assumed; the 2024 comparison covers revised features separately.

Rogue quick build

Choose a lightfoot halfling with Dexterity 17 and Constitution 14. Take a rapier, shortbow and twenty arrows, leather armor, two daggers, thieves’ tools, and burglar’s pack. Class skills: Stealth, Sleight of Hand, Investigation, Perception. Acolyte adds Insight/Religion. At 1 choose Expertise in Stealth and thieves’ tools; at 3 choose Thief. At 4 raise Dexterity and Wisdom by one each.

Rogues use a d8 Hit Die and Dexterity/Intelligence saving throw proficiency. Dexterity supports attacks, AC, initiative, and many practical skills. Constitution keeps a lightly armored character alive; Wisdom, Intelligence, or Charisma can support the role you want outside combat. A Rogue need not be a criminal or steal from companions.

How Sneak Attack actually works

Sneak Attack is once per turn, not once per attack and not necessarily once per round. You need a hit with a finesse or ranged weapon, plus advantage on the attack; alternatively, another enemy of the target must be within 5 feet of it, not incapacitated, and you must not have disadvantage. You do not have to be hidden. A finesse rapier can use Strength and still qualify, but an ordinary unarmed strike does not.

At Rogue 5, Sneak Attack adds 3d6. It increases on odd Rogue levels and reaches 10d6 at 19. It does not multiply the ability modifier on your weapon damage. If the first of two qualifying attacks hits, decide whether to apply Sneak Attack then; the second attack does not carry another copy that turn. A qualifying reaction attack on someone else’s turn can use Sneak Attack again, but the reaction and a real trigger are required.

Being unseen is useful only when the attack actually benefits. Stealth is not invisibility, and the DM decides whether circumstances permit hiding. A target behind cover can be harder to hit even when you are hidden. Read hiding in combat for the distinctions.

Cunning Action, equipment, and defenses

At 2, Cunning Action lets you Dash, Disengage, or Hide as a bonus action. It does not grant all three together. A two-weapon bonus attack competes for that same bonus action. Rapier is not a light weapon; the ordinary two-weapon rules do not allow rapier and dagger without another enabling rule. Two starting daggers can support the basic light-weapon option.

Leather is AC 11 + Dexterity modifier. Studded leather costs 45 gp and raises the base to 12, but is an upgrade rather than free starting gear. Rogues do not start with shield proficiency. A shortbow avoids the heavy-property problem a Small character would encounter with a longbow. Keep thieves’ tools accessible, and remember that proficiency is not a universal right to open every lock without a check or time.

Uncanny Dodge at 5 spends a reaction to halve damage from a qualifying attack by an attacker you can see. You cannot also spend that reaction on an opportunity attack in the same round before it refreshes. Evasion at 7 helps with the specified Dexterity-save effects; it does not halve every spell. Neither feature replaces positioning.

Rogue progression: levels 1–20

Class level	Milestone
1	Sneak Attack 1d6; Expertise in two skills or a skill and thieves’ tools; Thieves’ Cant
2	Cunning Action
3	Thief; Sneak Attack 2d6
4	ASI or optional feat
5	Uncanny Dodge; Sneak Attack 3d6
6	Expertise in two more eligible proficiencies
7	Evasion; Sneak Attack 4d6
8	ASI or optional feat
9	Thief: Supreme Sneak; Sneak Attack 5d6
10	Extra Rogue ASI or optional feat
11	Reliable Talent; Sneak Attack 6d6
12	ASI or optional feat
13	Thief: Use Magic Device; Sneak Attack 7d6
14	Blindsense
15	Slippery Mind; Sneak Attack 8d6
16	ASI or optional feat
17	Thief: Thief’s Reflexes; Sneak Attack 9d6
18	Elusive
19	ASI or optional feat; Sneak Attack 10d6
20	Stroke of Luck

Reliable Talent at 11 changes low d20 results on ability checks to which your proficiency bonus applies. It does not turn a low attack roll or saving throw into a 10. Expertise doubles the proficiency contribution for the selected eligible checks, not the entire ability modifier. Slippery Mind adds Wisdom saving throw proficiency at 15.

Thief and other Rogue subclasses

Thief (SRD/PHB 2014) expands Cunning Action with Fast Hands at 3: particular thieves’-tools tasks, Sleight of Hand, and Use an Object. It does not grant a generic bonus-action attack or make activating a magic item a Use an Object action. Second-Story Work supports climbing and running jumps, but does not make every dangerous surface automatically climbable.

At 9, Supreme Sneak rewards slow movement; at 13 Use Magic Device relaxes certain magic-item restrictions. Thief’s Reflexes at 17 changes the first round’s initiative pattern, with a surprise exception. Its drawback is dependence on the environment and available objects: a bare room may offer fewer useful Fast Hands choices.

Assassin (PHB 2014) suits a campaign with real opportunities to arrange ambushes, but surprise and initiative matter; do not assume every opening attack is a critical hit. Arcane Trickster (PHB 2014) offers limited spellcasting with its own school and spell-selection restrictions. It is a different workload from the noncasting Thief builds here and needs that book. The subclass name alone does not grant unrestricted Wizard casting.

Three complete 2014 Rogue builds

Scores use STR, DEX, CON, INT, WIS, CHA order; every base array costs 27 points. Each build takes Thief at 3 and uses the starting rapier, shortbow/twenty arrows, leather, two daggers, thieves’ tools, and burglar’s pack. Acolyte adds its background equipment, Insight/Religion, and 15 gp. No optional feat or magic gear is assumed. HP uses fixed increases. None of these Thieves casts class spells.

Lightfoot halfling infiltrator

Sources and role: SRD/PHB 2014; stealth and close-to-medium-range attacks. Base 8, 15, 14, 10, 12, 13; +2 Dexterity/+1 Charisma gives 8, 17, 14, 10, 12, 14. Class Stealth/Sleight of Hand/Investigation/Perception; background Insight/Religion. Expertise: Stealth/thieves’ tools at 1, Perception/Investigation at 6. No duplicates.

At 4 add +1 Dexterity/+1 Wisdom, reaching 18/13; at 8 raise Dexterity to 20. At the Rogue’s additional ASI at 10, increase Constitution to 16. At 5: AC 15 in leather, HP 38, rapier or shortbow attack +7. Rapier damage is 1d8 + 4; shortbow 1d6 + 4; a qualifying hit adds 3d6 Sneak Attack. Studded leather would raise AC to 16 after a 45 gp purchase.

Turn: shoot an enemy engaged by a conscious ally, adding Sneak Attack if all conditions hold, then use Cunning Action to reach cover. You still need actual concealment to Hide. Weakness: a single inaccurate attack can lose most of the turn’s damage, and halfling movement can constrain escape routes.

High elf investigator

Sources and role: SRD/PHB 2014; evidence, locks, and ranged precision. Base 8, 15, 14, 14, 12, 8; +2 Dexterity/+1 Intelligence gives 8, 17, 14, 15, 12, 8. Class Stealth/Investigation/Acrobatics/Deception; racial Perception; background Insight/Religion. Expertise: Investigation/thieves’ tools at 1, Stealth/Perception at 6.

Racial Mage Hand is an Intelligence-based utility cantrip, separate from the class; it does not provide Arcane Trickster’s special hand features or let you remotely use every Fast Hands task. At 4 add +1 Dexterity/+1 Intelligence, reaching 18/16; at 8 raise Dexterity to 20; at 10 raise Constitution to 16.

At 5: AC 15, HP 38, rapier/shortbow +7, weapon damage as above and 3d6 Sneak Attack when eligible. Mage Hand has no attack roll or save DC. Turn: if a target lacks an adjacent enemy, find a legal hiding position with Cunning Action before taking the shot, rather than assuming Investigation itself creates advantage. Weakness: lower Charisma makes direct negotiation less reliable, and a successful clue search does not replace the whole party’s reasoning.

Human Strength enforcer

Sources and role: SRD/PHB 2014; Athletics and close pressure. Base 15, 13, 13, 10, 12, 10; +1 each gives 16, 14, 14, 11, 13, 11. Class Athletics/Stealth/Perception/Investigation; background Insight/Religion. Expertise: Athletics/thieves’ tools at 1, Stealth/Perception at 6.

At 4 raise Strength to 18; at 8 raise Dexterity to 16; at 10 raise Constitution to 16. At 5: AC 13 in leather, HP 38, rapier +7 for 1d8 + 4, plus qualifying 3d6 Sneak Attack. The shortbow is only +5 for 1d6 + 2 because it uses Dexterity. Studded leather would give AC 14, not the shield build’s AC.

Turn: make a Strength-based rapier attack against a target engaged by an ally, then Disengage with Cunning Action if needed. On a control turn, grapple with the action and a free hand instead: this Rogue has no Extra Attack, so that choice gives up the action’s weapon attack. Weakness: low AC makes grappling a dangerous specialist option; a grapple does not itself grant Sneak Attack or advantage.

Feats and multiclass tradeoffs

ASI improvements make the primary attack more reliable and improve key skills. Optional PHB 2014 Alert suits initiative-sensitive plans; Mobile supports movement around melee; Skulker has a Dexterity prerequisite and specific benefits for hiding and ranged play. Verify the original conditions rather than treating any feat as permanent advantage. The builds above need none of them and do not use revised ability-boosting feat versions.

Rogue multiclassing needs Dexterity 13 plus the other class’s requirement. Fighter offers weapon and armor options but delays Sneak Attack and expertise milestones; gaining an Extra Attack feature later is not a Rogue feature. Ranger requires Wisdom 13 too, adds spells, and creates concentration and bonus-action decisions. An armor proficiency gained from a multiclass is not the same as being handed free armor, and starting in a different class changes saving throws and initial skills.

Tactics, exploration, and social play

An original reaction decision: you can make an opportunity attack against an enemy leaving your reach. If it qualifies for Sneak Attack, it can be valuable on that enemy’s turn. But spending the reaction means Uncanny Dodge is unavailable against the next visible attacker until your reaction refreshes. Decide based on the likely return damage and whether the attack could end the threat.

Scout with a return plan and a signal. Identify a lock or trap before committing the group to a noisy solution. Expertise can support an honest investigator, diplomat, or guide just as readily as a thief. Thieves’ Cant is a specialized communication feature, not automatic trust from every criminal. In social scenes, describe the evidence or argument you present and allow the DM to determine which check applies.

2024 Rogue changes

The revised Rogue gains Weapon Mastery at 1 and Steady Aim at 3. Cunning Strike at 5 allows specific tradeoffs paid with Sneak Attack dice, with more options later; this is not the same as free conditions on every hit. Reliable Talent moves from 11 to 7. Stroke of Luck works with a broader D20 Test framework, and level 19 introduces an Epic Boon choice.

Thief’s Fast Hands changes to include particular Magic actions and object interactions. Its Use Magic Device also changes, including specific magic-item and scroll benefits. Do not use those features to justify a bonus-action magic-item activation for a 2014 Thief. Revised feats, equipment, backgrounds, and spell rules need their own build assumptions.

Rogue FAQ

Do I have to hide to Sneak Attack?

No. Advantage is one route; the nearby-enemy condition is another, provided you do not have disadvantage.

Does Sneak Attack work twice in one round?

It can work on different turns, such as with a qualifying reaction attack. It remains once per turn.

Does Fast Hands let me drink any potion as a bonus action?

The 2014 Use an Object expansion does not cover activating magic items. Use the actual item and rules version.

Can a Strength Rogue work?

Yes with a finesse weapon, but the armor, ranged attacks, and skill tradeoffs are real.

Rules sources: SRD 5.1 for the 2014 class, SRD subclass, equipment, and spells; the Player’s Handbook (2014) and 2014 Basic Rules races for named racial options and optional PHB choices; Sage Advice Compendium for relevant 2014 clarifications. The separate comparison uses SRD 5.2.1. Recommendations, builds, and example decisions are original advice.

This work includes material taken from the System Reference Document 5.1 (“SRD 5.1”) by Wizards of the Coast LLC and available at https://dnd.wizards.com/resources/systems-reference-document. The SRD 5.1 is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License available at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode. This work includes material from the System Reference Document 5.2.1 (“SRD 5.2.1”) by Wizards of the Coast LLC, available at https://www.dndbeyond.com/srd. The SRD 5.2.1 is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, available at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode.