Ashes of Creation Rogue Guide

Welcome to the Ashes of Creation Rogue guide, MMO fans! This is one in a series of guides where we’ll introduce you to all eight archetypes in AoC and explain how they work. If you’re not yet familiar with the class system in this game, here’s the gist: you have eight archetypes, which function as standalone classes. Later in the game, when you reach level 25, you’ll get to choose a second archetype, which is what ultimately defines your final class.

As the title suggests, today we’re diving into the recently added Rogue archetype. We’ll cover absolutely everything there is to know—gear, leveling, builds, best second archetype combos, skills, rotations, stat priorities, and more. This is going to be the most complete AoC Rogue guide you’ll find online.

But before we jump into the thick of things, we want to give a quick shoutout to the Powerleveling service at SkyCoach for Ashes of Creation. In a massive game like AoC, leveling can be a challenge, especially when you’re still learning the ropes. So if you’d like to speed things up, whether that’s reaching level 25 to unlock your second archetype or pushing to the level 50 cap, SkyCoach’s boosting service has you covered. It’s fast, affordable, and handled by professional MMO gamers who know the most efficient leveling routes inside and out. You’ll be amazed at how quickly they can get your characters leveled up.

Read our other Ashes of Creation guides:

• Tank Guide
• Cleric Guide
• Ranger Guide
• Bard Guide
• Mage Guide
• Fighter Guide

 

Rogue Overview

Let’s start this Ashes of Creation Rogue overview with a simple concept – this archetype is all about precision, control, and the shadows. This is the main design idea behind Rogues. If you’ve ever loved being the stealthy opener, the trapsetter, or the scout in your MMO group, the Rogue will feel right at home.

Stealth is the archetype’s signature mechanic. You’re not just disappearing at will—stealth in Ashes requires distance from enemies and smart positioning, especially since it’s directionally based. The closer you are to being behind someone, the less likely they are to spot you. This opens the door for devastating openers like Backstab, Acrobatic Strike, or Sleep Dart, all designed to make the most of surprise and positioning.

But there’s more to the Rogue than just sneaking and stabbing. The archetype brings excellent scouting utility, uncovering hidden doors, traps, and secret treasures inside dungeons. This gives them an important role in group content, especially during exploration-heavy activities.

Key Rogue Features:

• Directional Stealth: Activate stealth when you're at least 20 meters away from enemies. Positioning behind enemies makes you nearly undetectable.
• Advantage Resource: Certain abilities generate “Advantage” stacks (max 2), which can be consumed to boost skills with added effects like bonus damage or silence.
• Burst Openers & Gap Closers: Skills like Backstab, Acrobatic Strike, and Shadow Step let you jump in, strike hard, and reposition in seconds.
• Bleeds, Poisons & Debuffs: Rogues are masters of applying pressure through damage-over-time and disabling effects.
• Scouting Utility: Rogues can reveal hidden dungeon elements like secret doors and bonus treasure rooms—making them essential in dungeon-diving groups.
• Multiple Playstyles: Whether you prefer a highly mobile backline disruptor, a stealthy assassin, or a trap-layer, the Rogue offers flexibility in builds. BLOG20

Gameplay-wise, if you wanted to know how to play Rogue in Ashes of Creation, this archetype rewards tactical decision-making. You’re not just clicking buttons—you’re setting up the perfect entry, controlling the fight flow, and then vanishing before retaliation. Their unique resource system, Advantage, encourages smart rotation timing, and their kit is packed with interaction between stealth, positioning, and momentum. In other words, this archetype is not exactly easy to control or new-player friendly.

Rogue Pros and Cons

Speaking of pros and cons, the Rogue in Ashes of Creation is a true high-risk, high-reward archetype. Built for stealth, control, and surgical strikes, it offers a unique playstyle for those who prefer brains and timing over brute force. That said, the Rogue isn’t for everyone—and definitely not for the faint of heart.

Here’s a quick breakdown of Ashes of Creation Rogue pros and cons:

Pros

• Unrivaled Crowd Control: Sleep darts, silences, snares, trips—you name it. The Rogue has one of the strongest CC kits in the game and can lock down enemies for 20+ seconds with the right combo.
• Exceptional Mobility and Escape Tools: Stealth mid-combat, repositioning skills, grappling hooks—Rogues are slippery and hard to pin down. Perfect for picking off targets and vanishing.
• Insane Outplay Potential: Between stealth openings, burst backstabs, and Advantage combos, a skilled Rogue can 1v2—or even 1v3—if they know what they’re doing.

Cons

• Extremely High Skill Floor: Positioning, cooldown juggling, Advantage management… Rogue has a lot of moving parts. It's one of the hardest archetypes to learn and master.
• Squishy by Nature: No heavy armor, no tanky passives, and limited sustain. Mistakes are punishing, and even one wrong move can mean a quick trip to the respawn screen.
• Lower Raw Damage Compared to Others: While deadly in the right hands, Rogues don’t have the same sheer burst as Mages or Rangers. Most of your value comes from control and disruption, not nuking someone in two hits.

So if you're up for a challenge and love the idea of controlling the battlefield from the shadows, the Rogue might just be your perfect match. Just be ready to put in the work—it’ll pay off big once you learn to make the most of it.

Rogue Classes

When you reach level 25 in Ashes of Creation, you unlock the ability to choose a secondary archetype, turning your base Rogue into one of eight specialized classes. Each of these combinations changes how your core skills function—whether by enhancing them, adding entirely new effects, or giving you access to different types of gameplay tools like healing, magic, or threat generation.

Some combos double down on what Rogues do best: stealth, burst, and control. Others add new roles or utility options that can change how you fit into a party or approach PvP fights.

Here’s a quick breakdown of all the Rogue hybrid classes and what they’re likely to offer: 

Choosing the right class depends on how you want to play. If you’re looking to master one-on-one duels or dominate in small-scale PvP, combos like Assassin, Duelist, or Predator will feel right at home. For group play, adding Bard, Cleric, or Tank brings in layers of utility and survivability.

And if you’re someone who loves high-risk, high-reward playstyles—especially ones with room to outplay your opponents—just about any of these hybrid classes can shine. It all comes down to how you build and execute.

Rogue Stat Priority

Ashes of Creation Rogue stat priority plays a big role in your performance—whether you’re looking to melt people from the shadows in PvP or push deep into dungeons with a scout-heavy build. Here's a breakdown of how each core stat benefits the Rogue archetype, ranked by priority:

Top Priority: Dexterity

Dexterity is the Rogue’s best friend. It fuels everything from Critical Chance and Attack Speed to Evasion, all of which line up perfectly with the Rogue's fast, hit-and-run playstyle. Since many Rogue abilities benefit from quick strikes and critical hits—especially when using Advantage stacks—you’ll want as much Dexterity as possible.

Secondary: Strength

Strength increases your Physical Power, Accuracy, and Physical Penetration. While Dexterity improves how fast and how often you land hits, Strength determines how hard they hit. This stat becomes more important in tougher fights or when facing heavily armored enemies who would otherwise shrug off your burst.

Defensive Focus: Constitution

Even with high mobility and stealth, Rogues are naturally squishy. Constitution helps balance this out by boosting your Max Health, Health Regeneration, and Physical Mitigation. You won’t want to over-invest here, but having a decent buffer can help you survive long enough to get back into stealth or finish a kill.

Rogue’s Stealth and Advantage Explained

At the heart of the Rogue archetype lies a unique and highly strategic blend of stealth mechanics and a special resource system known as Advantage. Mastering these two systems is key to unlocking the full potential of the Rogue—both in PvP and PvE.

Stealth

Rogue stealth isn't a simple cloak-and-go mechanic—it’s directional and conditional, requiring thought, timing, and smart positioning. Here’s how it works:

1. Stealth Activation: You can enter stealth both in and out of combat, but only if you’re at least 20 meters away from any non-allies.
2. Directional Detection: The system checks angles of vision—meaning the more behind an enemy you are, the harder you are to detect.
3. Combat Initiation: Stealth can be used to set up high-impact openers like Backstab, Death’s Mark, or Sleep Dart.
4. Tactical Re-Stealth: Abilities like Umbral Cloak let you return to stealth mid-fight by consuming Advantage, allowing for resets, repositioning, or escapes.

Stealth isn't just a defensive tool—it’s an offensive enabler that powers your most lethal combos. Using it well is the mark of a skilled Rogue.

Advantage

The Rogue’s Advantage system is a fluid, combo-like mechanic that controls when and how you can use your strongest skills. Think of it like a specialized energy meter with tactical depth:

• How You Gain It: Specific abilities like Stab, Acrobatic Strike, or Thrash build Advantage when used properly—often from behind or while exploiting enemy weaknesses.
• How You Use It: Other skills, such as Backstab, Lacerate, Umbral Cloak, or Thump, consume Advantage to boost damage, apply debuffs (like Silence or Expose), or trigger additional effects.
• Storage Limit: You can hold up to two stacks at once, so careful management is required to avoid waste or mistiming.
• This system makes combat feel rhythmic and reactive. A well-played Rogue knows when to build, when to spend, and when to hold Advantage for an escape or a burst kill.

Stealth and Advantage are deeply tied together in Rogue gameplay:

1. Many high-impact skills require both stealth and Advantage to function at their best.
2. Tools like Shadow Step and Grappling Hook let you reposition to maintain stealth or hit optimal angles for Advantage-building.
3. You can chain stealth into control into burst, creating a powerful loop of momentum in fights.

Together, these mechanics make the Rogue feel like a thinking player’s archetype. Every encounter is a puzzle—how to approach, when to strike, and how to disappear before the enemy even knows what hit them.

Rogue Augments

As you already know, once you reach level 25 in Ashes of Creation, you’ll unlock the ability to choose a secondary archetype. This is where augments come into play—modifiers that attach to your primary active skills, adding passive effects or completely transforming how they behave. Augments are an essential piece of horizontal progression in the game, and they’re what truly define the class you become.

Rogue-Specific Augments

If you pick Rogue as your secondary archetype, the main augment theme is stealth.

That means your primary archetype’s abilities—no matter what class you started as—can now incorporate stealth-based enhancements. These might:

• Add stealth effects to abilities (e.g. conceal after use)
• Modify targeting based on whether you're hidden
• Change an attack to work best when used from behind or while invisible
• Potentially even unlock new stealth-based play patterns, depending on how the augment interacts

This opens up some wild combinations. Imagine a Mage who can open a fight with a fireball from stealth—or a Tank who disappears mid-fight to reposition.

For Rogue mains, choosing a secondary archetype allows you to lean into a specific playstyle:

1. Want more control? Pick Bard or Cleric. BLOG20
2. Want explosive burst or range? Mage or Ranger might be the way.
3. Prefer full stealth mastery and burst from the shadows? Double down with Rogue as your secondary.

Rogue augments reinforce what makes the archetype fun to play: creative positioning, tactical strikes, and mobility. But they also offer a way to break out of the mold, giving your build unexpected utility or damage flavors that opponents won’t see coming.

Rogue Skills

As we’ve already established, Rogues rely on calculated strikes, evasive maneuvers, and utility to dominate both in PvE and PvP. One of the standout elements of the Rogue archetype is its utility value. Rogues can reveal hidden doors, traps, and treasure nodes in dungeons—things that would otherwise be missed without one in your party. That alone makes them extremely valuable, even outside of combat.

Here’s a complete list of currently known Ashes of Creation Rogue skills:

After mastering the skills above, you’ll start to see just how dynamic Rogue gameplay can be. Many of these abilities synergize with each other, such as opening with Sleep Dart, following up with Shadow Step into Backstab, and chaining into a Caltrop zone to snare any escape attempts. Understanding your openers and finishers and how to chain control effects are what separates average Rogues from deadly ones.

 

Rogue Weapons

Ashes of Creation Rogue weapons must be fast-hitting, so don’t expect to be swinging two-handed axes. Think more about dual wielding. Instead of swinging massive greatswords, they rely on precision strikes with daggers, swords, or maces, focusing on speed, positioning, and burst damage.

Dual wielding in AoC uses a unique system where paired weapons are treated as a single crafted item that fills both main and off-hand slots. These use a shared skill tree, and while you can’t dual wield shields or greatswords, more combinations may open up in future updates.

Key points:

• Dual daggers, swords, and maces are all valid.
• Crafted as a single item; occupies both hands.
• Uses unique animations and weapon speeds adjust with modifiers.
• Synergizes well with Rogue abilities like Backstab, Thrash, and Lacerate.

For most Rogue builds, dual daggers are the go-to—fast, deadly, and perfect for stealth-based burst damage. If you enjoy weaving in and out of fights, striking from the shadows, and controlling engagements, the right weapon pair can make all the difference.

Rogue Best Gear

This section is currently in development and will be updated as more specific Rogue gear becomes available in future tests.

Right now, there’s no full Ashes of Creation Rogue best gear (BiS) list tailored exclusively to the Rogue archetype. However, you can make smart gear decisions by understanding stat priorities and focusing on Dexterity, Strength, and Constitution, depending on your build.

Until Rogue-specific sets are fully implemented, here are some general tips to gear efficiently:

• Prioritize Dexterity-based gear, as it increases crit chance, evasion, and attack speed.
• Strength is also valuable for enhancing your base physical power and penetration.
• Constitution gives a small survivability boost and stamina regen, which helps with dodging and positioning.
• Light and Medium armor are ideal. Medium sets often grant better stamina regeneration and movement bonuses — great for PvP or evasive playstyles.
• Consider accessories (rings, necklaces, earrings) that boost Dexterity or Strength, even if they aren’t Rogue-specific yet.
• If you’re just starting out, craft or buy placeholders with relevant stats and enchant them to +6 or higher for a solid temporary setup.
• Use build planners like Ashes Codex to test combinations and stat scaling as more data becomes available.

Ultimately, gear in Ashes is highly customizable and player-driven, so the best Rogue gear is likely to be crafted, enchanted, and optimized specifically for your preferred playstyle. Keep an eye on patch notes and new recipes as Alpha 2 evolves.

Best PvE Rogue Build

This Ashes of Creation Rogue best pve build focuses on sustained melee damage, bleed effects, and mobility to help you shine in group content like dungeons and world bosses. The goal is to maintain high uptime on enemies while avoiding damage through smart movement and rotations.

• Primary Archetype: Rogue
• Secondary Archetype: Fighter (Duelist class)
• Playstyle: High-mobility melee DPS with consistent pressure and utility.

Key Skills to Focus:

• Backstab
• Lacerate
• Doublestrike
• Flurry / Thrash
• Shadow Cascade
• Smoke Bomb (situational)
• Grappling Hook / Acrobatic Strike

Stat Priority:

1. Dexterity
2. Strength
3. Constitution

Gear Focus:

• Dual daggers or swords
• Medium armor for balanced durability and stamina regen
• Enchants for crit damage, bleed duration, and attack speed

Rotation Tips:

1. Open with Stealth and Backstab
2. Apply Bleeds and maintain DoTs
3. Use Doublestrike for high-value repeat casts
4. Consume Advantage smartly with hard-hitting abilities

With this setup, the Rogue becomes a dangerous and reliable DPS class in PvE groups, combining damage with high control over positioning and mobility.

Best PvP Rogue Build

In PvP, Rogues become surgical tools — designed to isolate, burst, and disappear. This build maximizes crowd control, mobility, and reset mechanics to let you dominate 1v1 or small group engagements.

• Primary Archetype: Rogue
• Secondary Archetype: Mage (Nightspell class)
• Playstyle: Burst assassin with CC chains, stealth resets, and deceptive movement.

Key Skills to Focus:

• Sleep Dart
• Shadow Step
• Thump
• Kick
• Backstab
• Smoke Bomb
• Umbral Cloak
• Stealth

Stat Priority:

1. Dexterity
2. Constitution
3. Strength BLOG20

Gear Focus:

• Medium armor for stamina and movement
• Daggers or short swords with crit-heavy stats
• Enchants that enhance CC, crit power, and survivability

Tactics:

1. Open from Stealth with Sleep Dart
2. Lock them down with silence + trip
3. Burst with Backstab and follow-up attacks
4. Reset using Umbral Cloak + Stealth when needed

With precise timing and good positioning, this build gives you all the tools needed to take out enemies before they can even react — just be ready to commit to learning its execution.

Rogue Rotations

Ashes of Creation Rogue rotations rely heavily on timing, positioning, and proper use of Advantage and Bleeds. Below are two example rotations: one focused on burning down a single enemy, and another tailored for AoE encounters with multiple enemies.

Single Target Rotation (Bosses / Duels):

This rotation starts with Stealth, giving you immediate Advantage and the element of surprise. Open with Shadow Step to teleport behind your target, which grants another Advantage if you’re more than 15 meters away. Immediately follow up with Backstab, your hardest-hitting ability when positioned correctly—especially from behind, as it consumes Advantage for devastating bonus damage.

Next, use Feint to reposition and maintain pressure; if you’ve upgraded with Devious, Backstab will even reset Feint's cooldown. Follow up with Lacerate to apply a Bleed or Hemorraging effect if the target is already bleeding. Doublestrike lets you instantly repeat your previous melee ability, great for squeezing out extra Lacerate damage or another Backstab if timed well.

From here, begin your Thrash sequence, using all three strikes to stack Bleeds and regain Advantage. Once you’ve built up two stacks, go for Stab—with the Ruthless upgrade, there’s no cooldown, allowing for back-to-back bursts if timed right. Finish with Kick for control, which can silence all nearby enemies if used with Advantage—a great tool for interrupting or locking down a priority target.

Multi-Target Rotation (Trash Packs / PvP Clusters):

For AoE encounters, this setup begins with Stealth again for that vital Advantage opener. Drop Smoke Bomb to blind enemies and gain the Blurred buff for extra survivability—especially effective if upgraded with Shiver Vapor, which periodically chills enemies. Follow it up with Throw, a bouncing ranged attack that softens the group and, with Ricochet, hits even more targets. Then throw a Shuriken, which spreads Poison among enemies and, when upgraded with Unstable Compound, applies stacking debuffs for increased damage over time.

Now it's time for Shadow Cascade, an AoE dash that scales with missing health and applies Bleed and other status effects like Exposed or Hemorraging, depending on the target’s condition. Since it requires and consumes Advantage, use it wisely. As enemies group up or try to reposition, drop Caltrops to snare and bleed them further. Then hit them with Lacerate, which deals heavy frontal AoE damage when empowered with Advantage. You can follow with Kick to trip and silence the group, controlling any survivors. Finally, run your Thrash combo through all three strikes to finish the pack off, building more Bleeds and potentially regaining Advantage for your next pull.

Rogue Leveling

This section is currently in development and will be updated as more content becomes available during Alpha 2.

Ashes of Creation Rogue leveling brings a distinctive experience compared to other archetypes, thanks to the class’s stealth-based gameplay, dynamic skill options, and exceptional mobility. Even at early levels, the Rogue feels fast, reactive, and rewarding—especially for players who enjoy skill-based combat and positioning.

One of the most fun aspects of leveling as a Rogue is the Grappling Hook. This tool isn't just a flashy escape or engage—it’s a full-blown mobility enhancer that lets players reach hard-to-access areas and creatively navigate terrain. It’s powerful to the point of likely needing a nerf, but while it lasts, it makes exploration as a Rogue feel adventurous and unrestricted.

The skill tree progression at lower levels feels meaningful, with plenty of options to choose from. However, by level 25, you’re able to unlock almost every skill and passive, reducing the need for careful specialization. That said, since the level cap is planned to reach 50, there’s hope that future expansions to the tree will bring more impactful and exclusive builds to the table.

In short, even though Rogue leveling isn’t fully fleshed out yet—especially on the questing and progression front—the class offers a unique blend of stealth, burst, control, and utility that already sets it apart. As development continues, this early foundation looks promising for those who enjoy tactical, high-skill gameplay right from level one.

Rogue Tips and Tricks

Mastering the Rogue archetype isn’t just about sneaking around and stabbing from the shadows—it’s about understanding the tools you have and knowing when (and how) to use them. Here are five unique and highly practical AoC Rogue tips to give you an edge:

1. Use Stealth as a Tactical Reset, Not Just an Opener – While it’s tempting to treat stealth purely as a way to start fights, it’s just as powerful mid-combat. If you’ve generated Advantage, consider using Umbral Cloak to cleanse debuffs and immediately slip back into stealth, giving you time to reposition or disengage entirely. It’s especially handy in PvP to throw off pursuers or re-initiate from a better angle.
2. Pair Bleeds with Sleep Dart for Long Crowd Control – Thanks to the Anemia upgrade, Sleep Dart lasts an extra 5 seconds when used on a bleeding target—and removes the bleed. This allows you to set up long CC chains in PvP or isolate targets in group fights. Apply Lacerate or Thrash first, then dart them to sleep and either escape or prep your next move.
3. Shadow Step Isn’t Just Mobility—It’s Advantage on Demand – If your enemy is more than 15 meters away, Shadow Step grants Advantage on use. Use it smartly: close gaps, escape disables (with Ethereal), or get behind someone to line up a Backstab. It's one of your best tools to control the flow of a fight—don’t just save it for flashy moves.
4. Chain Abilities Around Advantage for Massive Impact – Abilities like Stab, Kick, and Lacerate have dramatically improved effects when Advantage is consumed. Plan your rotations to generate Advantage first—Acrobatic Strike, Thrash, or Flurry—then follow up with your powered-up finishers. Learning to manage this mini-resource is the Rogue’s key to dominating both PvE and PvP.
5. Scout Like a Pro with Utility Skills – Rogues can uncover hidden doors, traps, and treasure in dungeons—but only if you’re paying attention. Don’t rush ahead.

Take your time exploring, especially during off-peak times of day when random spawns are refreshed. Groups will come to rely on you for secret routes and extra loot, so lean into that role when possible.

Conclusion

The Rogue archetype in Ashes of Creation is a high-skill, high-reward class designed for players who enjoy precision, control, and creative play. From stealthy initiations and powerful single-target takedowns to advanced crowd control and dungeon scouting, the Rogue offers a toolkit that’s as versatile as it is deadly.

While it’s not the easiest class to master, those who put in the effort will find themselves capable of outplaying opponents, slipping in and out of combat with ease, and unlocking hidden paths and treasures that others can’t even see. Whether you're PvPing in the shadows or PvEing through traps and secret doors, the Rogue turns cunning into power.

If sneaky tactics, clever positioning, and high-impact execution sound like your style—then this is the class for you.

F.A.Q.