In NeverWinter Nights, generally, you have four types of characters: Fighters, Mages, FighterMages and Rogues. Fighters in this case emcompanies classes like Barbarian, Fighter, Monk, Paladin and Ranger, and the Prestige classes Blackguard, Champion, Dwarven Defender and Weapon Master. Mages are Sorcerors and Wizards, and none have Prestige Classes in normal NeverWinter Nights. FighterMages are Bards, Clerics and Druids, and the Prestige classes Arcane Archer, Pale Master, Dragon Disciple and Shifter. This leaves the Rogue type, which has Rogue, and the Prestige classes Assassin, Harper Scout and Shadowdancer.
Fighter-type: A class that relies on physical prowess to take down its enemies.
Mage-type: A class that relies on spells and/or spell-like abilities to take down its enemies.
FighterMage-type: A class that uses both physical prowess and spells or spell-like abilities in conjunction to achieve full effect.
Rogue-type: A class that specializes in out-of-battle events, having trained instead in skills and stealth, to do things that others can't or find very challenging.
Rogues get a vast assortment of skills, two to four times as many base points as the other classes. Humans get another base point as well, making a Human Rogue the most skilled character. Truth be told, skills don't make the fight, though they can augment fighting, as per the Animal Empathy, Concentration, Disable Trap, Discipline, Heal, Hide, Listen, Move Silently, Parry, Perform, Pick Pocket, Search, Set Trap, Spellcraft, Spot, Taunt, Tumble and Use Magic Device skills. Each of these can be used to improve one's chance of winning, some more than others, depending on the style of the battle.
Now, truly, this rant is halfway about a particular skill: PickPocket.
PickPocket is automatically identified with the mention of the word Rogue, as if Rogue actually meant Theif. True, GENERALLY, Rogues are Theives by profession, because their training in stealth makes it easier for them, and that's one way they can get what they want. This is partly because only Rogue and Bard get this skill as a class-skill, but Bards don't get as many points, and not as many spend points into it. Armor and shields lower the effectiveness of the skill, so most physical classes simply couldn't use it well even if they wanted to.
PickPocket is used best by a character with light or no armor, high Dexterity, and of course, the skill as a class-skill. Bards and Rogues are equally adept in this respect at lower levels, but as the Bard tends to put his stat bonuses into Charisma and Dexterity, while Rogues tend to put everything into their Dexterity, Rogues are the better of the two throughout.
This skill, if used properly and trained enough, can be very, VERY powerful. After all, if you manage to take a guardsman's spare knife away, and then (as he turns to attack the intruder) disarm his main weapon, or (if you sneak well enough to not get caught) continues his business, you could try to get more, or just attack, and he won't have a spare/dual-weilded weapon to use against you. Of course, that's pretty outside-the-realm to most people's thinking. The only thing people think it can do is rob other PC's. Fat chance. Sneak up to an Ogre and take his Club, let him react to you, he's got no weapon anyway. Sure, you can simply steal the gold and treasure from other players, but since they do have it, it's nothing you can't get. I want the stuff the monsters aren't normally dropping, or the potions they carry, so they can't heal after I make my presence known and attack.
The other focus, and the title, The Rogue. Rogues get a base skill point gain of 8. Other classes get 2 or 4. DnD 3.5 has some that gain 6, though NWN's rules don't have any with 6, except the Shadowdancer, which originally gained 4, but was upped in an update since its being put in, and those others in 3.5 are classes like Ranger, who got dropped from a Hit Die of d10 to d8. Personally, I like 2 skill points over a possible 2 Hit Points, so to me, Ranger in 3.5 is more desirable. This makes the Rogue in NWN about twice as likely to make -any- skill check than anyone else, and maybe four times as likely, outside of Animal Empathy, which is Ranger- and Druid-only. Characters who cross-class with Rogues gain these extra points, and can put them to very good use, since Rogues have the widest selection of class-skills.
Rogues are one of only two classes that get the powerful Use Magic Device skill. This lets them use any Bard/Cleric/Druid/ Paladin/Ranger/Sorceror/Wizard magical Scroll or Wand, emulating the required class and/or alignment, using his Charisma to "fake" the gesture. The save DC is not likely as high as one of those special classes would be, since it uses the minimum ability score required for the spell level, but it's still enough to use it. A Rod can't be used at all without either this skill, or a class that lets you. Some Rods and Staves are pretty frappin powerful, such as an item from Folderol termed The Black Rod, which lets the weilder cast Shadow Shield on themself, granting +5 Natural Armor, immunity to Necromancy and Negative Energy, and Damage Reduction 10/+3. The effect lasts for 13 minutes, using 5 charges/use on this particular item. This makes the user immune to the Harm spell (because it is both Necromancy and Negative Energy), one of the most feared Clerical spells.
Another Rogue feature is the Sneak Attack. This. Name. Sucks. "Sneak" attacks made in this fashion are actually just striking at the targets' vital areas, whether the attacker is known or not. Normally, when a character is battling you, they deflect blows from vitals, and thus these attacks are negated. When you are stealthily sneaking up behind someone and stab them in the back without their knowing until they feel you, THAT's a sneak attack. When you are a Fighter/Rogue that progressively uses the Knockdown attack, NWN then lets you gain this bonus, since the prone character is denied their Dexterity bonus, and is "flat-footed." ...
Tell me something, if you are knocked to the ground, do you stay there looking up at the person slashing at you with their sword for five seconds? No.. you roll aside or kick up at them, and get up as quick as you can. However, since NWN uses false logic, a character who is knocked to the ground is proclaimed immobile and incapable of defending himself, except when it would mean their artists would look bad, as presented in the NWN opening cinematic. In that movie, the Human warrior facing the Minotaur kneels to the ground, yet he continues deflecting the Minotaur's battleaxe, and he even makes an attack back, right in the beast's stomach. Why, then, is it that a character who gets knocked down, suddenly becomes completely unable to move at all? Because this would "reduce" the effectiveness of that feat? Because that means you'd need to work a bit more on the game engine to incorporate it. This will probably be my next rant.
Another Rogue ability, though shared with some others, is the Evasion feat. This lets them ignore completely many of the powerful magical spells and spell-like abilities that Mages and FighterMages use, if they've put in the Dexterity for their Reflex save.
Uncanny Dodge is also useful, in that they retain the ability to move when on the ground. Wow.
At level 10 and every third level thereafter, the Rogue gains a special feat from this list:
Crippling Strike: Each successful Sneak Attack, in addition to the damage bonus, decreases the target's Strength temporarily by two points. Basically, they introduce blood loss into the game.
Opportunist: The Rogue gains a +4 Competence bonus to attacks when making an Attack of Opporunity. This is designed primarily to negate the Mobility feat.
Skill Mastery: The Rogue automatically takes a roll of 20 on any check made with the designated skill, even in battle. Skills this can be used with are Disable Trap, Open Lock and Set Trap.
Slippery Mind: If the Rogue fails a save against a mind-affecting spell, he gets one re-roll. This REALLY helps for those of us with bad luck whom tend to roll a 1 much more often than once in twenty rolls.
Defensive Roll: Once per day, the Rogue can make a Reflex save against an attack that damages him enough to kill him, DC is the damage dealt. If successful, the damage is halved, though it could still kill him. This is also a requirement for the Epic Dodge feat, which lets the character evade the first successful attack made against him every round. ... What kind of character WOULDN'T want that? That's why it's difficult to get unless you're specifically going for it.
Improved Evasion: May very well be one of the best abilities in the game. This lets the Rogue take no damage from spells and spell-like abilities that allow Reflex saves if they make the save (normal Evasion) AND even if they fail, take half damage anyway. Also sometimes called the Wizard's Bane feat.
Altogether, having ten levels in the Rogue class gives you at LEAST 40 skill points you otherwise wouldn't have, and, unless you've already got them, Sneak Attack +5d6, Evasion, Uncanny Dodge and one of the above special feats. For a Fighter/Rogue, this means you can walk up to the enemy Wizard, ignoring their Fireball, Cone of Cold, Acid Breath and such spells, use Knockdown on them and start hitting for an extra 5-30 damage on Sneaks ( >< since they can't move on the ground.. ) and when another Fighter gets a hit and barely kills you, you move out of the full way and live to strike back, giving you time for one or two more hits, or use of a potion. If you've played for a while, you know all too well how annoying it is to get just barely killed as your character is lifting the potion to his mouth. This lets you get it there.
Note something: I never said the focus of the Rogue was to steal. I am horribly tired of people calling a Rogue a Theif. My PALADIN has levels in Rogue, showing his training in skills, knowledge of anatomy and where to hit the weak spot, his enhanced senses, and ability to dodge (negate) a large array of spells. I don't even HAVE PickPocket. A Rogue is no more a Theif than a Fighter is an Archer. It's a sub-class, not a Class.
I told my multi-classing to someone earlier today, and got told that it was a contradiction in terms to be a Paladin/Rogue. You tell me some way that having more skills, the ability to move in armor, and having enhanced senses means you can't pray and meditate to your deity, and I'll call you a liar, because it's not true. If I chose to become a Theif, yes, it would be a contradiction, and I'd likely end up losing my Paladin status, because that would negate my Lawful alignment. I was also told that the focus of the Rogue class is to be a Theif. If the focus of the Rogue Class were to be a Theif, it would be a Class feat that no one else can get, not a skill that anyone and everyone can have. The focus of the Rogue class is to be a special Dexterity-based combatant that uses stealth and geurilla tactics instead of just running up and fighting. Theft is something focused on by selfish people, which can be any Class. A Sorceror is as able to use his Intimidate and Bluff skills just as much to steal as a Rogue or Bard is PickPocket. The difference is, they use their Charisma to scare it out, and Rogues use their Dexterity to do it without the target's knowing, hopefully. What's the difference in the end?
I've used Rogue a few times as an enhancement cross-class, to help a Fighter (My PALADIN) become tougher against spells and to raise his Armor Class using the Tumble skill, as well as increase his skill table. I've yet to actually just use a fully Rogue character, though several of my friends have, and I've yet to hear of a Theif, a character whose sole purpose is to go around using PickPocket to take others' belongings. Outside of simply testing the skill a few times, I've only ACTUALLY been PickPocketed a number of times I can count on one hand. I've had the game since original NWN came out, and played extensively on several servers online. It's kind of surprising how many Rogues there are about, and how many I've actually had tell me they don't have PickPocket at all.
Rogue does NOT mean Theif, Outlaw, Brigand or Robin Hood. It means the character has trained in skills and where to hit to hurt the most over simple swinging at them with excessive force or swinging a gesture to create magical forces from their spirit. It means they want to be useful OUT of battle as well.
~SolusEmsu