Re: Re: Yet another option
Irda Ranger said:
Rel - thanks for the take on playing in Freeport. Cleric is always a good choice for going solo, with their combat and spells, but this campaign is probably going to be a little more "Cloak & Dagger" than a straight Cleric could handle. Even one of Olidammara (sp?) 
How effective do you think your Rogue would be without your back-up from the other players. My concern would be (as you pointed out) Rogues would get a great first round with Sneak Attack, and then not be able to follow through.
Well, I can't say that my experience can totally translate into good advice for you because my DM is modifying Freeport to fit his homebrew campaign. I think I can fairly well pick out where he is using the module straight and where he is adding homebrew stuff (I've known him for over 25 years so I ought to be able to pick out the parts that are "his style").
The other two players are playing a Barbarian/Sorcerer and a Cleric/Wizard. They tend to be far more brash and bold than I would be left to my own Halfling devices. If I was alone, I would be cautious and take things slower but I probably have more fun this way since I'm forced into action more often.
When it comes down to the fighting, a combination of poor circumstances and bad initiative rolls have conspired to keep me from getting off a lot of sneak attacks while my opponents were flat footed. But after that I become a tumbling fool and between my flanking sneak attacks and the Barbarian's greatsword, we lay down some considerable damage. So, the answer to the question of how effective I'd be without my companions is "not very". But that's largely a function of how we have approached our problems.
If, on the other hand, I was developing a Rogue for solo play, I'd probably develop the character a bit differently. What I might do would be this:
Focus my stats on Dex, Cha and Int (in that order). Play a human and take Dodge and Expertise at 1st level. I'd max out Tumble, Bluff, Move Silently, Hide, Listen, Spot, Use Magic Device and Search and whatever else struck my fancy (Gather Information and Sense Motive might be good choices).
Try to get as much info as I could before I walked into a potentially hostile situation. Whenever possible, attack from range while hiding and get a Sneak Attack off at the start of a fight. When it came to melee, my goal would be to maximize my AC so that a prolonged fight would not be to my detriment (the longer the fight, the more chances the bad guys get to swing at you and the more likely you are to take damage if your AC doesn't force them to roll a 20, or close to it, to hit you). Then you can use Bluff to Feint and get more Sneak Attacks in.
By the time you hit 3rd level, you can take Weapon Finesse and your attack bonus will be much better. Then, if necessary, Fight Defensively (5 ranks in Tumble will bump the Dodge bonus you get up to +3) while continuing to Feint.
Whenever you can, pick up low cost, single use magic items (primarily Scrolls) that will make life easier for you. Arcane scrolls will be your best bet as your decent Int will let you use them without having to fake a higher ability score.
That is just one possible way to develop the character, but if I was doing a solo Rogue, that's probably what I'd do. I still think that a Bard could be a fun angle to try. But I do think it would be tough trying to deal out damage with a Bard and you had better have a good, fairly reliable spell to take down the bad guys with (Sleep or Hypnotism seem the only real choices there).
Good luck and let us know what you pick.
