Pathfinder 2E Paizo's Stephen Radney-MacFarland Previews The Rogue Class For Pathfinder 2nd Edition!

We saw the fighter last week; today it's the turn of the rogue! Paizo's Stephen Radney-MacFarland gives the inside scoop on rogue features, and feats.

Rogue by Wayne Reynolds
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What do we know from this latest blog entry? Here's some class features:

• Sneak Attack (1st level) -- Rogues get Sneak Attack as their first class feature. Extra d6s of damage vs. flat-footed foes (such as flanked enemies, or those who fall victim to the Surprise Attack feature).
• Surprise Attack (1st level) -- "during the first round of combat, the rogue treats any creature that has not taken its turn yet as if it were flat-footed."
• Debilitating Strike (9th level) -- entangle or enfeeble targets in addition to damage. Higher levels add more conditions.
• Master Strike (19th level) -- ... culminating in Master Strike, which is an insta-kill at 19th level.
• More skill ranks, proficiencies, and skill feats than any other class. One skill feat per level rather than every other level.

And here's some class feats a rogue can take:

• Nimble Dodge -- +2 AC at a whim.
• Mobility (2nd level) -- move half speed and ignore reactions like attacks of opportunity.
• Reactive Pursuit (4th level) -- a sticky ability which allows the rogue to chase after foes who try to disengage.
• Dead Striker (4th level) -- treat frightened creatures as flat-footed.
• Gang Up (6th level) -- treat enemies within melee range of of your an ally as flat-footed.
• Twist the Knife (6th level) -- if you do sneak attack damage, do ongoing bleeding damage equal to half your sneak attack dice.
• Instant Opening (14th level) -- make a creature within 30' flat-footed until the end of your next turn.
• Cognitive Loophole -- ignore a mental effect for a round before it takes hold.
• Blank Slate (16th level) -- immune to detection, revelation, and scrying effects.

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[Adso]

Everyone will have plenty of non combat with ancestry and skill feats they can’t use for enhancing combat as much, plus some general feats and background stuff. What they went over here is the class feats since every class seems to have gone to a build your own class type of system. The only thing they didn’t really talk about here is if there are any class feats for traps. So I wouldn’t worry too much that rogues can only do combat stuff, they can and will do plenty of non combat stuff. (they’re getting more skill feats than anyone too)

Exactly! Thank you for pointing this out. While the rogue will have some skill goodies in their class feats, most of those do live in the skill proficiency and skill feat mix, so all classes have to potential to build toward it. For example, there is a build in alchemist that not only allows them to become the "trap guy" in the party but also do it in such a way that is different than the rogue.

 

[ZickZak]

I wasn't a big fan of PF1. Definitely avoiding PF2. No point if this is the direction they are taking things. I mean, they HAVE to 'balance' the other classes to this monstrosity of a combat monster. So PF2 seems to be focused on three pillars too I guess. But PF2's three pillars are Combat, Killing and Fighting.

...sigh... Oh well...

What else do you want on a rogue? You haven't seen anything from the rules, just the basic idea. Perhaps the feats are non-combat, or perhaps they wanted something different than 5e clone, which IMO is way too streamlined.

 

[Aldarc]

What else do you want on a rogue? You haven't seen anything from the rules, just the basic idea. Perhaps the feats are non-combat, or perhaps they wanted something different than 5e clone, which IMO is way too streamlined.

The most utilized ability for all rogues: Thieves' Cant. I'll let myself out now.