CRGreathouse said:
OK, so use a Ftr4/Rog16. The martial rogue is still better... much better, IMO.
Better at what, is the question.
The martial rogue is going to have 4 points more BAB. The ftr/rogue is going to have 32 more skill points, uncanny dodge, improved UD, and trap sense. Because of multiclassing quirks, he's also going to have a higher Fort save.
Depending on which version we're talking about, the martial rogue also gets better sneak attacks (d12 is probably too much, but d8 should be okay), but loses out on the rogue's high-level special abilities.
So the martial rogue can kill stuff easier than the ftr/rogue. You would expect that; that's why it's called a _martial_ rogue. In return, the ftr/rogue is probably going to be better at detecting and disabling traps, escaping ambushes, talking to people, sneaking around, and generally doing rogueish things.
Which is as it should be. The martial rogue's schtick is not that of a straight rogue. If you want to sneak around, spy on people, steal their valuables, but not engage in needless killing, then the rogue is still going to be better.
Now, it's true that many D&D campaigns _do_ engage in lots of killing, but that basically points to deficiencies in the rogue class when thrown into such campaigns. You wouldn't expect a bard to be very good in a high-violence campaign, and the rogue doesn't fare that well either. Which doesn't mean that you can't attempt to address these deficiencies.