The Primary Colors: The Rogue

Hey all,

In the last post, we took a closer look at the fighter. This time, we're moving through the list to take a closer look at the rogue.

The rogue is what I'll call an indirect combatant, or even a misdirection combatant. Where the fighter is straightforward, the rogue is anything but. The rogue has the most to do with the Dexterity, Intelligence, and Charisma attributes in OGL (open game license) systems. In d20 systems, the rogue could accurately be called the "skill monkey". However, in other systems and settings, the rogue can also act as a "face", or charisma-based spokesman for the group. Basically, if your character is liable to talk their way out of a fight, sneak away from a fight, fight from the shadows, fight dirty, or turn tail and run; they're probably some kind of Rogue.

This even includes adventuring nobles and politicians. This is under the logic of what kind of nobles in fiction tend to gravitate toward adventuring. These individuals tend to be swashbuckling rogues.

The rogue's strengths tend to be in their diverse and versatile skills. Where the fighter specializes, the rogue diversifies. An assassin rogue might be a master of disguise, stealth, escape artistry, marksmanship, lockpicking, poisons, courtly intrigue, and might even, in a pinch, negotiate their pay themselves. Conversely, the vanilla fighter is probably good with either melee or ranged weaponry, and maybe a shield. However, rogues tend to be reliant on gaining and keeping the upper hand. Taking the enemy by surprise, fast talking, slipping into the shadows, and other tactics can give the rogue the upper hand; but if they lose the advantage, they lose their momentum, and the entire encounter can go pear-shaped in a hurry. Simply put, they need the advantage, and will usually lose a fair fight.

The stereotypical rogue tends to be the party's: hired gun, face, wheel man, thief, or security expert. Typical traits for a classic rogue might be: sly, smooth, cunning, witty, and even cynical or misanthropic.

Within fantasy, rogues are probably the class least represented in other class variants. They are basically either assassins, thieves, and sometimes spies. In other genres, the rogue is the character defined by speed, whether that's quick movements, quick thinking, or quick wits, the rogue is just plain quick. Other genres could see some love for the rogue in the form of: hackers, technicians, information brokers, brothel madames, government men, bank men, snake oil salesmen, press-ganged sailors, merchantmen, privateers, hitmen, drug dealers, pickpockets, husslers, reporters, scavengers, and merchants.

Finally, let's look at how the rogue works in gag campaigns. The rogue can be a lot of fun in a lighthearted setting. Typically, this will manifest as some form of Chaotic Stupid alignment.

Some rogues play up the "thief" element in spades. If it's not nailed down, it's fair game. Think Rocket Raccoon, especially if you've seen the second Guardians of the Galaxy movie. Theft for the sake of theft, sometimes there's a plan, sometimes it was shiny, sometimes a thief is staying sharp, and sometimes the explanation is as a simple as "*shrug* I dunno, I was bored, I guess."

They also tend toward the "rule of funny". Sure, we're all in the deepest dungeon of a murderous psychopath king, but we had some laughs, huh?

The other classic for the rogue is to play up how vulnerable they are compared to the fighter and play them as an absolute coward. Scooby and Shaggy are probably the best examples in media of portraying a coward in an endearing way.

So, with that, let's move on and let the rogue rest for a bit. Next time, we'll plan to finish out the primary colors with our last entry, the Mage. What did you think of my write-up of the rogue? Anything you'd add? Any fun stories of your rogue you'd like to share? Feel free to share in the comments below.