# Tales of the Valiant Rogue Tricks Guide: Cunning Tricks and Booby Traps > Book of Blades, Labyrinth Worldbook, and Player's Guide 2 guide to Rogue Tricks, Spy tools, Trapsmith traps, Dead to Rights, Setup, Set Pitfalls, rogue gear, and booby traps in Tales of the Valiant - with rankings, hot takes, and build advice. Source: https://theroleplayersguild.com/articles/tales-of-the-valiant/class-guides/tov-rogue-guide/tov-rogue-tricks-guide Published: 2026-06-17 Updated: 2026-06-30 Author: Andrew Blase Site: The Role Players Guild --- ## Introduction **Book of Blades** gives Rogues something the base class quietly needed: more ways to make the battlefield weird. The core Rogue loop is already strong. You find a Sneak Attack trigger, hit once, and spend your bonus action on Cunning Action. The problem is that "Hide, Dash, Disengage" can become repetitive when a fight is not built around stealth lanes. Book of Blades adds **Rogue Tricks**, **Dead to Rights**, **Setup**, **Set Pitfalls**, rogue gear, and **booby traps**. Labyrinth Worldbook adds **Spy (Labyrinth Worldbook)**, whose Feint, Infiltrator, Upper Hand, and Cloaked Dagger features play in the same space: deception, initiative, information, and opening-turn leverage. Player's Guide 2 adds **Trapsmith**, **Con Arcanist**, and **Nightblade**, which are not Rogue Tricks but absolutely affect how a Rogue uses prep, bonus actions, positioning, and enemy attention. Together, these books push the Rogue toward a more tactical identity: ambusher, infiltrator, saboteur, skirmisher, and problem-maker. This guide covers the Book of Blades Rogue toolkit, Spy (Labyrinth Worldbook), and the Player's Guide 2 subclass tech that overlaps with tricks and traps because all of them solve the same issue: they make the Rogue more interesting when "I attack and hide" is not enough. **Verdict:** Use this article if your table allows Book of Blades, Labyrinth Worldbook, or Player's Guide 2 and you want your Rogue to do more than chase advantage. The best options are not raw damage upgrades. They are action economy, positioning, information, and encounter-shaping tools. ![Tales of the Valiant Rogue Tricks](hero.webp) --- ## Disclaimer Ratings use colored dots to indicate how strong an option is _for Rogues specifically_. | Rating | Meaning | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | -------------------------------------- | | ● | Excellent - build around this | | ● | Strong - often correct | | ● | Situational - table or build dependent | | ● | Weak - usually skip | | ● | Trap - rarely worth the cost | Book of Blades, Labyrinth Worldbook, and Player's Guide 2 options are optional sourcebook material. Check with your GM before building around them. --- ## How Rogue Tricks Work Book of Blades presents Cunning Tricks as extensions of the Rogue's **Cunning Action** feature at 2nd level. That framing matters because every trick competes with your normal bonus action options: - **Hide** for advantage and protection - **Disengage** for clean melee exits - **Dash** for repositioning - subclass bonus actions, item use, poison application, or other build tech If a trick requires a save, the DC is based on your DEX and proficiency bonus. Creatures that witness a trick become better at resisting the same trick for 24 hours, so repeating one trick into the same audience gets worse quickly. **The Rogue math:** a trick is worth using when it creates Sneak Attack, prevents a dangerous enemy turn, enables an ally, or changes positioning more than Hide/Disengage/Dash would. --- ## Dead to Rights ● Dead to Rights is a special standoff rule for moments where you have a target at weapon point, spellpoint, or ambush distance. If the trigger conditions hold and your readied attack hits, it becomes an automatic critical hit. For Rogues, that sounds incredible because critical hits double Sneak Attack dice. In practice, it is more of a narrative tension rule than a default combat opener. You need the target pinned by the situation, and it depends heavily on GM adjudication. **Best users:** - Enforcer Rogues who already care about surprise and first-strike violence - social infiltrators who can turn a negotiation into a hostage standoff - ambush parties using [Tactical Planning](/articles/tales-of-the-valiant/talent-guides/tov-martial-talents-guide#tactical-planning-book-of-blades) **Hot take:** Dead to Rights is not a DPR tool. It is a scene-control tool. If your GM treats it as a cinematic standoff mechanic, it is excellent. If your table treats every enemy as always ready to fight, it barely exists. --- ## Setup ● Setup is the cleanest Rogue upgrade in Book of Blades. If you are not surprised and no enemy has acted yet, you can use your bonus action to swap initiative with an ally you can see. Your ally takes their turn now, and you take yours later without a bonus action. That sounds small until you remember how Rogues actually work. Rogues often roll high initiative, act before their frontliner reaches the target, and then start the fight without Sneak Attack unless they can hide or already have advantage. Setup lets the Fighter, Paladin, Ranger, summoned creature, or familiar move into position first. **Why it is excellent:** - fixes "I won initiative too hard" - enables adjacency-based Sneak Attack - lets a controller or tank open before you commit - supports Enforcer ambush turns - keeps your first turn from whiffing tactically **The cost:** you lose your bonus action on your delayed turn. That matters, but it is usually worth it when the swap creates Sneak Attack or lets the party open with control. --- ## Cunning Tricks Ranked ### Blind ● Blind is simple and nasty: throw sand, dust, ash, ink, or a similar substance at a creature's eyes. On a failed DEX save, it is blinded until it spends a bonus action clearing the grime. This is strong because it pressures enemy action economy. Even if the creature clears the condition immediately, you traded your bonus action for theirs and potentially protected the party from a dangerous attack sequence. **Best against:** weapon attackers, opportunity attack blockers, single dangerous enemies without Legendary-style protection. **Watch-out:** many monsters do not rely on eyes, or have blindsight-like senses. Do not assume Blind works on every creature. ### Graze ● Graze requires a finesse weapon. You make an attack, and if it hits, you give up your ability modifier to damage. Your next attack against that creature before the end of your next turn can be a Sneak Attack as if you met the normal requirements. This is insurance. It is not flashy, but it solves fights where your party cannot create adjacency, you cannot hide, and advantage is unavailable. **Best users:** melee Rogues, Enforcer Rogues before Brawler, solo scouts, and Rogues in parties without reliable frontliners. **Cost check:** losing your ability modifier to damage hurts less than missing Sneak Attack entirely. Use it when the next turn would otherwise be uncertain. ### Press ● Press lets you make a melee weapon attack, then force a STR or INT save to push the target 5 feet regardless of whether the attack hits. The key phrase is "your choice." Many monsters have one of STR or INT as a glaring weakness. Rogues are good at exploiting weak points, and this trick turns that knowledge into positioning. **Best uses:** - push enemies into hazards - open space without Disengage - move a target into an ally's reach - shove a creature toward a prepared pitfall or booby trap Press gets better when the battlefield has terrain. On a flat empty map, it drops to merely fine. ### Startle ● Startle can frighten a creature that is surprised or has not acted yet. If you damage the creature before the fright expires, you can extend the condition. This is a strong opener when it lands, but the timing restriction is real. You need to act early, target something that has not acted, and care about the frightened condition more than a normal Cunning Action. **Best users:** Enforcer Rogues, high-initiative Rogues, ambush parties, and builds with [Aware](/articles/tales-of-the-valiant/talent-guides/tov-technical-talents-guide#aware). ### Grab ● Grab targets a creature within 5 feet of both you and an ally. On a failed DEX save, you or the ally grapples it as a reaction. This is party-dependent. A STR-based ally grappling as a reaction can be excellent. A DEX Rogue grappling personally is often less exciting unless you are an Enforcer with Brawler-style plans. **Best uses:** locking down a caster, stopping a fleeing target, enabling an allied grappler, or holding someone inside a hazard. ### Mug ● Mug lets you steal or plant a small object after a melee attack or shove, using Sleight of Hand against the target's Perception score. It can also deliver volatile items such as alchemist's fire, acid, or holy water. In a dungeon brawl, Mug is cute. In a heist, court scene, assassination, or sabotage job, Mug is outstanding. This is one of the most campaign-dependent tricks in the package. **Best users:** Thieves, social infiltrators, spies, and anyone with Expertise in Sleight of Hand. --- ## Set Pitfalls ● Set Pitfalls lets a Rogue use thieves' tools, materials, and at least 1 minute to prepare a small trap. The trap uses an INT-based DC, affects a small area, and adds Sneak Attack damage to its result. That last piece is the reason Rogues care. A pitfall is not just a little battlefield nuisance. It can become a delayed Sneak Attack delivery system. **Best scenarios:** - defending a room before enemies arrive - setting an ambush route - trapping a chase path - preparing a fallback corridor - combining with forced movement from Press, shove, spells, or allies **Main weakness:** 1 minute is an eternity in combat. Pitfalls are prep tools, not round-by-round combat options. **Build note:** Underfoot Rogues from The Old Margeve love this style because burrowing and trap placement both reward map control and weird approach angles. --- ## Spy Tools (Labyrinth Worldbook) Spy (Labyrinth Worldbook) is a Rogue subclass, not a general Rogue Trick list. It still belongs here because its features ask the same questions as Book of Blades tricks: how do you create Sneak Attack, control the first round, communicate secretly, and make the enemy respond to your setup? ### Feint (Labyrinth Worldbook) ● Before making an attack roll with the Attack action against a creature within 30 feet that can see and hear you, you can force a WIS save against a CHA-based DC. On a failure, you gain advantage on the first attack roll you make against the target, and that advantage can enable Sneak Attack if the other Sneak Attack requirements are met. This is a trick-like feature because it manufactures advantage, but the CHA scaling keeps it honest. A DEX-first Rogue with low CHA should not assume Feint lands every time. A social Spy with real CHA investment, Deception proficiency, and a campaign full of humanoid marks gets much more from it. **Hot take:** Feint is strongest when the Spy is actually built like a Spy. If CHA is your dump stat, treat this as backup tech, not your main Sneak Attack engine. ### Infiltrator (Labyrinth Worldbook) ● You learn _message_ without material components, gain charlatan tools proficiency or doubled PB if you already have it, and at Rogue 7 learn _sending_ once per long rest without a spell slot or material components. This is not a combat trick. It is heist infrastructure. _Message_ lets you coordinate inside a compound without shouting across a map. Charlatan tools support disguises, forged identities, and planted narratives. _Sending_ lets the Rogue report intelligence or call for help without waiting for a caster. **Best campaigns:** faction intrigue, spycraft, cult infiltration, Labyrinth travel, city play, heists, and any adventure where information moves faster than the party. ### Deep Cover (Labyrinth Worldbook) ● Your thoughts cannot be read by magical means unless you allow it. Once per long rest, you can also use a bonus action to gain _nondetection_ benefits for 1 hour. Deep Cover is the answer to magical counterintelligence. It protects the part of Rogue play that often gets hand-waved until it suddenly matters: what happens when the villain can read minds, scry suspects, or scan infiltrators? In those campaigns, Deep Cover is not flavor. It is why the Spy survives the mission. ### Upper Hand (Labyrinth Worldbook) ● After initiative is rolled but before round 1 begins, you can swap your initiative, or the initiative of a willing ally you can see, with another creature you can see. You cannot use this if you are surprised. Upper Hand is Setup's nastier cousin. Setup swaps you with an ally before enemies act. Upper Hand can move an enemy. That means the Spy can delay a boss, let the Fighter engage before the Rogue attacks, move a controller earlier, or make sure the Rogue acts before a target gets support. **Best use:** align party order so your Sneak Attack trigger exists and the enemy's most dangerous turn happens later. ### Cloaked Dagger (Labyrinth Worldbook) ● When you deal Sneak Attack damage to a creature that has not taken damage during the current round, it is automatically stunned until the end of its next turn. Each time the stunned target takes damage, it can make a CON save against a DEX-based DC to end the effect early. This is a party-coordination feature. The Spy wants first damage on the target this round. If an ally pings the target before the Spy lands Sneak Attack, the feature does nothing. If the party waits, Cloaked Dagger can take a priority creature's turn away. **Hot take:** Cloaked Dagger is a table discipline test. It is incredible with coordinated players and frustrating with allies who chip damage before the Spy acts. --- ## Player's Guide 2 Rogue Tech Player's Guide 2 does not add a general Rogue Trick list. It adds Rogue subclasses whose features behave like trick engines: **Trapsmith** builds and rewrites traps, **Con Arcanist** uses Arcane spellcasting and invisible _mage hand_ play, and **Nightblade** turns psychic blades into movement, burst, and pressure tools. ### Trapsmith (Player's Guide 2) ● Trapsmith is the PG2 Rogue most directly tied to this guide. **Makeshift Trap** lets you craft a Small or smaller trap in 1 minute, then place it as an action. Its budget scales from your Sneak Attack dice, and the options include damage, grapples, restraints, tethers, conditions, wider triggers, and larger areas. That makes Trapsmith different from Book of Blades **Set Pitfalls** and booby traps: - Set Pitfalls is a Rogue trick-style prep option with thieves' tools and a small area. - Book of Blades booby traps are broader equipment/prep tools. - Trapsmith's Makeshift Trap is a subclass engine tied directly to Rogue progression. **Best uses:** chokepoints, pursuit routes, doors, stairs, narrow alleys, bridge crossings, lairs, and any map where enemies must choose between "bad idea" and "different bad idea." **Hot take:** Trapsmith is not weak because it needs prep. Traps are supposed to need prep. The weak version is trying to play Trapsmith in rooms so empty the floor should be embarrassed. ### Con Arcanist (Player's Guide 2) ● Con Arcanist is the trickster caster. **Ranged Legerdemain** makes _mage hand_ invisible, lets Cunning Action control it, and allows remote Thieves' Tools checks when the hand has tools available. That overlaps heavily with Mug, heist gear, locks, traps, and planted-object scenes. **Subtle Spellcasting** also matters for this guide because it rewards normal Rogue setup. If the target qualifies for your Sneak Attack conditions, your subtle spell can impose disadvantage on its save. In practice, the subclass wants the same setup other Rogues want: allies in place, target exposed, no wasted first turn. **Best uses:** silent locks, planted evidence, remote disarms, social sabotage, illusion/enchantment setups, and "I was never near the object" defenses. ### Nightblade (Player's Guide 2) ● Nightblade is less trap-facing, but its action economy belongs here. **Psychic Blade** gives always-available dagger-stat psychic attacks, **Home In** lets you teleport next to a hit target as a bonus action, and **Psychic Burst** turns Sneak Attack or a psychic-blade crit into area psychic pressure. Nightblade works well with the Book of Blades trick package because it can throw, relocate, and then decide whether the next turn needs Blind, Press, Smokeball, Setup, or a simple exit. The danger is bonus-action congestion: Home In, Cunning Action, two-weapon fighting, Smokeball setup, and other tricks all want the same space. **Best uses:** backline dives, Pinning Shot setups, psychic burst clustering, and ambushes where the Rogue wants to appear beside the target at the worst possible moment. --- ## Rogue Gear ### Smokeball ● Smokeball is the best Rogue gear in the Book of Blades package. It creates a brief heavily obscured area at range. Rogues can throw it, move where line of sight breaks, and use Cunning Action to hide. This is exactly what ranged and skirmisher Rogues want: portable terrain. **Best users:** almost every Rogue, especially Thieves and ranged Rogues. ### Garrote ● Garrote lets a thieves' tools user grapple with DEX (Thieves' Tools) instead of STR (Athletics), then start suffocation pressure. The fantasy is excellent. The table execution is harder. Grappling exposes you, consumes positioning, and can turn you into the target. This is best in stealth takedowns, interrogation scenes, and low-noise infiltration, not open fights. **Best users:** Expertise in Thieves' Tools, Thief Rogues, and dark alley campaigns. ### Ether ● Ether is a knockout tool that rewards surprise, grappling, and sustained control. It is flavorful and useful in nonlethal missions, but it takes setup and repeated saves. **Best users:** infiltration Rogues who need bodies unconscious rather than dead. **Skip when:** the campaign mostly fights monsters that do not breathe, cannot be grappled, or are too dangerous to hold for multiple rounds. --- ## Booby Traps Booby traps are introduced as fast, cheap battlefield control. They are not Rogue-only, and the section talks about Rangers as natural trap-setters, but Rogues should care because the mechanics reward stealth, planning, tools, and forced movement. ### How Booby Traps Work Constructing a booby trap takes 10 minutes, appropriate tools, and materials. You can add one improvement by spending more time and materials. Setting a prebuilt trap takes an action and a WIS (Survival) check; that result becomes the trap's discovery and disable DC. The trap's DEX save DC uses your proficiency bonus and WIS modifier. That means Rogues have a split-stat issue. You are probably DEX/INT first, not WIS-first. If you want booby traps to be reliable, invest in Survival proficiency, Expertise if available, scouting support, or allies who can help set the trap field. ### Alarm Trap ● Cheap, light, and useful. Alarm Trap does not deal damage, but it protects rests, watches, escape routes, and side entrances. Rogues should love information more than damage. ### Trip Rope Trap ● Trip Rope is the most Rogue-compatible booby trap. Prone is a strong condition, the materials are cheap, and it pairs with melee allies, ambush points, and forced movement. **Best combo:** Press or shove an enemy toward a path they do not want to cross, then punish the route they choose. ### Slow Terrain Trap ● Slow Terrain creates difficult terrain and can knock a creature prone on a failed save. This is better for escapes, chases, and battlefield denial than direct damage. **Best users:** scout Rogues, wilderness Rogues, and parties that kite. ### Restraining Trap ● Restraining Trap can hold a victim in place, and its improvement can add prone and elevation. It is excellent when it lands, but enemies hate being restrained and will prioritize escaping or destroying the setup. **Best users:** ambush parties and ranged Rogues who want a target locked down before combat starts. ### Poison Cloud Trap ● Poison Cloud Trap is the obvious Rogue fantasy, but poison is always table-dependent. Immunity, resistance, wind, and save math can drag it down. It gets much better in campaigns where [Poisoner](/articles/tales-of-the-valiant/talent-guides/tov-martial-talents-guide#poisoner-book-of-blades) and [Noxious Apothecary](/articles/tales-of-the-valiant/talent-guides/tov-technical-talents-guide#noxious-apothecary) are already part of your identity. ### Explosive Trap ● Explosive Trap is straightforward damage, with improvements for radius or secondary effects. It is useful, but Rogues usually get more from control than from small damage packets. **Best uses:** minion control, alarm-plus-damage setups, and defending a chokepoint. --- ## Best Trick Packages | Rogue Style | Core Picks | Why It Works | | ------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------- | | Ambush Enforcer | Setup, Dead to Rights, Startle | Wins the first round and converts surprise into damage. | | Mobile Skirmisher | Blind, Press, Smokeball | Breaks contact, manipulates space, and creates hiding. | | Solo Scout | Graze, Set Pitfalls, Alarm Trap | Keeps Sneak Attack online without party babysitting. | | Heist Thief | Mug, Garrote, Ether, Smokeball | Turns gear and skills into scene solutions. | | Spy (Labyrinth Worldbook) | Feint, Infiltrator, Upper Hand, Cloaked Dagger | Controls information, initiative, and first-damage tempo. | | Con Arcanist (PG2) | Ranged Legerdemain, Mug, Smokeball, Subtle Spellcasting | Mixes invisible hand work, spells, and object sabotage. | | Nightblade (PG2) | Psychic Blade, Home In, Blind, Press, Smokeball | Throws, teleports, disrupts, and escapes. | | Trapsmith (PG2) | Makeshift Trap, Set Pitfalls, Trip Rope, Restraining Trap | Turns corridors and routes into Rogue-owned terrain. | | Trap Rogue | Set Pitfalls, Trip Rope, Slow Terrain, Restraining Trap | Builds the battlefield before the fight starts. | --- ## Talent Synergies **[Poisoner (Book of Blades)](/articles/tales-of-the-valiant/talent-guides/tov-martial-talents-guide#poisoner-book-of-blades)** ● - Best with Poison Cloud Trap, poison delivery gear, and assassin campaigns. Bonus-action poison application competes with Cunning Action, so plan ahead. **[Noxious Apothecary](/articles/tales-of-the-valiant/talent-guides/tov-technical-talents-guide#noxious-apothecary)** ● - The real reason a poison Rogue works. It improves poison access and reliability, which makes the poison side of Book of Blades less campaign-fragile. **[Tactical Planning (Book of Blades)](/articles/tales-of-the-valiant/talent-guides/tov-martial-talents-guide#tactical-planning-book-of-blades)** ● - The best talent for ambush Rogues. It supports the same prep-first play pattern as Setup, Dead to Rights, pitfalls, and booby traps. **[War Dancer (Book of Blades)](/articles/tales-of-the-valiant/talent-guides/tov-martial-talents-guide#war-dancer-book-of-blades)** ● - Good for melee Rogues who already want to move every turn. It pairs well with Blind and Press because those tricks help you leave bad spaces. **[Weapon Option Specialist (Book of Blades)](/articles/tales-of-the-valiant/talent-guides/tov-martial-talents-guide#weapon-option-specialist-book-of-blades)** ● - Strong only if your table uses weapon options often. The more your Rogue pushes, trips, disarms, or repositions enemies, the better this gets. **[Sleuth (Player's Guide 2)](/articles/tales-of-the-valiant/talent-guides/tov-technical-talents-guide#sleuth-players-guide-2)** ● - Excellent for Investigator Rogues, Spy, Trapsmith, and any campaign where finding the truth is more valuable than stabbing the nearest problem. The floor-10 reliability stacks naturally with Rogue expertise. **[Slippery (Player's Guide 2)](/articles/tales-of-the-valiant/talent-guides/tov-technical-talents-guide#slippery-players-guide-2)** ● - Good for Rogues who need the map to stop bossing them around. Difficult terrain and grapples are two of the cleanest ways to ruin Cunning Action; Slippery pushes back. **[Escamotage (Player's Guide 2)](/articles/tales-of-the-valiant/talent-guides/tov-technical-talents-guide#escamotage-players-guide-2)** ● - Strong for Mug, Ranged Legerdemain, Heist Thief, and Con Arcanist play. If the campaign has things small enough to palm and important enough to steal, this earns its keep. **[Situational Awareness (Player's Guide 2)](/articles/tales-of-the-valiant/talent-guides/tov-martial-talents-guide#situational-awareness-players-guide-2)** ● - Surprise protection plus reaction movement is exactly the sort of "I planned for this" energy Rogues pretend was intentional. **[Self Defense (Player's Guide 2)](/articles/tales-of-the-valiant/talent-guides/tov-martial-talents-guide#self-defense-players-guide-2)** ● - Good for lightly armored melee Rogues who can access martial talents. It patches the moment after your clever positioning becomes someone else's melee range. **[Two Weapon Defense (Player's Guide 2)](/articles/tales-of-the-valiant/talent-guides/tov-martial-talents-guide#two-weapon-defense-players-guide-2)** ● - Niche but real for Nightblade and dagger builds. The cost is bonus-action competition, which Rogues already have in bulk. --- ## Hot Takes **Setup is the best Rogue Trick because it fixes an actual Rogue problem.** High initiative is supposed to be good, but Rogues can act too early for Sneak Attack. Setup turns that problem into a party advantage. **Booby traps are not damage features.** They are permission to control routes. If you judge them only by damage dice, you will undervalue Alarm Trap, Trip Rope, Slow Terrain, and Restraining Trap. **Smokeball is better than most magic items for low-level Rogues.** Portable heavy obscurement is exactly what a class with Cunning Action wants. It creates the map state you need instead of hoping the map provides it. **Mug is bad in a white-room fight and great in an actual Rogue campaign.** If the campaign has keys, badges, vials, letters, holy symbols, spell components, and planted evidence, Mug becomes a signature move. **Trap Rogues need GM buy-in.** This is not because the rules are weak. It is because traps require time, map detail, enemy movement, and consequences. If the table skips those, the build loses its oxygen. **Spy (Labyrinth Worldbook) is the Rogue for initiative control tables.** Feint helps create advantage, but Upper Hand is the real prize. If your party thinks about who acts before whom, Spy feels surgical. If everyone just attacks the nearest target, Cloaked Dagger loses a lot of value. **Deep Cover (Labyrinth Worldbook) is either flavor or campaign insurance.** If the campaign ignores divination, thought-reading, scrying, and counterintelligence, Deep Cover will feel quiet. If those tools exist, it is the feature that lets the Rogue keep being a Spy after the enemy starts looking. **Trapsmith (Player's Guide 2) is not the same as Set Pitfalls.** Set Pitfalls is a trick/prep option. Booby traps are equipment-style battlefield tools. Trapsmith is a subclass whose trap budget scales with Sneak Attack dice. Mixing them is great; confusing them makes rules conversations unnecessarily crunchy. **Con Arcanist (Player's Guide 2) makes Mug funnier.** A normal Rogue steals the key. A Con Arcanist steals the key with an invisible hand while standing across the room looking wounded by the accusation. Same crime, better theater. **Nightblade (Player's Guide 2) has bonus-action traffic.** Home In is strong, but it competes with Hide, Dash, Disengage, two-weapon plans, and trick use. The best Nightblade turns are planned; the worst ones are five bonus actions in a trench coat. --- ## Final Notes Book of Blades makes Rogues more interesting by widening their decision tree. Labyrinth Worldbook does the same through Spy (Labyrinth Worldbook), but from the infiltration and initiative-control side. Player's Guide 2 adds subclass engines that care about the same decisions: Con Arcanist manipulates from range, Nightblade weaponizes movement and psychic pressure, and Trapsmith makes terrain part of the Rogue kit. The strongest pieces do not replace Sneak Attack. They help you create the conditions where Sneak Attack, stealth, information, and party coordination actually matter. For most Rogues, start with **Setup**, **Blind**, **Graze**, **Press**, and **Smokeball**. Add **Set Pitfalls** and booby traps when the campaign has ambushes, defenses, chases, and scouting. Add **Mug**, **Garrote**, and **Ether** when the campaign has heists and social infiltration. If you are playing Spy (Labyrinth Worldbook), build the whole table plan around **Upper Hand** and **Cloaked Dagger**. If you are playing Trapsmith (Player's Guide 2), ask for maps early and make enemy movement expensive. If you are playing Con Arcanist or Nightblade, track your bonus action carefully; that tiny part of the turn is now a crowded tavern. The best Rogue is still the one who makes the battlefield unfair before the enemy understands what happened.