Let’s address one thing right off the bat: Diablo 4 can be challenging for newcomers. This rings especially true when it comes to builds, which can become overwhelming in no time. Skills, Paragon points, Aspects, Stat priority… the list goes on.
While complexity is an integral part of the Diablo experience, it can also be daunting. If you’re seeking a build guide that is both effective and straightforward, you’ve come to the right place.
A User-Friendly Rogue Leveling Guide
Are you new to the Rogue Class? Or perhaps new to Diablo 4 altogether? Have no fear, this guide was created to make assembling the best leveling build for the undoubtedly superior D4 Class this season a breeze. This guide will be concise and easy to follow, taking you 99% of the way, which is more than enough for all your leveling needs (from levels 1 to 50).
The Optimal Season 1 Rogue Leveling Build: Twisting Blades
Undoubtedly, the top Rogue leveling build this season is the Twisting Blades build. Why? Simply put, it is exceptionally lethal, even at level 10, and becomes even more potent as you progress further. Not to mention, it’s an absolute blast to play thanks to its speed and excitement.
How it Operates
This build revolves around the core skill, Twisting Blades. With Twisting Blades, you strike an enemy, and after a few seconds, the blades return to you, dealing progressively more damage. The more enemies they hit on their return, the greater the damage they inflict.
High mobility is key to this build. Strike an enemy, position yourself to maximize the number of enemies hit by the returning blades, and reap the rewards. Every other skill at your disposal complements this hit-and-run playstyle.
Skill Selection
Simplifying this guide, we focus on the essential skills: Twisting Blades as the central skill, Shadow Step and Dash for efficient movement, Dark Shroud for increased speed and survivability, and Poison Trap for crowd control (and additional damage).
Skill Tree Points
Remember, one of the most common mistakes when leveling is spending an excessive amount of time contemplating how to allocate skill points. Instead, follow these principles and spend the majority of your time slaying:
- Utilize your initial Skill Points to unlock new abilities first.
- Start by enhancing and specializing your skills.
- Progress to upgrading skill ranks to unlock the next node.
- Avoid upgrading skill ranks unnecessarily.
Skills to Unlock (in order):
- Puncture (then Enhanced Puncture, then Fundamental Puncture)
- Twisting Blades (then Enhanced Twisting Blades, then Advanced Twisting Blades)
- Shadow Step (then Enhanced Shadow Step, then Methodical Shadow Step)
- Dash (no need to upgrade until much later)
- Dark Shroud (then Enhanced Dark Shroud, then Subverting Dark Shroud)
- Poison Trap (then Enhanced Poison Trap; specialization won’t be necessary here)
- Enhance your strengths with the appropriate Passive Skills.
Skills are crucial, and in terms of damage and survivability, they are paramount in the early game. However, as you accumulate more Skill Points, it’s important to unlock Passive upgrades. Prioritize the following (in order):
- Exploit (all 3 ranks)
- Innervation (all 3 ranks)
- Adrenaline Rush (1 rank)
- Haste (all 3 ranks)
- Sturdy (all 3 ranks)
- Trap Mastery (all 3 ranks)
As you approach level 50, consider allocating points to:
- Weapon Mastery
- Siphoning Strikes
- Swiftly unlock your Key Passive!
Unlocking your Key Passive, Momentum, should be a top priority as soon as the node becomes available. It elevates the entire build to a new level.
Best-in-Class Malignant Hearts
Malignant Hearts are the core gameplay loop of the Season of the Malignant, and trust me when I say they’re the real deal. Some Hearts are decent, others are gimmicky, but a few stand out as absolutely top-tier. Ignoring these would be a grave mistake.
Here are the Malignant Hearts you should aim to acquire:
- Caged Heart of the Barber (Wrathful Heart): Absorbs critical strikes and subsequent damage within 2.0-4.0 seconds, which then erupts onto surrounding enemies. Stored damage increases by 10% per second.
- Caged Heart of Revenge: Suppresses 10-20% of incoming damage. When you use a Defensive, Subterfuge, or Macabre skill, all suppressed damage is amplified by 250% and explodes, dealing up to 1360-2040 Fire damage to nearby enemies.
- Caged Heart of the Tempting Fate: Increases Critical Strike Damage by 40-60%, but reduces Non-Critical Strikes’ damage by 20-15%.
These Malignant Hearts outperform most Aspects in the game, so don’t miss the chance to significantly enhance your build.
Rogue Specializations
At level 15, you’ll gain access to specializations through a class-specific quest. There are three options available:
- Combo Points: Use Basic Skills to boost subsequent Core Skills (unlocks at level 15)
- Inner Sight: Provides regular Energy refills after attacking marked enemies (unlocks at level 20)
- Preparation: Resets your Ultimate Skill and allows it to reset all other skills (unlocks at level 40)
For the most part, Combo Points will suit your needs perfectly. However, if you find yourself struggling with Energy levels, consider switching to Inner Sight.
Pursuing the Best Rogue Aspects
If you’ve followed along so far, you should have a solid build in place. However, to truly elevate your gameplay and conquer everything in your path, you’ll need the right Aspects.
There are many Aspects and Dungeons available for Rogues, but the following ones are the most beneficial for this build:
The Bladedancer’s Aspect is particularly exceptional and a must-have for this build. By the way, other builds often require more challenging-to-obtain ingredients, such as Uniques and Aspects. In our case, you simply need to venture into the relevant dungeon and complete it to unlock the best Aspect for this build!
⛔ Warning: You’ll outgrow your equipment rapidly between levels 1 and 50, so avoid investing too many resources into upgrading your gear.
The only exceptions are your Ranged weapon, Amulet, and rings, as you can hold onto these for an extended period. While you’re at it, imprint the Bladedancer’s Offensive Aspect onto your Ranged weapon for a bonus +100% effect. You’ll thank me later 😉
Gear
While some guides spend paragraphs detailing which stats and affixes to prioritize, the truth is that these factors won’t matter all that much while you’re leveling your character. Why? Because you’ll be replacing your gear frequently, making it a waste of time to focus on min-maxing your build at this stage.
Here’s all you need to know about gear for now:
- Upgrade to items with the highest Item Power and move on.
- For Armor: Upgrade to items with the highest Item Power.
- For Weapons: Upgrade to items with the highest Damage Per Second (that’s what counts for your abilities). Additionally, enhance them with Emerald gems for extra Critical Strike Damage.
While leveling in Diablo 4, spend less time inspecting your inventory and more time farming!
Perfecting Your Build
Once you reach level 50, you no longer require a leveling build. At that point, and especially when you reach World Tier 3, shift your focus to stats, affixes, Aspects, and Uniques.
We’ll soon assemble an endgame Rogue build, but in the meantime, these resources can assist you:
- Best Rogue Uniques
- How to target farm Daggers
- Necromancer Leveling Build
