Summary
Dragon Age: The Veilguardlets players return to the world of Thedas for a thrilling conclusion to the events first established inInquisitionand hinted at from the very start of the series inOrigins.While incredibly distant from the game’s roots as a more strategic RPG, the action RPG combat in this title is engaging.
One ofVeilguard’sgreatest strengths over its predecessors in the combat department is just how distinct the three RPG archetypes feel. Typically, rogues and warriors felt the same while mages,especially blood mages, were distinct enough to functionally be an entirely new take on gameplay altogether. This game takes a different tack with rogues feeling incredibly distinct from warriors, fusing ranged and melee attacks with a speed no other class can achieve. To get the most out of the rogue as soon as possible,Veilguardplayers should focus on getting these skills right away.
Updated on March 12th, 2025, by Will Buckley:With Dragon Age: The Veilguard arriving on PS Plus, now is a great time for a slew of new players - those familiar with the world of Thedas and those wanting to experience it for the first time - to give this action-packed RPG a go. The Rogue Class is an excellent choice for anyone who favors agility and burst damage in their player characters, and with the perspective of a few months from this game’s release date, there are a few rogue skills that truly shine within any early game build.
1Hurricane Of Blades
A Lethal AoE Attack
Often a hallmarkof elven fightersor assassins, poisoned damage in this game takes the form of necrotic damage and is a foundational element of what the rogue is capable of dishing out. A rogue relies on its speed, and Hurricane of Blades is an excellent way to gain ground on a group of enemies and deal decisive damage.
Players can direct the hurricane of blades to an extent during the animation, so it’s possible to catch even more enemies in the AOE after beginning the attack - an especially useful thing to note considering the final attack in this skill is the strongest.
2Bated Breath
A Fantastic Boost To Rogue DPS
Moreso than even mages, the Rogue class will often find itself on the back lines. There are, of course, plenty of opportunities for Rogue players to close the gap with paired weapons, but people will often find that the most decisive moments in a Rogue’s repertoire will be from afar when a fully charged shot from a bow completely tears an opponent asunder. This is especially the case during the early game, when players are a bit more fragile, having a reliable ranged option while warriors tank hits up front is a lifesaver.
It’s for these reasons that Bated Breath is such a good skill for early in the game, though it continues to play dividends all the way through to the final boss. Damage values on charged levels for the bow are always worth the extra wait time, and an extra level of bow charge - on top of the passive 10% damage increase this skill provides - is multiplicatively better than firing off an uncharged shot.
3Pilfer
A Great Way To Increase Rogue Survivability
Pilfer allows players to continue the great tradition ofmany thief classesin RPGs - that is, thievery. The Pilfer ability mechanically doesn’t so much “steal” a potion as it does spawn one on the attack, but hey, flavor is free.
Rogues are the most fragile class in the game. Mages have the benefit of being backline attackers, while rogues can’t reliably stick to ranged attacks (in the early game!) and will need to get up close and personal with less health than the warrior - this makes a skill that deals damage, detonates a common debuff, and restores a potion slot invaluable in the early game.
4Close Quarters Combat
Simply Makes The Rogue More Effective
As mentioned above, rogues will frequently be right in the thick of combat - and without the benefit ofheavy warrior armor. Close-quarters combat functionally provides a constant damage buff as the rogue - who attacks with quick, light strikes, will usually be in the range of enemies to get the damage boost when attacking.
This is the main way to improve the effectiveness of rogues in the early game. Stack up on buffs to make those quick, decisive attacks with swords and daggers hit that much harder, and then double down with skills.
5Unending Quiver
Arrows Are Essential To Rogue DPS
This skill might beworth ditching in the long run, but during the early game when arrow recovery options are limited, this is a great, reliable way to restock the quiver until more efficient solutions come along. Extra quivers means more time directly out of an enemy’s range, increasing longevity while Rogues are a bit squishier and making sure warriors have good support on the frontlines.
The great thing aboutVeilguardis how easy it is to reshuffle builds on the fly - and so players can take this for only as long as they need it before swapping it out for something else. Players can just take on entirely new builds on a whim without having to lose access to resources.
6Knock Out
Can Be A Game-Changer In Boss Fights
This effect really showcases a Rogue’s archetypal ability that suits any specialization - generating as many critical hits as possible. Doubling down on low-health enemies with critical hits is great in those initial areas of the game when a build is not fully optimized yet is a great way to ensure players aren’t falling behind on DPS checks as they appear inVeilguard. Having mages or warriors weaken enemies just to clean them up with a well-placed arrow is one of the best parts of the Rogue class.
Beyond this, what is considered ‘low health’ in a boss fight, especially some of the more brutal optional boss fights that await players, is still a fairly sizable part of their health bar. This can be a great skill to take when dealing with tankier foes and bosses to ensure the tides don’t start to turn on the party, especially since many enemies inThe Veilguardhave additional abilities that trigger when they hit low health.
7Reeling Bolt
A Skill Worth Beelining Toward
A little further along the skill tree than most of the skills on this list, Reeling Bolt is an excellent early-game skill that will help players coast through those first forays into Northern Thedas.
The high stagger damage is especially useful in the early game when enemies have a low threshold for stagger, and the shocked debuff is a great combo with one ofthe first companionsplayers will unlock - Bellara.
8Poisoned Reply
A Valuable Rogue Defensive Skill
Perfect defense in this game is an essential part of frontline combat. Dodging is good but inefficient if not absolutely necessary (which it sometimes is, as certain attacks can’t be blocked). Players who have come to master perfect defenseneedto get this skill.
Applying necrotic damage to weapons is an incredible boon and makes the fights that much faster, and the buff resets on every perfect defense, making an excellent, consistent enhancement to damage that rogues will come to rely on.
9Decisive Finale
An Excellent Melee Staple
Part of what makesthe best rivalriesand plot beats toDragon Ageworthwhile is the culmination of these things in epic battles. Rook is said to be a seasoned fighter inVeilguard, but they only really feel that way with combo enhancements like Decisive Finale.
Decisive Finale is practically mandatory for rogues, which is why it’s a boon that it’s so close to the starting point on the skill tree. This ability lets rogues string together light attacks and finish on a powerful heavy strike.
10Necrotic Fog
A Great Complement To Rogue Skills
In the early game ofVeilguard, there isn’t much in the way of utility for rogues through equipment or accessories - as those come into play a bit later. As such, rogues should be relying on their skills as much as possible.
This ability greatly augments the rogue’s ability to deal damage by essentially compounding any damage further. Hurricane of Blades, for instance, now has enhanced damage as the AOE is compounded by the necrotic damage from this ability.
