Noobtastic Rogue questions

[pzingaro]

Hi everyone.

I have been reading through these forums a bit but have not found anything about this. I am new to DDO (just installed last night) but I have been a long time PnP Dungeons & Dragons player.

I have made a rogue, and my question is primarily around stealth and sneak attack. I have been reading the manual and it seems to suggest that you get sneak attack when attacking from hiding or when an enemy is in melee with someone in your party, and with ranged weapons within 30' in these circumstances. However, I have only once seen "sneak attack" and extra damage appear over a kobolds head when I stabbed it from hiding. I have never gotten sneak attack to work from a flanking position, so far. Am I doing something wrong? Is there some trick or finesse to landing a sneak attack that perhaps I am missing?

Also, when it comes to hiding I notice there are between 1 and 3 little blue eyes near me when I stealth I assume these indicate bonuses or penalties I may be getting (how well hidden I am in other words) as I appear to have less eyes when Im in a good shadow.

Any advice, suggestions, clarification etc is welcome.

Thanks!

[Ikken]

You will see sneak attack damage a LOT more often when you group. Otherwise, like you said, you will get it off maybe once when by yourself.

Those eyes are how visible you are. Stick to the shadows and walls as much as possible to avoid being seen.

To land more sneak attacks, toss points into Bluff and use it.

-Ike

[Snike]

Yep if you are on the top of the aggro list, wich is easy to do, you wont get any sneak attacks reguardless if you think you are flanking, the mob has you targeted. Mob must have someone else targeted to get flanking bonus. Bluff can be used to get a round of sneak attacks in even when the mob has you targeted, also deception on a weapon can proc a bluff-type effect too.

[tihocan]

Basically, you get sneak attack when the enemy is not trying to attack you.

[Hokiewa]

The posters above me answered your questions very well. However, I should note in my exp, ranged sneak attack is a very fickle beast.

[Snike]

I think ranged attacks in general are fickle... many times I don't even see an attack roll from my shots, mob standing still... and in the iffy 30' radius and sneak ranged is double fickled.

[jkm]

try running around them (easiest way is push the a key and the w key at the same time). eventually you'll pop for lack of a better term, an attack of opportunity, as they swing at where you were and you sweep in behind giving you your backstab damage. i designed my last build around this using spring attack after seeing the damage bonus pop so often with my TWF ranger using a backstab item. depending upon how many mobs there are, every lap around the circle you'll get 2-3 sneak attacks.

[Sojourner]

In DDO sneak attack has nothing to do with sneaking, or facing.

Doesn't matter if monster knows you're there or not.
Doesn't matter if you are in front of the monster or behind him.

It's all about aggro in DDO.
If the monster has aggro on you, you don't get sneak attack.
If the monster doesn't have aggro on you (either because its on someone else, or because he doesn't know you're there yet) then you get sneak attack.

[jkm]

that isn't true. i get sneak attack damage while soloing just running around a group of 5 or 6 mobs. so either there is a limit to how many mobs can be aggro'd on one toon or there is another mechanic to getting the sneak attack damage along with aggro.

[Snike]

Or you are using a weapon with deception.

[jkm]

nope.

rogue uses a +1 holy rapier and a +1 icy burst shortsword.

ranger uses a +2 flaming burst bastard sword and a +1 flaming burst kukri of backstab +1

i go back in the combat log and about every 4th-5th attack says 'you sneak attack x for x damage'

bluff works well against single targets but if you have 5 on you there isn't much point.

[Gimpster]

It's all about aggro in DDO.
It's also about impairment.
A monster who has paralysis, hold monster, flesh to stone, blindness, bluff, deception, or plain unconciousness on him also gives you sneak attacks.

[Riekan]

Not if you were the one to hit him with it. I built a two weapon rogue around an off hand paralyzer I had thinking it would give sick backstab damage. However, since I was the character to paralyze them, they still had agro on me and I never got any sneak attacks. Needless to say, this was a reroll.

[Snike]

Paralizers do not allow auto sneak attacks, infact a paralized mob can switch it's aggro/target too. Glitterdust on the other hand allows free sneak attacks.

[The_Cataclysm]

Would just like to add, that I have noticed when soloing on my TWF, spring att. fighter, that I get sneak att. dmg as well on occassion, while not using a deception weapon, if I'm moving around during combat. So, no, he's not wrong. And I don't even have bluff on that toon.

When you get the sneak attack damage is it the killing blow?

[bandyman1]

that isn't true. i get sneak attack damage while soloing just running around a group of 5 or 6 mobs. so either there is a limit to how many mobs can be aggro'd on one toon or there is another mechanic to getting the sneak attack damage along with aggro.

Would just like to add, that I have noticed when soloing on my TWF, spring att. fighter, that I get sneak att. dmg as well on occassion, while not using a deception weapon, if I'm moving around during combat. So, no, he's not wrong. And I don't even have bluff on that toon.

[Club'in]

Mobs can hear you, too. Look for your feet glowing red as you walk around. That means something can hear you moving. Move Silently reduces this, of course.

Anyone ever seen a Glitterdust clicky? I would think that'd be great for a rogue to have.