(This week's Off the Beaten Path was narrated by Laurano Rivind, who brought a more humorous and roguish perspective...)
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Hi everyone! Stardancer is “Off the Path” again probably chasing after some herb or lost in thought in some beautiful forest. However, I am Laurano Rivind and this week I will be bringing you the “Off the Beaten Path”.
I am a rogue and thought I would bring you all the roguish places to see. Muwaahaaa.
PLACES TO SEE
STORMWIND
Ah, the bustling city of Stormwind …Home of the humans (and me) and mecca for trade and gatherings. But, you should be careful when walking by the buildings along the street south outside of the Dwarven district along the water front. There is one building with an interesting secret…it only looks like a regular shop but has entrance to a hidden alley way.
RAVENHOLDT
Hidden away in the hills of Hillsbrad foothill is the town of Ravenholdt Manor. Ravenholdt is a guild of thieves and assassins and we only welcome only those of extraordinary prowess into its fold. You would think that hiding the manor up the plateau slightly northwest of Durnholde Keep would keep those without our particular skills out.
I have always been telling my colleagues there we should have a secret handshake and speak in thieves cant or NO ONE gets in!
Unfortunately, anyone who raises their reputation from Neutral to Friendly, by doing the repeatable quest Syndicate Emblems can get an honorary pass to explore our grounds. Hrrumph!
- ZONE: [ Ravenholdt Manor ]
- FACTION: Alliance and Horde
There is nothing like sneaking into Undercity through the bat tunnel sewers located outside in Tirisfal Glade. I consider this the “Rogues Gate”. Convenient for invasions, don’t you think?
- Zone: [ Undercity ]
- Faction: Horde
Looking Toward [ Wrath of the Lich King ]
I am not a rogue, but I play one on TV.
Seriously though, my main character and my favorite class is the Rogue. The Outlands zone didn’t really provide people with our particular talents many hideaways other than tunnels in Blade’s Edge and those were full of spiders. But I am looking forward to [ Northrend ]. I can already see several spots that have questionable security. Just my kind of places. Although, battling [ Death Knights ] and their minions might make my job harder. But we shall see. The bay in the southeastern corner of Northrend is called [ Daggercap Bay ]. Honestly, a rogue couldn’t name that place better. I guess I might have to make a home away from home out there in Valgarde. Be sure to watch your satchels there because I sure will be watching yours! hehehe
Role Playing Tips
PLAYING A ROGUE
Illidarian brought up [ Garona Halforcen ] in one of her lore segments. This half-orc is probably one of the most famous or our ilk, an assassin hired to kill King Llane. Some people prefer to play their rogue as assassins, or shadowy corner brooders, or simply thieves stealing from city dwellers. But as illustrated by Garona, a rogue can be political secret ops, with a purpose of gaining information and helping turn the tide in a war.
If you choose to play a rogue, consider the following:
- Do you belong to any organizations, or are you a freelancer? If so, what? And Why?
- Is your rogue a hero,?
- Broody? Or humorous?
- Why would the race you pick for a rogue have a penchant for thievery or assassination?
A rogue isn’t known for their brawn, like a warrior. They prefer their agility and guile which can benefit a wide array of story lines. The word rogue implies thievery, but there are skills that can be more suited to information gathering, picking targets, searching areas, and so forth. Your rogue can be a scout for a party, who is trained in melding with the nooks and crannies in a dungeon to give an adventuring party valuable information of what’s ahead.
LOCK and TRAPS SPECIALISTS
Their deftness and talent with small tools and picks allows them to open locked doors, gates, and treasure boxes among other things. An adventuring party is lost without such skills. The rogue is stealthy and dextrous, and the only class capable of finding and disarming many traps and picking locks. Perhaps your rogue took up blacksmithing/engineering and the cover story is that they are a locksmith?
APOTHECARY
Since rogues deal with poisons and use various questionable herbs in their combats, making your rogue an apothecary and alchemist would make a great cover story.
ITEMS ACQUISITION
Need something you can get on your own, perhaps you need someone who has no trouble sneaking about and obtaining necessary items… well, most people call that pick-pocketing. I prefer to call that “items acquisition”. Perhaps the cover story for your rogue is that they are a quartermaster.
ASSASSINS
It is kind of trite to play a hired assassin. Usually, if you are you wouldn’t overtly advertise and no one would really know for sure. The rogue also has the ability to "sneak attack" ("backstab") enemies who are caught off-guard or taken by surprise, inflicting extra damage. Perhaps the cover story for your rogue is that they are a politician.
IN CLOSING
There are lots of ways to work the class. Rogues make great detectives, archaeologists, scouts, spies, pirates lock specialists, assassins, and more. Your rogue can obtain a rapier and get a name for themselves as a Blademaster, Duelist, or just some highwayman like Robin Hood. If you want a more bad-guy feel, be sure to be as aggressive as any warrior and get a club (the plank of wood with a nail in it or even that 10lb FISH) and start a bar-room brawl. Oh yeah, while everyone else is fighting, the rogue takes the bottle and sneaks out the back. Hehe.
Have fun everyone!
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Written by Stardancer
Special thanks to Marie, who is the voice of Laurano Rivind.
