Play Your Next 5E D&D Game as a Haunted Rogue

Over at Nerdarchy the YouTube channel Nerdarchists Dave and Ted skulk through the shadows to create a fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons Haunted Rogue character build. This character emerged through a request from one of our Patreon supporters. The request was simple: “How would you build a rogue with Shadow Magic Sorcerous Origin multiclass?” This leaves a lot of room for flexibility. Leaning hard into an
affinity for gloom this shadowy sneaker emerged with a compelling narrative and this 5E D&D character became a Silver Best Seller very quickly. Let’s get into it.

Behind the CBG — Haunted Rogue

Every CBG we create considers the journey as much as the final outcome. We aim to present a guide suitable for any level of 5E D&D play whether you’re pursuing an epic campaign from start to finish, starting beyond 1st level or choosing a character for a one shot. Then we take those concepts and develop an NPC or creature version of the character build for DMs to incorporate into their games. All of this gets packaged up and laid out in a PDF you can find over at Dungeon Master’s Guild. We’ve got dozens of pay what you want products at DMG, many of them best sellers so if you want to check those out start with the Haunted Rogue here.

All about the character story

Each CBG starts with a character concept sticking to a particular schtick, from the Mind Breaker’s psyche crushing smites to the Haunted Rogue’s shadowy origins. Sometimes puns and pop culture references instigate the creation of a CBG too. We had a lot of wiggle room with this request and backgrounds are an awesome way to put a unique spin on your 5E D&D character so we went with Haunted One. An undead shadow drained this character’s Strength away but they somehow returned to life. Their own shadow, however, was gone. But it’s out there somewhere…

For us it’s important to consider who these characters are as individuals and why they follow these particular paths. One special thing to note with this CBG is while we always aim to make the journey to 20th level as practical as possible — none of these characters “come online” after an awkward slog through many levels — the Haunted Rogue emerges from the shadows as a competent character with the perfect tools of their trade by 7th level. Slap a Living Shadow Dark Gift on this character for even more amazing on brand shadowy goodness!

Because the Haunted Rogue is one of our earliest CBGs there’s a few noteworthy aspects. First off it was designed to be appropriate for Adventurers League play following the guidelines at the time, which have since changed. Another unusual thing about this one is the DM version deviated significantly from the player version for the first time. Drawing on the narrative elements we came up with to guide the development of the player guide we chose to make the NPC an undead creature rather than a humanoid. Like the player version the creature’s goal is to find the shadow that rose after its death and obliterate it. For a player this makes a terrific self-motivated adventure goal and for the creature a wonderful plot hook to introduce a perilous enemy.

Shadow Revenant NPC for 5E D&D

Full disclosure — the NPCs and creatures we make in CBGs are some of my favorite bits of 5E D&D content to create. We step back and look at the character build to find the standout features that feel like signature abilities. The juice! From there we consider what sort of person or people would possess or gain these abilities and build a stat block around them. More often than not the section of a CBG For Dungeon Masters presents a generic creature.

A very specific kind of undead, the shadow revenant enters the world after a non-evil humanoid is killed from the Strength-draining attacks of a shadow. During the small window of time (1d4 hours) before a new shadow rises, if the corpse is reanimated, the powerful corruption of shadow lingers and a shadow revenant is created. The new creature has no shadow, which still becomes an undead shadow itself. This evil creature is filled with hatred for all shadows, driven mad by the suffusion of shadow energy in its own undead form. This hatred is even more intense for its own former shadow. With the same Strength-draining power as the shadow that killed it, the shadow revenant can eradicate the shadow of a foe that falls to its attacks, and any who witness such as horrific tableau can be driven insane by the sight.

“Obliterate Shadow. The shadow revenant turns their hatred of shadows on the corpse of one enemy within 5 feet that dies from having their Strength reduced to 0 by the Shadow Blade. Using their reaction, each creature of the shadow revenant’s choice that is within 60 feet of it and able to see it must succeed on a DC 16 Wisdom saving throw or be frightened of it for 1 minute. While frightened in this way, a creature is incapacitated, can’t understand what others say, can’t read, and speaks only in gibberish; the DM controls the creature’s movement, which is erratic. A creature can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on itself on a success. If a creature’s saving throw is successful or the effect ends for it, the creature is immune to the shadow revenant’s Obliterate Shadow for the next 24 hours.”

If your next 5E D&D game needs a character who for whom darkness is an old friend — whether you’re the DM or a player — check out the Haunted Rogue Character Build Guide here.

*Featured image — Sinister forces lurk in the shadows, enticing the unwary with Dark Gifts. With Van Richten’s Guide to Ravenloft part of the 5E D&D library now the Haunted Rogue can easily find a shadowy home in the Domains of Dread. Aside from the Living Shadow Dark Gift there’s a lot to love when it comes to dark fantasy and other horror filled 5E D&D games within its pages. [Image courtesy Wizards of the Coast]

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