The Flurry Rogue is an easy-to-play melee variant that's great for leveling in Diablo 4. You have good mobility and high AoE damage to blast through large monster packs while decimating larger foes with an onslaught of stabbing daggers and Poison effects.
Flurry is a Core Skill that hits enemies up to four times per use in front of you. With the Encircling Blades Aspect we convert it into a 360° AoE to jump into the fray and destroy everything around us, enabled by Shadow Step that brings us right into the middle of a monster pack.
Because we run with Combo Points, we play a simple 3:1 rotation between Puncture and Flurry, triggering various debuffs and keeping our Energy high at all times.
All in all, this is a well-rounded, beginner-friendly build if you're looking for a melee playstyle. Once you have the main setup together, you'll be cruising into the endgame.
This guide teaches you all about how to reach the endgame in Diablo 4 with the Flurry Rogue. Let's get started!
This build guide takes you through the Campaign and Early Game up to Level 50. If you're looking for Endgame guides, check out our Rogue Guides section!
- Very Mobile
- Beginner-Friendly
- Formidable All-Rounder
- An Onslaught of Daggers
- Small AoE
- Always in Melee
- Positioning is Key
- Mediocre Single Target
Season 3 - Season of the Construct
In Season 3, you obtain the Seneschal Construct through the Season Questline, then collect Governing Stones or Tuning Stones to add attacks and augment them to support your build. Only certain Tuning Stones work with a particular Governing Stone. Look at the bottom of any Tuning Stone tooltip to see if it is compatible with your Construct's currently equipped Stones. Lastly, they can be leveled up by getting duplicates to max out their power. Check out our full Season 3 guide for more information.
Recommended Stones
- Tempest - This ability hits at a fast rate and can apply buffs at range reliably.
- Slowing Support - Helps us to trigger damage to crowd controlled enemies and the Wiles Paragon node.
- Efficiency Support - Critical Strike Chance is paramount.
- Safeguard Support - Provides free extra damage reduction.
- Flash of Adrenaline - A free damage buff to boost our character further.
- Duration Support - To improve the uptime of the buff.
- Tactical Support - To improve the uptime of the buff.
- Fortify Support - Rogues have no other access to Fortify so this adds free damage reduction.
Alternative Stones
Many other options are possible to support this build, including different Governing Stones to apply the effects. Feel free to experiment!
Governing Stones
- Autodefense - Great to increase survivability.
- Reconstruct - To recover health more reliably.
Tuning Stones
- Poison Support - Can be combined with Debilitating Toxins for additional defense.
- Frigid Support - Can be combined with Frigid Finesse for additional damage and stagger.
- Breaking Support - Helps to keep up Vulnerable and remove Barrier from enemies in Nightmare Dungeons or monsters like Knights and the Butcher.
- Resource Support - Helps to keep the setup smooth to play.
If you are lucky enough to get either Evernight or Genesis from Uber Malphas, you want to swap them in on your Construct for their powerful effects.
Eternal Realm
The build doesn't change in a significant way between Seasonal and Eternal game modes. You may be a bit weaker, slower, squishier or your Construct may not deal some additional damage, but the build is designed to work without it.
Skills Showcase
Flurry
Flurry is our main ability. It's a simple skill that hits 4 times per use in a cone in front of you. With Encircling Blades which can be unlocked from the Codex of Power very early, it becomes a 360° AoE attack that really makes the build shine. In addition, the skill spreads the powerful Vulnerable debuff to all enemies hit.
Skill Tree & Gameplay
Getting Started
To start off we have to put 2 points into Basic Skills to unlock the other sections. Puncture is our choice because it applies slow and Vulnerable through the Fundamental Puncture upgrade and helps us out with extra damage when out of Energy. All of these effects make it a perfect fit for our build.
Unlocking Flurry
Flurry is our main skill. It hits four times in a cone in front of you or in a full 360° radius with Encircling Blades. Make sure to unlock this Aspect as early as possible! It's simple to use and with the Improved Flurry upgrade you can spread and perpetuate the Vulnerable debuff applied by Puncture, which is a great way of boosting your elite and boss damage. Always position yourself so that you hit the most targets possible with each attack.
Adding Utility & Speed
At this point you unlock Agility Skills. Here we pick up Shadow Step, a powerful mobility tool that provides extra speed and Unstoppable to break free from crowd controls. It also allows teleportation across cliffs which is very helpful in outdoor zones.
Flurry Rogue Leveling Skills
Once we unlock Subterfuge Skills, we pick up Poison Trap. It deals free extra Poison damage against elites and knocks them down for more safety. Later we unlock more synergies for this skill.
At level 15, we unlock the Rogue's Specialization class mechanic. Finish this Priority Quest as soon as possible to get Combo Points. This is our primary choice for the build because the Combo Point effects of Flurry (displayed on its tooltip) are incredibly powerful. If you finish a 3:1 rotation between Puncture and Flurry every single time, you deal significantly more damage, gain 45% extra attack speed and never run out of Energy.
Tip: While you're there, finish the Dungeon and don't just leave after the quest. It's the one that unlocks your main legendary Aspect Encircling Blades for the Codex of Power so you can craft it on one of your items right after!
Imbuements
Imbuement Skills Poison Imbuement boost Core Skills (Flurry) by converting its damage to a different element and adding additional effects. They last for two uses and cannot be activate at the same time.
- Poison Imbuement deals Poison damage and adds an extra DoT effect, allowing you to deal a massive amount of burst damage at the start of a boss fight or against tough elites. Regular monsters shouldn't be a problem, so reserve its use for when you actually need it.
- Shadow Imbuement deals Shadow damage and adds an extra AoE explosion when the target dies. Use this to boost your damage against large monster packs.
While we're at it, we also pick up several powerful damage and offensive passives that synergize with our playstyle. Lastly, Countering Poison Trap allows us to reset our Imbuements sometimes, so keep an eye on your skill bar when you use it.
The Final Passive & Journey to Level 50
Close Quarters Combat is our Key Passive of choice for the build. It can easily be activated by combining Puncture + Flurry, providing a substantial damage and Attack Speed bonus. In addition, it allows us to focus on Damage to Crowd Controlled Enemies stat as an extra damage multiplier.
At this point, the core setup is complete. All of our remaining points go into boosting our damage, defenses, speed or already allocated skills. This makes transitioning into the endgame very smooth with this build.
Spending Renown
After gathering all Renown in Diablo 4 you have 10 extra Skill Points to spend on every character. Your first priority is to spend them toward the leveling progression we've shown above. Once you've reached the end, put them into these nodes to build toward the Flurry Rogue Endgame Build Guide.
Check out our Renown Guide to unlock all your additional rewards efficiently.
Rogue Specializations
Combo Points - Use Basic Skills to boost your subsequent Core Skills.
Whenever you fight bigger enemies, use this effect to boost your Energy efficiency so you don't run out of resources. Against weaker foes, this may not be necessary. Combo Points are displayed above your XP bar near the bottom of the screen.
Unlocking Specializations
Once you reach level 15, you have to complete a short questline starting in Menestad, Fractured Peaks. A Priority Quest leads you there to help out Leyrana. After a few stops outside of town you have to enter the Forsaken Quarry Dungeon and finish the questline there, unlocking Combo Points. After that, the other two Specializations unlock automatically once you reach their minimum level (Inner Sight at 20, Preparation at 30) and can be freely assigned at any time.
Learn more details in our full Rogue Specialization Guide.
Gear Progression & Stat Priorities
As a Flurry Rogue, always use your highest DPS Melee Weapon available for more damage. Your Ranged Weapon is simply a stat stick to fuel their power, so its DPS is secondary. The stats to look for on these are:
- 1-H Weapons: Pref. Daggers, High DPS, Core Skill Damage, Damage to Close Enemies, Damage to Crowd Controlled Enemies
- Ranged Weapons: Pref. Crossbow, Core Skill Damage, Damage to Close Enemies, Damage to Crowd Controlled Enemies
Armor
Armor pieces typically grant us Defense and Utility stats, except the Gloves which offer a tidal wave of Offense. Here are the important stats to look for:
- Helm: Imbuement Ranks, Cooldown, Life, Resistances
- Armor: Damage Reduction, Armor, Life, Resistances
- Gloves: Twisting Blades Ranks, Attack Speed
- Pants: Damage Reduction, Armor, Life, Resistances
- Boots: Movement Speed, Resistances
Jewelry
Jewelry provides powerful Offensive stats that help us on our leveling journey. Pay close attention to the rolls as higher leveled pieces aren't always better:
- Amulet: Movement Speed, Energy Cost Reduction, Damage, Cooldown Reduction
- Rings: Critical Strike Chance, Damage to Crowd Controlled, Damace to Close, Life
If you have sockets on your items, fill them with the following:
- Weapons: Skull
- Armor: Ruby
- Jewelry: Any Gem to boost your lowest Resistance
Read more about itemization in our Damage Explained, Defense Explained, and Stats Explained articles.
Legendary Aspects
The Codex of Power is a collection of Legendary Aspects you can imprint onto Rare or Legendary items at the Occultist. They unlock after completing specific Dungeons located around Sanctuary. For leveling there are a few powers that can significantly help us if we have the funds to imprint them:
Top Codex Legendary Aspects
| Aspect | Dungeon |
| 1. Aspect of Encircling Blades | Forsaken Quarry - Fractured Peaks |
| 2. Aspect of the Expectant | Underroot - Scosglen |
| 3. Edgemaster’s Aspect | Oldstones - Scosglen |
Learn more details in our article covering the Codex of Power.
Helpful Legendary Powers
Here are more helpful Legendary Aspects for the Twisting Blades Rogue that can either be found in the Codex of Power or Extracted from an item drop. Note that all Legendary Aspects can be found from item drops, and that these can roll better and often significantly better than ones sourced from the Codex of Power.
- Accelerating
- Gamble 1h Weapons.
- Provides extra Attack Speed after critting, making the build a lot more powerful.
- Drop only.
- Rapid
- Gamble 1h Weapons.
- Adds even more Attack Speed for our Basic Skills.
- Codex unlock: Buried Halls - Dry Steppes
- Disobedience
- Gamble Pants.
- Provides a ton of extra defense and stacks up easily because we hit many targets with our attacks.
- Codex unlock: Halls of the Damned - Kehjistan
- Ghostwalker
- Gamble Boots
- Provides extra speed and the ability to move through enemies, which is great for better targeting.
- Codex unlock: Broken Bulwark - Scosglen
- Might
- Gamble Pants
- Since we use Basic Skills frequently, this damage reduction effect is easy to trigger.
- Codex unlock: Dark Ravine - Dry Steppes
How To Level
You level in Diablo 4 by completing the Campaign, collecting Grim Favors for the Tree of Whispers, grinding Dungeons, or interacting with Seasonal mechanics. While there are many ways to level up in Diablo 4, not all of them are made equal.
Campaign Leveling
- For your first character in Diablo 4, completing the Campaign provides the best gameplay experience and gives you access to key unlocks like your Mount.
- If you don't have your Mount, you MUST progress the Campaign until you complete the quest Donan's Favor at the start of Act 4.
- After obtaining your Mount you can skip the remainder of the campaign at any time.
- The Campaign is the slowest way to level, but it's worth experiencing the Campaign and Diablo 4's storyline at least once.
- To play Seasonal Content you need to have completed or skipped the Campaign.
Seasonal/Alt Leveling
- Complete the Season questline, progress your Seasonal Journey to unlock Legendary Aspects, and work on your Seasonal powers.
- If your account is below Rank 5 Renown in each zone, focus on completing your Renown.
- This only needs to be done once.
- Complete the Dungeons needed for any Legendary Aspects from your Codex of Power.
- From level 1-50 you should focus on getting experience, by completing dungeons with high monster density like the Domhainne Tunnels, or Sirocco Caverns.
- If you get bored of the dungeon grind, you can farm Grim Favors for the Tree of Whispers or complete Gathering Legion Events.
- After level 50 you need to balance leveling up, Glyph Experience, and participating in endgame activities like Helltide, and Bosses.
- The fastest experience possible is completing Nightmare dungeons with monsters up to 10 levels above your current level.
- Check out our Nightmare Dungeon Tier List for the best layouts!
- Around level 45-50 you should move to World Tier 3.
- Around level 60-70 you should move to World Tier 4.
- The fastest experience possible is completing Nightmare dungeons with monsters up to 10 levels above your current level.
- Alternatively: Get boosted by a friend to World Tier 4 then leech experience/loot and Glyph exp (post 50), in Nightmare dungeons.
Leveling Tips and Tricks
Let's look at some tips and tricks to remember when leveling up!
- Level Up Your Potion. You need to farm materials to upgrade your character's potion.
- Make sure you collect all materials as you explore Sanctuary, especially Gallowvine which is used in many Elixir recipes!
- Compare your Items... Literally. Press Shift over an item in your inventory to compare it to what you're wearing.
- This makes it easy to determine what is and isn't an upgrade.
- Don't Imprint Your Best Aspect Onto Your Weapon. The most critical piece of gear while leveling up is your weapon, which gets replaced constantly.
- This makes imprinting a Legendary Aspect that CANNOT be found in the Codex of Power onto your weapon a bad idea in the long run.
- While leveling, only imprint Legendary Aspects from the Codex of Power onto your weapon if any at all.
- It is a better idea to put your best Offensive Aspect on your Amulet, which can be used for a long time.
- Sacred is just better. Between level 45 and 50 you're able to beat the Capstone Dungeon and enter World Tier 3, you gain access to powerful Sacred items which have higher item power and better stats. Getting a Sacred weapon significantly improves your farming speed.
- There's little point to entering World Tier 3 before 45 because that's the minimum level where you can equip Sacred items.
- The same happens with World Tier 4 and Ancestral gear at level 60.
Next Steps
Rogue Guides
Summary
- The Flurry Rogue is an easy to setup and play farming build with high mobility and AoE damage.
- Build 3 Combo Points with Puncture, then unleash your spender and repeat for maximum output.
- Shadow Step in to get into the fray and follow up with a Poison Trap to crowd control all surrounding enemies and trigger your bonuses from passives.
- Activate Poison Imbuement to melt elites and bosses.
- Focus on improving your Melee Weapons more than any other items.
- Look out for helpful Legendary Powers in the Codex of Power, especially Encircling Blades and those that provide extra damage and defense.
- Read the Next Steps above to continue your journey.
Credits
Written by wudijo
Reviewed by DiEoxidE