[skarlorn]

Part 4
Herein lies the guide to leveling a Dwarf Rogue on the p1999 blue server.

You are now a killing machine. Your stocky dwarven limbs thrust with effervescent vigor. Gnomish dildo locomotives are put to shame, and an entire batch shipment is canceled. You are now famous in Ak’anon as well as any cultured city who prefers the gnomish sex toys to non-gnomish sex toys (also referred to as “crumdurggos”. Unfortunately for the pleasure of many, you are one thing and one thing only: a dwarf rogue.

At this point, you are level 13. You have trained Backstab, Dual Wield, and all other ROG skills. Using the profits from stolen HQ ore, buy yourself Lockpicks. Purchase a potion of Stalwart Regeneration or two. As a dwarf rogue, you are ridiculously weak. You are the star of the cast, but in a solo performance the critics walk away. As a proud dwarf, this is a source of everlasting shame. Dot succumb to this shame. Bad mouth all NPCs. Conceal your self-loathing. Bury it deep within the shelves of your chest just as Brell Serrilis buried your fiancé beneath the bedrock of Norrath. The potions of Stalwart Regeneration should be used only when around other non-healing, non-regenerating gimps. Drink this in private and then convince them that you regenerate faster naturally. Illusion is a key component of the rogue’s repertoire.

Before training the Art of Combat, it is recommended that you create a set of banded armor for yourself. To do this, you must train Blacksmithing. You need roughly 160p to forge your first set of banded armor from 0 Blacksmithing skill. If you have this much coin (which you should if you’re following this guide), take the time to level up to 115 Blacksmithing and then forge a Small Banded set. This skill will later increase your fame and fortune.

You must go now and train your body in the Art of Combat. While your fingers are deft, your skills are clumsy and untrained. Buy many bandages and lots of Muffins. You must now travel to a distant island.

Hustle your way across the vast hold of Karana. If you see a Hill Giant, you are morally obligated to pickpocket it. At this time, you are not skillful enough to lift platinum. However, the endeavor of Pick Pocketing a Hill Giant is extremely foolish and risky. You must face the fear of death and failure and confront it with action. In this practice you may enter the Void State.

Once you have made your way to the city of Qeynos, it is time to resupply. Buy 60 Brandy and 40 Muffins. Buy 80 bandages. Acquire a longbow and arrows. It is up to you if you want to take up fletching. You will be on an island alone, so it is often good to have something to do with your hands. The island has been known to drive folks mad. However, some of the island madmen wear magical earrings. You are too weak for this foe. At a later point, you may come and hunt these madmen.

Travel to Erud’s Crossing and go to the island there. This is where you will hone your skills and further increase your fortune. Find the willowisps and engage them in combat near the water’s edge. If you are wearing banded armor, you will find these opponents easy to rob of their most precious treasure: life.

By combating wisps you will gain two things. First you will level your weapon skills. Second, you will gain Greater Lighstones which is a precious treasure to the level 13 Dwarf Rogue.

When fighting wisps, you much watch them closely. A dwarf rogue should always seek to engage his foe with an initial backstab (unless you are sneak pulling away – something I have not yet covered). However, willowisps do not have backs. Or do they?

Watch as they travel. Sneak beside them. Stab them from behind.

Ghost Step:

To truly become a Dwarf Rogue you must master the Ghost Step. The Ghost Step is a hidden technique available to all rogues. Correct use of the Ghost Step allows the Dwarf Rogue to backstab his opponent even when the Dwarf Rogue is the lone combatant or face-tanking. The process is simple, but difficult to master.

1. On your exhale, step forward and pass through the material body of your enemy. By exhaling your breath you are emptying your body of life force or “prana.” In this Void state you may pass unhindered through the flesh and bone of your enemy.

2. Wait for your enemy to turn to strike you in the back.

3. Backpedal so that your form passes once more through the body of your enemy. At this moment, you must lash out with all your strength and plunge your knife into the NPC’s back before the server’s lag time catches up with your Void State Pranayama Ghost Step.

As the Dwarf Rogue reaches greater levels of mastery, he will find himself timing the ghost step in between rounds of attack. This synchronization allows for full up-front damage dealt to enemy and avoids taking attacks to the back which are heavily penalized, resulting in more damage received.

At first, you will find the wisps very difficult to perform the Ghost Step on. This is intentional. Though the wisps do not have a tangible form, they are still subject to the laws of Backstab. When attempting the Ghost Step on a wisp, you must forget what your eyes see. Reliance on eyesight is a mistake that young corpses make. By the time the eye of a Dwarf Rogue perceives something, it takes precious drops of time to register in the alcohol-sodden mind of the Dwarf Rogue and stimulate the CNS to properly respond. Therefore, you must learn to time your Ghost Step purely based on the flow of prana in and out of your body. You must close your eyes and become the master of the Void.