Best Diablo 4 Penetrating Shot Rogue build in Season 5

Diablo 4's penetrating shot rogue build characterBlizzard Entertainment / Dexerto

The Penetrating Shot Rogue is one of the most thrilling classes to master in Season 5. If you’re gearing up to pierce your enemies right where it hurts you’ll want to know about the best builds for leveling and endgame play.

Season of the Infernal Hordes has given a nice boost to the stealthy and agile Rogue class in Diablo 4. If you’re after a playstyle that turns enemies into pin cushions with a few precise shots, this build is right up your alley.

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Whether you’re just starting out or deep into endgame content, the Penetrating Shot build adapts beautifully. With the right skills, gear, and Paragon Glyphs, your Rogue will dominate Season 5 like never before.

Diablo 4 character unlocking infernal HordesDiablo 4
With the Penetrating Shot Rogue build, you’ll leave nothing but a trail of blood behind you.

Best Penetrating Shot Rogue leveling build in Diablo 4 Season 5

As you level while playing through either the campaign or the new Season 5 content, you’ll want to make sure that you’re selecting your skills in the following order:

LevelSkill
1Puncture
2Enhanced Puncture
3Fundamental Puncture
4Penetrating Shot
5Enhanced Penetrating Shot
6Advanced Penetrating Shot
7Shadow Step
8Dash
9Enhanced Shadow Step
10Disciplined Shadow Step
11Dark Shroud
12Enhanced Dark Shroud
13Subverting Dark Shroud
14Enhanced Dash
15Penetrating Shot
16Penetrating Shot
17Shadow Imbuement
18Enhanced Shadow Imbuement
19Blended Shadow Imbuement
20Shadow Crash
21Consuming Shadows
22Penetrating Shot
23Penetrating Shot
24Methodical Dash
25Innervation
26Innervation
27Innervation
28Unstable Elixirs
29Trick Attacks
30Adrenaline Rush
31Haste
32Haste
33Haste
34Precision
35Weapon Mastery
36Weapon Mastery
37Weapon Mastery
38Unstable Elixirs
39Unstable Elixirs
40Unstable Elixirs
41Trick Attacks
42Trick Attacks
43Trick Attacks
44Exploit
45Exploit
46Exploit
47Malice
48Malice
49Malice
Renown 1Sturdy
Renown 2Sturdy
Renown 3Sturdy
Renown 4Agile
Renown 5Agile
Renown 6Agile
Renown 7Dark Shroud
Renown 8Dark Shroud
Renown 9Dark Shroud

The Penetrating Shot Rogue leveling build slices through enemies like butter. Penetrating Shot pierces through everything in its path, dishing out hefty damage to anything unlucky enough to stand in the way.

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To unlock your 9 Renown Skilll Points, make sure to explore the entirety of the map and complete exploration side activities in each region.

Don’t forget to claim your rewards from the Season 5 Battle Pass and spend your Smouldering Ashes in the EXP boost to reach level 50 in a matter of hours.

Penetrating Shot Rogue is decent at leveling. It’s a solid choice if you prefer picking off enemies from a distance. But if you’re serious about speed-leveling, you might want to check out our best Rogue builds guide.

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If you still haven’t made up your mind on the Rogue class, check out this guide to find out which is the right class for you in Diablo 4 Season 5.

Best Specialization setup for leveling

As a Rogue, You get to pick one out of three Specializations at level 15. The best pick for a Penetration Rogue is Combo Points.

This lets you supercharge your Core Skills after using your Basic Skills. This means more damage and better effects with every shot.

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Best leveling rotation

  • Heartseeker
  • Death Trap
  • Poison Trap
  • Shadow Step
  • Penetrating Shot

This rotation start by spamming Heartseeker to stack up Combo Points, then drop Death Trap to gather up your enemies.

Once they’re all bundled together, toss in Poison Trap for some extra bite, then use Shadow Step or Dash to line up your shot perfectly. Now that your Combo Points are maxed out, unleash Penetrating Shot.

Best leveling Legendary Aspects

Here are the best Legendary Aspects for your Penetrating Shot Rogue build in Diablo 4:

AspectPowerDungeonLocation
Aspect of the ExpectantAfter attacking enemies with a Basic Skill, increase the damage of your next Core Skill cast.UnderrootScosglen
‍Rapid Basic Skills gain Attack Speed.Buried HallsDry Steppes
‍Trickshot Whenever Penetrating Shot dmages an enemy, 2 additional arrows split off to either side. These side arrows deal a percentage of Penetrating Shot’s base damage and do not split.Bastion of FaithHawezar

Best Penetrating Shot Rogue endgame build in Diablo 4 Season 5

Diablo 4 character in the Infernal Hordes dungeonDiablo 4
Get ready to crush to Diablo 4’s endgame with the Penetrating Shot Rogue.

Active Skills

Active SkillUpgradesPoints allocated
HeartseekerEnhanced, Fundamental1
Penetrating ShotEnhanced, Advanced5
Shadow StepEnhanced, Disciplined1
DashEnhanced, Methodical1
Poison TrapEnhanced1
Death TrapEnhanced, Supreme1
Dark ShroudEnhanced, Countering5

Passive Skills

Passive SkillPoints
Sturdy3
Weapon Mastery3
Unstable Elixirs3
Trick Attacks3
Rapid Gambits1
Agile3
Exploit3
Malice3
Frigid Finesse3
Innervation1
Second Wind3
Precision1

If you’re after a ranged Rogue build that lets you nuke everything on screen, you’ve found it. The Penetrating Shot Rogue is straightforward, powerful, and scales beautifully into the endgame.

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Penetrating Shot itself is a simple, piercing arrow, but when you pair it with the Umbracrux dagger and Trickshot Aspect, it turns into a screen-clearing nuke. Like most Rogue skills, positioning is key since the more enemies you hit in a line, the more damage you deal.

This build thrives on stacking Critical Strike Damage with the right gear and passives, making sure no monster stands a chance. Overall, it’s a highly satisfying build that rewards some strategic planning.

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Don’t forget to claim your rewards from the Season 5 Battle Pass and spend your Smouldering Ashes in the EXP boost to reach level 50 in a matter of hours.

Best Specialization setup for the endgame

Our top pick for this build is Combo Points. Use your Basic Skills to stack up Combo Points, and then unleash your Core Skill for some seriously boosted damage. Combo Points make Penetrating Shot hit harder and give it a nice Lucky Hit Chance boost.

Best endgame rotation

  • Heartseeker
  • Death Trap
  • Poison Trap
  • Shadow Step/Dash
  • Penetrating Shot

Start your rotation with Heartseeker to stack up Combo Points. Next, toss out Death Trap to gather enemies for maximum damage. Deploy Poison Trap to add some extra damage and trigger those fancy totems from The Umbracrux.

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Next, use Shadow Step or Dash to get into the perfect position and activate Tricks of the Trade for a damage boost. Then, fire Penetrating Shot to cut through the clustered enemies and make your damage shine.

Best endgame Legendary Aspects

Here are the best Legendary Aspects for your Penetrating Shot Rogue build in the endgame of Diablo 4:

AspectPowerDungeonArea
TrickshotWhenever Penetrating Shot dmages an enemy, 2 additional arrows split off to either side. These side arrows deal a percentage of Penetrating Shot’s base damage and do not split.Bastion of FaithHawezar
RapidBasic Skills gain Attack Speed.Buried HallsDry Steppes
Edgemaster’sSkills deal increased damage based on your Primary Resource when cast.OldstonesScosglen
MightBasic Skills grant Damage Reduction.Dark RavineDry Steppes
ExpectantAfter attacking enemies with a Basic Skill, increase the damage of your next Core Skill.UnderrootScosglen
EnergizingDamaging an Elite enemy with a Basic Skill generates 4 Energy.Sanguine ChapelFractured Peaks
ProtectorDamaging an Elite enemy grants you a Barrier absorbing damage.Lost ArchivesFractured Peaks
Wind StrikerCritical Strikes grant extra movement speed.Shivta RuinsKhejistan
Unstable ImbuementsWhen casting an Imbuement Skill, you trigger an explosion around yourself.Whispering VaultDry Steppes
EnshroudingUsing a Healing Potion makes a free Dark Shroud shadow.Ghoa RuinsHawezar
UmbrousCritical Strikes grant a free Dark Shroud shadow.Gamble Murmuring Obols
Crowded SageIncrease your Dodge chance. Also, Dodge restores your Maximum Life.Gamble Murmuring Obols
Concussive StrikesDamaging an enemy can Daze them.Gamble Murmuring Obols
AcceleratingCritical Strikes with Core Skills increase your Attack Speed.Gamble Murmuring Obols
ElementsGain increased damage to a set of damage types. Alternates between Fire, Lightning and Physical and Cold, Poison and Shadow. Gamble Murmuring Obols

Remember, you can also strip these Aspects from their original item and apply them to an item of your choosing.

Paragon Board

Diablo 4 Paragon BoardBlizzard
200 Paragon points to spend.

Once you hit endgame in Season 5 – by finishing the story, reaching level 50, and unlocking the Paragon Board – you can respec to the endgame Penetrating Shot Rogue build. It’s basically the same as the leveling build, but with some crucial tweaks in point allocation that we’ll cover next.

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Best Glyphs

Glyphs start with a 3-radius, but hit level 15 and they’ll stretch to 4. Keep grinding through Nightmare Dungeons to score Glyph experience and make your Glyphs worth their weight in loot.

Level 15

  • Combat
  • Control
  • Fluidity
  • Pride
  • Ambush

Level 21

  • Combat
  • Control
  • Fluidity
  • Pride
  • Ambush

Best endgame item build

Item SocketItem typePower
Runic Skullcap of MightRubyHelmBasic Skill grants Damage Reduction
Runic Mail of the Crowded Sage2 RubiesChestIncreases your chances of Dodging. Also, dodging restores your Maximum Life.
Trickshot Runic GlovesGloveWhenever Penetrating Shot damages an enemy, you get 2 additional arrows split.
Umbrous Runic Leggings2 RubiesPantsCritical Strikes have a chance to grant a free Dark Shroud shadow.
Runic Cleats of Concussive StrikesBootsBootsDamaging an enemy has a chance to Daze them.
Edgemaster’s Warcaster2 EmeraldsRanged WeaponSkills deal increased damage based on your available Primary Resource when cast.
Obsidian Blade of the ExpectantEmeraldMelee Weapon 1After attacking enemies with a Basic Skill, increase the damage of your next Core Skill.
Obsidian Blade of ElementsEmeraldMelee Weapon 2Gain increased damage to a set of damage types.
Rapid NecklaceRubyAmuletBasic Skills gain more Attack Speed.
Accelerating BandEmeraldRingCritical Strikes with Core Skills increase your Attack Speed.
Ring of RetributionSapphireRingDistant enemies have a chance to be Stunned when they hit you.

Make sure to farm Mother’s Gifts and clear Infernal Hordes frequently to get some of the best loot this season.

Best Penetrating Shot Rogue build in Diablo 4 Season 5

If you’ve got this Penetrating Shot Rogue build that’s a beast in endgame content, it’s also a nightmare for anyone in PvP.

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It’s built to slice through enemies like they’re made of wet tissue paper, and in PvP, that means you’ll be the one doing the slicing. With its high burst damage and precision, it’s perfect for turning enemy players into pincushions from a distance.

Now that you know how to craft this top-tier Rogue build, make sure to check out our guides for the Druid, Sorcerer, Necromancer, and Barbarian.