Rogue: Sentinel vs Stealth behind allies

[AmbientRaven]

Hi Folks,

I'm designing a rogue for when my character dies in a campaign and I am undecided about what is most effective.
Lightfoot halfling using allies to hide as a bonus action then attacking from stealth, or, Taking sentinel, standing next to an alli and getting another set of sneak attacks per round.

I know a lightfoot can also take sentinel at 4th level, but we will be 3rd level, and, the campaign will only go to 10th (so I guess it could be +2dex at level 4 vs sentinel as another question)

What would you opt for race wise, and why

Thanks for any input

[Townopolis]

How good the halfling option is going to depend on how good your DM thinks the halfling option is. That may sound stupid and tautological, but you should seriously double-check with your DM whether or not they're going to allow you to hide behind allies in combat. If there's one thing I've learned on this forums, it's that some people are super-duper sure it works that way and others are super-duper sure it doesn't and that the halfling trait essentially works once per combat if you're behind someone when initiative is rolled and, I dunno, already spent your action to hide before combat began.

Anyways, for the sentinel option. How are you going to turn this into "I get another sneak attack each round" and not "I'm the tank?" Edit: because every single DM I know will have any and every enemy adjacent to you attack you if you're a rogue with sentinel. If you were a fighter, paladin, or barbarian, the DMs I know would be split 50/50 between focus firing you and treating you like a troublesome spot of terrain, but since you're a rogue... you're just gonna get attacked a lot.

[Easy_Lee]

Sentinel on a rogue is, in theory, a great source of bonus damage. But it does make you the most obvious target. There are ways to fix this; I just posted a build with a hunter-ranger dip for rogue, used to pick up Giant Killer. For large targets, that leads to you getting a reaction if they attack you, and you getting a reaction if they don't attack you. A simpler mix would be fighter: battle master for the riposte maneuver (among others), to create a similar situation but a limited number of times per rest and for all targets.

Otherwise, be careful choosing the feat because it makes you the preferred target to attack. If you spend your action to dodge, discouraging monsters from attacking you, then you aren't using your action to inflict sneak attack damage.

[Malifice]

I'd never considered Sentinel on a Rogue before.

Coupling that with Uncanny dodge seems pretty strong.

They attack you and hit - its half damage. They attack your friends and its a sneak attack.

[RulesJD]

I'd never considered Sentinel on a Rogue before.

Coupling that with Uncanny dodge seems pretty strong.

They attack you and hit - its half damage. They attack your friends and its a sneak attack.

Can only do one on a turn. If you trigger Sneak from Sent, then no Uncanny Dodge versus the other enemies that will beat on you that turn.

Agree with above posters. Sent would provide a huge boost in damage, but you better be prepared to suddenly become the primary tank.

[AmbientRaven]

The DM plays to the creatures intelligence level.

Also, he allows sentinel with pole arms, so, a Whip should allow 10ft sentinel at 1D4+Dex

Whip + Hand Crossbow (as a backup) sounds like a fun way to play.
Maybe I should take a small dip as a class that allows martial weapons

[PhantomRenegade]

Consider also the setting and types of enemies you'll be fighting, if you fight many humanoid enemies those might also use weapons with reach and you'll probably not get sneak attacks from sentinel against those.

[Person_Man]

Rogue Guide (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?395706-Person_Man%92s-5E-Rogue-Guide)

Does your DM pay attention to the illumination rules? If so, then I strongly suggest a race with Darkvision, and my personal preference is Wood Elf. If not, then pretty much any race is viable, and Halfling, variant Human, and Elf are generally considered the best options.

How does your DM handle Stealth, in particular, does he allow "peek-a-boo" tactics, where you Hide behind allies using Cunning Action in combat? (Some say yes, that's RAW. Others say no, an enemy will remember you position if you walk behind an ally or whatever, and they must truly lose track of you somehow). If so, then Halfling definitely becomes a lot more powerful.

Sentinel is one of the best ways to get extra attacks as a Reaction. But Sentinel doesn't work particularly well with Halfling. The benefit of being a halfling is Hiding a lot (assuming your DM uses peek-a-boo). Sentinel basically requires you to stand on the front line, not moving around and hiding.

If you are going to use Sentinel, and you've rolled at least two very high ability scores, then you might want to consider getting your Dex and Con to 20 ASAP, and then take 1 level of Barbarian. That would push your AC from 17 up to 22 (via Unarmored Defense + Shield Proficiency), plus the occasional Rage for the Resistances when you need it. (Though I wouldn't consider it for a point buy for a low-mid level game).

[Giant2005]

Convince one of your allies to take the Protection Fighting Style and stand next to him with Sentinel. Then the opponent has to make the uncomfortable choice of attacking you at disadvantage and for half damage, or attacking your ally and taking a hit.