With five different classes to play in Last Epoch, there is a lot of build variety. If you prefer a faster, assassin-like playstyle, the Rogue is the class for you. Then, to make the most out of this playstyle, you could definitely pick the Shadow Daggers build for the Bladedancer Rogue.
Last Epoch Shadow Daggers Bladedancer build
For a Shadow Daggers build, you will have to apply the Shadow Daggers debuff to as many enemies as possible by spamming skills to debuff enemies. If you like watching daggers fly around and wipe out screens of enemies, this build is for you.
The idea for this build is inspired by notable content creator McFluffin and is our variation on the classic Shadow Daggers build. We recommend having a Bladedancer at least at level 50 or optimally, level 75, with enough points to reallocate as needed.
Passives
The key passives used for this build all revolve around a few stats: Dexterity, Attack speed, Dodge rating, Health, Damage, Damage Leech, and Critical Strike. You can experiment with other passives as you level up because Last Epoch is quite generous with skill respecs when you decide to change up your choices for a more optimal endgame build.
Rogue passives
| Rogue Passive | Stats gained |
| Swift Assassin | Attack speed, Physical damage |
| Steady Hand | Dexterity, Health |
| Guile | Dodge rating, Poison resistance |
| Twin Blade | Can dual wield melee weapons, increases damage taken |
| Evasion | Dodge rating, Damage resistance (while moving) |
| Dodge and Parry | Dodge rating, Chance of Glancing Blow when hit |
| Agility | Chance for Haste on hit, Increased damage with increased movement speed |
| Duelist | Damage, Dodge rating |
| Critical Precision | Critical strike chance |
| Thiefguard | Health, Health recovery on Glancing Blow |
Bladedancer passives
| Bladedancer Passive | Stats gained |
| Cloak of Shadows | Dodge, Chance of Glancing Blow when hit |
| Pursuit | Melee damage, Attack damage, Movespeed |
| Once | Physical damage, Dodge rating |
| Shroud of Dusk | Health, Chance of Dusk Shroud when hit |
| Veil of Night | Attack speed, Chance of Dusk Shroud when hit |
| Asuvon’s Pact | Dodge rating, Bonus damage at full health |
| Blood Dance | Damage leech, Increased leech rate |
| Flash of Steel | Damage, Attack speed |
| Weapons of Choice (optional) | Various abilities (depending on weapon choices) |
| Perfection | Gain Perfection stacks for increased damage |
| Argent Veil | Gain Silver Shroud when health drops to 70 percent |
| Confidence | Armor, Dodge rating (based on Perfection stacks) |
| Cloaked Reaper | Health gain on kill |
| Critical Eye | Critical strike chance, Critical Vulnerability |
| Hooked Blades | Armor shred |
| Exuberance | Damage (based on full health) |
| All In | Critical strike multiplier increase |
An alternate route is picking up the Apostacy passive. However, this route is riskier and we don’t recommend it unless you are an experienced player or you’re playing multiplayer.
Marksman/Falconer passives
| Passive | Stats gained |
| Focus Fire (Marksman) | Dexterity, Reduce boss Dodge rating on hit |
| Concentration (Marksman) | Damage |
| Meditation (Marksman) | Dodge rating, Concentration cooldown |
| Reflection (Marksman) | Dodge rating, Movement speed (Concentration) |
| Wilderness Scout (Falconer) | Health, Dodge rating |
| Raptor’s Wings (Falconer) | Chance for Haste on hit, Increased damage with Haste |
| Outlander’s Tenacity (Falconer) | Dodge rating, Increased Endurance threshold |
| Stamina of the Rover (Falconer) | Dodge rating, Mana regen |
If you feel like certain passives are granting you diminishing returns, it might help to respec them into more impactful passives as you continue your leveling journey.
Skill Build
The Shadow Daggers build revolves around applying the Shadow Daggers debuff with the other skills in your arsenal. As you level up, you can choose optimal skills to make your journey easier. Pick a point between level 50 and level 75 to respec into these five skills.
1) Shift (Rogue level three)
Shift is a great traversal skill that allows the Bladedancer to get out of sticky situations. The main specializations are Dancing Shadows, Consumed by Shadow, and Hidden Blades.
| Specialization | Effects |
| Unseen Strike | Casts Unseen Strike while using Shift |
| Velocity | Shift costs less mana and has a shorter cooldown |
| Consumed by Shadow | Unseen Strike instantly kills enemies below 12 percent health |
| Broad Sweep | Unseen Strike hits a wider area |
| Hidden Blades | Unseen Strike applies Shadow Daggers |
| Momentum | Gain increased Movement speed while using Shift |
| Lasting Presence | Casting Shift creates a Shadow |
| Dancing Shadows | Casts Shadow Cascade after using Shift |
| Swift Recovery | Using Shift restores mana. This effect triples when below half health |
| Shadow Slip | Gain invulnerability when using Shift |
2) Smoke Bomb (Five Rogue passive points)
Smoke Bomb is an amazing defensive skill that obscures all enemies in its radius and speeds up the Bladedancer. The main specializations here are Smoke Blades and Moonlight Bomb.
| Specialization | Effects |
| Thick Smoke | Slows enemies in the smoke cloud |
| Shrouded in Darkness | Gain Dusk Shroud in the smoke cloud |
| Generosity | Increases AOE |
| Lingering Fumes | Increases duration |
| Impending Gloom | Further increases AOE and spread speed |
| Smoke Blades | Gain Smoke Blades in the smoke cloud |
| Escape Tactics | Backflip away after casting Smoke Bomb |
| Enfeeblement | Applies Frailty to caught enemies |
| Moonlight Bomb | Gain Silver Shroud in the smoke cloud |
| Rapid Concealment | Gain Dusk Shroud more rapidly |
3) Umbral Strike (Rogue level 16)
Umbral Strike is a powerful damage skill that will be the primary way to proc Shadow Daggers. The main specializations are Sword Thrower and Cacophony of Steel.
| Specialization | Effects |
| Dawnfall | Chance to gain Dusk Shroud |
| Jagged Carvings | Increases throwing physical damage |
| Precision Cuts | Lands at the cast location with increased attack speed |
| Edge of Obscurity | Deals more damage per stack of Dusk Shroud. Bonuses doubled when standing in Smoke Bomb |
| Umbral Remnant | Shadows cast Umbral Blade before disappearing |
| Sword Thrower | Now throws one large Umbral Blade with bonus damage and radius |
| Lethal Darkness | Inflicts Shadow Daggers on hit |
| Cacophony of Steel | Creates up to three active Bladestorms on the ground |
| Steel Torrent | Increased AOE and damage of Bladestorms |
| Loathing | Bladestorms seek out nearby enemies. |
4) Shadow Cascade (Five Bladedancer passive points)
Shadow Cascade is a strong attack that damages all enemies around the Bladedancer. The main specializations are Dagger Dance and Shadow Elegance.
| Specialization | Effects |
| Shadow Torrent | Deal more damage per active Shadow |
| Dismantle | Chance to shred enemy armor on hit |
| Onslaught | Gain 25 percent mana refund when a Shadow is active |
| Fight in the Shadows | Gain mana using the skill when a Shadow is active |
| Crushing Dance | Deals bonus damage but no longer scales with attack speed |
| Battle Trance | Increased Dodge rating |
| Incapacitate | Chance to apply Frailty debuff on hit |
| Dagger Dance | Throws additional piercing daggers for bonus damage |
| Porcupine’s Wrath | Throws even more piercing daggers but no longer has a melee attack |
| Daggerflow | Dagger Dance lasts longer and flies further |
5) Synchronized Strike (10 Bladedancer passive points)
Synchronized Strike doubles as a mobility skill and a damage skill. The main specializations are Dark Allies, Umbral Assassination, and Perfect Coordination.
| Specialization | Effects |
| Growing Darkness | Increased AOE |
| Razor Strikes | Chance to cause bleeding and shred physical resistance |
| Crimson Storm | Gain Crimson Shroud on skill usage |
| Foreshadowing | Created Shadows deal bonus damage |
| Dark Allies | Creates two additional Shadows for twice the mana |
| Coordinated Cuts | Chance to shred enemy armor on hit |
| Umbral Assassination | Inflicts Shadow Daggers on hit |
| Dynamics | Reduced mana costs |
| Art of the Blade | Increased Attack speed on hit |
| Perfect Coordination | Created Shadows jump inwards towards the target |
Required Gear
The right gear for a Shadow Daggers Bladedancer revolves around a few unique items that power up the character in the endgame. The best way to acquire these would be to run Monolith Echoes in the End of Time and complete Prophecies.
Gear slots
The best-in-slot items for gear are as follows.
| Slot | Gear |
| Main Weapon | Eviscerating Smoke Weaver of Stillness |
| Off-hand weapon | Dagger/Sword with: Damage, Critical multiplier, Armor shred, Damage leech |
| Helm | Helmet with: Shadow Daggers Penetration, Health, Endurance |
| Body Armor | Rogue’s Wings of Argentus |
| Belt | Belt with: Damage, Health, Armor |
| Gloves | Catapult’s Li’Raka’s Claws of the Giant |
| Boots | Boots with: Movement Speed, Health, Armor |
| Rings | Ballista’s Siphon of Anguish of Sanctuary, Ring with: Damage, Dexterity |
| Amulet | Amulet with: Damage, Critical Multiplier, Armor shred |
| Relic | Relic with: Dexterity, Damage, Health, Dodge rating |
Idols
Idols grant passive bonuses to the Bladedancer. Farm up these in the Monoliths to push your stats even further.
- Increased Shadow Daggers Damage
- Increased Shadow Daggers Effect
- Increased Armor Shred Duration
- Increased Penetration
- Increased Health
- Increased Resistances
Complete all of the side quests in the main campaign to unlock all of the Idol slots you will need.
Blessings
Blessings round up this build by adding the last bit of endgame power to your Bladedancer. These Blessings will also help you farm additional gear. There are 10 Timelines to complete in the Monolith of Fate, each rewarding you with a choice of three Blessings.
| Timeline | Blessing | Effect |
| Fall of the Outcasts | Pride of Rebellion | Increased Grand Idol Drop Rate |
| The Stolen Lance | Arrogance of Argentus | Increased Helmet Drop Rate |
| The Black Sun | Winds of Oblivion | Increased Critical Strike Chance |
| Blood, Frost, and Death | Subtlety of Slaughter | Increased Dagger Drop Rate |
| Ending the Storm | Bastion of Divinity | Increased Elemental Resistance |
| Fall of the Empire | Height of Mastery | Increased Class-specific Shard Drop Rate |
| Reign of Dragons | Resolve of Humanity | Increased All Resistance |
| The Last Ruin | Knowledge of Skill | Increased Skill Shard Drop Rate |
| The Age of Winter | Fury of the North | Increased Chance to Shred Physical Armor |
| Spirits of Fire | Body of Obsidian | Increased Armor |
After unlocking Empowered Monoliths, you will unlock Grand versions of each Blessing, maximizing your endgame Last Epoch stats and farming power.
