Dual Core Penetrating Shot Rapid Fire – Rogue Build for Diablo 4 (Season 8)

Build Introduction

The Penetrating Shot and Rapid Fire Rogue equip two Core Skills to overcome any situation on the battlefield. This is the second version of the original Dual Core build, focusing on a more ranged playstyle. Rapid Fire deals high single-target damage to snipe elite and bosses, while Penetrating Shot excels at clearing large groups of enemies due to the additional arrows from Trickshot Aspect.

Dual Core Skills are utilized in different situations to either snipe tough targets or clear groups of enemies. The addition of Scoundrel’s Kiss in the game enables Rapid Fire to cover single-target and area-of-effect damage, removing the need for a 2nd Core Skill. The Pure Rapid Fire Rogue build is recommended once you obtain Scoundrel’s Kiss, which can be target-farmed from Lord Zir.

The only starting requirement for this endgame build guide is a Level 60 character. Check the Rogue Leveling Guide if you need help getting there.

Check the build tier lists to see how this build compares to others on Icy Veins.

Strengths and Weaknesses

Quick Navigation

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Skill Bar and Skill Tree Points

Skill Bar Setup for Dual Core Penetrating Shot Rapid Fire Rogue (order does not matter)

Rapid FirePenetrating ShotHeartseekerCold ImbuementDashShadow Step

The Skill Tree above shows the full allocation of 71 Skill Points for the Ranged Dual Core Rogue build. Make sure you obtain the 12 Skill Points available from Renown.

Dark Shroud is not equipped on the Skill Bar. It is instead automatically activated by Umbrous Aspect.

Wondering what comes after Level 60? Head to the Paragon Board section to power up the build even further. If you want to see how everything plays out in combat, check out the Rotation and Playstyle section for a quick breakdown.

Rogue Class Mechanic – Specialization

Combo Points is the preferred Rogue Specialization for general farming due to the burst damage playstyle of Rapid Fire Rogue. Build Combo Points with Heartseeker to unleash additional damage and arrows for Rapid Fire. Combo Points can also be used to gain additional damage and Lucky Hit Chance with Penetrating Shot.

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Gear, Stats, Gems, and Runes

The following sections cover the important systems that are essential to improving the power of your character in the endgame of Diablo 4.

Legendary Aspects

Listed below are all the best-in-slot Aspects for the Ranged Dual Core Rogue build. Salvage Legendary Items with higher Aspect values to unlock them in the Codex of Power, and then imprint them onto Legendary Items with the preferred affixes. For the best results, combine these Aspects with the ideal Stat Priorities.

Gear Slot	Aspect Name	Aspect Power
Ranged Weapon (replaced by Skyhunter)	Accelerating Aspect	Critical Strikes with Core Skills increase your Attack Speed by [15 – 25%] for 3 seconds.
Amulet	Coldclip Aspect	Your Basic Skills are always Cold Imbued. You deal x [5 – 20%] increased damage to enemies who are Chilled or Frozen.
Dual-Wielded Weapon Slot #1 (replaced by Condemnation)	Edgemaster’s Aspect	Skills deal up to [10 – 20%] increased damage based on your available Primary Resource when cast, receiving the maximum benefit while you have full Primary Resource.
Gloves	Aspect of Retribution	Distant enemies have a 10% chance to be Stunned for 2 seconds when they hit you. You deal x [15 – 35%] increased damage to Stunned and Knocked Down enemies.
Ring Slot #1 (replaced by Ring of Starless Skies)	Frostbitten Aspect	Enemies hit by your Grenade Skills have a chance equal to your Critical Strike Chance to be Frozen for 2 seconds. You deal x [10 – 30%] increased Critical Strike Damage against Frozen or Stunned enemies. (only used for the damage multiplier, not the Grenade Skills effect)
Dual-Wielded Weapon Slot #2 or Ring Slot #2	Aspect of the Expectant	Attacking enemies with a Basic Skill increases the damage of your next Core Skill cast by [5 – 10%], up to 30%.
Dual-Wielded Weapon Slot #2 or Ring Slot #2	Trickshot Aspect	Whenever Penetrating Shot damages an enemy, 2 additional arrows split off to either side. These side arrows deal [10 – 25%] of Penetrating Shot’s Base damage and do not split.
Helm (replaced by Harlequin Crest)	Aspect of Might	Basic Skills grant 20% Damage Reduction for [2 – 6] seconds
Chest (replaced Shroud of False Death)	Cheat’s Aspect	You take [10 – 30%] less damage from Crowd Controlled enemies. Whenever a Crowd Controlled enemy deals direct damage to you, gain 15% Movement Speed for 2 seconds.
Pants	Umbrous Aspect	Lucky Hit: Critical Strikes have up to a [45 – 60%] chance to grant a free Dark Shroud shadow.
Boots	Wind Striker Aspect	Critical Strikes grant [8.5 – 19%] Movement Speed for 1 second, up to 6 seconds.

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Stat Priority and Tempering Affixes

Listed below are the affixes to prioritize on gear for Ranged Dual Core Rogues, ranked by importance. Affixes on the same line have equal value, so attempt to obtain all affixes in each line before moving on to the next. Bolded affixes are the most important targets for Masterworking upgrades. For more details, check the Tempering and Masterworking guides.

When comparing Legendary weapons with similar item levels, Crossbows are preferred over Bows for the higher Damage per Hit for both Core Skills. Daggers are selected for the fastest weapon speed to generate Combo Points.

Precision increases the priority of Critical Strike Damage to scale the bonus multiplier, while reducing the need for Critical Strike Chance.

Prioritize Boots with the implicit effect, attacks reduce Evade’s cooldown, for constant Evades to activate Advanced Rapid Fire.

The priority order of Resistances is Lightning > Poison > Fire > Cold > Shadow. Maximum Resistance is 70% by default for each element and can be increased to 85% by various sources.

Armor is only needed until capped at 1,000.

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Slot	Gear Affixes	Tempering Affixes
Weapons	1. Maximum Life, Critical Strike Damage 2. Dexterity, Vulnerable Damage	Marksman Augments — Core (Weapon): Chance for Rapid Fire or Penetrating Shot Projectiles to Cast Twice Subterfuge Expertise (Offensive): Damage per Dark Shroud
Helm	1. Cooldown Reduction 2. Any uncapped Resistances or Armor 3. Maximum Life, Dexterity, Lucky Hit Chance	Imbuement Abundance (Utility): Cold Imbue Additional Casts Worldly Endurance (Defensive): Armor up to 1,000 cap, otherwise Dodge Chance
Chest	1. Ranks to Dark Shroud 2. Any uncapped Resistances or Armor 3. Maximum Life, Dexterity	Imbuement Abundance (Utility): Cold Imbue Additional Casts Worldly Endurance (Defensive): Armor up to 1,000 cap, otherwise Dodge Chance
Gloves	1. Ranks to Core Skills, Critical Strike Damage, Attack Speed 2. Any uncapped Resistances or Armor 3. Maximum Life, Dexterity, Lucky Hit Chance	Subterfuge Expertise (Offensive): Damage per Dark Shroud Imbuement Abundance (Utility): Cold Imbue Additional Casts
Pants	1. Dexterity, Maximum Life 2. Any uncapped Resistances or Armor	Daze Control (Utility): Lucky Hit Chance to Daze Worldly Endurance (Defensive): Armor up to 1,000 cap, otherwise Dodge Chance
Boots	Implicit Stat: Attacks Reduce Evade’s Cooldown 1. Movement Speed 2. Any uncapped Resistances or Armor 3. Ranks to Dash, Maximum Life, Dexterity	Natural Motion (Mobility): Movement Speed Imbuement Abundance (Utility): Cold Imbue Additional Casts
Amulet	1. Ranks to Weapon Mastery, Unstable Elixirs, and Frigid Finesse 2. Cooldown Reduction, Attack Speed	Imbuement Abundance (Utility): Cold Imbue Additional Casts Subterfuge Expertise (Offensive): Damage per Dark Shroud
Rings	1. Attack Speed, Critical Strike Damage 2. Maximum Life, Dexterity, Lucky Hit Chance	Subterfuge Expertise (Offensive): Damage per Dark Shroud Agility Efficiency (Utility): Agility Cooldown Reduction

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Uniques and Mythic Uniques

Listed below are the recommended and optional Unique and Mythic Unique Items for the Penetrating Shot and Rapid Fire Rogue build. Each item description includes the most important affix to target for Masterworking upgrades. Check the Mythic Unique Items Guide for information on target-farming them.

• Scoundrel’s Kiss (optional build transition) shifts the focus to Rapid Fire as the main damaging skill in the build. The lobbing arrows transform Rapid Fire to deal Area of Effect damage, removing the need for a 2nd Core Skill. Switch to the Pure Rapid Fire Rogue build guide for a specialized setup dedicated to Scoundrel’s Kiss.
  • Masterworking Priority: Ranks to Rapid Fire
• Skyhunter (recommended) synergies well with Precision to guarantee Critical Strikes, increase damage, and restore Energy.
  • Masterworking Priority: Attack Speed, Critical Strike Damage, or Chance for Marksman Projectiles to Cast Twice
• Condemnation (recommended) provides a 1.4x multiplier that works well in this Combo Points build.
  • Masterworking Priority: Basic Skill Attack Speed
• Harlequin Crest (recommended) provides a good amount of offense and defense, if you are lucky enough to find this Mythic Unique Item.
  • Masterworking Priority: Cooldown Reduction
• Ring of Starless Skies (recommended) is a Mythic Unique Item that provides a highly valuable 1.5x multiplier. The downside is the unique effect requires some management to ramp up and maintain the buff stacks.
  • Masterworking Priority: Critical Strike Chance or Ranks to Core Skills
• Cowl of the Nameless (optional) provides the highest damage output when properly Masterworked.
  • Masterworking Priority: Ranks to Unstable Elixirs or Trick Attacks
• Shroud of False Death (optional) provides the highest damage increase in the slot due to the +1 Ranks to All Passives inherent affix.
  • Masterworking Priority: All Stats or Maximum Life

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Gems and Runewords

Listed below are the recommended Gems and Runewords to socket into your gear.

Gems

Weapon Gems	Armor Gems	Jewelry Gems
Grand Emerald for increased Critical Strike Damage.	Grand Emerald for Dexterity.	Any Resistance Gems needed or Grand Skull for Armor (up to the 1,000 Armor cap).

Runewords

Insert one of the following Runewords, consisting of a Rune of Offering and a Rune of Invocation, into your equipped Ranged Weapon. The other Runeword can be inserted into any equipped Helm, Chest, or Pants item. Add sockets to your equipment at the Jeweler if necessary. Check the Runewords Guide for more details.

Runewords	Effects
Xol Ohm	Gain: 150 Offering — Evoke power from another Class. Requires: 600 Offering, Cooldown: 2 Seconds — Evoke the Barbarian’s Enhanced War Cry, increasing your Movement Speed and damage dealt.
Lith Wat	Gain: 25 Offering — Stand still for 0.3 seconds. Requires: 100 Offering, Cooldown: 1 Second — Evoke the Necromancer’s Horrid Decrepify, Slowing enemies, reducing their damage, and letting you Execute them.

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Paragon Board

Use the following Paragon Boards, Legendary Nodes, and Glyphs for the Dual Core Penetrating Shot Rapid Fire Rogue.

The Paragon setup displayed above focuses on quickly unlocking the essential Glyph sockets and Legendary Nodes at a moderate Paragon Level. Once the base setup is complete, allocate the remaining Paragon points in the following order.

1. Obtain any remaining nodes providing a damage increase within the radius of Glyph sockets.
2. Path to the remaining Rare and Magic nodes. Prioritize obtaining damage reduction, any needed Resistances/Armor, and damage increases.
3. Any remaining points can be spent on Dexterity nodes within the radius of Headhunter.

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Boss Powers (Season 8)

In the Season of Belial’s Return (Season 8), equip the following Boss Powers to enhance this build.

Main: Beast in the Ice’s Sleet — After casting 3 Skills which apply Crowd Control or Stagger effects, shoot out sleet spikes that deal [800%] Cold damage and Freeze enemies for 2 seconds.

Modifier:

• Liilth’s Wind of Hate: Hitting an Elite enemy with a Main Boss Power creates an inert Blister Clone with 10% of their Maximum Life for 15 seconds. Killing the Blister removes [2.1%] of the Elite’s Life. An Elite can have up to 1 Blister active at once, and a Boss can have up to 2 Blisters. Enemies with Resilience cannot spawn Blisters.
• Sinerat’s Flames: Gain x [5%] increased damage to all Elements. For each 1% of an Element’s Resistance from bonuses, gain x0.2% increased damage for that Element, up to a maximum of x [15.5%].
• Flesh Reaper’s Disruption: Gain x [5%] Vulnerable Damage, increased by x0.5% for each 1% of Crowd Control Duration Bonus you have, up to a maximum of x [10.5%].

Mercenaries

Once the Den is unlocked during the main questline in the Vessel of Hatred expansion for Diablo 4, complete Mercenary key quests to acquire them. Hire a Mercenary and enlist a Reinforcement in the following setup.

• Hired Mercenary: Varyana
  • Skills: Cleave, Hysteria, Bloodthirst, Bloodlust
• Reinforcement: Raheir
  • Skill: Bastion
  • Opportunity: Cast when the player becomes Injured

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Build Mechanics

Penetrating Shot excels at clearing high-density activities, such as Nightmare Dungeons. Line up enemies to hit them with the piercing arrow, while Trickshot Aspect splits off additional side arrows for more area coverage. The piercing effect of the main arrow also applies to the side arrows.

When fired at full energy, Advanced Penetrating Shot applies a slow to normal enemies to activate Cheat’s Aspect and knocks down Elites to help you survive. Penetrating Shot also has a high Lucky Hit Chance when fired with 3 Combo Points to activate Umbrous Aspect for Dark Shroud stacks. Dark Shroud is not equipped on the Skill Bar.

Penetrating Shot can lack single target damage against elites and bosses, so Rapid Fire is used to snipe individual enemies. Learn when to use either Penetrating Shot or Rapid Fire in every situation to master this Dual Core Build.

Fundamental Puncture easily applies Vulnerable to a target with a single Basic attack. Aim Puncture at the toughest enemies in a pack. In group play, apply this debuff to Elites and Bosses so your teammates deal more damage!

Shadow Step and Dash are Cutthroat Skills that can be used before Rapid Fire or Penetrating Shot to gain the damage bonus from Tricks of the Trade.

Resource Management

Skyhunter and Combat should provide enough Energy generation if you are taking the time to build 3 Combo Points before casting each Core Skill. Ring of Starless Skies is an option for additional resource management. You can also reallocate 3 Skill Points from Stutter Step into Innervation.

Animation Cancel Technique

An Evade can be used immediately after using Rapid Fire or Penetrating Shot to cancel their casting animations. This technique is important to quickly dodge incoming attacks while activating Advanced Rapid Fire. Boots with the implicit effect, Attacks Reduce Evade’s Cooldown, allow for an animation cancel after using 3 Basic Attacks and a Core Skill. Practice hitting Evade after every Core Skill to build muscle memory.

Rotation and Playstyle

AoE Damage Rotation

Explode groups of mobs with the following rotation.

1. Cast Puncture 3 times at a distance to build up Combo Points.
2. Cast Shadow Step on tough elite enemies.
3. (Optional) Activate Cold Imbuement against tough opponents to increase damage and apply Chill/Freeze.
4. Use a Potion to activate the damage buff from Unstable Elixirs.
5. Cast Penetrating Shot into the group or aimed at the toughest Elites.
6. Immediately animation cancel Penetrating Shot with an Evade to avoid damage or gain some distance.
7. Restart the rotation.

You lose all Crowd Control damage bonuses against Unstoppable Elites, making them much harder to defeat. Quickly kill any Elites within a group of enemies with the Single Target Damage Rotation (section directly below) before they become Unstoppable. Attempt to single them out or get next to them for Rapid Fire to hit. Otherwise, clear out some enemies with the AoE Rotation to create a line of sight.

Single Target Damage Rotation

Use the following rotation against Elites and Bosses for high single-target.

1. Use Evade to activate Advanced Rapid Fire.
2. Build 3 Combo Points with Puncture. Make sure you are close enough for Fundamental Puncture to apply Vulnerable.
3. Cast Shadow Step on the toughest Elite to activate Tricks of the Trade for a damage bonus to your next Marksman Skill, Rapid Fire. Alternatively, Dash can be used through a Boss to apply Enhanced Dash.
4. Activate Cold Imbuement for damage increases from Mixed Cold Imbuement and Frigid Finesse.
5. Use a Potion to activate the damage buff from Unstable Elixirs.
6. Cast Rapid Fire at the target.
7. Immediately animation cancel Rapid Fire with an Evade to restart the rotation.

Elixirs

Visit the Alchemist in any main town to craft helpful Elixirs, or find Elixirs by killing enemies or opening chests during various activities in Diablo 4. Listed below are the best Elixirs to consume for the Dual Core Penetrating Shot Rapid Fire Rogue, ranked by importance.

1. Elixir of Advantage increases damage output, if not already capped at 100% Attack Speed bonus from gear and Paragon.
2. Elixir of Resource greatly helps with Energy issues, if you do not already have the appropriate Energy gear. This elixir is highly recommended for starting characters to maintain the casting of Core Skills.
3. Elixir of Fortitude is the best general-purpose option for survivability.
4. Elixir of Iron Barbs can provide a high amount of Physical Damage Reduction. Armor becomes more effective as you approach the Armor cap (9,320 against monster level 100 and above).
5. Specific Resistance Elixirs can be utilized to survive against Uber Bosses with elemental attacks.

Season 8 Updates

A brief summary of the seasonal changes are provided below. For a complete overview of Season 8, take a look at the comprehensive season guide.

• Fists of Fate no longer applies random crowd controls.
• Worldly Fortune can no longer apply any crowd control tempers.
• Aspect of Concussive Strikes no longer provides increased damage.
• Frostbitten Aspect is now in the Offensive category.
• Trick Attacks
  • Previous: Dazing or Stunning an enemy increases your Critical Strike Chance by 2/4/6% and Critical Strike Damage by 2/4/6% for 5 seconds, up to 12/24/36%.
  • Now: Attempting to Daze or Stun an enemy increases your Critical Strike Chance by 1/2/3% and Critical Strike Damage by 1/2/3% for 8 seconds, up to 5/10/15%.

Changelog

• April 26, 2025: Guide updated for Season 8 (Patch 2.2.0)
• January 19, 2025: Guide updated for Season 7 (Patch 2.1.0).
• October 16, 2024: New Paragon tool added.
• October 4, 2024: Guide updated for Season 6 (Patch 2.0.2).
• August 6, 2024: Guide updated for Season 5 (Patch 1.5.0).
• May 14, 2024: Guide updated for Season 4 (Patch 1.4.0).
• January 22, 2024: Guide updated for Season 3 (Patch 1.3.0).
• December 18, 2023: Guide created.