Arcane Trickster
Not every thief relies on brute cunning alone. Some rogues reach beyond the mundane and into the arcane, weaving illusions to cover their tracks and enchantments to muddle the minds of their marks. The Arcane Trickster has discovered that a stolen spell can be worth far more than a stolen coin purse.
These rogues favor the subtler schools of magic—illusion to deceive the eye and enchantment to cloud the mind. They rarely seek the dramatic power of a battle mage. Instead, they prefer the satisfaction of a heist pulled off without a soul noticing, a lie made irresistible by a whispered cantrip, or a locked vault opened by an invisible hand.
Arcane Tricksters walk a careful line between two disciplines that demand skill and patience. The best among them are impossible to catch not because they are fast, but because by the time anyone looks, they were never really there at all.
Arcane Trickster Table:
| Level | Subclass Features Gained |
|---|---|
| 3rd | Spellcasting, Mage Hand Legerdemain |
| 9th | Magical Ambush |
| 13th | Versatile Trickster |
| 17th | Spell Thief |
Subclass Features
Spellcasting
3rd-level Arcane Trickster feature
You augment your roguish talents with the ability to cast spells. See the general rules for spellcasting and the wizard spell list.
Cantrips. You learn three cantrips: mage hand and two other cantrips of your choice from the wizard spell list.
Spell Slots. The Arcane Trickster Spellcasting table shows how many spell slots you have to cast your spells of 1st level and higher. To cast one of these spells, you must expend a slot of the spell's level or higher. You regain all expended spell slots when you finish a long rest.
Spells Known. You know three 1st-level wizard spells of your choice, two of which must be from the enchantment or illusion schools. As you gain rogue levels, you learn additional spells. At least two-thirds of your total spells known (rounded down) must always be from the enchantment or illusion schools; the remaining spells may be chosen from any school on the wizard spell list.
Spellcasting Ability. Intelligence is your spellcasting ability for your wizard spells. You use your Intelligence modifier when setting the saving throw DC for a wizard spell you cast and when making a spell attack roll.
Spell save DC = 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Intelligence modifier
Spell attack modifier = your proficiency bonus + your Intelligence modifier
Arcane Trickster Spellcasting Table:
| Rogue Level | Cantrips Known | Spells Known | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3rd | 3 | 3 | 2 | — | — | — |
| 4th | 3 | 4 | 3 | — | — | — |
| 7th | 3 | 5 | 4 | 2 | — | — |
| 8th | 3 | 6 | 4 | 2 | — | — |
| 10th | 4 | 7 | 4 | 3 | — | — |
| 11th | 4 | 8 | 4 | 3 | — | — |
| 13th | 4 | 9 | 4 | 3 | 2 | — |
| 14th | 4 | 10 | 4 | 3 | 2 | — |
| 16th | 4 | 11 | 4 | 3 | 3 | — |
| 17th | 4 | 11 | 4 | 3 | 3 | — |
| 19th | 4 | 12 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 1 |
| 20th | 4 | 13 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 1 |
Mage Hand Legerdemain
3rd-level Arcane Trickster feature
When you cast mage hand, you can make the spectral hand invisible, and you can perform the following additional tasks with it:
- You can stow one object the hand is holding in a container worn or carried by another creature.
- You can retrieve an object in a container worn or carried by another creature.
- You can use thieves' tools to pick locks and disarm traps at range.
You can perform one of these tasks without being noticed by making a Dexterity (Sleight of Hand) check contested by the target's Wisdom (Perception) check.
In addition, you can use the bonus action granted by your Cunning Action to control the hand.
Magical Ambush
9th-level Arcane Trickster feature
If you are hidden from a creature when you cast a spell on it, the creature has disadvantage on any saving throw it makes against the spell this turn.
Versatile Trickster
13th-level Arcane Trickster feature
You gain the ability to distract targets with your mage hand. As a bonus action on your turn, you can designate a creature within 5 feet of the spectral hand created by the spell. Doing so gives you advantage on attack rolls against that creature until the end of the turn.
Spell Thief
17th-level Arcane Trickster feature
You gain the ability to magically steal the knowledge of a spell from another spellcaster.
When a creature casts a spell that targets you or includes you in its area of effect, you can use your reaction to force the creature to make a saving throw using its own spellcasting ability modifier against your spell save DC. On a failed save, you negate the spell's effect against you and steal knowledge of the spell if it is at least 1st level and of a level you can cast. For the next 8 hours, you know the spell and can cast it using your spell slots. The creature can't cast that stolen spell until the 8 hours have passed.
Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a long rest.