Diablo 4‘s unique items dramatically change how a class is played. If you’re a Rogue player like me and are tired of Twisted Blades, Here’s how to get the Scoundrel’s Kiss Unique and the best build for it.
What is the Scoundrel’s Kiss in Diablo 4?
The Scoundrel’s Kiss is a Rogue-exclusive Unique Ring that augments the Rapid Fire ability. Instead of the usual flurry of arrows, Rapid Fire lobs exploding arrows, which deal increased damage.
How to get the Scoundrel’s Kiss Unique Ring in Diablo 4
Like most Uniques, you can only find the Scoundrel’s Kiss while playing on World Tier 3 or 4. You can technically obtain the Scoundrel’s Kiss from any loot source, but World Events usually yield the best “bang for your buck” rewards. That said, Helltides are phenomenal for loot in Season 4.
World Bosses and the Legion Event are great for high-tier loot, and you’ll usually find a large group of players to complete them with. Those events aren’t always active, so Nightmare Dungeons are a solid backup choice for farming rare gear.
If you’re already strong enough for end-game activities, you can target farm the Lord Zir Uber Boss for a higher chance at the Scoundrel’s Kiss. Uniques are always rare, but if you choose to go down the Helltide route, keep an eye out for the new elixirs that boost enemy levels.
Diablo 4: Best Scoundrel’s Kiss build
As I mentioned at the start of the guide, this build is a fantastic choice for Rogue players tired of Twisted Blades and Flurry builds. It’s a little too early to say how a Scoundrel’s Kiss build sits in the meta, but top players have already cleared the most demanding content in the game with it.
We can build around the Scoundrel’s Kiss with a regular Rapid Fire build. Even without the Unique ring, these skills work great together, so don’t feel like it’s essential. Here’s the build I recommend, with the point allocations
| Skill Selection | Point Allocations |
|---|---|
| Basic Skills | Puncture 5/5 Enhanced Puncture 1/1 Fundamental Puncture 1/1 |
| Core Skills | Rapid Fire 5/5 Stutter Step 3/3 |
| Agility Skills | Dash 1/5 Weapon Mastery 3/3 |
| Subterfuge Skills | Dark Shroud 5/5 Enhanced Dark Shroud 1/1 Subverting Dark Shroud 1/1 Concealment 1/5 Exploit 3/3 Malice 3/3 |
| Imbuement Skills | Cold Imbuement 5/5 Enhanced Cold Imbuement 1/1 Mixed Cold Imbuement 1/1 Frigid Finesse 3/3 Precision Imbuement 2/3 |
| Ultimate Skills | Innervation 3/3 Adrenaline Rush 3/3 Haste 3/3 Impetus 3/3 |
| Key Passives | Precision 1/1 (Combo Point) |
This build has a lot going on, so let’s quickly review the skills. Puncture is my favorite Basic Skill for the Rogue. While it’s technically a melee skill, it does have some range and is pretty forgiving. Puncture also inflicts Vulnerable on our foes for easy additional damage.
Core Skills
Rapid Fire is our primary damage dealer, so we invest heavily in the skill. Advanced Rapid Fire pairs nicely with Stutter Step, as both are focused on Critical Strike Damage.
Agility Skills
We don’t need more than a single point in Dash, but it’s an essential inclusion and a superb movement skill. I’ve never understood why Weapon Mastery is under the Agility Skill section, but it makes our Rapid Fire skill deal increased damage to Vulnerable enemies.
As we use Fundamental Puncture, you should frequently proc the Vulnerable debuff on your opponents.
Subterfuge Skills
Dark Shroud is our survivability Skill as we gain damage reduction for each shadow it casts. I usually find I die when I forget to recast Dark Shroud, so keep an eye on the cooldown in busy areas. We have Concealment as a panic button when Dark Shroud is off cooldown. If you remember to use it, it will save your life countless times.
You’ll see Exploit and Malice in most Rogue builds, as they provide straight damage bonuses, especially to Vulnerable opponents.
Imbuement Skills
I’m a big fan of Shadow and Poison Imbuements, but it makes sense to use Cold in a Rapid Fire build. Our Cold Imbuement can chill and freeze opponents, which keeps them at a safe distance for longer. Frigid Finesse is a great supporting skill here, as it gives us increased damage against chilled foes.
Our imbued skills also gain a small critical strike chance increase thanks to Precision Imbuement.
Ultimate Skills
Our Ultimate skills all give impactful passive bonuses. Innervation and Adrenaline Rush both grant valuable bonus energy. Impetus provides a damage increase to our Puncture skill, and Haste offers a nice combo of Attack and Movement speed buffs.
Key Passives
Finally, our Key Passive is Precision, and I recommend choosing Combo Points as your Specialization. I don’t think there’s a wrong choice from the Precision options, but Combo Points offers a little extra Burst Damage, which comes into play against tanky opponents.
Best Legendary Aspects for the Scoundrel’s Kiss build in Diablo 4
You have plenty of decent Aspects to choose from, and these all work on a regular Rapid Fire build. I’ve split the list into two sections. You can obtain every Aspect in the first section in your Codex of Power. The others are slightly harder to get, as you’ll have to rely on random Legendary drops.
Codex of Power Aspects
- Cheat’s Aspect
- Corruption Aspect
- Rapid Aspect
- Eluding Aspect (This is a superb defensive Aspect for the build)
- Aspect of Retribution
- Edgemaster’s Aspect
Other recommended Aspects
- Aspect of Concussive Strikes
- Aspect of the Moonrise
- Hectic Aspect
- Umbrous Aspect
The Aspect of Repeating is a great choice for Rapid Fire builds as it makes shots ricochet. Unfortunately, this effect doesn’t work with the Scoundrel’s Kiss, as only the regular shots will explode. I still recommend the Aspect for a regular Rapid Fire build, although it’s not so valuable when you get the Scoundrel’s Kiss.
This build is easy to pilot and is viable for controller users. At the time of writing, I’ve not tested everything in the highest level content, but it shreds almost everything I’ve encountered.
This build should be fine for the Pit of Artificers, but there are other strong Rogue builds worth considering.
Published: May 19, 2024 06:47 pm