Dragon's Dogma 2: Thief Vocation, Explained

Dragon's Dogma 2 lets you express your creativity in combat through one of the variety of available vocations, like the fleet-footed Thief. With the ability to glide through the night as easily as they cut through enemies in combat, the Thief is an excellent offensive vocation boasting excellent speed and a deceptive play style.

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If you love using dual daggers, then the Thief vocation is the best in Dragon's Dogma 2 for you, as you'll be limited to this form of weaponry. Whether you need to thin out a horde of goblins or must turn your attention toward a lumbering ogre, the Thief vocation has the tools to handle any dangers with its high-damage output.

What Are The Strengths And Weaknesses Of The Thief Vocation?

Strengths

Thieves boast the best movement speed of any vocation in Dragon's Dogma 2, allowing you to easily move around the battlefield, especially with Weapon Skills like Concussive Leap or Cutting Wind.

The single-target damage output of the Thief vocation is superb, as Draw and Quarter (bosses) and Masterful Kill (standard enemy) offer ways to inflict massive chunks of pain on your foes.

Similarly, thieves can decimate groups of enemies with Weapon Skills like Cutting Wind, which allows you to dash toward enemies before you cut them down with your daggers.

Aside from their raw speed and offensive capabilities, thieves can avoid damage fairly well, with their evasive abilities (Formless Feint) or by countering blows (Masterful Kill).

There are even several utility options for thieves to choose from, including smoke bombs (Smoke Shroud), rope grapples (Implicate), and even stealing items from enemies (Plunder).

Weaknesses

With the great amount of power, comes an exceptional amount of frailty, as thieves will receive a lot of damage if they are hit, though there are a few means to mitigate this via items and support.

Most of your single-target damage relies on you clinging to a boss, so it can become difficult to inflict large chunks of damage against flying enemies.

There's not much variety in the elemental damage thieves can inflict on their own, as they only have access to fire.

Thieves are also extremely stamina-hungry, meaning they need several boosts to their base stamina (via rings or otherwise) to continue to deal damage efficiently.

If you don't manage your stamina carefully, you will be exhausted and must pause in battle and find safety while your stamina recharges.

Thief Weapon Skills

The Thief vocation boasts access to various powerful attacks and tricky utility abilities that can be put to good use in battle.

Ultimately, you must decide if you want to play a Thief focused on deception using quick strikes and backstabs, or if you prefer to jump on enemies and deal massive amounts of damage with your daggers.

Weapon Skill

Upgraded Weapon Skill

Effect

Biting Wind

Cutting Wind

Dashes past the target with blades extended. Followed by further slashes when attacking on contact.

Enkindled Blades

Ignited Blades

Slams daggers together to ignite them with flames for a short time. Can be used while clinging or pinning a foe.

Shadow Cloak

Shadow Veil

Enables you to blend into your surroundings, making you difficult to see. Less effective when attacking or dashing. Consumes stamina when in use.

Helm Splitter

Skull Splitter

Leap up, then dive in the air with spinning blades. More powerful from height. Can be used mid-air.

Powder Charge

Powder Blast

Place an explosive on the ground that can be detonated from afar. Can be used when clinging to a foe. The upgrade gives a more powerful explosion/range.

Concussive Step

Concussive Leap

Uses an explosive blast to withdraw from the detonation. The blast may flinch small targets. Upgrade to consume less stamina and improve flinch.

Ensnare

Implicate

Casts cords to snare targets and tug them. Pulls small targets closer, and topples larger, off-balance targets.

Smoke Screen

Smoke Shroud

Throws a smoke bomb that blinds nearby targets. Can be used while clinging or in mid-air. The upgrade extends the radius and duration.

Pilfer

Plunder

Rob targets that have been knocked off balance and targets not in battle of a curative or other item. Larger targets must be downed. Upgrade to steal rarer items.

Gut and Run

Draw and Quarter

Stabs and gouges the target before drawing back. Must be clinging to or pinning a target to use. Inflicts more damage on the foe's weak point.

Easy Kill

Masterful Kill

Darts behind the target after parrying them then slits their throat.

n/a

Blades of the Pyre

Brings the daggers together to ignite an inferno so potent that you cannot escape being burned.

n/a

Formless Feint

Accelerates your reactions to evade all attacks from hostiles. Consumes stamina when active.

Overall, the Thief vocation is blessed with several unique, fun skills that fit into the roleplaying theme of the class while maintaining an incredible amount of functionality in combat.

Offensively, there aren't many better vocations in Dragon's Dogma 2 than the Thief. It should be your first selection if you favor fast combat with lethal damage.

Thieves are meant to avoid damage while inflicting some of their own, and you can rely on Biting/Cutting Wind to be a staple in your arsenal, as the mobility on the battlefield it offers is second to none.

However, feel free to cling to an enemy and slash away with your daggers, as this method is extremely effective against large enemies.

Thief Core Skills

The Thief's Core Skills are quintessential abilities that embody this vocation perfectly, as their thematic accuracy, and importance to the vocation are similar in magnitude to the Weapon Skills.

Core Skill

Effect

Scarlet Kisses

Unleashes a flurry of forward slashes.

Controlled Fall

Tucks the body into a tight roll when hitting the ground to swiftly regain your feet. Reduces impact damage.

Bump and Lift

Robs the target of an item when an attack connects. Has a low success rate when using carve.

Footpad

Kicks off the wall, allowing you to launch from a great distance.

Scarlet Kisses is the most important of this group for combat, as you'll often need to slash an enemy a few times to finish them off after connecting with one of your Weapon Skills.

Bump and Lift is a fun thematic boon, but not exceptionally important.

However, Controlled Fall and Footpad are excellent tools to use when platforming or dealing with enemies who like to grab and throw you.

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Thief Augments

Thief augments are the cherry on top of this fantastic vocation's cake, giving you the last few improvements needed to make you even more deadly in combat.

Augment

Effect

Subtlety

Decreases the likelihood of being targeted by foes.

Gratification

Slightly restores health when you deliver a killing blow.

Poise

Reduces the stamina consumed when struggling in a foe's grip.

Vigor

Reduces the stamina consumed when clinging or pinning down foes.

Verve

Augments your Strength.

Subtlety and Poise are "nice-to-have" options for your Thief, but Vigor and Verve are essential to creating the best Thief possible in Dragon's Dogma 2.

Use the power of clinging and surprise attacks to reach your damage potential as a Thief.

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