A dagger assassin in Enshrouded 1.0 fights in melee with daggers, opens fights from stealth and puts its points into Dexterity. Its burst comes from two separate openers, Sneak Attack and Backstab, each with its own skills and its own dagger and armor perks. Every value below comes from the skill cards; the full Ranger list is in every Ranger skill and what it does.
Quick answer: Unlock Dexterity, then take Sneak Attack (+900% damage on an unaware enemy), Cutthroat and Backstab Mastery. Use daggers with Sneak Attack or Backstab Damage perks, and wear armor that adds Backstab Mastery or Dagger Mastery.
Sneak Attack and Backstab
Dexterity is the attribute behind the build. The Dexterity node card reads “Increases your Dexterity attribute by 1. Increases Bow and Dagger damage by 5% per Attribute Point.” On the Skills screen, the node sits beside the Assassin label and shows Locked with a cost of 1/1 until you buy it.
Once bought, the node reads Unlocked and the attribute list shows Dexterity 2.
The two openers are separate skills, and they do not share bonuses. Sneak Attack is the big hit. You get close to an enemy that has not noticed you, press the attack key, and the strike deals +900% damage. Wands, Staves and Bows cannot perform Sneak Attacks. Cutthroat stacks on top of it with +100% Sneak Attack damage per rank. Backstab is its own number, and Backstab Mastery raises it by +20% per rank.
Three more skills set up the opener. Every Silent Stride rank adds +20% movement speed while sneaking. With a target locked, Strategic Maneuver turns your dodge into a sideways roll, “making it easier to flank them or deliver backstabs”, for 20 Stamina. Blood Warrior, a Warrior skill, spawns a Health Orb when a Sneak Attack or Merciless Attack kills an enemy. Taking every rank in this group costs 16 skill points.
| Skill | Class | Cost | What it does |
|---|---|---|---|
| Backstab Mastery | Ranger | 1 point per rank, 3 ranks | Backstab damage is increased by 20%. (20% damage per rank) |
| Blood Warrior | Warrior | 3 points | Defeating an enemy with a Sneak Attack or Merciless Attack spawns a Health Orb that restores 10% Health. |
| Cutthroat | Ranger | 1 point per rank, 3 ranks | Sneak Attack Damage is increased by 100%. (100% damage per rank) |
| Silent Stride | Ranger | 1 point per rank, 3 ranks | Increases your movement speed while sneaking (20% per rank) |
| Sneak Attack | Ranger | 3 points | Sneak up to an unaware enemy and press the attack key for a Sneak Attack that deals +900% damage. Wands, Staves and Bows cannot perform Sneak Attacks. |
| Strategic Maneuver | Ranger | 1 point | Replaces the Dodge Roll with a sideways Dodge Roll while an enemy target is locked, to roll around enemies and deliver backstabs. Costs 20 Stamina. |
Dagger damage skills
After the opening hit, these skills raise your damage while you trade blows. Dagger Mastery adds +5% Dagger damage per rank. Fatal Precision gives +1% Critical Strike chance and +5% Critical Strike damage per rank. Veteran, a Warrior skill, adds +2% Critical Strike chance per rank with melee weapons, daggers included.
Two Ranger skills trigger on those crits. With Expose Weakness, a Dagger crit makes the enemy take 25% more physical damage for 5 seconds. With Vitality Surge, each Dagger crit restores 3 Stamina per rank. Dagger Specialization unlocks the Dagger Special Abilities, used once you have built up enough Focus by attacking, and Quick Reflex Block raises your Block value when blocking with daggers. Every rank in this group costs 25 skill points.
| Skill | Class | Cost | What it does |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dagger Mastery | Ranger | 1 point per rank, 3 ranks | Damage with Daggers is increased by 5%. (5% damage per rank) |
| Dagger Specialization | Ranger | 3 points | Unlocks the Special Abilities of Daggers, used after generating enough Focus by attacking. |
| Expose Weakness | Ranger | 4 points | Critical Strikes with Daggers break the armor of enemies: they take 25% increased physical damage for 5 seconds. |
| Fatal Precision | Ranger | 1 point per rank, 3 ranks | Critical Strike chance and Critical Strike damage are increased (+1% Critical Strike chance and +5% Critical Strike damage per rank) |
| Quick Reflex Block | Ranger | 3 points | Briefly increases your Block value when blocking with Daggers, ensuring a near-miss parry reduces Stamina minimally. |
| Veteran | Warrior | 2 points per rank, 3 ranks | Critical Strike chance with One- or Two-Handed Axes, Clubs, Hammers, Swords, Greatswords and Daggers is increased by 2%. (2% Critical Strike chance per rank) |
| Vitality Surge | Ranger | 1 point per rank, 3 ranks | Critical Strikes with Bows, Daggers and Throwables restore 3 Stamina. (3 Stamina per rank) |
Poison, durability and Shroud skills
Venomous Blades raises your poison chance to 30%, but only on daggers that carry the Venomous Blades perk, and Venom Mastery adds 100% damage to that perk.
The rest of this group is upkeep. Finesse, a Warrior skill, gives a chance to restore durability as you deal damage. Survival Instinct restores 3 seconds of Time in the Shroud per rank when you kill a Shroud infested enemy with a Bow or Dagger. Slice And Dice turns a Dagger crit into +50% base damage on your next Bow attack within 10 seconds, so it only matters if you also carry a bow. Every rank in this group costs 14 skill points.
| Skill | Class | Cost | What it does |
|---|---|---|---|
| Finesse | Warrior | 1 point per rank, 3 ranks | Dealing damage with One-Handed Swords, One-Handed Axes, One-Handed Clubs or Daggers has a 15% chance to restore 1 durability to that weapon. (15% chance per rank) |
| Slice And Dice | Ranger | 3 points | After a Critical Strike with a Dagger, the base damage of your next Bow attack within 10 seconds is increased by 50%. |
| Survival Instinct | Ranger | 1 point per rank, 3 ranks | Defeating a Shroud infested enemy with a Bow or Dagger restores Time in the Shroud (3 seconds per rank) |
| Venom Mastery | Ranger | 3 points | Increases the damage dealt with the Venomous Blades Dagger perk by 100%. |
| Venomous Blades | Ranger | 2 points | Increases the chance to poison enemies to 30% when using Daggers with the Venomous Blades perk. |
Daggers and their perks
Enshrouded 1.0 has 39 daggers, and their perks line up with the skills above. Sneak Attack Damage adds to Sneak Attacks, Backstab Damage to backstabs, Critical Strike Chance and Critical Strike Damage to crits, Merciless Attack Damage to Merciless Attacks, and the Venomous Blades perk is the one the two poison skills need.
Every dagger except Lupa’s Scalper carries the Riposte Kick ability: “Allows you to perform a Kick attack shortly after parrying an enemy. It also deals Stamina Damage which fills the enemy’s Stun Bar.” The basic Daggers are Common, item level 3 and made by hand. In the table, “Not crafted” means the dagger has no crafting recipe; Hunter and Blacksmith mark where the craftable ones are made.
| Dagger | Rarity | Item level | Perks | Ability | Made at |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adorned Drakling Daggers | Legendary | 1-55 | Critical Strike Chance +8%, Mana Leech | Riposte Kick | Not crafted |
| Ascendant Daggers | Legendary | 1-55 | Critical Strike Chance +9%, Critical Strike Damage +24% | Riposte Kick | Not crafted |
| Astral Daggers | Legendary | 1-55 | Critical Strike Chance +9%, Venomous Blades +10% | Riposte Kick | Not crafted |
| Baroness Daggers | Legendary | 1-55 | Backstab Damage +14%, Critical Strike Chance +6%, Critical Strike Damage +14% | Riposte Kick | Not crafted |
| Blink Daggers | Legendary | 1-55 | Mana Leech, Venomous Blades +5% | Riposte Kick | Not crafted |
| Blunt Knives | Legendary | 1-55 | Blunt Armor, Critical Strike Chance +6%, Sneak Attack Damage +24% | Riposte Kick | Not crafted |
| Broodmother’s Eye | Legendary | 1-55 | Opportunistic +12%, Ruthless +32%, Venomous Blades +9% | Riposte Kick | Not crafted |
| Circus Knives | Epic/Rare | 1-55 | Critical Strike Damage +40-44%, Sneak Attack Damage +40-48% | Riposte Kick | Hunter |
| Corrosive Daggers | Legendary | 1-55 | Sneak Attack Damage +14%, Venomous Blades +5% | Riposte Kick | Not crafted |
| Crystal Knives | Legendary | 1-55 | Backstab Damage +20%, Health Leech, Venomous Blades +8% | Riposte Kick | Not crafted |
| Daggers | Common | 3 | – | Riposte Kick | hand |
| Daggers Of Liquid Light | Legendary | 1-55 | Backstab Damage +24%, Critical Strike Chance +18% | Riposte Kick | Not crafted |
| Drakling Daggers | Legendary | 1-55 | Critical Strike Chance +8%, Mana Leech, Merciless Attack Damage +22% | Riposte Kick | Not crafted |
| Falk Fall Daggers | Legendary | 1-55 | Critical Strike Chance +7%, Merciless Attack Damage +16%, Venomous Blades +6% | Riposte Kick | Not crafted |
| Grey Blades | Legendary | 1-55 | Backstab Damage +20%, Health Leech, Venomous Blades +8% | Riposte Kick | Not crafted |
| Half-Light Halos | Legendary | 1-55 | Backstab Damage +48%, Critical Strike Chance +9% | Riposte Kick | Not crafted |
| Horn Daggers | Legendary | 1-55 | Critical Strike Chance +16% | Riposte Kick | Not crafted |
| Ice-Coated Daggers | Legendary | 1-55 | Critical Strike Chance +16% | Riposte Kick | Not crafted |
| Lightforged Daggers | Legendary | 1-55 | Critical Strike Chance +14% | Riposte Kick | Not crafted |
| Lupa’s Scalper | Legendary/Rare | 1-55 | Backstab Damage +16-24%, Critical Strike Chance +7-9% | – | Blacksmith |
| Makeshift Daggers | Legendary | 1-55 | Critical Strike Chance +6%, Merciless Attack Damage +24% | Riposte Kick | Not crafted |
| Nightfall | Legendary | 1-55 | Mana Leech, Merciless Attack Damage +18% | Riposte Kick | Not crafted |
| Nightnebula | Legendary | 1-55 | Mana Leech, Merciless Attack Damage +18% | Riposte Kick | Not crafted |
| Oath Breaker | Legendary | 1-55 | Critical Strike Chance +14% | Riposte Kick | Not crafted |
| Parade Daggers | Legendary | 1-55 | Retaliation +40% | Riposte Kick | Not crafted |
| Proud Daggers | Legendary | 1-55 | Merciless Attack Damage +40%, Retaliation +20% | Riposte Kick | Not crafted |
| Sacrificial Vukah Dagger | Epic/Rare | 1-55 | Health Leech, Venomous Blades +4% | Riposte Kick | Hunter |
| Sandstorm Swiftblades | Legendary | 1-55 | Backstab Damage +18%, Critical Strike Chance +7%, Venomous Blades +7% | Riposte Kick | Not crafted |
| Scrap Daggers | Legendary | 1-55 | Critical Strike Chance +6%, Damage against Fell +7% | Riposte Kick | Not crafted |
| Shellbreaker Daggers | Legendary | 1-55 | Opportunistic +12%, Ruthless +32%, Venomous Blades +9% | Riposte Kick | Not crafted |
| Shivering Skeans | Legendary | 1-55 | Backstab Damage +16%, Critical Strike Chance +14% | Riposte Kick | Not crafted |
| Shivs | Legendary | 1-55 | Merciless Attack Damage +24%, Renewal +1 | Riposte Kick | Not crafted |
| Sleek Daggers | Legendary | 1-55 | Backstab Damage +24%, Critical Strike Chance +6% | Riposte Kick | Not crafted |
| Solstice Daggers | Legendary | 1-55 | Backstab Damage +24%, Critical Strike Chance +18% | Riposte Kick | Not crafted |
| The Needles | Legendary | 1-55 | Critical Strike Chance +21% | Riposte Kick | Not crafted |
| Valor Heart Daggers | Legendary/Rare | 1-55 | Critical Strike Chance +6-9%, Merciless Attack Damage +28-48%, Retaliation +20% | Riposte Kick | Hunter |
| Venomkiss | Legendary | 1-55 | Sneak Attack Damage +36%, Venomous Blades +7% | Riposte Kick | Not crafted |
| Wildheart Seekers | Legendary | 1-55 | Merciless Attack Damage +32%, Venomous Blades +6% | Riposte Kick | Not crafted |
| Wolf Daggers | Legendary | 1-55 | Backstab Damage +28%, Critical Strike Chance +6% | Riposte Kick | Not crafted |
For a Sneak Attack build, Circus Knives, Venomkiss, Blunt Knives and Corrosive Daggers carry Sneak Attack Damage. Circus Knives are also craftable at the Hunter. For Backstab, Half-Light Halos carry the largest Backstab Damage perk in the list. Lupa’s Scalper is the craftable Backstab option, made at the Blacksmith.
Armor and rings for the dagger assassin
Gear can add skill ranks on top of the points you spend, and the split is consistent. Helmets and hoods add Backstab Mastery. Gloves add Dagger Mastery. Three pieces add several of the build’s skills at once: the Gemini Ring, the Ring of the Ether and Vorgoth’s Soulbound Gloves.
| Piece | Slot | Item level | Skill ranks it adds |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gemini Ring | Ring | 5 | Backstab Mastery +1, Dagger Mastery +1, Fatal Precision +1, Thrust +1 |
| Cutthroat Gloves | Arms | 10 | Dagger Mastery +2 |
| Cutthroat Helmet | Head | 10 | Backstab Mastery +2 |
| Fowler Gloves | Arms | 15 | Dagger Mastery +2 |
| Fowler Helmet | Head | 15 | Backstab Mastery +2 |
| Assassin Gloves | Arms | 20 | Dagger Mastery +2 |
| Assassin Hood | Head | 20 | Backstab Mastery +2 |
| Hawk Helmet | Head | 20 | Backstab Mastery +1, Fatal Precision +1, Well Rested +1 |
| Frostbite Slasher Gloves | Arms | 30 | Dagger Mastery +2 |
| Frostbite Slasher Hood | Head | 30 | Backstab Mastery +2 |
| Bloodfeather Gloves | Arms | 40 | Dagger Mastery +2 |
| Bloodfeather Helmet | Head | 40 | Backstab Mastery +2 |
| Ring of the Ether | Ring | 45 | Dagger Mastery +1, Fatal Precision +3, Thrust +1, Veiled Vigor +1 |
| Sky Specter Gloves | Arms | 45 | Dagger Mastery +2 |
| Sky Specter Helmet | Head | 45 | Backstab Mastery +2 |
| Vorgoth’s Soulbound Gloves | Arms | 45 | Backstab Mastery +2, Dagger Mastery +2, Thrust +2, Veiled Vigor +1 |
The Gemini Ring is item level 5 and adds one rank each of Backstab Mastery, Dagger Mastery and Fatal Precision. The matching helmet and glove pairs run from item level 10 (Cutthroat) to 45 (Sky Specter).
Other builds
For other playstyles, see the builds from wand wizard to stealth archer and the sword and shield parry build.
