My rogue is like one of the most entertaining characters Ive played. My opinion is that at least one level of stealth is essential for an assassin-type rogue. True, there are cutscenes, and times you are detected, but the rest of the time it really comes in handy for scouting out the coming battle and situation, and maybe getting right behind that archer or spellcaster.
Laying traps is like poison - true you dont really need it, but it can make a noticeable difference when used. I like em. I could have sworn I saw in the description on the traps skill that it aids in detection too, btw, in fact that's what helped solidify my decision to start dropping points in it in the first place iirc.
I initially started with an archer-type rogue, i was essentially making a ranger who could pick locks. Then, I read a "rogue theory" thread somwhere, where a player basically laid it out as "if youre going to play a rogue, use their archetypical rogue skills (poison,sneaking,traps,backstabbing,stealing) to the max or youre wasting their potential. Rogues are meant to be primarily backstabbers, dagger wielders with a bow as a backup weapon"
I thought about it, and after playing both types (in other games too) I have to agree. Poison, grenades, laying traps, the thrill of sneaking up behind just to stun and poison w/ a nice critical backstab is great fun. Plus, all you need to do is penetrate (a rogue specialty) and armor doesnt mean a whole lot once the poison starts!
Plus, the archery tree in this game is so utterly boring….