Rogue

[Penance]

ROGUE
Soft, well-worn black leather, hemp, and rosin.

Origin:

5mL from the Lab.

Preconceived notions:

Something about Rogue really grabbed my attention and I ordered two bottles right off the bat. I just have a feeling that this one's going to be one of the standouts of the RPG collection (for me). Leather is hit or miss, but well-worn leather notes tend to be hits. Hemp and rosin should be fine, although pine can also be hit or miss.

First sniff:

This smells almost exactly like I'd pictured. Soft, worn-in leather and gentle pine pitch (rosin is made from pine sap). It's in the same sort of family as Ranger, only with much stronger leather (of a different sort) and much less wood/pine.

Wet on skin:

The leather gets stronger while the rosin stays the same. It's a slightly woodsy leather scent. The hemp starts to come out a little at this point, giving it a subtle, hay-like sweetness.

Dry down:

The rosin intensifies as Rogue dries and I end up with a scent that's equal parts pine pitch, hemp and worn-in leather. It's a simple scent (again, like with Good, that may be because they were designed to be layered), but I like that about it. I don't always want a complicated scent. Sometimes simple is better and I think this is one of those cases.

This is a winner. The leather's not chemically in the slightest and the rosin adds a nice, resinous pine scent without being overpowering or smelling like a Christmas tree. The hemp is bordering on being just a little too strong (it starts to overpower the other notes at points during the drydown), but I like it.

The bottom line:

If you're a leather fan and like woodsy scents, this will probably be a winner for you. I have a feeling that skin chemistry is going to play a part in how strong the rosin ends up being, but for me, it's a well-balanced scent that I can smell all the notes in.

ETA: After having set for a couple of days, the hemp is much stronger and the rosin weaker in the bottle and when the oil is wet on my skin, but it's about the same once its dried completely.

[eoifemacbeth]

Absolutely gorgeous and softly sexy---equal parts soft, paper-thin vintage leather jacket and manly hemp scent (perhaps a natural shampoo/body wash, or non-perfumey aftershave). Smells like a really beautiful, uncomplicated man---a natural skin scent more than a cologne in any way---but is totally wearable by a woman.

 

After about an hour or so, this smells identical to Haunt's blend Winchester on me, the hemp mimicking the dust note in Winchester. If you like Winchester, or you wanted to try it but never got to, give Rogue a try. I think you'll love him.

[verbranden]

I love this scent so much, and I've only been testing it for a few hours so far. I only ordered an imp of this because while I was excited about the leather and hemp, the rosin made me a bit nervous. Rogue definitely strikes me as a masculine scent, not that that will stop me from wearing it regularly. The leather is definitely the main note in this, with the hemp and rosin coming in in about equal measures to balance the leather out nicely. Rogue is, as would be expected, a subtle but powerful blend with it's own intoxicating richness.

[DeCuvieri]

Imp: In the bottle Rogue is powerful. Suspected this one would probably be very manly because of the leather and rosin, and first impression seems to confirm it.

 

Wet: The aged leather is the most prominent tone by far, but it's much less boisterous as the rosin gets a chance to come through. The scent quiets down quite a bit upon application: It's still present, but it's trying to blend in a bit. Just like a rogue should do.

 

Dry: After drydown and about an hour of wear, Rogue is subtle but still lurking about. As time goes on the leather loses much of its potency and the rosin tends to take over. My skin absorbs the hemp, leaving me with lingering, very mellow pine.

 

Final Thoughts: I was looking for a sort of woodsy, adventurous woman scent when I took up Rogue and Ranger. While Ranger is heavy on the forest aspect, I think Rogue is good for getting that "I'll rob you blind and be gone before you notice" image, though for a woman I think it would have to be layered with something else. As the ingredients would imply, it's quite masculine - far more so than Ranger, which seems more unisex. I'll either end up trading it or try layering it with Good or Neutral most likely. It's a solid base oil, but I feel like it's lacking something essential.

Edited May 16, 2011 by DeCuvieri

[ajansuz]

In the imp this smelled like wet rope and worn leather to me. Very heavy on the rope scent.

 

Wet, rope stays predominant with a little waft of pine that dies off pretty quickly. The leather isn't the same as the one in Orc or Paladin. It's more like a leather jacket, or how your skin smells if you've been wearing a leather jacket all day.

 

Dry down, leather and rope duke it out with something a little sweet underneath. It has a low throw but a long last. The scent is a little more masculine than unisex, but a woman can easily pull it off. There's a cocky sort of confidence to this scent I really like. I can't wait to see how it plays with others.

[penemuel]

Quick review: this really seems to be all leather, all the time on me. It's not bad, but I wish I got some of the hemp or rosin from it. However, as I've never had a Rogue character, I'm glad of all the class scents this one was the one that didn't really work out.

 

Hours later, there's definitely a little something else - a little sweetness, maybe from the rosin? And the leather is finally calming down, but the throw is barely there. I can only smell it if I put my wrist right up to my nose. It's nice, but I'll stick with my imp.

Edited May 23, 2011 by penemuel

[filigree_shadow]

Nice. A soft, dry leather scent. Doesn't smell like shiny or new leather, it smells like well-loved leather.

 

I like it for sure.

[ModderRhu]

authentic, comfy, non-chemical smelling leather. lasts forever.

[ami226]

Yummy leather! A bit of something green. Reminds me, in a way, of Sacrifice only I think Rogue has less greenery. As it dries, the leather is further softened with something... slightly resiny?

 

Overall, I think this one would make a great layering scent for something else that needs a small kick of leather!

 

-ETA- In my opinion, the leather in this one is in the same class as the leather in Bow and Crown of Conquest!

Edited June 1, 2011 by Catseyes

[Little Bird]

I liked this when I first got it (it was a soft, brown, warm, worn leather smell), but my bottle went bad after about a year and started to smell really plasticy and nondescript perfumey. It's sort of a warm, toasted.. perfume smell with a hint of burning plastic. I'm not a fan of the oils used in the RPG line.

Edited July 9, 2013 by Little Bird

[Diva Urd]

In the vial: LEATHER! and PINE! This has potential!

 

On: More leather, less pine (though the pine does by no means vanish completely). A nice, realistic leather, without turning into biker shop, shoe polish or similar things (as some leathers do on me). It turns a bit faint upon drydown.

 

Later: Worn leather with just a hint of pine. Pretty nice, though I wouldn't call it spectacular from a perfume POV. This will make an interesting layering component, though.

[Sultaana]

I never understood the fascination with leather because no retailer or perfumer can put leather into a blend that doesn't smell terrible on me. I got rogue anyway, to round out a 6 imp sample set. A LEATHER THAT WORKS ON ME! I am over the moon with this perfume. It has that GORGEOUS hemp note that reminds me of the one I love so much in Banshee Beat and the leather doesn't smell like I just mixed too many chemicals to clean the bathtub. Gorgeous. Not too masculine either, which surprised me, and I swear to god it layers so perfectly with the sweetness of Halfling. Wow.

[steelgossamer]

In the decant: LEATHER and something a bit woodsy

Wet: LEATHER

Drydown: the hemp and rosin start to peek through the strong leather scent

Dry: This is a really strong leather scent on me. It's dry, masculine, and a touch woodsy. I think it's going to layer marvelously. Sniffing it next to Halfling is already quite nice. I look forward to trying it with Elf.

 

ETA: After about 10 minutes dry, this one smells AMAZING. Like, I want to have sex with my arm amazing.

 

Edited June 8, 2011 by steelgossamer

[a_llb]

In vial: Leather, black and thin.

Wet: The leather amps, but seems less harsh, softer than at first. A few green strands of hemp add grassy fiberousness, twining seamlessly.

Dry: The leather is starting to seem waxy or oily, maybe that is the rosin. It doesn't change the scent a whole lot, but it is noticable and really good, actually. Not really piney on me, more like unsweetened beeswax.

 

Verdict: This scent is a loner- lone leather, just about. The rosin & hemp add just enough to keep me interested in yet another leather scent.

 

In conclusion, leather lovers, look no further than the RPG line- which has six fantastic & unique leather blends for your enjoyment!

[Iceblink]

WOW. I wasn't expecting this to be so beautiful! From wet to dry it's a beautifully worn, soft, sweet leather. I am not very experienced with hemp notes (hmm...maybe I need to try Banshee Beat?) but I'm guessing the sweetness here is from the hemp. This is *really* gorgeous and although it's strong on the leather it doesn't yell MAN MAN MANLY all over the place. VERY nice. I'll give this another testing, most certainly.

[astarinel]

Not my kind of scent, but something my boyfriend might like.

 

Worn leather topped with sticky, slightly-sweet greenness. Nice and somehow a little unobtrusive, which is appropriate I guess.

[mistressfizz]

Sniff: Ooof, I am punched in the face with leather! (Or more appropriately: sneak attacked in the face by leather!) Very strong and worn leather, natural and brown.

 

Wet: This is surprisingly animalistic. It smells almost furry and has a woodsy, fertile undercurrent. It's really potent, and doesn't have the chemical note that leather scents often do.

 

Dry: This settles down in an hour or so to a beautiful, soft leather musk. It still smells very organic and reminds me of wild beasts, but it's tempered by soft woods and a hint of green. This seems more like a Ranger in personality than a Rogue scent (though I haven't tried Ranger yet, so maybe I'm mistaken). Either way, it's very pleasant once it dries and quite comforting.

[Gwydion]

In bottle: Leather dominant. This really does smell like soft worn black leather. Delicious! I’m not familiar enough with rosin in the real world to judge the scent’s accuracy, but here it is utterly lovely with the leather. The hemp is understated. I’m in love. Wet: The leather softens and the rosin rises, the effect is sweeter and gentler in the bottle, but utterly sexy and gorgeous. I need a bottle of this stuff. Dry: Still lovely and leather dominant, now with more hemp and less rosin so they balance. I don’t love it quite as much as wet, but I do love it.

[tailoredshirt]

This is a much lighter scent than I was expecting. I had to slather a bit to really smell it. On, it is sweet and piney, with some leather in the background. Not as much leather as I was expecting, but it's definitely there. It gets a bit sweeter in the drydown and ends up reminding me of U (the Mutter Museum blend). I think it is the leather/balsam combo in U that I'm finding very similar to this blend.

 

Not as much leather as I was hoping for, but I still really like this. I might do some layering to see about bringing the leather out more. Definitely a keeper!

[Urpflanze]

On my skin this is sweet hemp and dirty leather with a hint of spiciness from the rosin (sorta like the soft spice of bay or, as one might expect, just the spicy edge of pine). Such interesting sources of sweetness and spice here, not at all expected and not like anything I've smelled from the lab.

 

Finally a dark, slightly menacing, masculine scent from the lab without vetiver! Handily dispatches Iago, Highwayman and Bluebeard with a flick of his spicy daggers. With his shadowy affinities he evades the Riders, Dee, Shrunken Heads. As a pine scent I prefer it to Nero (both subtler and somehow spicier).

 

I think I may amp the rosin more than other reviewers so far cos this is so pleasantly spicy. The rosin brings back memories of opening a viola case. And with the hemp like horsehair, this really does remind me of a rogue wielding a bow...to play some mean fiddle.

 

ETA: I am not so keen on this one now. It is VERY strong and reminds me too much of instrument cases. I think I am sadly not a fan of leathers and this is definitely a leather blend. If you like it, try Captain Cully. Very similar leathers at work in these two.

Edited August 15, 2011 by Urpflanze

[GeorgeJr]

Ok , I could make this short & sweet . I think this is my new favorite BPAL ever . Seriously , I could bathe in this . It's just amazing & just how I want to smell . All the notes are perfectly balanced & all I really want to type while smelling it is mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm . It just smells that good .

[zankoku_zen]

The dominant note on wet is a worn black leather note (sort of like De Sade but softer) and it gets softer in the drydown as the rosin brings out a pine/green combination out to it.

 

It smells dark, masculine and I'm not sure if I would use it as a base for other RPG combos. I am however, intrigued, to use it with Lawful as I feel that would compliment it well.

[edenssixthday]

Rogue - This is a strong leather scent with a subtle hint of pine and something else kind of bitter and green that must be the hemp. I love the leather in it, but the other notes don't work well with my skin. It's just too bitter for my taste.

[Telamir]

Wet: Strong leather, with rosin on the back note. Being pulled up against a leather-clad dark figure in a back alley, nose pressed against the person's chest.

 

Dry: Softer, not as intense, but still amazing. The leather still dominates, with rosin and hemp playing counterpoint to it. Deep and masculine.

 

Curious as to how this would pair with Fighter.

Edited December 5, 2011 by CoyoteBlue

[captnklaus]

I love leather and was really excited to try this one, especially after reading all the reviews. Rogue is my favourite class, and I was imagining something beautifully deep and woodsy with well-worn leather.

But all I got was ... Powder? This smelled so good in the bottle, but my skin apparently doesn't like this one. At all. It just turned into a powerful powdery scent that I really don't like. Ahhh can't win em all I guess. Might try this one on my boyfriend before passing it on.