Welcome Journeyman to the Moonshadow Guild house in Wise Lantern. You career choice is a wise one and wider than you think.............
If you are an adventurer who loves the thrill and freedom of the Thief profession then this is the place for you. The first thing you should get streight in any campaign ( with those uppity fighter types ) is that the class of "thug" or "ruffian" is a fighter profession and not a Thief. A group of Thief, no matter how many, are not an effective force to waylay travellers with. No, instead the theif is the master of disguise and shadows whose stealth can strike fear into Noble and peasent alike.
It took me along time to establish the theif in the campaign I have played in. Before the begiuinning of time when I played D&D the Thief was percieved by players and DM to be spineless and weak. Though other classes could become lords the Thief was denied and rail roaded into creating a theifs guild hold up in a cave or some other out of the way place. The D&D companion rules and Unearthed Arcana changed this greatly. The Thief Acrobat, a very exciting profession was born ( although skill levels were slashed ) and the joust rules meant that wrestling rules existed. The wrestling rules are based on the Dex attribute so theifs could compete ( and usually win ) against Warriors and share in the fun and glory of competition. DMs should not stop Thiefs from wearing armour of any kind, to wear armour negates the use of most theif skills and makes the Thief a poor fighter but in Ad&d theifs can attain high level and take up office, hence combat is necessary. Remember! Thief is a profession, and makes for a versitile character. Having theif skills does not mean that this has to be your job always. Feel free to at higher levels to compete for Noble titles or become a merchant, either of these career paths can be aided greatly by a Thiefs contacts or skills. A Thief who gains Noble title should were armour to lead his troops, as any other noble. The armour limitation should not be the same as for magic users as Thiefs can defeat in combat fighters of lower level, or equel level if aided by magic items. This does not make them fighters and in play this will be bourne out, on adventures for instance a Thief cannot climb in and out of armour quickly and logistically it would create a nightmare anyway. Armour is for use in certain circumstances only, there should be little argument with the DM on this issue if you are wise and realistic about your expectation and demands.
If you wish always to be a Thief then at higher levels try to remember that the theif is more panther than cat. You may wish to create havoc and pull off high profile thefts or you may opt for something else. The theif is a perfect spy. With money he/she can mix in influential circles and set up their own spy net work which can either be independent or allied to a king or lord. Thiefs can also operate as mercenaries, working as scouts, sabatours or raiders disrupting caravans. In these circumstances the Thief will usually work in tandom with rangers though not always.
So I guess the message is that the Thief is a very interesting and dynamic character to play. The introduction of character kits such as swashbuckler gives added and exciting dimension to the class as a whole ( so much so that my fellow players have develpoed strong ties to this class after years of indifferance ). So if any DMs are listening this could add some spice to your campaign.
Thief is a profession but when asked by and NPC "what do you do" it would be stupid to answer " oh I am a Thief!". hence a Thief will travel under the guise of being a scout , a merchant or some other profession. This is just plane common sence.
Guide Lines to make the ultimate Thief!
1. Their is no reason why a Thief cannot be heroic.
2. Never shy away from a fight ( keep your back to a wall and use two weapons with your high Dex ).
3. Backstab is a powerful weapon if used correctly. A magic weapon with multiple damage for backstab can kill or cripple very strong opponents saving the group alot of trouble.
4. Use your speed and dexterity to perform daredevil manuvers and leaps giving the group the benefit of someone who can readily out flank opponents.
5. Take risks! It is adventure after all and the act of Thiefing requires courage ( not a profession for the faint of heart ).
6. When in towns with the other PCs take the opertunity to burgle merchants. Use the Fighter as backup and the Wizards magic to the fullest. Remember its your operation and the group can expect only about 50% of the booty between them. Otherwise do the job yourself or with as many of the group that agree your terms.
7. Get proficient at Blind fighting, firing a bow from horseback and choose something else interesting in line with the career choice you intend to follow later, i.e. Sea navigation for Merchant Prince or Etiquitte if you want to mix with Nobles ( or become one ).
8. When faced with an entry problem think of a solution that may not be obvious or combines more that one of your skills or stats.
9. Thrown weapons are "Thiefy" but no good when the Goblin poo hits the fan, I recommend Rapier and Main Gauche ( for the off hand ), with amdidextrous skill, you double your attacks and you dex up attacks per round anyway.
10. When creating a Thief Dex is not all. Pay attention to WIZ and CHR, both very useful to a Thief.
11. Neutral Good is a decent alignment for a Thief. It can be reasoned that their are such things a "victomless crimes", or the rich have enough to spare. But mainly it opens doors both initially and later on as all campaign ,those written commercially at any rate, cast the charaters in the role of fighting for good.
A Thief ability that has fallen by the wayside is the Theifs cant. Many people are confused as to what it is and how its use. It should be assumed that the cant is a slang dialect and used as this with a few small changes.
I have created these rules for Guilds which allow the calculation and customisation of Guild abilities. They are flexible rules with created to allow speed of play. They can used with both PC and NPC guilds and have their uses across a wode spectrum of campaign types. As they are new I would appreciate any feed back and your suggestions on extra abilities and add-ons.
Here are some origional rules for Shadow Heraldry, a must for every thief and guild in the Realms.
