ROGUE - THIEF Description: Thieves come in all sizes and shapes, ready to live off the fat of the land by the easiest means possible. In many ways, they are the epitome of roguishness. The profession of Thief is not honorable, and yet it is not entirely dishonorable either. At their best, Thieves can be almost romantic heroes fired by a noble purpose but a little wanting in strength of character. Such a person may strive for good but continually run afoul of temptation. At their worst, Thieves are the very dregs of society, preying on the weak, the helpless, and the defenseless for their own benefit. Most Thieves fall somewhere in between these extremes, but all of them operate under a certain surety that they have been wronged somehow and that the world owes them a living; hence, their crimes are (or can be) justified in some way, if often simply by the monetary rewards that accrue through a Thief's life of crime. Requirements: Thieves use six-sided hit dice and the THAC0 progression and saving throw tables of Priests. Thieves begin play with 2 weapon and 4 non- weapon proficiency slots and gain new weapon and non-weapon proficiency slots every four levels. Thieves must have a score of at least 9 in Dexterity and can be of any alignment except Lawful Good. All races except half-ogres, aasimar, gold elves, and wild elves can produce thieves. Weapons and Armor: Thieves can theoretically wear any armor they wish, though they suffer significant penalties to their thieving abilities when wearing any armor other than leather (and conversely gain certain bonuses when wearing no armor whatsoever). Thieves also sometimes wear padded armor, studded leather, or elven chain, but the penalties associated with heavier armor tend to make it more trouble than it is worth. Thieves cannot use shields. The basic thief weapon selection includes: blowgun, bolas, bow (short), club (any except great club), crossbow (hand, light), dagger/knife (any), dart, garrote, lasso, net, sap, sling, staff, sword (short), whip, and wrist razor. A Thief wearing studded leather or lighter armor (or elven chain) can wield a weapon in each hand without penalty, as a Ranger is able to do. Thieves wearing heavier armor for some reason suffer normal penalties for fighting with a weapon in each hand. Thief Abilities and Modifiers: A Thief can select any ten thieving abilities at 1st level (note that Thief kits have a preselected set of skills, some with bonuses or penalties). In addition to these initial thieving abilities, a Thief can select one additional thief ability when he or she reaches 3rd level and another every three levels thereafter, until all skills are known. A Thief begins with base scores in all abilities plus 60 discretionary points at 1st level and then gains 30 discretionary points per level thereafter. A Thief cannot spend more than half of his or her allotment of discretionary points on any one skill at any level. Special Benefits: Thieves are generally ill-suited for toe-to-toe combat with fighters and other more skillful combatants, but they do have a variety of unique offensive, defensive, and information-gathering abilities that make them very valuable allies and comrades. Backstab: In any situation where a Thief can attack from surprise against a basically humanoid foe of size L or smaller, he or she can carefully strike so as to inflict massive damage against that target. In practice, the Thief gains a +4 bonus to hit when attacking from surprise, and in addition the Thief multiplies damage as follows: Level Damage Multiplier 1-4 x2 5-8 x3 9-12 x4 13-16 x5 17-20 x6 21+ x7 The damage multiplier applies only to the base damage dice of the weapon being used, not to any other modifiers or adjustments. Note that some Thief kits are more proficient at backstabbing than others, and knowledge of the Anatomy non- weapon proficiency will increase a Thief's effective level by one for the purpose of determining his or her proficiency at backstabbing. In addition, a successful Backstab attack by a Thief on a basically humanoid creature of size L or smaller has a percentage chance equal to the Thief's level to instantly kill the victim. If the defender is of a higher level than the Thief, then this difference is subtracted from the Thief's instant kill chance. Size H creatures can be attacked with a Backstab but will suffer only half the normal damage multiplier (rounding up) and cannot be instantly killed. Likewise, non-humanoid targets likewise halve the backstab multiplier (hence, a non-humanoid size H creature would suffer one-quarter the normal damage multiplier) and cannot be instantly killed. Size G targets cannot be effectively backstabbed, nor can amorphous creatures (e.g., elementals, gray ooze). Note that size S Thieves (e.g., dwarves, gnomes, and halflings) can backstab normally against size M opponents but may backstab at only half their normal effectiveness against both size L and size H targets. Enhanced Surprise: Thieves gain surprise on others more often and are less likely to be themselves surprised than other character classes. Thieves impose an automatic -2 penalty to enemy surprise rolls if they are alone (i.e., at least 90 feet from a party of companions) or with other stealthy creatures. Even in company with others, they apply a -1 surprise penalty to enemies, and it is possible for a Thief to surprise an opponent, even though the rest of the party may not gain surprise. Note that it is possible for a Thief to increase this penalty to enemy surprise rolls through the use of the Hide in Shadows and Move Silently abilities. Thieves are always alert to danger and attuned to their immediate surroundings. As a result, they have a 5% per level chance to receive a 'warning tingle' or sense that things are somehow amiss whenever they are about to be confronted with a surprise situation. This chance is doubled if the creatures in question are not Thieves or similar very stealthy creatures or are not using magical or other extraordinary means to mask their presence (e.g., invisibility, silence 15' r., cloak or boots of elvenkind). If the check is successful, the Thief gains a +2 bonus to avoid surprise, and if not surprised he or she also gains a -2 bonus to initiative for the first round of combat. This 'warning tingle' can even awaken a Thief from normal (but not magical) sleep, and thus if the check is made a sleeping Thief is entitled to a normal surprise roll as if awake, with the bonuses described above. Note that Thieves of 10th level or above have developed a keen awareness that enables them to spot hidden, invisible, duo-dimensional, astral, ethereal, or out-of-phase creatures within 10 yards. The chance of success is 5% per level, and a Thief can check for hidden creatures in the same round he or she undertakes another action, though this check applies a +2 initiative penalty to other actions in the same round. If the check is successful, the Thief is able to note the location of all such hidden creatures and can track their movements as long as they remain within 10 yards of him or her (attacks against such creatures, if possible, still suffer the normal -4 penalty to hit). This ability does not reveal anything about the nature of creatures detected except for their general size category. It merely allows him or her to note their presence, position, and movements. This ability also does not reveal disguised creatures or the intentions of potentially hostile individuals within plain sight. Evaluate Target: Thieves of all sorts also gain an uncanny ability to assess the general power of an opponent through observation of subtle body language and other cues. Likewise, they can take complete inventory of an individual's belongings (especially weapons) with just a few moments of examination, checking especially for concealed items, the better to evaluate their value as a potential mark for later larceny. The ability to Evaluate Target can generally only be used with respect to humanoid targets (others at DM's option), and it requires a Thief to spend a full round of uninterrupted observation, though this may be done while conversing with the potential mark or appearing to engage in other tasks. The chance of success of this ability is 10% + 5% per level of the Thief. A successful roll allows the Thief to check for one of the following things that round: - Character class (including subclass and kit) - Character level (this will be correct to within ±2 levels, though exact information is not revealed) - Character race/nationality/place of origin (culture, nation, and sometimes even city of origin) - Concealed items (including general size, location, and type of hidden weapons or caches of stuff on a person (e.g., hidden within or beneath clothing, stashed within easy reach beneath a table nearby), though not contents of a container (e.g., a scroll case hidden in the lining of a backpack might be noted, but not what is inside the main section of the backpack nor what is inside the scroll case)) - Hostile intentions (general level of hostility--low, medium, or high--toward the Thief and any allies) - Social class/occupation (general profession, though not place of employment or specific title) Additional checks can be made with further time spent observing the mark, with an additional piece of information gained with each successful roll. Note that further attempts to recheck for the same piece of information will always give the same result as the original check. If the check is failed, no information is gained. If a natural 96 or higher is rolled, the Thief has badly misjudged the mark in some way. If the Thief attempts to assess a disguised target, the skill roll is penalized by 25% (50% for a magical illusion), but a successful check indicates that the Thief sees through the disguise and gets a true assessment. If the roll would have succeeded but for the penalty, then the Thief is able to determine that the subject is disguised but cannot gain additional information. Guild Association: Through their training into the class, all Thieves have a certain association with a Thieves' Guild, whether or not they are official members. In the course of this training all Thieves learn how to access street- level contacts for information and rumors, how to quickly evaluate a pile of loot to find the best items, and a set of secret signs, recognition signals, and code phrases for interacting with other Thieves, and this is reflected in their Bonus proficiencies of Information Gathering, Language (Modern--Thieves' Cant), and Looting. Thieves who actually become members of a Thieves' Guild are entitled to other benefits accruing to members, though they often must also pay dues to the Guildmaster and may have other responsibilities associated with guild membership. Knockout: If a Thief is wielding a blunt weapon, he or she can attempt a knockout blow against a target not more than twice his or her own height. The Thief must make a called shot to the head, applying a -8 penalty on the to hit roll (note that an unarmored head is only AC 10). If the Thief scores a hit, the blow inflicts half normal damage and half temporary damage (temporary damage is regained with a full turn of uninterrupted rest) and the victim must save vs. petrification or be rendered unconscious for 2d8 rounds. The victim's saving throw should be modified by the difference between the his or her level and the Thief's level, as a penalty if the Thief is higher level and as a bonus if the Thief is lower level. Read Magical Writings: Any Thief of 10th level or above who possesses the Read Languages skill can attempt to read and activate magical scrolls of any type (priest or wizard). He or she must first attempt to interpret the contents of the scroll by making a Read Languages check at half the normal chance of success. If this roll is failed, the scroll is useless to the Thief. If successful, he or she can read and use the spells contained on the scroll at any time, though there is a 25% chance that any attempt to cast spells from a scroll will result in some sort of magical mishap (often detrimental to the Thief) due to his or her incomplete understanding of the magical forces being activated. This chance of failure is reduced by 1% per level of the Thief over 10th. Special Hindrances: None. Bonus Proficiencies: Information Gathering, Language (Modern--Thieves' Cant), Looting Preferred Proficiencies: any Rogue ***DISCLAIMER*** As with all postings by me of classes or races, it should be noted that portions of the information contained herein were inspired by or derived from information in published works of TSR, Inc., and may contain references to those works, quotations or passages of text (especially in the area of 'Character Description', where applicable sections from TSR works were often carried over more or less intact into my campaign world), or particular powers or abilities invented by TSR staff writers. No relationship with TSR, Inc., is to be implied by this use, nor is any attempt being made to solicit profit or remuneration of any kind. I have read the TSR Online Policy document, and have tried to accommodate the stipulations contained therein. In instances where I have lifted an essentially complete class or race without significant alteration, I have not included these in my postings but instead have inserted a reference to the appropriate D&D sourcebook for those curious in including it in their campaign. Only variations that include a significant component of original work, alteration, or reformulation (including the compositing elements from various TSR sources into new combinations) of have been included in this set of postings. Jason Eric Nelson < tjaden@u.washington.edu >