A NEW CHARACTER TYPE FOR DUNGEONS & DRAGONS: THE THIEF! by Gary Gygax [From "The Great Plains Game Players Newsletter" #9 (May 1974, pp 8-9)] Recently I received a telephone call from Gary Schweitzer who hales from sunny California. It isn't all that sunny out there, however, for are many dungeon expeditions regularly being led beneath the grim pile of the castles which are scattered throughout that land. Anyway, during the course of our conversation he mentioned that his group was developing a new class of character - _thieves_. Gary gave me a few details of how they were considering this character type, and from these I have constructed tentative rules for the class. These rules have _not_ be tested and should be treated accordingly. _CHARACTERS_: There are now four (4) main classes of characters. Fighting Man Magic-Users Clerics Thieves _Thieves_: This class is different from any of the others. Thieves are generally not meant to fight, although they are able to employ magic swords and daggers (but none of the other magical weaponry), and the only armor they can wear is leathern. They have no spells such as magic-users and clerics are able to employ, but they do have certain unique abilities: Open locks (by picking or even foiling magical closures) Removal of small trap devices (such as poisoned needles) Climb almost sheer surfaces rapidly, up or down Steal items by stealth and/or sleight-of-hand Strike silently from behind Listen for noise behind a closed door Move with stealth Hide in shadows Thieves are always _neutral_. Their prime requisite is _dexterity_. Men, Dwarves, Elves, or Hobbits may become thieves. +--------------------+------+------------+------+---------------+ |Thieves | Hit |Open Locks/ | Hear | Move Silently | | | Dice |Remove Traps|Noise |Hide in Shadows| +--------------------+------+------------+------+---------------+ |Apprentice 0| 1 | 15%/10% | 1-2 | 20%/10% | +--------------------+------+------------+------+---------------+ |Footpad 1200| 1+1 | 20%/15% | 1-2 | 25%/15% | +--------------------+------+------------+------+---------------+ |Robber 2400| 2 | 25%/20% | 1-3 | 30%/20% | +--------------------+------+------------+------+---------------+ |Burglar 4800| 2+1 | 35%/30% | 1-3 | 35%/25% | +--------------------+------+------------+------+---------------+ |Cutpurse 9600| 3 | 40%/35% | 1-3 | 45%/35% | +--------------------+------+------------+------+---------------+ |Sharper 20000| 3+1 | 45%/40% | 1-3 | 55%/45% | +--------------------+------+------------+------+---------------+ |Pilferer 40000| 4 | 55%/50% | 1-4 | 60%/50% | +--------------------+------+------------+------+---------------+ |Master P'r. 60000| 4+1 | 65%/60% | 1-4 | 65%/55% | +--------------------+------+------------+------+---------------+ |Thief 85000| 5 | 75%/70% | 1-4 | 75%/65% | +--------------------+------+------------+------+---------------+ |Master Thief 115000| 5+1 | 85%/80% | 1-4 | 85%/75% | +--------------------+------+------------+------+---------------+ |M.T., 2nd 230000| 6 | 95%/90% | 1-5 | 95%/85% | +--------------------+------+------------+------+---------------+ |M.T., 3rd 345000| 6+1 | 100%/95% | 1-5 | 100%/90% | +--------------------+------+------------+------+---------------+ _THE THIEF!_ (continued) A "Master Thief 4th level" would have seven dice for accumulated hits, a 100% chance to remove traps, and a 95% chance to remain undetected when hiding or moving through shadows, gaining these advantages when 460,000 experience points had been accumulated. At the 5th level a Master- Thief would have 7 +1 hit dice, _always_ hear noise, and always be able to hide without being seen provided he wasn't observed prior to hiding, and there were shadows, of course. Another 115,000 experience points would be required to go from 4th to 5th level Master Thief. _Other Possible Considerations_: Third level thieves (Robber and above) are able to read languages, so treasure maps can be understood by them without recourse to a spell. Ninth level thieves (Thief and above) are able to understand magical writings, so if they discover a scroll they are able to employ any spells thereon, excluding clerical spells. _Example of a Thief in Action_: Assume that a fifth level thief (Cutpurse) is a member of an expedition aimed at looting a known treasure on a dungeon level. After the guardian of the treasure has been dealt with, the thief goes into the area and examines several chests in the room. He notes that two have traps - which he has a 35% chance of successfully removing. He succeeds on the first, and a vial of poisonous gas is removed; however he cannot open the lock (the referee rolled above 40%) so it must be forced open -- a very time-consuming process. Failure to remove a trap, incidentally, activates it with regard to the thief and any others within its range. After lucking out on his second chest all around, the party is heading back when a slight detour takes them past a monster which immediately goes into persuit of the adventurers. As the party dasher around a corner to throw off the persuit, the thief remains in hiding. If the monster fails to notice him (35% chance) he can then slip into its lair and snatch the loot while it is elsewhere. This same Cutpurse later sees a man with some item he desires. His chance of removing the object, be it from the person of the owner or from his immediate vicinity, is 45%, the same likelihood as he has of moving with absolute silence. If the thief strikes silently from behind he will do two dice of damage for every four levels he as attained, minimum damage of two dice, and hit probabilities from behind should be increased by 20% (+4 on numbers shown to hit). Attack Ability, Alternative Combat System: For purposes of attack probability only treat Thieves (class) as Clerics, advancing probabilities in four levels/group. .