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Dungeons & Dragons	Advanced Dungeons & Dragons	-	Dragon magazine	The Dragon #26
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Thieves are quite possibly the most misused class in D&D. Many players
seem to think that all thieves are good for is picking pockets and climbing walls in
dungeons to hang from the ceiling by their toes while shooting crossbows and
dodging sword strokes right and left. Thieves belong in the city!

In a dungeon, thieves have a rather useful dodge, but they can wear only
leather armor. They can climb walls, but the ceiling is usually only about ten feet
high. They can pick pockets, but there is nobody around to rob. In the city,
however, thieves have several advantages. They are still usually suspected of
everything in sight, but if the thief uses a clever disguise (he pretends to be a
LG <Priest>, for example) people will find it hard to suspect him. Thieves
also climb walls, a handy method of evading unwanted visitors. When traveling
by roof tops, encounters are rare, blockage is impossible, and falling objects have
nowhere to fall from. Hiding in shadows is another good way to avoid pursuit
and is ideal for ambushing rich merchants. For a little variety, the thief can always
fall back on the simple pleasures of pocket picking, purse snatching and brawl
starting.

Robberies and other major crimes are where thieves really clean up. The
thief must pick a victim that is wealthy enough to be worth the effort, but unimportant
enough to be unable to cause a lot of trouble. Jewelers, coin changers,
and loan sharks are ideal victims (although they know this too, so they will quite
likely have guards or magic protections. A little research on prospective victims
won’t hurt and could prevent embarrassing situations, such as discovering the
rich spice merchant is a 27th level <Arch-Mage> in his spare time.

After the crime is attempted, (successfully or unsuccessfully!) a good thief
will always leave several clues behind, incriminating someone else. Picking a
good scapegoat is almost as important as picking a good victim. He should be
smart enough to be believed responsible for the crime, but he should be dumb
enough to not catch the real thief. The scapegoat should appear to be an
amateur so there won’t be a general panic. It is also best if the scapegoat is a
group of characters rather than a specific one (i.e., leave an orcish sword to
incriminate a group of orcs, leave a foppish hat to incriminate constables, etc.). If
the thief is spotted, a quick trip through the sewer, over a building or two, or a
short run through a large crowd will usually take care of any pursuit. The thief
should then stash his loot and disguise in 2, separate, predetermined places
and go to a tavern or inn to establish an alibi.

The richest and least prepared people around are often other players and
they should not escape an enterprising thief's attentions. Why not “borrow”
your <Priest>’s money, just for safekeeping. A good job of acting on the part of the
thief player should fool, or at least partially confuse the other players. Telling the
other players that the thief is a lawful/good magic user should postpone suspicions
for awhile, but any chaotic acts could arouse suspicions and good excuses
would be needed to explain the thief's reluctance to use spells.

When played correctly, the thief probably won’t become the most powerful
character, but he may be the richest. And the suspense involved in avoiding
detection and capture makes the thief one of the most fun and exciting characters
to play.