A thief's dexterity is his best asset,
but
he needs more than dexterity to perform
the skills that are unique to his class.
In
fact, his dexterity is sometimes useless
without the tools required to take advantage
of this natural ability. Observe the
creation of any 1st-level thief. Without
exception, one sees 30 gp going towards
the immediate purchase of thieves' tools.
Some of the special skills of the thief
class can only be performed by a thief
who has the proper tools; in other cases,
the thief's chance of success is improved
by the use of special equipment.
For
example, the Players Handbook
describes
opening locks
as accomplished by "picking
with tools and by cleverness, plus knowledge
and study of such items" Elsewhere
in that book, it is stated that traps
are
"nullified
by mechanical removal or by
being rendered harmless." As a last
example,
hiding in shadows
is described as a
"function of dress and practice."
In the
past, the use of these tools has been
assumed,
but never explicitly defined; they
have been referred to figuratively, but
not
numerically or realistically. As a result,
the
functions of the thief class is an aspect
of
the AD&D® game that is
arbitrary and often
misunderstood. This article discusses
some
of these ?tools of the trade? and describes
the game-related effects of their use.
Picking
Pockets
If the act of pilfering involves reaching
into a pocket, an open pouch, or the folds
of a robe, a thief uses nothing more than
his bare hands. However, sometimes the
object of his desire is fully contained
within something, and it is necessary to
slit open the bottom of a purse or cut a
couple of drawstrings to get what he's
after. A coin with part of its edge filed to
razor sharpness can be very useful at such
times. Of course, a knife
or any other
sharp-edged object cuts just as well, but a
sharpened coin is very easily concealed
and can be palmed, out of sight of the
intended victim, until the moment when
it's needed. A gold or electrum coin is too
soft to hold a sharp edge, but silver and
copper do just fine.
A thief using a sharpened coin to recover
something from inside a soft container
(purse, pouch, etc.) has the same
chance of success as for a bare-handed
pickpocketing attempt. If a thief wants to
steal something from inside a container
without slitting open the container or
cutting it loose from the victim, he must
make two consecutive, successful rolls to
pick pockets ? the first to loosen the
strings or open the purse, and the second
to retrieve what is inside. If the victim is
stationary, both rolls are made normally.
If the victim is moving and the thief must
also move to keep pace with his target, the
chance of success on either roll is half as
great as normal, rounded up to the nearest
5% (15% for a 1st-level human thief
with 15 dexterity, 55% for the same thief
at 13th level, etc.).
Under any but the most unusual of
circumstances, there is no way a thief
can
open a lock without using the item described
in the rules as "thieves" picks and
tools.? If a thief is not carrying a set
of
picks and tools, he simply is not able
to
attempt opening a lock. (This does not
negate the possibility of the thief trying
to
open the lock at a later time after he
acquires the tools, whether or not he
has
risen in experience level in the meantime.)
This set of equipment is priced at 30
gp,
and does not add to a thief?s encumbrance
when it is carried. Conceivably, a thief
might be able to open a very large and
very simple lock without using picks and
tools, but he would still need some sort
of
implement to manipulate or exert leverage
against the lock's mechanism.
Another tool that comes in handy for
opening locks is a small magnifying lens.
If at least part of the lock?s mechanism
is
exposed to view and illumination is sufficient
for the thief to see what he is doing,
the use of a magnifying lens adds 5% to
the thief's chance of success (up to a
maximum
of 99%). Using this magnifying lens
to find traps adds a 5% bonus to this
ability as well.
Even the most proficient thieves sometimes
run up against a stubborn lock
which defies their best attempts at picking.
For these occasions, a thief may carry
a small vial of metal-eating acid. Pouring
this liquid inside the lock mechanism
gives
a thief a chance of opening the lock in
3-
12 turns (this amount of time must be
allowed in the event of either success
or
failure). This chance is expressed as
a
function of an
item's ability to save vs.
acid, as
illustrated on page 80 of the
Dungeon Master's Guide (use the
?metal,
hard? category when referencing this
table), Failure to save against acid indicates
a successful opening of the lock; a successful
save means the lock is unaffected, and
hence remains unopened. Note that only
acids of an extreme potency, such as black
dragon or giant slug spittle, work on
lock
mechanisms. Since these chemicals can
only be transported in glass containers,
they are highly susceptible to damage
from bumpy passage and normal blows ?
a disadvantage the DM should keep in
mind.
While relying upon picks and tools most
of the time, a thief may sometimes employ
other, less skillful methods for opening
locks. in this case, any of the thief?s
climbing
spikes may double as a lock chisel, to
be used with a small hammer. This action
takes one turn for each attempt and may
be attempted more than once. To successfully
perform this action, a character must
roil successfully on his strength-based
ability to open doors. Since this is an
unskilled
action, it is open to all characters
and is based purely upon strength rather
than upon dexterity. Of course, this
method of opening locks is very noisy
and
increases the chance of encounters by
three times the normal figure. Note that
this action only works on padlocks and
not
on the internal workings of a door lock.
Any attempt to use this method (or the
filing method described hereafter) on
the
internal mechanisms of a door lock causes
a 40% chance per attempt of damaging the
lock, and thereby making the door unopenable
except by removing the door or
its internal mechanism (a difficult task,
requiring great effort and time).
If a thief is unable to pick a lock and
hammering the lock free is undesirable,
the thief may opt to use a file instead.
This
method is excruciatingly slow, taking
6-36
turns to complete, and attracts encounters
at twice the normal frequency. As stated
before, this action only works on padlocks
and not on the interior workings of a
door
lock. Furthermore, the availability of
files
(and other tools discussed later) varies
according to the discretion of the DM.
Availability is mainly determined by the
technological level of a fantasy society.
Finding/Removing
Traps
Finding a trap requires no special equipment,
but removing or nullifying a trap is
rarely performed with one?s bare hands.
If
the trap is of an intricate nature or
if it is
combined with some other mechanism
(such as a poisoned-needle trap placed
within the lock of a chest), the thief
must
use picks and tools to have a normal
chance of disengaging or nullifying the
trap. If he attempts to remove a trap
with
his bare hands when it would be more
prudent to use tools, his chance of success
is half as great as normal (rounded up
to
the nearest 5%).
Moving
Silently
The chances of success given for this
ability assume that the thief is barefoot
or
wearing soft-soled boots -- the latter
of
which, from this standpoint, are considered
equipment. If a thief is wearing hardsoled
boots or any other footgear that
might make noise when impacting with a
hard surface, his chance of being able
to
move silently is half the normal chance
of
success (rounded up to the nearest 5%).
A
thief can offset this disadvantage by
choosing
to move at half speed (6? per round
instead of 12"), in which case his chance
of
success is the normal amount. (This benefit
for moving at half speed does not apply
when the thief is not wearing hard-soled
footgear.)
In cases where moving silently is essential,
the creaky wooden floor of a sleeping
merchant's
room can be extremely frustrating.
To minimize this problem, the
thief may decide to carry a pair of 3?
leather straps; the placement of these
straps distributes the thief?s weight
over a
larger area, thus preventing the annoying
creaks. The thief's movement, however,
is
slowed to half speed (as above), as he
must
pause repeatedly to move the strap behind
him to the front of the one on which he
now treads.
Hiding
in Shadows
Hand-in-hand with moving silently is the
thief?s ability to remain undetected in
areas of poor lighting. Some thieves rely
heavily on their natural skills to avoid
altercations and often forgo the use of
armor in an operation. In these instances,
the thief may opt to wear a dark-colored
utility suit to blend into darkened areas
better. This light-weight linen outfit
is
similar to that used by the ninja
in an <cf. genin>
Oriental Adventures campaign;
it can
easily be stored in a regular backpack
or
worn under normal clothing. This outfit
provides an additional 5% to a thief?s
ability
to hide in shadows, with a maximum
chance of 99%.
Few things are more bothersome to an
exceptionally pale-skinned thief than
to
have the moonlight glint off the thief?s
milky skin while attempting to hide from
prowling guards. To darken those exposed
regions of the body, a lump of charcoal
or
a small bag of chimney soot can be a
thief?s most inexpensive friend. Using
soot
or charcoal lends a thief an additional
2%
to the ability to hide in shadows, with
a
cumulative maximum chance (when a
utility suit is worn as well) of 99%.
Identification
of a thief decorated in this manner
is also made more difficult.
Hear
Noise
This action is usually performed by
placing an ear against a door or wall
to
hear what is on the other side. In certain
circumstances, however, a thief may also
rely on a small brass or copper hearing
cone to amplify otherwise undiscernable
sounds. Using such a device gives a thief
a
bonus of 5% to his ability to hear noises.
A
thin wire mesh over the wide end also
prevents ear seekers from making their
way into the thief?s inner ear.
Climbing
Walls
For climbing purposes, a thief?s kit might
include a small hook secured to a 20?
length of fine line (possibly braided horsehair).
This climbing aid can bear the
weight of an unarmored thief (200 lbs., or
2,000 gp weight) and an additional 250 gp
of encumbrance. It is easily concealed and
difficult to spot when left in place on a
wall. Vastly greater weights can be supported
by a regular grappling hook and
rope; this tool is, however, much bulkier
and much more obvious in its use.
Ten small climbing spikes can be included
in the kit, which the thief then
hammers into handy cracks to facilitate
climbing smooth surfaces. Lastly, tiger
claws, similar to the Japanese nekode, may
be added to the thieves? kit to provide a
surer grip on walls and other surfaces.
[For further information on the use of
these tools in climbing and their modifications
to the ability to climb walls, consult
Vince Garcia's article "The Art of Climbing
Walls" in this issue. — Editor]
Beyond these, a thief has a variety of
optional tools to aid him in his profession.
For example, a human thief needs a light
source for those times he plies his trade in
a darkened house. One or two candles can
be tucked away in his kit, along with a
tinderbox. For a price, the thief may also
invest in a miniature shuttered lantern
which casts a tight beam for a distance of
15?, keeping ambient light to a minimum,
and burning for two turns per load of oil.
A good utilitarian knife has its place in
the thieves' kit, as does a lump of clay or
beeswax for fashioning an impression of a
key to be duplicated.
If a thief can get a chest with an difficult
lock back to his stronghold, he may have a
set of drills and chisels for removing the
lock. Removing a lock in this manner takes
from 1-4 turns and spring any concealed
traps that have not been removed from
the lock prior to this activity. If the thief
has the money and the patience, he may
purchase the proper equipment for fashioning
keys (including files, molds, blanks,
etc.), with a chance of success equal to his
open-locks percentage. Of course, the thief
won?t know if the duplicated key fits the
lock until he actually tries it. The availability
of drills and key duplication materials
depends upon the discretion of the DM
and upon the technology of the fantasy
campaign in question.
The following table suggests the cost and
encumbrance of each item listed. Generally
speaking, the thieves? basic kit consists
of picks and tools; all other equipment
listed herein are optional additions to that
kit.
It pays to know what you're getting for
your 30 gp.
| Item | Cost | Encumbrance |
| Belt pouch (to store picks) | 1 gp | 10 gp |
| Sharpened silver coin | 1 sp | 1 gp |
| Picks and wires | 30 gp | 0 |
| Magnifying lens | 7 gp | 1 gp |
| Metal-eating acid | 100 gp | 10 gp |
| File | 5 gp | 5 gp |
| Leather straps | 10 sp | 50 gp |
| Boots, high, soft | 1 gp | 30 gp |
| Boots, low, soft | 8 sp | 30 gp |
| Utility suit | 5 gp | 25 gp |
| Charcoal/soot | 1 cp/free | 5 gp |
| Hearing cone | 5 gp | 5 gp |
| Climbing hook and line | 10 gp | 50 gp |
| 10 spikes and hammer | 2 gp | 60 gp |
| Tiger claws, pair | 30 sp | 5 gp |
| Candle | 1 sp | 5 gp |
| Tinderbox | 1 gp | 2 gp |
| Miniature lantern | 20 gp | 30 gp |
| Knife and sheath | 1 gp | 1 gp |
| Clay/beeswax | 1 sp | 3 gp |
| Drill and chisels | 75 gp | 350 gp |
| Keymaking set | 150 gp | 250 gp |
