Thief

Thieves come in all sizes and shapes, ready to live off the fat of the land by the easiest means possible. In some ways they are the epitome of roguishness. The profession of thief is not honorable, yet it is not entirely dishonorable, either. At their best, the thief is a romantic hero fired by noble purpose but a little wanting in strength of character. Such a person may truly strive for good, but continually run afoul of temptation. The thief can have any alignment except lawful good; many are at least partially neutral.

The thief's prime requisite is Dexterity; a character must have a minimum score of 9 to qualify for the class. While high numbers in other scores (particularly Intelligence) are desirable, they are not necessary. A thief with a Dexterity score of 16 or more gains a 10% bonus to the experience points they earn.

Special Benefits
Thieves have the full selection of rogue skills. To determine the initial value of each skill, start with the base scores listed on the table below. To these base scores, add (or subtract) any appropriate modifiers for race, Dexterity, and armor worn.

The scores arrived at in the preceding paragraph do not reflect the effort a thief has spent honing their skills. To simulate this extra training, all thieves at 1st level receive 60 discretionary percentage points that they can add to their base scores. No more than 30 points can be assigned to any single skill. Other than this restriction, the player can distribute the points however they want.

In addition to the base percentages listed below, demihuman characters and characters with high or low Dexterity scores have adjustments to their base numbers. Some characters may find that, after adjustments, they have negative scores. In this case, the character must spend points raising their skill percentage to at least 1% before they can use the skill. (Some races just aren't very good at certain things!)

Each time the thief rises a level in experience, the player receives another 30 points to distribute. No more than 15 points per level can be assigned to a single skill, and no skill can be raised above 95 percent, including all adjustments for Dexterity, race, and armor. The DM can rule that some portion of the points earned must be applied to skills used during the course of the adventure.

Backstab
Thieves are weak in toe-to-toe hacking matches, but they are masters of the knife in the back. When attacking someone by surprise and from behind, a thief can improve their chance to successfully hit (+4 modifier for rear attack and negate the target's shield and Dexterity bonuses) and greatly increase the amount of damage their blow causes.

To use this ability, the thief must be behind the intended victim, and the victim must be unaware that the thief intends to attack them. If an enemy sees the thief, hears them approach from a blind side, or is warned by another, they are not caught unaware, and the backstab is handled like a normal attack (although bonuses for a rear attack still apply). Opponents in battle will often notice a thief trying to maneuver behind them - the first rule of fighting is to never turn your back on an enemy! However, someone who isn't expecting to be attacked (a friend or ally, perhaps) can be caught unaware even if they know the thief is behind them.

The multiplier given in the table below applies to the amount of damage before modifiers for Strength or weapon bonuses are added. The weapon's standard damage is multiplied by the value given in the table. Then Strength and magical weapon bonuses are added.

Backstabbing does have limitations. First, the damage multiplier applies only to the first attack made by the thief, even if multiple attacks are possible. Once a blow is struck, the initial surprise effect is lost. Second, the thief cannot use it on every creature. The victim must be generally humanoid. Part of the skill comes from knowing just where to strike. A thief could backstab an ogre, but they wouldn't be able to do the same to an otyugh. The victim must also have a definable back (which leaves out most slimes, jellies, oozes, and the like). Finally, the thief has to be able to reach a significant target area. To backstab a giant, the thief would have to be standing on a ledge or window balcony.

Thieves' Cant
Thieves' cant is a special form of communication known by all thieves and their associates. It is not a distinct language; it consists of slang words and implied meanings that can be worked into any language. The vocabulary of thieves' cant limits its use to discussing things that interest thieves: stolen loot, easy marks, breaking and entering, mugging, confidence games, and the like. It is not a language, however. Two thieves cannot communicate via thieves' cant unless they know a common language. The cant is useful, however, for identifying fellow cads and bounders by slipping a few tidbits of lingo into a normal conversation.

Use Scrolls
At 10th level, a thief gains a limited ability to use magical and priest scrolls. A thief's understanding of magical writings is far from complete, however. The thief has a 25% chance to read the scroll incorrectly and reverse the spell's effect. This sort of malfunction is almost always detrimental to the thief and their party. It could be as simple as accidentally casting the reverse of the given spell or as complex as a foul-up on a fireball scroll, causing the ball of flame to be centered on the thief instead of its intended target. The exact effect is up to the DM.

Restrictions
Thieves have a limited selection of weapons. Most of their time is spent practicing thieving skills. The allowed weapons are club, dagger, dart, hand crossbow, knife, lasso, short bow, sling, broad sword, long sword, short sword, and staff.

A thief can wear leather, studded leather, or padded armor; they cannot use shields. When wearing any allowed armor other than leather, the thief's abilities are penalized (see the table in the Rogue Skills article).

Name Level
Once a thief reaches 10th level, their reputation is such that they can attract followers - either a gang of scoundrels and scalawags, or a group of scouts eager to learn from a reputed master. The thief attracts 4d6 of these fellows. They are generally loyal to them, but a wise thief is always suspicious of their comrades.

Thieves do not build castles or fortresses in the usual sense. Instead, they favor small, fortified dwellings, especially if the true purpose of the buildings can easily be disguised. A thief might, for example, construct a well-protected den in a large city behind the facade of a seedy tavern or old warehouse. Naturally, the true nature of the place will be a closely guarded secret! Thieves almost always build their strongholds in or near cities, since that is where they ply their trades most lucratively.

This, of course, assumes that the thief is interested in operating a band of thieves out of their stronghold. Not all thieves have larceny in their hearts, however. If a character devoted their life to those aspects of thieving that focus on scouting, stealth, and the intricacies of locks and traps, they could build an entirely different sort of stronghold - one filled with the unusual and intriguing objects they have collected during their adventurous life. Like any thief's home, it should blend in with its surroundings; after all, a scout never advertises their whereabouts. It might be a formidable maze of rooms, secret passages, sliding panels, and mysterious paraphernalia from across the world.

Thieves tend to be very jealous of their territory. If more than one thief starts a gang in the same area, the result is usually a war. The feud continues until one side or the other is totally eliminated or forced to move its operation elsewhere.