Rogues stealing from their own party

[werk]

This is nicely wrapped up in my House Rule #1: Players may not roll dice against other Players. It covers a lot more problems than theft.

Obviously this is out the window if the character is dominated or NPC'd in any way.

I've seen a disgusting amount of lost time, and gaming groups, to this sort of infighting, and I won't have it in games I run. If you are not a team player...the adventure calls for a team, it's not solo, so roll a new character or change your head.

 

[kigmatzomat]

IMC the rogue occassionally grabs things first and doesn't mention them until much, much later. It's not so much that he's trying to hide stuff from the party as he is focused on making sure they get the item. Once has this item he's looking at how to grab that item and isn't so concerned about mentioning what he's picked up.

He's been pretty good about adding his unmentioned acquisitions to the pile when it comes time to appraise & identify stuff. Of course, that could be b/c one gem he acquired without mentioning for a long period of time happened to be a soulgem with an angry spirit that tried to kill the party. In this case, the rogue player didn't even remember what he'd grabbed from the wizard's table beyond "shiny things" so it wasn't an intentional omission.

The party figures if the rogue wants to carry some of the loot for a while, it's okay. Plus they have an "audit" policy; anytime the rogue is unconscious the rest of the party will check his pockets & bags before waking him up. If he's been packing anything too nifty without mentioning it, the rest of the party will give him grief.

 

[lukelightning]

There is no thief class in 3.5. They are rogues. A thief is a criminal. Most adventurers don't go around saying "hey, we're looking for shoplifters and muggers to be our friends."

if a thief is not needed why do they have the class? why do adventuring parties ask them to join the group?

 

[diaglo]

There is no thief class in 3.5. They are rogues. A thief is a criminal. Most adventurers don't go around saying "hey, we're looking for shoplifters and muggers to be our friends."

there was no thief class in OD&D until Supplement I Greyhawk (1975)

i agree there shouldn't be one. mostly cuz of what is mentioned in this thread.

why bring a class into a game if its purpose is to ruin the group trust. much like the paladin, ranger, monk, and all the other classes not meant for a varied group.

 

[Blackthorne]

If a player thinks that his rogue HAS to be a thief and his thief HAS to be a raving kleptomaniac, then...well, it´s his character, not mine.

 

[gizmo33]

if a thief is not needed why do they have the class? why do adventuring parties ask them to join the group?

I've NEVER seen PCs invite an NPC thief to join the group. In fact, when NPC thieves encounter a group, they tend not to advertise their professions. For example, the thief in G1.

the thief is just as likely to observe his mark. and to know where he places things, how he treats others, and so on during out of time activity.

do you tell the players what their characters eat, how long they sleep, when they go to the bathroom?

Same goes for the non-thief characters though. Observing people's behavior is not restricted to just thieves, and the thief could draw attention to himself by "observing his mark". None of this is being dealt with "in-game" though, and a PC thief intent on stealing from the party never IME roleplays his activities to the extent that he's saying "you seem to notice that every time you're sitting down to eat dinner, my thief is watching your character." The bottom line IMO is that PC thief vs. PC actions are skewed when compared to the equivalent situation between PC and NPC. IME, players who get their thief characters to steal from the party selectively apply those parts of "game vs. meta game" issues that benefits them.

 

[diaglo]

I've NEVER seen PCs invite an NPC thief to join the group. In fact, when NPC thieves encounter a group, they tend not to advertise their professions. For example, the thief in G1.



Same goes for the non-thief characters though. Observing people's behavior is not restricted to just thieves, and the thief could draw attention to himself by "observing his mark". None of this is being dealt with "in-game" though, and a PC thief intent on stealing from the party never IME roleplays his activities to the extent that he's saying "you seem to notice that every time you're sitting down to eat dinner, my thief is watching your character." The bottom line IMO is that PC thief vs. PC actions are skewed when compared to the equivalent situation between PC and NPC. IME, players who get their thief characters to steal from the party selectively apply those parts of "game vs. meta game" issues that benefits them.

for the 6 hours we meet. i am my character. it helps me separate OoC knowledge. thus even though i (the player) know strategy and risk for tactics that could help the party i leave it forgotten b/c my character doesn't.

and yes. i stare at the other players and creep them out.

i roleplay my Cha 8.

 

[Thornir Alekeg]

I had a character who had a couple of levels of Rogue without the knowledge of the rest of the party (some of the players knew, but none of the characters did). The character usually would not steal from the party as he understood that these people helped to keep him alive and if he lost their trust, he might well end up dead. On a couple of occasions he did steal items that he needed, but figured they would not willingly give to him, from party members. After he did, he would find a way to either put it back when he was done with it, or give it back with a story, "Hey, looks like this fell out of your pack."

I played in one group where a player had a very Kender-like character. Didn't steal from us (as far as I know), but regularly lifted items from stores, homes etc. It fit his character perfectly, but one player had some real life issues with thieves and had some problems separating reality from game. He would constantly meta-game to prevent the light-fingered PC from stealing, and would actually get mad at the player for attempting to steal from NPCs. It got so bad we dissolved the group and reformed it a few months later without him.

 

[Nail]

and yes. i stare at the other players and creep them out.

i roleplay my Cha 8.

Sounds great.

I'd rather not play in such a group. Stealing from fellow PCs is just a big downer in my book. YMMV.

 

[Rykion]

Stealing from the party is fine, but the player must accept any consequences their player faces if caught. The thief might find themself not getting healed or helped in combat.