What to do when the PC Rogue picks the pockets of the other PCs

[dead]

How many games have I played where the PC Rogue picks the pockets of the other PCs?

Do you just let the little kleptomaniac continue to do this?

I find that this behaviour can quite often upset other players, but at the same time I don't want to stifle the Rogue playing "his character" -- usually the cheeky, pilfering type

Thanks.

 

[Crothian]

I sit and watch the other characters eventually kill the rogue. Then I turn to him and say "Told you so"

 

[Swedish Chef]

I roll their spot rolls for them. Eventually someone is going to notice that they are missing items, and they haven't been in a city for some time, and they did have it when they left the last city.....
Then I sit back and watch the other PCs kill the thief.

 

[Mouseferatu]

How many games have I played where the PC Rogue picks the pockets of the other PCs?

Do you just let the little kleptomaniac continue to do this?

I find that this behaviour can quite often upset other players, but at the same time I don't want to stifle the Rogue playing "his character" -- usually the cheeky, pilfering type

Thanks.

I find that if someone can't create a character who can work with the group while still being "in-character," they're usually the sort of person I don't want in my game.

If the entire group is comfortable with intra-party conflict like this, than it's fine. But if most of the group wants to play a cooperative party--the assumed default in most games, IME--and it's one person causing a problem, that person needs to change or leave. I'm not going to bend over backwards, or ruin the fun for the majority of the players, to coddle one person who insists on playing characters he knows are going to cause problems.

 

[d20Dwarf]

Two possibilites (three sir!)...Three Possibilities

1. Your party likes IPC (intra-party conflict), go for it!

2. One of the characters is under compulsion and the rogue is trying to help the party.

3. The player needs to be talked to, and probably won't (shouldn't) be with your gaming group much longer.

 

[Gospog]

I've seen this as a GM, and I've seen this as a player.

This sort of behavior pisses me off to NO END!

In fact, this Sunday, just such a pilfering thief is due to get his comeuppance in a Scarred Lands game. (Tharag smash!)

Anyway, I obviously agree with the consensus so far. Let PC Justice take it's course.

 

[KB9JMQ]

Usually when someone catches the thief pilfering it is no longer in my hands.
But I like saying "Told you so" when filing away their dead character sheet

 

[shilsen]

I will probably take the following 2 steps (both out-of-game):

1) Remind the player that I had pointed out during character creation that the players need to create PCs who are willing to work as part of a team.

2) Ask the player if his character is really mentally deficient enough to try stealing from the people his life regularly depends on, especially given that they all carry sharp, pointy objects and/or make enemies' heads explode with an arcane word.

If the player still wants to go ahead, I'll:

3) Let the rogue do so and roll spot checks for the other PCs as appropriate. Eventually, they'll find out and when they string the rogue up, I'll be glad.

 

[Percivellian]

I once had a rogue pick-pocket from another rogue in the party. His player was habitually oblique and hoarded more than his share of loot as a standard, whenever the opportunity arose. I slipped the DM a note with my pickpocket check on it, he shortly thereafter asked everyone to make spot checks, taking note of only this particular character's result, and I made off with his belt of pouches.

It only got better when right after this happened, his character got himself in trouble with the local halfling thieves' guild, was rendered unconscious, and returned to the party hog-tied. Now, all his gear was returned with him, but I was able to blame his missing pouch-belt on the incident. Like a good friend, I offered to track it down for him, because it had a lot of his handy forgery equipment in it. Well, sure enough I found it, but the bastard who was holding it, I said, wanted five-hundred gold coins for it's return. He grumbled, paid me, and I went and "made the transaction."

He didn't even suspect a thing when I showed off my new, masterwork serrated parrying dagger the next day.

 

[Buttercup]

As a DM, this irritates the crap out of me. One of my players created a character like this for our last campaign, and another player told him point blank "If my character catches yours stealing from him or any of us, he'll cut off your character's hands." Then his fiance (another of my players) told him his kender-like character was Not Amusing. That shaped him right up.

As a player, I'd exterminate the thief, in whatever way fit my character's personality. I play in Ghostwind's game at the FLGS. One of the other players thought it would be fun to be evil and decided to switch his alignment mid-session one time. I heard him nattering about this and told him point blank that if he interfered with the party's mission in any way, my character would disembowel him with her flaming burst dagger. Hmm. Actually, that was the last session he attended, and it was several months ago. Do you think I might have scared him off?

I admit I don't understand why anyone over the age of 14 would think creating such a character in the first place could possibly be considered a good idea.