Re: Thieves
The closest I've ever come to running a game with fun and satisfying thieves required rewriting the AD&D skill system to (1) have broader skills, like Detect and Savvy (somewhat like DFRPG's Serendipity), and (2) have different probability curves based on dice pools with thresholds, kind of like Shadowrun.
As far as RAW thieves go, I don't think DFRPG thieves are there, nor *D&D thieves either. DFRPG thieves spend a ton of points on DX and IQ and Perfect Balance, but aren't set up to get a lot of return on that investment. I've tinkered with fixing the Thief profession by adding Extra Attack and Very Wealthy to the list of optional advantages, which would let you model things like assassins and deep-cover spymasters, plus dropping DX to 12 and IQ to 11 to free up 100 points that you could use for advantages or skills (max +10). That would give Thief a real feeling of "nonmagical expert" in whatever two or three fields you choose to specialize in.
But I don't think the RAW thief is compelling, compared to the alternatives. I can't think of a single criminal character concept who wouldn't be better off as either a Bard, Martial Artist, or Swashbuckler than a Thief. E.g. a bounty hunter who lives and dies by his traps--that can be a high-Per Gnomish bard with Keen Senses and Wisdom who puts some Quirk points in Traps skill. Same concept, more and better options.
Last edited by sjmdw45; 11-27-2022 at 02:25 PM.
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