| Author | Rumours about the thief's guild |
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There are many rumours concerning the thief’s guild and why Imperial justice seems to turn a blind eye on their activities. While this observation is not completely wrong, catching a member is harder than it appears. Most thieves employ only light and fast troops, strike at the weakest spots of a caravan, grab what they can and retreat as fast as they appeared, long before the guardians can unleash their combined forces. Even if the thief is repelled, it is well-nigh impossible to determine the origin of the assailants for they bear no crest nor banner.
Far more interesting to observe however is that, even if one of the raider is captured, they soon disappear from their prison cells as well as all records of their imprisonment. Rumours have it that this is due to a mutually beneficial agreement between her Highness and the thief leader. In exchange for this special treatment the Imperial army hires members of the thief’s guild as spies, negotiators, experts for covered warfare and attrition and even as smugglers, since the Imperial military training doesn’t feature any of these very useful abilities.
The most famous incident that is connected with the thief’s guild is the siege of the town of Esgaldon. After a harsh winter this town in a province bordering the Empire was under siege by a huge Barbarian army that were heading for the heart of the Empire, attracted by it’s wealth, to pillage the countryside. The Empire mustered an army to confront the aggressors, but since every shipment of food to the beleaguered town was intercepted, the citizens would had been forced to surrender or had been starved to death, if it were not for some strangers, who bribed some barbarian guards and used other means to smuggle food for the hungry population. With these additional supplies and an iron will the defenders hold out till the relief troops arrived. At the morning the Imperial army arrived the barbarian leader was found dead in his tent and thus his troops facing the Imperial troops without their leader lost all taste for plunder and scattered and were driven out easily.
However these privileges the thief’s guild enjoy come with a price, they must not pillage the countryside nor rob commoners and peasants and although there is no record of any written code of the thief’s guild they are bound to only ambush victims of similar strength. It is rumoured however that these rules were not set up by the Empire, but by the thief leader herself and that’s the reason why they are hardly contested and mostly obeyed.
This code also discerns them from common thugs, who usually assault weaker prey only, and makes them quite popular among the common townsfolk.
It is also rumoured that her Highness and the thief leader are in fact childhood friends, which implies that she either descends from her Highness’s staff or which is the more popular theory from high nobility at the Imperial court, but then again it is also rumoured that she is nine feet tall and can kill with a glare. |
Love it :) Very nicely written, but I may be biased :P
As it was pointed out to me, I'm not quite neutral when it comes to thief-related things XD |
i must be protected since i've never been ambushed ever :D
someone's looking out for me :O |
but then again it is also rumoured that she is nine feet tall and can kill with a glare.
*Runs out of the world*
But it was wonderful ! |
But but... thieves still ambush people with 1 unit in their army. So I want to go to the mercenary guild with a long time pal rogue of mine, and our delightful conversation comes to a halt as we are surrounded by fifty thugs. What's worse, they don't simply take our gold and leave... THEY MURDERED MY FRIEND!
Hell the only reason I made it out alive is because I have magic.
Curse those highwaymen! The lot of them are social degenerates, toleration is more than they deserve. |
Those must've been common thugs :P
Probably those nasty brigands that attack those who frequent Merc. Guild ;) |
#5
they are hardly contested and mostly obeyed.
"mostly" |
Thank you to everyone who commented so far. ^-^
to veteran:
Perhaps the thieves are looking for an opponent not a victim. *chuckles*
to Xanxas:
You and the leader of the ambush were probably equally strong, he just decided to bring some more troops. |
Perhaps the thieves are looking for an opponent not a victim. *chuckles*
*chuckles*? ROFL! |
for fusei:
Well, apparently it's the same everywhere... you post something less than all out praiseworthy regarding thieves and people will assume the worst regardless. It's a roleplay addon, not a gripe about getting accosted and outnumbered.
Level 3. Never been ambushed with this character, with the +/- 2 level rule, I doubt it's even possible to ambush a level 3 (level 6 required for TG).
Though even such a comment is far from fact, as thieves will always bring maximum artifacts to the field while most players either don't want to risk them against unfair ambushes that pit you in the center with few chances for tactics, or they simply leave them off while NPC grinding. To suggest that an ambusher is equally strong to his target... well that's just rarely the case by design. In the best possible scenario, all things considered equal, positioning is still the thief's to rule, and certain factions make excellent use of that advantage. In the worst, you unwittedly are engaged in a long affair that hopelessly detours you with little practical reward. XP? Bah, you can make more from a SUCCESSFUL duel where you are knowing and prepared to face your enemy, with greater room for maneuvering and protection.
Equally strong? That is a direct contradiction to the purpose of an "ambush".
PS - I have nothing against thieves, but some are a might too interpersonal. They feel it is their right to waylay travelers for the purpose of ranking up, but blast them should the traveler employ countermeasures to its profitability. When one group expects to be treated well at the expense of another group... you have a social class disparity. |
| for fusei:O.o good one |
| i want the truth :( |
| Good one but I think the thief leader must be a male |
between her Highness and the thief leader
How dare you?! Not only Her Majesty is just her Highness for you, but Thief Leader is a mere countryside thug's thief leader? |
@13:
Thief leader is female :D
http://www.heroeswm.ru/pl_info.php?id=61372
@14:
Huh?! Pardon, but I do not understand your post. TC clearly says that the Thief Leader is not a mere countryside thug's thief leader? |
| @15 Capitalization goes a long way :) |
to cepruyc:
My, you are right what a blunder please read her Highness as Her Imperial Highness.
to Kiz:
Shush, cepruyc just spreads the official propaganda, let him have his way and he might go away. ^-^ |
| continues here: https://www.lordswm.com/forum_messages.php?tid=1848045 |
| closed by Lady fusei (2009-02-17 01:41:38) |
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