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Thieves gameplay is not quite as straightforward as a Mages or Warriors who go into battle and simply throw fireballs or lunge at their enemy. A Thief sometimes needs a little more setup or planning before combat.
[[Thief]] gameplay is not quite as straightforward as a Mages or Warriors who go into battle and simply throw fireballs or lunge at their enemy. A Thief sometimes needs a little more setup or planning before combat.


== Gameplay ==
== Gameplay ==


While a Warrior is a slab of health points, heavy weapons, and high armor allowing them to win the war of attrition, a Thief is much more suited to a risk/reward style of play. A Thief's abilities generally do extremely high damage with the possibility of even killing enemies in a single hit with the downside being they will be slow to defend themselves afterwards. Though [[Dodge]] helps keep a Thief from being smashed to bits they naturally will have less health and armor than a warrior.
While a Warrior is a slab of health points, heavy weapons, and high armor class allowing them to win the war of attrition, a Thief is much more suited to a risk/reward style of play. A Thief's abilities generally do extremely high damage with the possibility of even killing enemies in a single hit with the downside being they will be slow to defend themselves afterwards. Though [[Dodge]] helps keep a Thief from being smashed to bits they naturally will have less health and armor than a warrior.


What a thief lacks in mettle they more than make up for in guile. Thieves have a mountain of skills that provide utility outside of combat:
What Thieves lacks in mettle they more than make up for in guile. Thieves have a mountain of skills that provide utility outside of combat:


* Brewing poisons to apply to their weapons and antidotes to cure them
* Brewing poisons to apply to their weapons and antidotes to cure them
* Pickpocket, shoplift, and steal which provides extra gold income and all but removes the need to purchase from NPC shops
* Pickpocket, shoplift, and steal which provides extra experience, gold income, and all but removes the need to purchase from NPC shops
* Lockpicking to bypass doors that you would otherwise need the key for or may only be bypassed with lockpicking. Note: all classes can pick locks but it takes substantially longer without the skills of a Thief
* Lockpicking to bypass doors that you would otherwise need the key for or may only be bypassed with lockpicking. Note: all classes can pick locks but it takes substantially longer without the skills of a Thief
* Stealth abilities to move through areas entirely unnoticed by aggressive enemies
* Stealth abilities to move through areas entirely unnoticed by aggressive enemies
* Grenades... enough said
* Shadow skills to bind enemies in place, walk through the shadows, and conjure decoys to take hits for them
* Shadow skills to bind enemies in place, walk through the shadows, and conjure decoys to take hits for them


=== Combat ===


A new Thief will start out with three skills already learned: [[Dodge]], [[Trip]], and [[Bloodletting Stab]].
=== Damage Types ===


==== Starting at level 1 ====
As a melee class your weapon is your main source of damage and its type of damage is incredibly important. Different enemies are not only to weak or resistant to different elemental types but also the attack type such as slashing, piercing, or crushing. The {{Icode|help dtype}} and {{Icode|help special damage}} helpfiles in game are '''critically''' important to effectively dispatching enemies.


* Use Bloodletting Stab at the start of the fight to give the skill's bleed damage the most time to roll
You should learn the [[Monster Lore]] as early as possible (level 8) and use the {{Icode|consider <enemy>}} command to see what the enemy is vulnerable or resistant to. You should also keep several different weapons of various damage and elemental types on hand so you always have the right tool for the job. Fighting with the incorrect damage type can make fights last significantly longer.
** Note: While it's possible to use Bloodletting Stab multiple times in a row the bleed does not stack and the enemy will quickly catch onto you and start avoiding your subsequent attempts
* Use Trip for extra damage
** Note: Trip is incredibly useful while in a group as your teammates will have extra opportunities to hit the target while it's down. However, Trip is less useful when solo as the enemy will generally stand up before you've recovered from the lag the skill applies to you. With that said at this level you don't have many other options.
** Tip: At low levels thief weapons are generally pointed; these are particularly ineffective against skeleton enemies of which there are many in the lower level areas. Use Trip to deal more consistent damage to these enemies until you can find a blunt weapon


==== Level 6 ====


New Combat Skill: [[Feint]]
== Combat ==


* You can now add Feint into your rotation to deal some extra damage
See [[Thief/Guide/Combat]] for an in-depth look at the Thief's rotation and abilities while leveling up
** Note: that like Bloodletting Stab the enemy will catch on if you try to use this skill too frequently
** Tip: A successful Feint lowers the enemy's morale which will provide extremely useful in a few levels when you learn [[Flourish]]


==== Level 9 ====
== Equipment ==


New Combat Skill: [[Backstab]]
See [[Thief/Guide/Equipment]] for guide on what makes good Thief gear as well as suggestions for gear while leveling up


At level 9 Thieves learn arguably their most iconic ability: Backstab. To backstab you must use a weapon which can be used as such (See the section below on Backstab Weapons for more details). The game will also tell you whether or not your weapon can be used with Backstab by using the {{Icode|check thief}} command which will say {{Icode|<your weapon> is suitable for backstabbing.}} or no such message if you cannot. You can't backstab enemies you are already fighting so it can only be used to initiate combat.
[[Category:Class guide]]
 
From now on you should use Backstab to start a fight whenever possible for several reasons:
 
* Backstab does an incredible amount of damage
* A successful backstab grants you lots of experience, sometimes more than the fight itself
* You have a chance to execute a "Freak" backstab which does many times more damage that usual, frequently kills the target outright, provides you with a ton of experience (sometimes even enough to gain an entire level at lower levels,) and the entire MUD will be notified of your achievement.
 
As such your rotation looks something like this:
 
* Open with Backstab
* Use Bloodletting Stab
* Use Trip for bonus damage, particularly against skeletons and spellcasters
* Sparingly use Feint for more bonus damage
 
Note for Thieves who have Warrior as their second class: At this point you should also be investing in the Warrior class's melee skills [[Thrust]], [[Lunge]], and [[Stomp]] (Kick is not necessary to learn.) They are incredibly useful and should be used (for the time being) instead of Trip and Feint to do bonus damage. What's more, you should also learn [[Cry of Victory]] and use it after every fight to recover precious health and movement points.
 
==== Level 11 ====
 
New Combat Skill: [[Flourish]]
 
Flourish pairs well with [[Feint]] allowing you to do consistent, massive damage during the fight.
 
Add Flourish into your rotation after Feint. Like most combat abilities using Flourish too often will make enemies more likely to evade it so be careful with spamming it.
 
 
Note for Thieves who have Mage as their second class: At point you should learn the Mage spell [[Burning Hands]] and use it as often as possible. This will mean needing to keep a hand so you will be leaving the shield or held item slot empty. However, the power of Burning Hands more than makes up for this. You should cast it before you backstab to make it do even more damage. You should cast it as well during combat as your mana allows for. While it is required that you learn [[Shower of Sparks]] to learn Burning Hands I don't recommend using Shower of Sparks in combat. What's more you should be using [[Mana Shield]] to reduce incoming damage.
 
== Equipment & Itemization ==
 
Thief equipment is easy to spot as it frequently (though not necessarily) has Damroll, Dexterity, and Thief Skill Level all at once. Occasionally a thief item will also increase Hitroll, Charisma, Strength, or Constitution. An example of a Thief item would be the following lowbie neck item:
 
{{:A_rat_shaped_medallion_(Item)}}
 
=== Backstab Weapons ===
 
When using the [[Backstab]] skill picking the right weapon is critical. It must be a pointed weapon meaning one of: pierce, stab, sting, gore, or bite. A weapon meant for backstabbing is generally spotted by its stats which will be one of the aforementioned damage types, it will have high Damroll with little or no Hitroll, and usually includes Thief Skill Level. The weapon (perhaps obviously) also cannot have the NO_BACKSTAB flag which means the weapon cannot be used for backstab, though this flag is usually found on Warrior weapons with pointed damage types rather than Thief weapons. Note: a good backstabbing weapon generally also makes for a good [[Crippling Strike]] weapon due to both skills ignoring the target's Armor.
 
One of the most iconic backstabbing weapons is The Lost Spear of the Ancients:
 
{{:The Lost Spear of the Ancients (Item)}}

Latest revision as of 23:53, 11 January 2022

Thief gameplay is not quite as straightforward as a Mages or Warriors who go into battle and simply throw fireballs or lunge at their enemy. A Thief sometimes needs a little more setup or planning before combat.

Gameplay

While a Warrior is a slab of health points, heavy weapons, and high armor class allowing them to win the war of attrition, a Thief is much more suited to a risk/reward style of play. A Thief's abilities generally do extremely high damage with the possibility of even killing enemies in a single hit with the downside being they will be slow to defend themselves afterwards. Though Dodge helps keep a Thief from being smashed to bits they naturally will have less health and armor than a warrior.

What Thieves lacks in mettle they more than make up for in guile. Thieves have a mountain of skills that provide utility outside of combat:

  • Brewing poisons to apply to their weapons and antidotes to cure them
  • Pickpocket, shoplift, and steal which provides extra experience, gold income, and all but removes the need to purchase from NPC shops
  • Lockpicking to bypass doors that you would otherwise need the key for or may only be bypassed with lockpicking. Note: all classes can pick locks but it takes substantially longer without the skills of a Thief
  • Stealth abilities to move through areas entirely unnoticed by aggressive enemies
  • Shadow skills to bind enemies in place, walk through the shadows, and conjure decoys to take hits for them


Damage Types

As a melee class your weapon is your main source of damage and its type of damage is incredibly important. Different enemies are not only to weak or resistant to different elemental types but also the attack type such as slashing, piercing, or crushing. The help dtype and help special damage helpfiles in game are critically important to effectively dispatching enemies.

You should learn the Monster Lore as early as possible (level 8) and use the consider <enemy> command to see what the enemy is vulnerable or resistant to. You should also keep several different weapons of various damage and elemental types on hand so you always have the right tool for the job. Fighting with the incorrect damage type can make fights last significantly longer.


Combat

See Thief/Guide/Combat for an in-depth look at the Thief's rotation and abilities while leveling up

Equipment

See Thief/Guide/Equipment for guide on what makes good Thief gear as well as suggestions for gear while leveling up

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