Thief (Elara)

A Thief is a versatile character, capable of sneaky combat and nimble tricks. They are stealthy and dexterous, and capable of finding and disarming many traps and picking locks. It must be stated that thieves can be very noble indeed. Thieves can be described as a group of individuals living by their wits day to day - often at the expense of others. Examples are thieves, rogues and sometimes bards.
The thief is a robber, a thug, and/or the expert treasure hunter. They specialize in the acquisition of goods, stealth, and disarming traps. Bards are "glib of tongue, light of heart, and fleet of foot." Merging thieves, musicians and sometimes (depending on region) magic users, bards are the "jack of all trades". Bards share many of the thief's skills, coupled with a limited selection of magic spells and a few musical abilities. Rogues are skilled and stealthy individuals. Spies, scouts, detectives, pirates, and sundry ne'er-do-wells, as well as thieves and just about any other person who relies on stealth or a broad range of skills, are can be called a rogue.
Thieves are typically employed to search for most traps; nobody else has the training to recognize them. 
Thieves are deadly but somewhat vulnerable physical combatants, are proficient with fairly low-damage weapons. They are not typically intended to act as front-line combatants, but in a support role can be invaluable while flanking or to finish off wounded foes. One effective way a thief uses his combat abilities is to position him- or herself in the back of the party, in the shadows at the fringes, or a like position with a bow. Outside of combat, however, the thief's role is determined largely by other skills. For example, although most thieves disable locks and traps, one thief might be a thug who relies on intimidation, while another might rely on diplomacy. 
Quite aside from their combat ability, having a thief in a party is often essential in order to deal with traps, secret doors, and other mechanical contrivances that may impede the party's progress. They can also be employed in scouting and intelligence gathering, persuasion and barter (friendly or otherwise). Meanwhile, athletic abilities such as evasions, dodging and tumbling can leave them unscathed in the face of hazards which would cripple a less athletic party member, like warriors or mages.
The value of thieves lies in the fact that they are versatile in numerous situations, including the cunning circumstances other people may not be equipped to exploit.
Category:Occupations (Elara)
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