As Joram Shadowstalker scanned the crowd he knew it was going to be a good day. There were a lot of nobles in attendance, and that would mean a lot of fat purses. My smiled as an exceptionally good mark strolled by him casually, completely unaware of Joram hiding in the shadows a few feet away. "Yes, today was going to be a good day indeed." Joram thought to himself, and he set about removing the fat purse from the noble as he walked by. With a deft twist of his wrist Joram snagged the purse as the noble kept on walking oblivious to the theft. Joram quickly stashed the purse inside one of his inner pockets as he continued to scan the crowd. The market was especially crowded today as the whole city was preparing for the king's wedding. Joram was preparing for something else. he had come to town on a mission. To round up a group and rob the king of his bridal gifts. This would be his retirement score. He had spent the past 20 years of his life becoming one of world's best rouges. He was 25 and already ready to call it quits. It was after all a fairly dangerous profession, but not one without its rewards. He had stashed away his fortune and the fruit of his lifes labors, and all he would need is this last job and then he would be able to get out the theiving profession forever, and live the good life owning a tavern in paradise springs on the southernmost coast of this continent. But this job would not be easy. He would need a good group of theives to hell him pull this off. With that thought Joram headed off through the crowd, picking an occasional purse and looking for anyone that might be another potential theif willing to work with him on this job, or a theif that he might be able to trust.

OOC: OK this is my first RP thread revisited. And i think that pretty much explains what it is about. A theif looking for other theives to help him on his one last job before he retires. This thread is open to all that are familiar with ad&d second addition rules, since those are the rules i would like this thread to abide by. I am looking not only for people to play fellow theives, but also people to play the guards and the head of the guards and basically people trying to stop joram. also a bounty hunter that comes from out of town looking for him could be a cool addition to the thread as well. please feel free to join in. NO UBERING EITHER!!!! THIS MEANS YOU!!!! Ok with that said enjoy.

A FEW CHANGES, FIRST OF ALL IN THE LAND WE ARE PLAYING IN MAGIC IS BANNED. THEREFORE ALL MAGICAL ITEMS, SPELLS, & ARTIFACTS ARE ILLEGAL, MAKING IT VERY HARD FOR THE PLAYERS TO GET THEIR HANDS ON IT. I'm not going to say that there is NO magic allowed, just very very little, and if the characters get magical items and such then there are cowled wizard type people that WILL come to get them. Magical items can be obtained through 'black market' means, but this is risky, because you will be hunted by the cowled wizards, and in buying black market good you don't know who you can trust. Also I'm trying to work some suspense into the the thread so I don't really want to skip ahead in days this time. This thread is open to all, there will be characters for other theives, that want to join the party, the local theives guild and the town guards(this one might be filled). Above all just have fun. Welcome to the grand heist and enjoy [img]smile.gif[/img] :D [img]smile.gif[/img]

Yay!!! I'm in once again. U can trust me. I'll have my elaborate intro, but i gotta go eat now. So be back soon!

I'm willing to try and control the guards, townspeople etc..
I can draw a few maps if you like too and host them somewhere so you can see them too [img]smile.gif[/img]
But, I will need a few others to help keep the speed up. Can't always be online, unfortunately ;)

Or did you have your buildings planned out already and are simply looking for someone to act the guards in them? In that case I don't mind playing them either and I'll save my town for some other occasion ;)

I'll join, after all, Morguruats thread is finished.
SecretMaster the Thief, Pilferer, Scouter, Assassin, and Disguiser.
Profile:
Class- Masked Thief
Chaotic Good
5'5
Originally had one of the most wanted thieving outfits available, The Secret. He now keeps it for when most dangerous missions are needed, but keeps the mask, for no one, not even his closest friends have seen his face (only his parents).
Weapons/Armor
Disguised Studded Shadow armor +2 (looks like a normal leather armor)
Normal Constuction gloves.
Mask of the Secret- One of the most prized theiving masks, it gives the wearer infravision, can cast detect traps, and true sight. (Can cast disguise face)
Regular Boots.
Short Sword
SecretMaster has been in the thieving business for 15 years now. At the age of 8, he started thieving. Now, he can disarm pratically any alarm, trap, crusher, anything that has some sort of opening. Can run a mile in 4 minutes, making him very fast to run, and can easily pilfer a purse just by walking by them.

SecretMaster scans the crowd looking for anything good. "Hmm, jewelry dealer, gem dealer, nobles, food," He mutters to himself. "Doesn't anyone have any good things today?" He continues walking around. "Bingo!" and he spots where all the nobles are. "All around antiques and fancy looking suff. My guess, they have lots of goodies." He continues." Ooh, who do we have here? A thief, better test him, see if he notices me." He walks up to him briskly, acting like a tough ruffian, and before he does, he rips some clothing a bit, and puts on some makeup looking like scares and bruises. He goes. "Well now, who do we have here. Better not mess with me, or you'll be pounded so fast, that I'd be like Drizzt on Caffine when he see's a gnoll!" He then walks past Joram, goes to a corner, eyeing him carefully.

<font color="limegreen">The Castle Overlooked The Town, And Opek Was The Best Man For The Job Of Guarding It.</font>

*Crouching Down, He Launched Himself Into The Air And Landed A Hundered Feet Away On Top Of A Spire. No-one Could Get Past Him.
He Had Many Names; The Winged Watcher, The King's Bat. Many Names From Many People.*
*It Seemed A Quiet Evening. Not Too Much Action In The Square In Front Of The Palace*
*Launching Back, He Span In Mid-Air, And Landed On The Top Of The Main Tower In The Middle Of The Castle. Giving A Quick Glance To Each Side, He Decended Into The Palace Through A Trapdoor. Pulling Many Books And Candlesticks, He Activated Many Hidden Passages And Chambers That Only Him And The King Knew About. Soon After, He Was In The Royal Bed Chamber*
*The King Was Playing Chess With His Minister When He Looked Up And Saw Opek*

"Excuse Me" He Said To The Minister. He Stood Up. "Ahh, Opek. How Are You?"

Opek Replied In A Light Voice. "<font color="lightsteelblue">I Am Well, If You Are Well Sire</font>

"Hah!" The King Laughed "No Need For The Formallity Opek. We Have Known Each Other Long Enough!"

<font color="lightsteelblue">I'm Sorry Sire, It's Just With The Wedding Coming Up. I Have A Distinct Feeling Somthing Black Is Afoot. I Have Just Finished The Rounds. All Clear</font>

"Yes, Well. Care To Join Me For A Drink? A Little Evermead Should Lighten You Up, Eh?"

<font color="lightsteelblue">"No Thankyou Sire. Please Deploy The Knights On The Rounds Now. I Need To Rest. It Has Been A Good 19 Hours Since My Last Meditation</font>

"Hm, Very Well. Although You Really Should Lighten Up. I Thought You Elves Were Meant To Be Care-Free And Light-Hearted"

Opek Grinned. Kneeling Down, He Walked Out Of The Door Up Into The Spire Where He Always Meditated. Giving A Quick Glance Out Of The Window, He Sat Down.

OOC>> Opek Is An Avariel Elf, And The Head Guard And General For The King.

Name: Opek
Race: Avariel
Allignment: Chaotic Good
Class: Ranger

Str: 15
Dex: 21
Con: 13
Int: 12
Wis: 15
Chr: 17

Description: Opek stands about 5"4 High and has long silver hair which stretches down to about his elbows. His wings are of a brilliant pure white and he has four black 'lines' running over his cheeks which come down towards his mouth from underneath his hair; Two on each side. Around his neck is a symbol to his god, Aerdrie Faenya. He is rarely seen without this on. He, like all Avariel, had a crushing fear of small spaces and suffers from serious Claustrophobia, but the king, removed most of this fear through extensive therapy.

Languagues: Eruna speaks Fluent Auran, Common and Elven. Good Sylvan And Limited Draconic. He Also Knows A Small Amount Of Avariel Sign Language

Proficiencies:

Long Sword: ***
Spear: ****

Weapons:

A Spear With A Tip Made From Enchanted Obsidan (Spear +3)
A Long Sword Made From Avariel Glassteel (+1)

<font color="lightsteelblue">I Loved This RP, But Knowone Posted :S So I Skipped The Build Up In Hope I Could Revive It... Sorry... Can I Rejoin?</font>

Shadow walked through the crowd calmly reliving nobles of the chore of carrying large heavy money pouches almost subconciously. He started wondering if there was ever going to be a challenge in this world hard enough for him. He was new to the city and only came for the rich pickings available at the celebrations. He had spent most of his thieving life traveling and has seen and sampled much of the world's delicacies. He calmly removed a large gem encrusted necklace from beneath the nose of the store owner without him noticing, "some woman will be VERY grateful for this gift" he thought and smiled.

OOC: I will be glad to join :D
Name: Shadow
Race: Half-Elf
Class: Swashbuckler/Illusionist
Alignment: Neutral Evil

Str: 15
Dex: 19
Con: 13
Int: 12
Wis: 15
Chr: 19

Languagues: Fluent- Elven, Common and Dwarven
Some limited - Goblin and Orc
Can read lips

Proficiencies:

Throwing Daggers: ***
Katana: ****

Weapons:

5 poisened throwing daggers, hidden on his person
Katana (+2)

Joram eyed the ruffian, quite casually, his cool demeanor showed no fear, he might well have not even heard the hoodlum, by his reaction. He then slowly turns his back to ruffian, making sure his own purse is secure, as he walks into a local tavern. Joram then sits down at the table and orders some lunch, with money out of the ruffian's purse that he had snatched while he was threatening him. He also orders a pint of their finest mead, which was still of a fairly poor quality, considering the inn was a pretty run down. The few people in the inn consisted mostly of a few local hoods, and brawlers. Most respectable people wouldn't be caught dead in this establishment so Joram figured that it would be a perfect place to start looking for accomplices. So far there was really no one of interest in the tavern, so Joram settled back into the shadows of his corner seat to watch and wait.

Shadow throws open the door of the tavern and walks in. He orders a ale and starts chatting to the barmaid who quickly blushes until he shows her the necklace he just took. She then whispers something to him and runs up to her room. Shadow looks around and sees Joram. "Well i'll be Joram old boy, how is life treating you? Are you trying to look like a criminal sitting all the way back here in the shadows? I do have to apologise about that little incident back at Hafesvalle with the whole me borrowing that little trinket you stole thing happining. Swear i dont know what came over me. Well anyway i can tell you are planning something and dont try lieing, after all you cant really lie to a professional lier. Talk quickly for i have a pressing arangement with the cute serving girl, must see where she hides the necklace so i can steal it back afterwards."

Some distance from the tavern and on the sidewalk, a giant scorpion in shiny black armor (about the size of a fully-grown German Shepherd) plays a fiddle in his two claws. His sting is poised high above his head, and from the sting dangles a sign: "Alms for the poor." Near him is a dirty bronze dish with a few coins in it. Most of the passersby take no notice but occasionally one or two will drop a couple of coins into the dish, whereupon the scorpion will reply in a soft, squeaky voice, "Thank you."

ooc: Just playing an unusual character who's an 'incidental figure' in the story. Any problem, Azrael? :D

OOC>>> Well Yes, That Is An Unusual Character Isn't It!!!

IC>>>

*Opek had been meditating for some time now. The moon was waxing in the sky and clouds were forming. In the town square, a bell chimed. Once, Twice, Thrice.... 11 Times. It Was Late. Midnight would be falling soon, and the 'advised curfew' would start. It was a curfew, but it wasn't enforced. It was just a suggestion. It wasn't a good idea to be out on the streets after midnight. Standing Up, He Perched At The Window, And Jumped Out And Flew Into Town, Landing In The Square. Even The Royal Guards Were Aloud SOME Time Off...*

(ooc: I take it as a compliment, Beaumanoir. ;) )

Meanwhile, the giant scorpion enters the tavern, winding his way to the barkeep, holding the bronze dish in his pincers and with the sign and fiddle all neatly packed and resting on his back.

"Good evening, kind sir," says the scorpion in a squeaky voice. "Will these coins suffice for purchasing some of your tasty wares?"

[ 06-29-2002, 05:44 AM: Message edited by: K T Ong ]

Shadow looks at Joram who is remaining stubbornly silent. "Well if you don't want to talk to me fine, thats fine." He calmly looks around to see if there is anything else around to entertain him, "oh look a giant scorpion, Hey mate yes you, the one with the giant pincers,yeah hi hows it goin? I am Shadow nice to meet you."

"Uhhh... Nice to know you, sir," replied the scorpion, waving a pincer. "You may address me as Scorpio, though I'm better known in this town as Scorpio the Fiddler. I presume you'd like me to play you a tune? Perhaps a waltz or a polka?"

"Hm" Opek Thought "Where To Go"

There Wasn't Many Sociable Places In Town That He Knew About. He Never Really Felt The Energy To Go Out On His Free Time, He Spent Most Of It In His Tower.

*Walking Along The Street Opek Leant His Satchel On The Floor And Pulled Out A Cloak. He Pulled It Over His Head And Wings, Trying To Conceal As Much As Possible*
*He Carried On Walking Down The Street Until He Found A Tavern. Light Beamed Out Of The Window And Into The Street, There Seemed To Be A Lot Of Noise Coming From Within.*
*Pushing Open The Door He Went Inside. What He Saw Was Puzzling, But It Comforted Him. To His Left Was A Black Scorpion Proped Up Against A Table Talking. 'If He's Welcome Then I Shouldn't Worry' He Thought To Himself. 'I'm Just The Same As All The Other Elves'.*
*He Sat Himself Down At The Bar*
"Barkeep, Evermead Please..."
*He Pulled Out A Few Coins And Slammed Them On The Counter. Trying To Keep His Face Concealed, He Looked Around For Friendly Faces Who Could Provide Convosation. After All, He Came To Socialise*

Shadow was about to answer Scorpio when he hears the door open, he looks over his shoulder and sees Opek enter. "Hmm nothing for now thanks Scorpio duty calls." he quitly gets up and goes up the back stairs into the backrooms, keeping out of Opek's view. He carefully makes his way up to the serving girl's room for his litte... get together.

Scorpio is somewhat surprised by Shadow's sudden departure. "Ah, well," he says to himself, "that's a potential customer gone." Returning to the barkeep, he purchases a large loaf of stale raisin bread and retreats to a dim corner in the tavern where he peels the loaf apart with his pincers and begins to devour the pieces greedily.

*Opek Takes A Sip Of Ever Mead And Watches The Little Scorpion Order His Bread And Scuttle Off To The Corner*
"This Could Be Interesting" He Thought
*Picking Up His Glass His Retired Into The Dark Corner Where The Scorpion Was. He Kept His Hand On The Hilt Of His Sword Just In Case. He Didn't Know The Temperment Of Giant Scorpions, Especially Ones Who Play The Fiddle. Altho, He Did Not Expect Him To Be Friendly*
"Hello, My Friend." He Said...

Joram quietly takes account of what is going on in the inn. A fiddle playing spider, a flying elf trying bundled up under a cloak, and an old "friend. . . " it should take for an interesting evening to say the least. Joram notes as shadow retires to the upstairs chamber, and then when he sees no one looking, he fades into the shadows and follows the theif upstairs. He puts his ear to the door that the theif went in and hears some wild moaning, and then something about not being able to perform, shaking his head at that, Joram waits outside the door for the theif to finish his business with the lady.

OOC: sorry i wasnt able to get on to this website for a while, lets keep this thread going.

[ 07-01-2002, 01:08 PM: Message edited by: AzRaeL StoRmBlaDe ]

OOC: now thats cruel [img]tongue.gif[/img]

IC: Shadow walks out mumbling angryly about women who just couldnt perform, he sees Joram. "well hello old boy, what are you doing up here? If your here for the barmaid she isnt much use, cant do it you know."

Is it too late to join? My character will not have any magic, or weapons really, 'cept for her eyes and looks *LOL*

I can pm you what my character IS, if you like? :D

I was looking for you actually. See after our last little run, I figure you owe me, but that not meaning much to a fellow theif, I have a business proposition for you It would help me out and you would be able to make a heap of money, should everything go alright that is. Meet me at noon tomorrow at the "Lazy Wench" (a tavern in the dock district) and we shall discuss the details. With that Joram fades into the shadows and disappears, invisibly making his way back to his old seat in the corner. When joram gets back his food is steaming on the table so he eats it, and thinks about how good it would be to have crab for dinner tomorrow.

OOC:of course you can join either write yourself in when you can, or PM me and we can work out some ideas as to what part you would want to play in this thread [img]smile.gif[/img]

Scorpio promptly swallows the last mouthful of bread, feeling somewhat apprehensive at the sight of the stranger's hand on the hilt of his sword.

"Well met, sir," answers Scorpio, clicking his pincers as if they were a pair of castenets. "I'm Scorpio. I play the fiddle for a living. Who are you? Would you like me to play you a tune?"

(ooc: Azrael, I think there's some difference between spiders and scorpions. [img]smile.gif[/img] )

[ 07-01-2002, 10:12 PM: Message edited by: K T Ong ]

Shadow calmly slips out of the window and climbs down to the ground outside of the tavern. He decides he still has the night to make a little extra money just in case joram's new plan backfires. He heads off into the night.

OOC who said anything about spiders, i was talking about crab ;o)

*Opek Smiles*

"I'm.. Umm... I'm A Merchant From The Docks... I Sell...."

"Fish?" Scorpio Interuppted

"Actually Yes. I'm Opek, Well Met. Where Abouts Do You Hail From? I Don't See Many... Of Yor Kind Around Here..."

As Joram sits in the bar he thinks back on his childhood. Alone on the streets struggling to get by. Making a few bucks pulling a hustle here and there. Running from the local thugs, until he was old enough, and clever enought o fight back. Joram always wondered why he had to live such a tough life, when nobles were feasting and dancing inside their great palaces, with servants attending their every need. Joram remembers the terrible taste of rat stew, that he lived on for most of his childhood. He remembers setting traps to trick the local thugs moving in on his turf, and taking a beating from them more than once. Joram remembers watching the king's coronation festival, and all the needless lavish luxury afforded to the nobles, while he was beaten with a stick by the guards when he tried to crawl up on a barrel to watch it. This was in a different city years ago, but From Joram's experience all nobles were the same, they all do what they to to protect their power, and nothing more. Well Joram would show them just wait until he pulled off this heist. But there was much to do in the mean time. With that thought Joram snapped out of his reverie. There was much to do and he better be about it, throwing some of his stolden gold down on the table, Joram quickly and quietly made his way out of the tavern. He started heading towar the slums district, hoping to find some more talent to help in his upcoming heist.
OOC: i thought i'de add a little background to help with plot developement.

"I belong to a race of intelligent giant scorpions who live deep underground outside of this city," explained Scorpio to Opek. "We normally avoid you humans and elves completely, but I felt a strange attraction for some of the ways of humans -- mainly the music they play -- and sought to learn it. This infuriated my leaders, so I was thrown into exile and here I am. At first the people in this city were terrified of me, but now they're perfectly used to me, as you can see. Oh, and now I'm a widely acknowledged maestro of the fiddle!"

<font color="palegreen">As Joram heads down the street, he notices a halfling walking down the other side wearing brightly colored clothing bearing the king's crest on them.

"This certainly is an odd section of town for one of the king's court to be in" he thinks to himself. As he looks closer, he notices the halfling seems to be mumbling to himself and looks rather upset.

Curios, he decides to follow the odd fellow and see where he is headed. The halfling stops across the street from the tavern and looks towards the door, obviously thinking about going in, but then changing his mind and moving on.

Joram sneaks into an alleyway across the street and hurries down a backstreet to get ahead of the halfling - a race known for their "lockpicking" ability. He manages to get ahead of the character and leans against a corner of the building, waiting on him.

Keporith continues walking down the street sullenly. A short sword and dagger hang from from his belt. He came to this town several weeks ago and managed to get a job in the king's court, thanks to his juggling ability. The king was quite impressed with Keporith's skill at tossing the spinning blades and had asked him to become one of the court entertainers. It seemed like the perfect job at first. Being paid a tidy sum for his skill, plus being around all those nobles with their bulging purses. No doubt about it, the first few weeks had been most profitable. Keporith had been careful not to get tooo carried away with his purse-filching, lest the guards become suspicious, especially that winged-elf. That one had the eyes of a hawk and never seemed to sleep. He had swooped down out of nowhere a few days ago as Keporith had attempted to sneak up on a guest that was leaving the castle. He gave no indication that he knew what Keporith was up to, but he had scared the hair of his feet nonetheless. And now, with the wedding drawing close, the king was forcing Keporith to work longer and longer each day. It was beginning to look like a time to change scenery, Keporith thought to himself.

Suddenly, he notices the rougish figure leaning casually against the corner ahead. Keporith stops in his tracks, knowing that the mans allies are probably hidden just out of sight.

His hand drops quickly to his sword as he scans the closest alley with his infravision.

"What do you want, stranger." he says "I've had a lousy day and I've no need for any trouble."

Joram holds his hands up to show that he means no harm, but Keporith doesn't relax. He has seen this ruse before. Joram realizes that the halfling is overly-cautious and tries to put him at ease.

"I assure that I am not interested in your purse, but I may have some interest in your skills and knowledge. You wear the kings crest, are you a member of his court."

Keporith explains that he is and tells Joram how his Dream Job has ended up becoming a nightmare. Joram listens, intrigued.

"Perhaps we can help each other, my small friend. I have a business proposition for you that I think you will find MOST interesting. Come, let me buy you a cup of ale and let's talk, shall we?".</font>

<font color="ivory">OOC>>I have one magic item I would like to keep with him, AzRael...I'll PM you with the info and see what you think.</font>

Shadow looks down on the exchange from the roof above, well it seems my little "friend" plans on involving numerous people. He follows at a distance.

"Giant Scorpions You Say?"

*The Clock Outside Struck*

"Excuse Me, I Must Go."

*Opek Hurridly Left And Ran Out Of The Tavern To The Castle. He Was Late*

Scorpio sighed. "Seems everybody's rushing nowadays, even in the evenings." He was hoping to share with the stranger his love of music, how he came to know this human friend years ago who taught him the fiddle.

"Well, another day, another meal," thought Scorpio to himself. "For now, I guess I'll give myself some rest." And he went to a dark corner, retracted his pincers, and went to sleep.

OOC: Im just waiting to see if anyone else wants to write themselves into the story at this point. Will post in another day or so. Thanks for your patience

As the first lights of sunrise start to hit the town, Shadow extracts himself from a house window. He then makes his way to the tavern and gets ready to meet his friend.

They spent all night in Joram's room discussing the plans of the heist. there was so much that could go wrong. It was going to be risky, but the payoff would be worth it. Besides if anyone could pull it off, Joram thought he could. There was a lot to do in town for the next few days, the nobles would be getting ready for the wedding, and he would be getting ready for the theiving. Joram smiled as he walked out the door of the inn, and a group of nobles with fat purses passsed him. It was going to be a good day.
*********************
Little did Joram know that somone else watched him from the shadows off the alley across the street. The figure was cloaked all in black and seemed to fade into shadows, even where there wasn't any. He followed Joram as Joram went about his business. he watched as Joram relieved a noble of the weight of his heavy purse, and he watched as Joram went into a tavern and had a few mugs of ale. He had been following Joram for several days waiting for his chance to strike. He was very patient, which was required in his line of work, but he was exceedingly patient beyond that, and that made his exceptionally good at his line of work, the best in the business in fact. . .

OOC: sorry about the long delay i was hoping more people would join but alas it is not so :( ohh well we have a good group of players, i just have to play a few more characters than what i originally intended, but that should't be a problem. the wedding is in lets say 3 days, let make the most of them :D

In the streets near the tavern, Scorpio was again playing that melancholy rhapsody on his fiddle, the same bronze dish next to him and the same sign hanging from his sting above his head... [img]graemlins/musicboohoo.gif[/img]

[ 07-24-2002, 03:35 AM: Message edited by: K T Ong ]

Shadow sits on the roof of a tavern and watches the wedding preperations with great interest, he then watches the guard barracks and the place where the presents are going to be kept. "This will be an interesting venture."

[ 08-21-2002, 05:37 AM: Message edited by: shadowhound ]