I don't really recommend thieves if you're uneasy about all of the skills. The path system can be confusing, frustrating, and disappointing if you go multiple paths. Guild dues can be hard to collect. Stuff like that. I get the idea that you do have a fair amount of experience though, and it shouldn't be too hard to grasp. They're good for variety, and I recommend a city ties thief for starters, train in udgaard or join galadon. There really aren't any enforcable obligations to joining a guild, except staying away from the bottom of the donations list, which isn't hard, especially with a huge guild like galadon. A city ties thief has the least confusing skills, involves the least amount of gathering of ingredients, and provides the most stealth for cautious players. If you want to be more bold and PK worthy, a thug thief may be the way to go. Also, the path you choose and the guild you join do not have to coincide. This is a common misconception, that binder thieves go to hamsah, city ties go to galadon. You can have a thug galadon, or a poison galadon, or a ties hamsah, etcetera etcetera. Thieves have looooads of options and customization with pure paths, and infinitely more complications and customization if you cross them. Best advice is to stay within one path for the first thief, then dabble in multi-paths later. I can't give you as much more detailed information as I did with bards, but... thieves are stealth. Don't expect them to tank or to PK extraordinarily well. They are all about survival and trickiness. A city ties thief can live very well and competitively outside of PK, i.e., blackjack, steal, and stealing from merchants. Its all about the sneakiness. I'm too tired to add more. Toodles!

Splntrd