Original: http://www.topmudsites.com/cgi-bin/ikonboard/ikonboard.cgi?s=45be4f885f02ffff;act=ST;f=12;t=898;hl=carrion+fields

Someone asked on a recent thread about rogues. If you've played stock MUDs, you've probably come to think of thieves as "weak warriors with Hide and Steal". Thus, you probably begin yawning at their mention. But alas, there is hope for fans of thieves.

See, the word "thief" can mean a lot of things on Carrion Fields. We're fond of plugging our intra-class diversity, and thieves are an example of that. It's very similar to a classless system within a class system- they're all "thieves", but you'd never know it if you compared the skills and daily lives of two very different ones.

Broadly, different guilds train different types of thieves. For example, one guild might specialize in poisons. They could teach you some basics (using a dagger, hiding in shadows, etc.), but they're really good for teaching you some concoction and application skills. One you have those, you can explore a bit, and find the kind of well-hidden shops and natural sources of ingredients for poisons. From there, you can experiment with different combinations of ingredients ("One vial of whisper spider venom, one dose of marshweed paste, a touch of jellyfish toxin...", and test the effects. (Like the rare and feared Mind Control toxins, which drug a victim into a hypnotic state, and render them vulnerable to the power of suggestion.. the thief's most diabolical whisper might become a battle of wills.)

Now, different guilds may also have political structures. You might swear fealty to the Bandit King of Hamsah Mu'Tazz, begin donating money and goods to the guild's coffers, and earn yourself protection and alliance within that desert town. (This is useful, since the Sultan of Hamsah Mu'Tazz has a particularly draconian outlook on the law, and you may very well need those allies.) however, don't expect any favors from the Kingpin of Galadon, or any of the henchmen he has lurking just out of your vision. The Bandit King might let you know that Saraiyah (the local guildmaster) knows just about everything about the fine art of kidnapping- knocking your mark out, tying them up, transporting them where you want them, and maybe robbing them blind on the way.

But Saraiyah doesn't know a thing about poisons, you see. All that stuff I talked about above, with the poisons? That's one guild. We've got a bunch. Of course we do. We're frickin' Carrion Fields.

"But I wanted to learn about poisons, and I just spent all that time learning all these binding skills!" I hear you. That whole paragraph about poisons above did sound pretty cool. I feel your pain. But fear not... just find a guildmaster who's willing to teach you. You can mix and match all you like... if you pay the price. See, that thief over there who does nothing but learn about kidnapping is going to be daaamn good at it. You can dabble in poisons, and maybe come up with some combination skills ("It can be pretty hard to knock out a giant with brute force... maybe I could concoct some basic knockout poisons to help me out there."), but it'll take a little away from your life as a pure kidnapper.

Joining one of these guilds isn't the end of who you are, either. We're a roleplaying game, and multi-dimensional characters are the order of the day. You can be a guild member in good standing, and a member of a cabal like the Scions of Eternal Night, and a marked devotee of a religion, and an active bounty hunter, and.... Right. Thieves. I digress.

Like your thief burly and deadly with a knife? We got that. Got the patience to design traps from hundreds of possible components? We got that. See yourself as the smooth, sly type who knows every nook and cranny of our sprawling cities? We.... yeah, you get the point. I don't even know how many thief skills we have total, other than "a whole lot".

So stop by, and try to rob, lie, sneak, intimidate, hide, and smoove your way to the top. Just leave your RL money at home, because Carrion Fields is absolutely free(*). And if you get stabbed, blackballed out of your guild, outfoxed, or otherwise flummoxed (**)... well, our name is a good indication that we're not afraid of a little rough play. Get back on your feet, realize it's a level playing field where you can do anything they can, and plot your revenge. We wouldn't have it any other way.

And.. oh, yeah. I wrote all that about thieves. Thieves are one class. We have 16. Come by and look.

http://www.carrionfields.com>The Carrion Fields Website

(Or just pop onto www.carrionfields.com, port 9999. There's no lengthy account process.... no credit card... no pre-approval waiting... you can just play.)

(*) And by "free", we mean "RL money has zero impact on the game. It won't do you a #### bit of good. No subscriptions. No fees. No arms race of paying for perks." We like to use that definition of "free". Don't be fooled by other definitions of it!

(**): I admit that I just like saying "flummoxed".
valguarnera@carrionfields.com