pick-pocketing guide

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Agreed, Dragon's Breath is a strong weapon. I just like Wave for the bonus damage and its instant-kill for any fire creature.

 

Oh sure. Why not just Ctrl-Y Irenicus then? Why kill Firkraag for Carsomyr when you can SK it in? Why go through all the trouble of gaining experience points when you can just console in a random value and do a roleplaying excuse as a result? And yes, consoling gold in *is* cheating. A Paladdin gains 500k gold in an instant. Hah! Better the thief who went through all the trouble just gain the same amount.

If the developers didn't want people to sell-steal they wouldn't have added in merchants who accept fenced goods now, would they? It's a privilege of the thieving classes, and whether people think it's unfair or not it's as natural as a Mage being able to cast LVL 9 spells.
Besides, sell-stealing is a fact in RL. Why not in D&D?
It's the *abuse* of such a privilege which makes it on level with cheating, never otherwise.

As for the issue on pickpocketing, it has its uses and *is* implemented well enough in the game. What where you expecting to do? Pickpocket Carsomyr off Firkraag? (Tempting as that may be)

There are many instances in the game in which a pickpocket might come in handy, although for the most part these instances are quest related. So just be happy you can pickpocket that ring off his demi-lichness, Kangaax.
Besides, there's not much logic in having to pickpocket a legendary item. I, for one, would not even think of displaying such an item so publicly, or allowing a *mere* pickpocket to pry it off me. A thief is different, though, and so is stealing.

True enough, unless you have a good pickpocket in the party.
A thief isn't called a thief because of backstabs.

EDIT: Spelling

[ July 20, 2004, 16:13: Message edited by: Scythesong Immortal ]

 

But what if you then complete the quest? The priest wants to give you the helm but you already have it. He says nothing about it, it wasn't foreseen.
I think it's an error you can pickpocket those items. It makes sense only if you don't finish the quests. You don't care about Sarles, you pretend to pay attention to the priest's story only to empty his (big!) pocket.

 

Pickpocketing can be pretty usefull and save you some time. In the first chapter alone you can pickpocket the sewage golem and avoid having to talk to Riviel, you can also pickpocket the dryad to get the djinni flask instead of walking back and forth 3 times. Pickpocket those messengers who come to bring you news (I.E. Quayle wants to see you at circus) some of them have some good items. As long as you have a high skill in pickpocket or have consumed potion(s) of master thievery you can get almost anyone. The great thing about the messengers is that they dont even become hostile if you fail, so if you're quick enough you can get in a try as they come to you and one afterwards if the first fails.

 

IMHO, pickpocketing is too risky -- even with a 100% ability therein, however you get it, there's still a chance of being caught -- if you get caught, the entire blasted area goes ape on you, and you can just forget about doing business at that locale again -- those psychos have long memories! As for pickpocketing Ribald, I've never managed to do that successfully -- I always get caught, even if I'm doped to the gills on potions and gear. Losing access to the Adventurers mart is not worth it to me. I may try again after a save game, though, as a ring of regeneration before Spellhold could come in really handy.

Really, though, I prefer not to pick pockets at all, as my thieves tend to be Good aligned, and I see them as being specialists who find traps, pick locks and backstab in order to benefit the party with which they've enlisted.

 

For pick-pocketing to be truly worthwhile you have to just about max out your skill, and I'm talking like putting 200% or more in there, unless you care to carry around lots of master thieving potions. I believe the pick-pocket DC depends on your victims' level, that's why Linvail, Ribald, and the like are so hard to steal from.

 

If you're pickpocketing skill is too high, you will fail. I don't remember how this works anymore, but if you go too far with your PoMT, you'll be very disappointed.

 

250% makes you fail if you try to steal in CC for example. i wonder what kind of logic is behind this ..

how about Potion on Mind Focusing? for little gold you can max your Dex and Int for 6 hours (or was it 12?) and since theres so many of those in the game, you can acutally have char with 25 Dex/Int for every slightly difficult encounter in the game.

theres so much cheese implemented in the game already that its hard to tell what actually is cheese and whats not. and even if one can restrict her/himself from using it, i wish things like that were taken care of by the developers in a different way.

[ July 24, 2004, 13:25: Message edited by: Deda Jag ]

 

There is a mod (expanded thieves stronghold) which adds more civilians who can be pickpocketed for various items. (I have not yet installed the mod so I dont know what items exactly)

 

Pickpocketing is worthless? Really?

Just out of chateau d'Irenicus you can pick spell-scrolls for your mages, Ring of regeneration, Full plates for your fighters and some arrows of dispelling.
If you don't have any use for them you can always sell them and buy something useful like sling bullets.
Every character class has his own way of acquiring items and money. A really tough fighter or mage can kill Kangaxx while a clever thief just takes the ring and goes away.

 

I don't agree.
The problem occurs when you first pickpocket an item and then get a duplicate after looting the dead body. That is wrong.

 

Mayfairy, where are those arrows of dispelling?

 

They're with the armorer/fletcher in Waukeen's Promenade.

Also, pick-pocketing is a very useful thing to have. The most annoying bit I always find early-game, is that I have to do a lot of quests to get sufficient money to buy the various goodies I want to from the Adventurer's Mart, etc etc.

Stealing and selling helps in that!