Stealth and crime
Thieving
Pickpocketing, picking locks, lifting from homes and shops, and what happens when the watch catches you.
Pickpocketing
- Hold Left Alt, flick the mouse to Steal, release.
- Walk within about 3 metres of a townsperson and click them.
| Your chance | |
|---|---|
| Base | Your Pickpocket skill |
| Each level you are above them | +5% |
| Each level you are below them | −5% |
| Always between | 5% and 95% |
If it works, two times in three you pinch 1 to 6 gold. The other time they had nothing worth taking. If it fails, it is a crime and the watch can come for you.
- Each person can only be tried once.
- Every attempt trains Pickpocket, success or not.
- Pickpocketing only works on townspeople. You cannot pickpocket other players.
Picking locks
Click a locked door. For a building’s door in town:
Chance = Lockpicking skill − 5 × the lock’s level, kept between 5% and 95%.
Every attempt trains Lockpicking. A failed attempt costs nothing but time, so try every lock you see.
Homes and shops
Taking from the cupboards and chests inside someone’s home, or from a shop’s shelves, is theft. You can be spotted taking things; a higher Pickpocket skill and a poorer shop make it less likely.
Getting caught
A failed theft or any other crime calls the city watch. When a guard first strikes, you are offered the chance to surrender. Surrender and you go to court, where the judge decides your sentence.
Fight back and it gets worse: hitting a guard is assault, killing anyone is murder, and more guards come.
Why bother
Successful thefts are what earn an invitation from the Thieves Guild. See Joining the Thieves Guild.
Look it up
- The skills involved: Pickpocket, Lockpicking and Stealth.
Category: Stealth and crime