Hello everyone, I am starting on a new project and am wondering if anyone could give me a list of "qualities" a "thief" must have. Example, picking locks... Anyhow, I appreciate whoever is able to give me their insight. Ok, I appreciate everyones comments and it seems I have not given enough information. I apologize. Pretty much the reason I am asking for the qualities fo a thief is because I am trying to relate each quality to something significant within the story which also is relative to being a thief. Example, skeleton key which allows the user to unlock and open any door. I hope this gives more information and is more clear. Once again I appreciate everyones insight. Thank you
It seems like slight of hand and a quick tongue (being able to talk yourself out of a bad situation) would be good for a thief.
Being able to be stealthy. What kind of thief? Someone who picks pockets/takes wallets? Home burglars? And what era? I think different things would be needed for different types of thieves. For example, someone who just steals cars from the modern era wouldn't need to know things someone who steals from bank vaults in the Victorian era would.
This. You don't need to be that stealthy if all you want to do is hit people over the head and take their wallets. You don't have to be that stealthy if you live in the kind of place where nobody will bat an eyelid at you kicking a door down. Find the traits and attributes of their environment and that'll lead you directly to what kind of traits and attributes they need as a thief.
Usually, thieves are represented as people who steal, often for a reason. Economical, can your character afford normal living? Some thieves have stolen merely for the thrill. Political, would your thief hide/reveal information about a ruling party? The common theme seems to be that thieves have very strong motivations, good, bad, or otherwise. And I do like the suggestion made by cruciFICTION.
Yeah... it really depends on what "type" of thief you are talking about. If we're talking about the safe-cracker type... probably a different of traits than if you were an art thief. I think you could literally have any personality traits except for a select few and be able to explain it away with the plot or anything else.
Think in terms of RPG's. Stealth, pickpocketing, lockpicking (includes safe-cracking), backstabbing (hiding in the dark and then going behind an opponent for major damage), and finding traps. Also, keep in mind, their dexterity is immense. They would also need to be smart and quick talking, skills with charisma, in order to be effective.
There are as many different kinds of thief's as there are people. You need to narrow it down to what kind of thief you are trying to create, and honestly their "qualities" can be whatever you want them to be.
It honestly bothers me, the amount of people who think that thieves should be charismatic or good with words. If you're going with conventional thieves, then they should be silent. They should never have to speak at all while they're on the job. The kinds of thieves who speak well to their targets are not only daring, but are also stupid.
Being a thief is not necessarily a bad thing, always. I was groomed as a thief by a good hearted mother out of extreme circumstances. Being the smallest and the lightest, I alone could creep into my father's bedroom after he returned home drunk and pilfer some money out of his pockets so that my mother, sisters and I could have some ice cream. He blew it all on booze anyway and we felt like we did deserve some of it. It was a daunting task for a young boy of 5 or so, the wooden floors creaked when you stepped on them and I learned to spread my toes, like those of a mouse and easily place them down a few at a time. absolute stealth was the game. then there were the pants hanging on the headboard. the change would jingle and he would stop snoring and roll over. I would freeze with my small hand deep in the pockets until he resumed breathing deeply again. The retreat had to be just as quiet and meticulous as the advance. My mother and sisters were very proud of my accomplishments and as I grew, so did my skills. Sneaking into a room where a person is asleep is not for the meek. This made the normal slight of hand needed to steal from a store in broad daylight seem easy. A simple glance over their shoulder was often all that was needed to make the clerk distracted enough to look away and gain that one second needed to steal a knife or whatever it was that i wanted. a hat helped, you can quickly put a fishing reel under ahat and simply walk out of a store. You nerve and size of the objects that you steal grow with your skill.
Eh... again though, there are a lot of different theives. You have the "con artist" type like the guy from "White Collar". And those guys by definition HAVE to be charismatic, clever, and good with words. But then you have the "safecracker/infiltrator/sneaky" type that tends to be quieter and fade into the background.
How about extreme intelligence or the ability to understand systems. Everything follows a system or routine of sorts and being able to look at an objective as a whole, being able to predict all outcomes, understanding every aspect of what is needed to be done to complete that objective. Was that clear?
Level 4 lockpicking, at least. Max out your stealth tree and make sure you have high dexterity. If you need help figuring out what qualities a thief would need, you're gonna have a helluva time writing this novel, which sounds more like a role playing game to me. Anybody can be a thief. You don't need skills like pickpocketing or special items that let you unlock every door. Life isn't a RPG. All you need is the ability to take something that isn't yours and make it become yours. Everything else, is the Story.
