Thief

The Thief (Japanese とうぞく, touzoku) is one of the character classes available to players in the Wizardry series of games. Thieves are decent combatants almost comparing to the Fighter and other similar classes, but better than the Mage; they are however, required to clear some of the game's hazards, clearing traps and unlocking chests and doors. Wizardry's thieves are analogous to the Rogue, a common fantasy archetype.

Class Description
The Thief is one of the basic character classes available to players upon character creation. They are capable of using bladed weapons and leather armor, in ways superior to Mages, and Priests. This makes them competent fighters, but less than respectable front row fodder. Their available equipment isn't as strong as that of a Fighter, Lord, or Samurai, and their AC and damage dealing capabilities place him behind the meat shield, not in the midst of it. Since their conception, the Thief's trademark ability has been searching chests for locks or traps, and bypass said ones to acquire the treasure within without the rest of the party suffering consequences.

In later games, Thieves gain certain new improvements to further differentiate themselves from Fighters. In Wizardry V the Thief can hide in shadows, and backstab for greater damage than while avoiding attacks from enemies. Also in Wizardry V, the thief can steal from NPCs with greater effectiveness than other classes, sometimes this is required to progress, sometimes it's just fun. Finally, Thieves can wield short bows and crossbows, allowing them to fight from the far safer back row.

Llygamyn Saga
In the group of games that compose the Llylgamyn saga (Wizardry I to V, excluding Wizardry IV), the Thief is one of the easiest classes to qualify for at character creation. In Wizardry V, the Thief becomes capable of equipping bows, and their new Hide ability allows them to Ambush their enemies with any weapon for greater damage, thus nearly eliminating the penalties for lesser AC and HP in front row by dealing extra damage, or remaining in the back row.

To become a Thief, the character must achieve the minimum stat requirements:


 * AGI 11


 * Must be of Neutral or Evil alignment

Race-wise, Hobbits are the race that fits the Thief class. Their naturally high Dexterity, combined with their high Luck rate, causes them to be the primary choice for most beginning players. Gnomes also are a decent choice, supplying a higher Strength and Vitality. Elves are also decent Thieves, but should consider beginning as a magic-based class before becoming one for the spellcasting benefits and the higher HP.

Thief or Ninja in the Llygamyn Saga?
This is a common question, and one that I don't think is carefully weighed or tested. The ninja is considered the advanced thief class, having a steadily decreasing by level AC and access to a variety of weapons and armor that thieves would kill to wear and equip. Furthermore, the ninja can use his bare hands to deal massive damage, or one-shot any enemy, ANY ENEMY. In any dedicated playthrough of Wizardry, one that aims to create a group of superpowered inordinately well-equipped superheroes, acquiring the staggering stat prerequisites for class changing into a ninja is a nonissue, and since the stat pre-reqs are the most challenging hurdle to creating a ninja, why have a thief?

Simple.

Thieves do thief things better than ninjas. I don't have the numbers for chances of success in trap detection and disarming, but time and brute force attempts will paint a very clear picture of the difference between the two for any player that wants to compare them. Ninjas can identify traps, about as accurately as your mage or wizard, in fact, I've had Lords, Samurai, and Fighters guess the correct trap over the Ninja, consistently. Ninjas can't pick locks, at all. In Wizardry V this means you need to rely on your mage to unlock a few doors if you want to roll a ninja. "What about picking pockets you?" might ask, it's a good question, and the answer is that the ninja can be said to make up for his horrible success rate at picking locks with his ability to fend off the attacking NPC that catches him stealing. In short, thieves do thief things better, consistently.

The claims above have the benefit of hours of brute force testing behind them. My opinion of ninjas is based on these experiences, and is: Ninjas are the best class for carrying quest items, and that's it. My opinion? Save yourself the trouble of creating a ninja and level your thief instead, even at half the level he'd be outshining your sparkling new ninja at everything you ask him to do.

Dark Savant Saga


In the group of games that compose the Dark Savant Saga (Wizardry VI thru VIII), the Thief gains a good set of skills that include the use of slings and throwing weapons, wands and daggers, swords and others. As well, the Thief is one of the few starting characters to have Skulduggery, Leger-de-main (French for "light-handed") and Ninjitsu as Physical skills. As a Thief, the character becomes extremely proficient with Skulduggery, achieving very high skill levels in little time. Thieves also achieve high growth in léger-de-main.

To become a Thief, the character must achieve the minimum stat requirements:


 * DEX (Dexterity) 12


 * SPE (Speed) 8

Because of the minimal requirements, any race that favors Dexterity and Speed will be favorable for Thieves: Hobbits, Faeries, Felpurr are good examples.

Duhan Saga (Tales of the Forsaken Land/Wizardry Alternative)
In Wizardry: Tales of the Forsaken Land (also known as Busin: Wizardry Alternative in Japan) and their sequels, the Thief remains similar to earlier incarnations of the class except for their ability to use up to level 3 magic from both Priest and Sorcerer spells, making them excellent choices at the beginning of the game and even far beyond. Since the traps on the game are of a different nature (button presses instead of choosing from a list), a Thief isn't required to deal with traps anymore, though it does provide some benefit.

To become a Thief, the character must achieve the minimum requirements:


 * Neutral or Evil Attribute

As with other games, the best races stat-wise to become a Thief are the Halflings. The sequel to the first game of the series (Busin 0: Wizardry Alternative Neo) has two upgrades to the Thief class: the Noble Thief and the Phantom Thief.