Just one of the gang now

In my previous posts I have argued that the Thief was the first made-for-D&D class because it included rules for D&D's second sub-game, the dungeon crawl, whereas "the Chainmail classes" just had rules for combat. I also pointed out that this variance-at-rules was precisely what made the Thief a "problem" to many old school gamers. What should have been part of the rule system was introduced as a class ability by accident, setting the stage for Thief Skills and (eventually) the Skill System in 3e/4e. For anyone committed to D&D's class-based advancement system (as I am) this was obviously all an unthinking mistake, and so this post is my first draft proposal of a D&D alt.history where the Thief was created in concordance with its fellow classes.

Note that the proposals in this post will reflect the specifics of the Labyrinth Lord rules, as its free PDF is what I have available both at home and office. Adapting it to your preferred flavor of D&D should not be a difficult project.

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This post will be organized in three sections: Thieves, New Rule Systems and Further Suggested Changes. The Thieves section will present a Thief class with abilities and probabilities much the same as a standard Thief, but in a manner integrated with the D&D rule set. The new rule systems presented will provide rules modifying or adding generic mechanics to the Movement & Exploration rules all classes may try their hand at. The last section, Further Suggested Changes, will suggest a few changes to the other classes in the game so they may take advantage of the New Rule Systems with class-specific degrees of competency.

Thieves
Prime Requisite: Dex
HD: 1d4
Maximum Level: None

Backstab: A Thief who attacks his target while the target is Surprised (relative to the Thief; the target may be aware of third parties) receives a +4 bonus to-hit and multiplies damage by x2.

Sneaky: Thieves walk quietly and keep to the shadows out of habit as much as anything. While wearing armor no heavier than leather and no shield, and otherwise dressed and shod appropriately at the DM's discretion, the Thief surprises an opponent on 1-3. This increases to 1-4 at 7th level, 1-5 at 11th level and 1-6 at 14th level. At 14th level and above 2d6 is rolled; if both are 6 the attempt still fails. This chance may always be improved or reduced by circumstances or the senses of the Thief's adversary.

Adept Climber: While wearing no or Leather armor and no Shield Thieves subtract +1/2 per Level from their DEX Check when Climbing.

Adroit Technician: A Thief's ability to find hidden door and traps, disable traps and pick locks improves to 1-2 at 3rd level, 1-3 at 6th level, 1-4 at 8th, 1-5 at 10th and 1-6 at 13th. At 13th level and above 2d6 is rolled; if both are 6 the attempt still fails.

Hear Noise: Laying in wait, a Thief's keen ears picks up what others cannot. A Thief begins at 1st level with a 1-2/6 chance of detecting faint noise, the same as an elf. This improves to 1-3 at 3rd level, 1-4 at 6th and 1-5 at 10th.

Sneaky v. Hear Noise: Lower successful roll wins.

Read Languages: Thieves have double the normal chance to Read Languages.

Pick Pockets: The "other" signature ability of the Thief, Thieves can attempt relieve targets of finger rings, pocket contents or purse with the slightest bump. They can also use this skill to palm small items or perform other minor feats of legerdemain, such as swapping a fair dice for a weighted one before rolling on the craps table. Success is rolling a 1-2 on 6, improving to 1-3 at 6th level, 1-4 at 8th level, 1-5 at 10th and 1-6 at 12th. Targets of 10th level or higher reduce the odds of success by 1. If the Thief fails or rolls a 6, roll again for each target or observer. A 6 on any of the secondary rolls results in being noticed!

Build Thief Den: Per LL.

New Rule Systems (or Modifications)

Surprise

Chance to Gain Surprise

Unarmored or Leather Armor: 1-2/6

Armored in Lamellar, Mail or Plate: 1/6

Ambush: The Surprise rules assume that each side is behaving "normally", either walking or talking at normal volumes. If one side remains still and is particularly quiet however, due to deliberate attempts to hide their presence, then their chance of being surprised is reduced by 1 and their chance of gaining surprise is increase by 2.

Once you've been seen ...: No adventurer can regain Surprise once the target is aware of you, but you may be able to Surprise a target who is aware of third parties. By example, a Thief lying in wait behind a rain barrel may gain Surprise against a passing guardsman whose attention is focused on the Thief's accomplices further down the way.

It's Always the Dwarf's Fault: A group of characters moving together uses the worst Surprise roll of any member of its group.

Spells:

Invisible grants +1 to Surprise.

Silence grants +1 to Surprise.

Faerie Fire and More Cowbell makes Surprise impossible.

Ascending & Climbing (replaced Climbing rules on p. 48)

Ascending means ascending any slope or stair more than 25 degrees above level, but less than the steepness where you can reach your hand straight out and touch the surface you are ascending. You move both Forward and Upwards at 3/4 your normal movement rate. No check is necessary to succeed.

Climbing means climbing any slope or stair so steep you can reach straight out with your hand and touch the surface you are climbing, or steeper. You move Upwards at 1/4 your normal movement rate and Forwards very little if at all (ask your DM if you must know). Roll a DEX check to climb safely 100' or less (longer climbs will require more rolls, possibly with penalties for exhaustion). Failure means a fall from 1/2 the maximum height.

Common Climbing Modifiers:

Ladder, Knotted Rope, Rope Descent Automatic Success

Rope Climb (Grappling Hook, Pitons) -3

Windows & Ledges, Steep Cliff +0

Sheer Cliff, Castle Wall, Pit +3

Strange Languages & Magical Scrolls

Over the course of many adventures, adventures pick up many bits of lore and are exposed to many strange dialects and tongues.

Reading Languages: If an adventurer finds a map or document whose writings are not wholly alien to him (meaning the writings are based on a language related to languages he has been exposed to before) he may attempt to puzzle out its meaning. The chance of success is equal to (5+Additional Langues * Level)%, to a maximum of 80%. Success indicates that he has translated a % of the work equal to his odds of success.

Magical Scrolls: Any adventurer over 3rd level may attempt to use a magical scroll (magic-user, elven or clerical), however the odds of success are only (5+Additional Langues * Level)%, to a maximum of 90%. Failure can result in the spell fizzling out, being cast horribly awry, exploding, or such other result as your DM may determine.

Locks, Traps & Trap Detection (replaces rules from Labyrinth Rules)

Characters of all classes can search for and attempt to disable non-magical traps. All characters except dwarves can succeed in spotting a trap on a roll of 1 on 1d6. Dwarves succeed on a roll of 1 or 2 on 1d6. Players must declare that their characters are actively looking for traps, and they must be looking in the right place. This roll may only be made once in a particular location, and it takes 1 turn per effort made. The Labyrinth Lord secretly rolls the dice for these checks, because the players will never know if they failed to find the trap or if there is not one present.

Traps have specific triggers, whether it is opening a door or walking over a particular area. Every time a character makes an action that could trigger a trap (including any attempt to disable it), the Labyrinth Lord rolls 1d6. A result of 1 or 2 indicates that the trap springs.

Characters with the proper tools may attempt to pick open a locked door or chest without breaking the lock. The odds of success are 1 in 6. Each character may only attempt to pick a particular lock once per character level. Picking a lock requires 1 round of effort.

Further Suggested Changes

Elf

Graceful Climber: While wearing no or Leather armor and no Shield Elves subtract their DEX modifier and +1/4 per Level from their DEX Check when Climbing.

Fighter

Strong Climber: Fighters roll a STR check to climb. Further, if they are wearing no or Leather armor and no Shield Fighters subtract +1/4 per Level from their STR Check when Climbing.

Halfling

Small: Halflings are easy to miss. In natural surface environments they Surprise on a 1-5. In cities or dungeons they improve their otherwise normal chance for surprising an opponent by 1.

Magic-User

Read Languages: A Magic-User has double the normal chance of Reading Languages, to a maximum of 90%. Further he not limited to languages "not wholly alien" for his arcane training has trained his mind to hold the underlying fundamental patterns of the universe, of which all languages are a mere subset.

Magical Scrolls: A magic-user or elven scroll the magic-user has scribed himself or cast Read Magic on has no chance of failure when read.