Assassins

[I]

Just thinking, wouldn't it make sense for assassins to have the ability to pick locks? If thery were hired to kill somebody who had an apartment or lived in some kind of house with a lock, they would need to get in by doing something.Anybody agree?

[nameless]

Assassin's then just become uber burglars, I'd rather that not happen.

What I would like to see is burglars and assassins given the ablity with enough climbing skill to enter through windows but I highly doubt it would happen.  They have to greatly expand on the avaliable roof tops you could get on.

[Praetorian]

If you are an assassin/burglar or...just about anyone for that matter and you want to attempt entry to a location via a window you know is there (just not so much reachable) then just wish up.  Play out yourself watching for spectators, maybe cover of darkness...start emoting climbing with footholds, etc etc.
I have seen people do it will immortal help - you just need to give them due warning (so either negative or good things could result - its a roll of the dice )

- Prae

[lazycritic]

Assassin's then just become uber burglars, I'd rather that not happen.

Or just crappy burglars...crappy burglars can't get into many places.

Try playing a long-lived assassin first. They definitely shouldn't get it to start out with.

[nameless]

Praetorian- Heh, I was curious to the see if that would work but you can only depend on the immortal's so much.  I love to see more roof tops anyways, I think it be cool to get another view of the city.

[halfhuman]

Yay! Assassins!  A subject near and dear to my heart!  It's estimated that 85.27% of PC's dead in an alley were me trying to train an assassin!

I agree that assassin's shouldn't have lock pick. That would just make them uber burglars. If assassins had lockpick, the only thing they'd be missing is pickpocket!  Try not to think of in such a "traditional" way.  Just because you kill people for a living, doesn't mean you have to pick locks. Similarly, you don't need the backstab ability to assassinate.  Backstab rarely kills in one hit. (unless you've a. Twinked it up massively, or b. been an assassin for at least half an IRL year (or c. imm boost, I guess))  If you rely on backstab as the sole means of killing your target, you wont succeed.  The best way to do it is to make them helpless, eliminate their escape routes..... Wow. Off topic again.

Umm.. So, yah. Just because you're an assassin doesn't mean you CAN'T learn to pick locks! You just gotta have friends!  Friends that are burglars.  If you want to be a good assassin, you'll need to be connected. If you're connected, you don't need to pick locks. You can get people to pick them for you!

(This is all theory, because I've never had a successfull assassin )

So. Roof tops. YES!  Not that there should be an 'UP' tag on every screen. There should be a command that allows you to attempt to scale the side of a building. If there's no coded rooftop above it, it'll just say "it's not possible"  There are places where you can get to rooftops, but they're no secrets, and they don't require a climb check to get onto. (at least the ones I know of)  These can be cool for shady dealings, but a rooftop that not everyone knows about would be MUCH sweeter!

[joyofdiscord]

a rooftop that not everyone knows about would be MUCH sweeter!

How do you know they don't already exist?

[Armaddict]

Assassins have many ways to gain entry into a place.  Including through locks.

Your common slum won't have the the time to learn such things.  Become a professional, a versatile extension of your work.

[Assassin]

Assassins have many ways to gain entry into a place.  Including through locks.

Your common slum won't have the the time to learn such things.  Become a professional, a versatile extension of your work.

Exactly Armaddict.

It's estimated that 85.27% of PC's dead in an alley were me trying to train an assassin!

You are on the wrong target, I can easily say that.

Being in the alleys, attacking people around could as well get yourself some trouble from the other muggers around, or from someone else claiming the place.  Especially, if you are a random nobody who is just ...a nobody.
Don't go around backstabbing people if you want to be an assassin of note.  Hopefully if I can get my lazy ass up, I can come up with some helpful points and suggestions.

[Anonymous]

I imagine some of the best assassins have nothing to do with the cloak and dagger, dark figure in shadows stereotypes but are more like the assassins from our world.  More con man than ninja when it comes to getting close to their prey.

[EvilRoeSlade]

Just thinking, wouldn't it make sense for assassins to have the ability to pick locks? If thery were hired to kill somebody who had an apartment or lived in some kind of house with a lock, they would need to get in by doing something.Anybody agree?

I agree completely.  If you want an assassin capable of picking locks, then you should pick Guild_Burglar during character creation.

[The Imms Know Who I Am]

Just thinking, wouldn't it make sense for assassins to have the ability to pick locks? If thery were hired to kill somebody who had an apartment or lived in some kind of house with a lock, they would need to get in by doing something.Anybody agree?

I agree completely.  If you want an assassin capable of picking locks, then you should pick Guild_Burglar during character creation.

ERS' point being, don't take the guild name literally. You can be an assassin RP wise without being of the assassin's guild. The assassin's guild entitles you to X,Y,Z skills, and thats that.

[halfhuman]

Well, I don't just go around attacking random Joe Schmoes.  Not anymore, at least.  :oops:

A friend of mine told me that the best guild to be an assassin in, would be the ranger guild because Rangers have got the most and sweetest skills.  I imagine as part of being an assassin you'd want some sort of espionage skillz, but assassins dont have listen.  And rangers already have the stealth skills (although they don't work well in the city)

I have an assassin project that I'm keepng on the back burner... (where it will probably catch fire and disappear. )  If you feel you must train out a sweet assassin, I hear the best way to do it is the Byn!

[Assassin]

I imagine as part of being an assassin you'd want some sort of espionage skillz, but assassins dont have listen. And rangers already have the stealth skills (although they don't work well in the city)

If you want to start with listen skill, you can get that from a subguild.

About the assassin skillset in general, as it seems the topic is mainly about it, just because you don't start with certain skills does not mean you can't do certain actions.  There are -always- some other way to get something done.

For first, there is always the possibility to branch some of the skills you want.  Or you can pick up some useful skills from an appropriate subguild.  Or... You can get the certain actions done, by hiring other people do it.

If you feel you must train out a sweet assassin, I hear the best way to do it is the Byn!

Byn will make you a fighter in close quarters, not a professional assassin.  Of course, it is not a step in the wrong direction, as the job of the assassin is to finish his target off fast and clean, and being good in a fight could be quiet useful for it.  But remember.. If you picked up assassin as your guild, your start in the Byn could be a little frustrating at first, as everybody will be beating the crap out of you.  Assassins start low in skills, combatwise.  And get better slow, real slow, frustratingly slow, so slow you might get to think storing the character.  Never mind the fact they have some skills that is really, really, REALLY difficult to practice at all.  Before picking up the guild, I would recommend anyone to have these in mind.

I imagine some of the best assassins have nothing to do with the cloak and dagger, dark figure in shadows stereotypes but are more like the assassins from our world.

This is a pretty good point.  And because of playability, it is more appropriate to choose this way indeed.
Example in this direction, me playing an assassin, have some targets that are playing in different times than me.  Now, I don't think I need to stress out, how boring it would be to go to the person's house and hide there and wait for him to step out.  Or getting into his house and hide behind the cushion and wait for him to show up.
Being an assassin is not just hiding and stabbing.  It is also approaching to your target, planning it out, such that, there will be slim to nil chances of failure in the mission, or getting caught by someone else.

I guess it is going more like a list of suggestions.  I better stop it here.

[John]

I imagine some of the best assassins have nothing to do with the cloak and dagger, dark figure in shadows stereotypes but are more like the assassins from our world.

Any links on info on real life assassins? I don't really know anything about assassins myself, except the typical stereotype (nothing too big on reading, I don't like reading entire textbooks ).

An interesting thought occurred to me reading this thread. Most murders are comitted by someone who knew the victim. I wonder if that includes assassins.

[nameless]

Any links on info on real life assassins? I don't really know anything about assassins myself, except the typical stereotype (nothing too big on reading, I don't like reading entire textbooks ).

An interesting thought occurred to me reading this thread. Most murders are comitted by someone who knew the victim. I wonder if that includes assassins.

http://www.paladin-press.com/ is bound to have atlest a few books dealing with assassins.  They use to have a book before it was banned called "The Hitman's Guide"  I have digital copy of it.

I find that there is three types of assassins:

There is the lowly hitmen, rinther's most likely who live short brutal lives.

There is the military black ops freaking ninja type, sneaking in, stalking and killing the target.  Then they leave with out a trace.  Under the current code I could see this being an impossiable task, due to the restriction's that is place on player on the way of gaining entrance to a building or crossing the desert sneaking into a compound and then killing them.

Then there is your james bond type.  They sneak in either under disguised or undercover, do things such as poison the food, catch the target off guard or even be the targets guard.

[Rhyden]

I imagine some of the best assassins have nothing to do with the cloak and dagger, dark figure in shadows stereotypes but are more like the assassins from our world.  More con man than ninja when it comes to getting close to their prey.

Damnit, CRW, now they all know.  :wink:

[halfhuman]

Yeah, I have really good ninja skills...

*slaps nameless ringingly* Hey buster, it's the Hitman's Manual, not Guide or whatever you said, and MAN is it hard to find online with them new, niggly Hitman games out!

But, I've got ya a link anyhow.

http://ftp.die.net/mirror/hitman/

Enjoy. Haven't had time to read any of it yet because I'm just SOoo excited! But...

[nameless]

Guide, manual, how too book, its all the same.

[Xygax]

Assassins -should- be able to pick locks, you're right!

-- X

[halfhuman]

Nah man. Totally not!

Well... Maybe as a branch skill or something.

But still, you're thinking too "Artemis Entrari" who had every skill in 3rd addition twice, sometimes three times! (R.A. Salvatore over-powers his characters, but that's a different matter)

No one's preventing an assassin from being able to pick locks, or learning how.  Assassins don't have the 'ride' skill, but they still manage it in the Byn, don't they?  Basically, they didn't want assassins to not pick locks at all, but if you think about it, assassin's would be waaay too uber if they could pick locks.  A lot of newbs transferring here from other MUDs probably take assassin as their first character enough anyhow (I know I did)

Do you want to see a bunch of uber newbs running around Allanak, killing you and stealing all your stuff? It'd be a freakin plague, I tell ya! Do you want to be responsible for that?

You're thinking too conventionally. Think about it. How many people can afford locks in Zalanthas? It's not like modern day. Locks are quite complex! Especially when you need to shape them out of bone. I could be wrong, but I dont' see them as being standard on every house.  Besides, a  great number of people just sleep in the common rooms of the tavern too. Not a lot of hanging around the house going on, eh?  Even if you were gonna sneak into someone's house, whould you do it while they were awake? If you plan on sneaking into people's houses and killing them, by all means, be a burglar. You don't need the backstab command when you're killing sleeping victims.

Also, if you look at some of the skills for assassin, sap, backstab, climbing, they seem to be geared more toward the whole back alley mugger.

[Maybe42or54]

Personally, I counter that by making all my merchants warriors with Imm upped skills.