Tuluk, Assassination, Thieving

Started by RogueGunslinger, January 09, 2009, 04:40:55 PM

I'd like to know more about the system of buying the rights to become an assassin or thief in Tuluk. I don't understand what the purpose for doing so is. What does one gain by paying for this? How does the populace trath these things? Is it considered a great honor to be a well known thief?

If I wanted to start a character with the right to thief(because he's been doing it for a long time) should I special app it, or is it easy to find a Templar to let you do this, or can this be done through the regular app process. Also, will it's expensiveness strip my newbie character from all of his coins if I can't start a char with it already.


Thanks.

Quote from: RogueGunslinger on January 09, 2009, 04:40:55 PM
I'd like to know more about the system of buying the rights to become an assassin or thief in Tuluk. I don't understand what the purpose for doing so is. What does one gain by paying for this?

The shady gains the privilege to have crimes go mostly uninvestigated if they are carried off successfully. Basically, get away clean, and you won't be fingered for the job. You also gain not getting offed by a templar if you're playing by the rules; but templars typically are pretty harsh if you're operating without a license.

Quote from: RogueGunslinger on January 09, 2009, 04:40:55 PMIs it considered a great honor to be a well known thief?

Yes. To be a "master thief" means that everyone knows you're a thief of repute, but no one can pin anything on you. This would accord high respect in Tuluk.

Quote from: RogueGunslinger on January 09, 2009, 04:40:55 PMHow does the populace trath these things?

Tuluk is a place where "everyone knows." Probably templars and nobles know from firsthand experience who are the successful, talented shadies; and from there the word trickles out. That guy at the tavern who's dressed really well, has a great apartment, and is buying drinks and spice for everyone but doesn't seem to have gainful employment? Maybe he's a master shady.

Quote from: RogueGunslinger on January 09, 2009, 04:40:55 PMIf I wanted to start a character with the right to thief(because he's been doing it for a long time) should I special app it, or is it easy to find a Templar to let you do this, or can this be done through the regular app process. Also, will it's expensiveness strip my newbie character from all of his coins if I can't start a char with it already.

No, yes, no, and no.
Quote from: Vanth on February 13, 2008, 05:27:50 PM
I'm gonna go all Gimfalisette on you guys and lay down some numbers.


January 09, 2009, 05:08:53 PM #3 Last Edit: January 09, 2009, 05:15:29 PM by Prince Prig
If you haven't been able to look at it, the documentation on Tuluki Roleplay describes the tradition a bit as well as some posts on the GDB.

I'll leave the more eloquent responses for others, but basically the benefits of being a licensed thief/assassin in Tuluk are that you are sanctioned by the Faithful to pursue an art hidden from public eye. The document explains the specifics, but thieves pay a one-time fee for their "rights", while assassins much register each case.

Being registered means a lesser punishment if you are unfortunate to get caught, and it serves as a bribe (to put it bluntly) to the Faithful when you do succeed a theft or assassination, as long as they have you and the planned deed on record. As well, if you gain a sufficient reputation, you may be called upon by "others" for your services.

How does the populace trace these things? Tuluk is known for people disappearing, or things being "lost" if you are not careful or cross the wrong person. Aside from that, the populace as a public knows little of the specifics of individual acts, if done by a skilled "artist". Individual artists may have their own trademark, so to speak, of doing things, but aside from that, little else is known of these people than that. On the other hand, the Faithful and those the registered thieves and assassins work with do know the happenings (or have the resources to find out), and likely one's reputation grows or lessens amongst this small circle before spreading to the public. (I think Gimfalisette explained this part better.)

Is it considered a great honor to be a well-known thief? Just as it may be prestigious being a recognized bard of Poet's Circle, so likely would it be to be a respected and highly reputed thief or assassin. Perhaps the only difference being that your fame is less open to the public, and thus represented in different ways. A skilled assassin or thief wouldn't flaunt what they do, but people would just know.

You would approach one of the Lirathans (white robed templars) IG if your character would like to pursue this line of "art". Approaching them politely but discreetly would likely be helpful, and in part a measure of your future success, but it isn't that difficult a process. No need for special apping or such unless it was special...

Going from the documentation, a thieving license is around 300, though things may vary depending on circumstance and the mood of the Faithful Lady. Assassination licenses differ with each individual case.
* Naja Salaheem: Forever! Always! Until death! You mercenaries are my pawns.

Do you receive an object similar to a merchants token?

Hey, one I actually know!

Quote from: RogueGunslinger on January 09, 2009, 05:19:40 PM
Do you receive an object similar to a merchants token?

Yes.
There is no general doctrine which is not capable of eating out our morality if unchecked by the deep-seated habit of direct fellow-feeling with individual fellow-men. -George Eliot


January 09, 2009, 05:43:09 PM #7 Last Edit: January 09, 2009, 05:45:06 PM by Prince Prig
Quote from: Tisiphone on January 09, 2009, 05:21:17 PM
Hey, one I actually know!

Quote from: RogueGunslinger on January 09, 2009, 05:19:40 PM
Do you receive an object similar to a merchants token?

Yes.

Sort of. You receive something, though.

This is actually one of the aspects of Tuluk I really like about it, and one with a lot of potential if built up.
* Naja Salaheem: Forever! Always! Until death! You mercenaries are my pawns.

How would the templarate regard a crew of licensed assassin's and thieves. Would their abilities, together, become a problem for the templarate? What would they do if they got out of hand?

That, I believe, should be found (or figured) out IC.

I think a character in citizen would know whether or not people of those sorts tended to hand out together, and if the templarate smacked down such groups if they did get togethor...

But I can see how it can be a 'find out ic' situation. I'll settle for asking the staff via request.

Well, if you think about it, the Faithful would know who all the registered citizens of His city are, their description, and everything. If ever such a group became too powerful, it would be easy to control them. Logically speaking... Can't speak for what happens IG. =D
* Naja Salaheem: Forever! Always! Until death! You mercenaries are my pawns.

Does the license for thieving cover all forms of such? Obviously subtlyty woulb be the way to go, but what about mugging? Befriending someone for trust so you can strip them of their things? Scams?

Anyone else think this being licensed is fucking retarded? What happened to bribing your way out of being fingered?
Damn notherners
Who would you kill for a klondike bar?

January 09, 2009, 06:35:25 PM #14 Last Edit: January 09, 2009, 06:50:27 PM by RogueGunslinger
The license -is- the bribe.

Quote from: RogueGunslinger on January 09, 2009, 06:30:42 PM
Does the license for thieving cover all forms of such? Obviously subtlety would be the way to go, but what about mugging? Befriending someone for trust so you can strip them of their things? Scams?

January 09, 2009, 06:53:12 PM #15 Last Edit: January 09, 2009, 07:10:25 PM by Prince Prig
Quote from: RogueGunslinger on January 09, 2009, 06:30:42 PM
Does the license for thieving cover all forms of such? Obviously subtlyty woulb be the way to go, but what about mugging? Befriending someone for trust so you can strip them of their things? Scams?

It should cover all forms of taking another's possession without the other's consent. Mugging fits into it, though I doubt it would be a wise choice, unless you do it without being spotted...which may as well be stealing.

If you take someone's possession and there's nothing that links the taking to you, you did a good steal, and the Faithful likely won't look too far into it. You wouldn't need a license for scams though, as the victim was a willing participant, and scams are a normal part of life. Nor stealing knowledge, for that matter. Burglaries, perhaps. Hope that clears things up.

Befriending someone and then stripping them when they're vulnerable is still taking without consent. You may or may not want a license to pull it off though if it's only a one-time thing or other.

Bottom line, you'll want to get licensed if the act of stealing (or killing) is a large part of your life and there's a likelihood of you getting caught, or want the benefits of being "known" by the Faithful and associates. There's a number of exceptions, but it should be easy to pick out.

[Note: I write from experience and from my interpretation of the documents, so don't take it all for fact.]
* Naja Salaheem: Forever! Always! Until death! You mercenaries are my pawns.

After taking a look through the documents, I found that something I assumed to be common knowledge related to licensing, in fact, is not. My funny joke about where to stick your newfound license will have to wait :D

Steal (verb): To take (the property of another) without right or permission.

Pickpocketing is stealing. Mugging is stealing. Burglary is stealing.
If you own it, it's not stealing.
If they own it and give you permission, it's not stealing.

Only problem is, by this definition, elves have a mixed taste about stealing which is obviously not true :(
Quote from: Niamh on September 24, 2009, 02:28:12 PM
Remember, you're never in trouble if you don't get caught!

Quote from: Wyx on June 28, 2009, 07:59:17 PM
Besides, the players know best

Quote from: RogueGunslinger on January 09, 2009, 04:40:55 PM
I'd like to know more about the system of buying the rights to become an assassin or thief in Tuluk. I don't understand what the purpose for doing so is. What does one gain by paying for this? How does the populace trath these things? Is it considered a great honor to be a well known thief?

If I wanted to start a character with the right to thief(because he's been doing it for a long time) should I special app it, or is it easy to find a Templar to let you do this, or can this be done through the regular app process. Also, will it's expensiveness strip my newbie character from all of his coins if I can't start a char with it already.


Thanks.

The way it works in practice, is that it just makes it easier for you to be betrayed, tracked down or killed.

Quote from: RogueGunslinger on January 09, 2009, 06:30:42 PM
Does the license for thieving cover all forms of such? Obviously subtlyty woulb be the way to go, but what about mugging? Befriending someone for trust so you can strip them of their things? Scams?

Mugging is frowned upon in Tuluk because it's generally 'messy'–the templarate likes 'subtle' crimes because they don't disturb the public peace.

You usually don't need a license to run a con, but it will come down the whichever templar ends up dealing with it.

Licensed thievery would deal more with burglarizing apartments, picking pockets, or knocking people out (without them spotting you) and taking their shit.

There are relative merits to not getting a license, too, though it is far far riskier. Unlicensed killings and unlicensed theft are majorly risky bad deeds in Tuluk, whereas licensed jobs are relatively legit, as long as you know where you stand with the powers that be.

Clearsighted is right in this. Perhaps a templar can tolerate a shady killing ther enemies, or planting/spying on their enemies, etc. But the moment a shady poses some kind of harm to a person who Templar needs, the templar can easilly leak (best case scenario, the are worse), who the culprit/assassin is.

If it was possible to do via an npc templar vendor, that would be great. Otherwise, as a shady you're just not important enough and can 'easilly' be sacrificed for an act of good faith from a templar to the merchant about to be popped. And if as a shady you 'are' important enough (master thief, master assassin), then odds are you've worked a long time 'without' getting the license, inviting yourself into betrayal when you were starting out.

Huh... That makes sense, and I don't actually think is a bad thing.

Quote from: RogueGunslinger on January 09, 2009, 09:06:01 PM
Huh... That makes sense, and I don't actually think is a bad thing.

It's not a bad thing. It just prevents any real true 'crime' for the sake of enrichment. And turns criminals into a special ops arm of the Jihaen. Granted, that is so in Nak too at some level, but it doesnt 'have' to be. in Tuluk it's a 'must'

Quote from: RogueGunslinger on January 09, 2009, 09:06:01 PM
Huh... That makes sense, and I don't actually think is a bad thing.

Yeah, I agree that it makes perfect sense.  In return for relative freedom to practice your sneaky arts, the templarate knows who you are.  It can go both ways... they can refer business to you, or they can find you if you mess up. 

It's not required roleplay for any sneaky to get registered in Tuluk.  Maybe they have their reasons for wanting to remain anonymous.  They'll just have to face the consequences if they're caught... and as someone stated, those can be pretty severe, depending on cirumstances.
Quote from: manonfire on November 04, 2013, 08:11:36 AM
The secret to great RP is having the balls to be weird and the brains to make it eloquent.

Quote from: RogueGunslinger on January 09, 2009, 09:06:01 PM
Huh... That makes sense, and I don't actually think is a bad thing.

It's alot more palatable when discussing theory on the forum. It gets a bit old in the game, eventually. Dar is correct that it would work better if there were someway it could be done through NPC vendors (which it never will be) so it doesn't turn out to be the same templar pulling all the strings forever and ever, thereby ensuring the status quo is never seriously threatened. Or at least not in the way it is meant to be, via the docs.

January 09, 2009, 11:15:48 PM #24 Last Edit: January 09, 2009, 11:24:08 PM by Prince Prig
Think about it this way. In Allanak, magickers get "licensed" to practice their finger-wiggling. In Tuluk, criminals get "licensed" to practice their stealing and killing. Allanaki citizens know who's "licensed". Tuluki citizens know who's "licensed" (though not as easily). Magickers are called upon by the Allanaki government at times. Criminals are called upon by the Tuluki government at times.

This isn't a perfect comparison by far, but should make it easier to understand.

Pretty much, for a licensed thief/assassin, the city becomes your temple.
* Naja Salaheem: Forever! Always! Until death! You mercenaries are my pawns.