Theft in Dystopia Rising
[This post was original made as a Rules Ramble Blog Post, by Jonathan Loyd]
While the easiest to imagine scenario for CvC is simply a fight between two people in the Wastelands, THEFT holds a unique position in the world of Dystopia Rising. Unlike violent forms of CvC, you are consenting to theft by simply existing in the world. It’s the only type of CvC that you cannot easily opt out of and the only type of CvC you can commit outside of a Wasteland without consent.
It’s a overlooked part of the rules found on page 163 (emphasis added):
“Always remember that the player is more important than the character; just because your character is a master thief doesn’t mean you should try and steal every single item from someone you know may become upset. You do not need to check in with another player prior to using a thieving skill on their character, but you should prioritize the mental and emotional health of the player representing the character you are stealing from over your character’s fiction desire to steal.”
HOWEVER, the rules ALSO say that EVERY theft outside of the Wasteland requires a Guide, on p. 162 (emphasis mine):
“If CvC escalates to one character attempting to take an Infection from another or the stealing of in-character property outside of the Wasteland, a Guide must be involved.”
So what does this mean?
You can steal an appropriate item without asking the other player in advance, but you must always involve a Guide.
However, you should always consider the other player in a theft, as losing items can be one of the most devastating forms of CvC. In some cases, those items can represent hundreds of hours of playtime and crafting! You should always prioritize the mental and emotional health of a player behind the character over your character’s fictional desire to steal.
USING A GUIDE
Whether you use Basic Larceny or pick up an unattended object you will need to have a Guide present to monitor the Theft. The Guide will help you oversee the situation and, if needed, help you gauge the other player’s reaction. When you use the Larceny skill, the Guide will notify the other player and retrieve the card for whatever you stole. If it’s an unattended object they’ll help you register it in the Theft Log that is found inside of the Post Office.
Most importantly, getting a Guide involved helps to meet the intent of the theft rules by ensuring there is a neutral third party considering the other player’s feelings. Generally for ANY form of CvC, I recommend getting a Guide involved, but for Theft it is specifically required. And, it’s just good practice in my experience, even for those in the Wasteland!
Finally, if you steal something from another character, you have “flagged” yourself for CvC in return and they can also grab a Guide to get back at you for stealing their gear (p. 163):
“The individual who has been stolen from has license to take a Guide with them in order to beat down the thief and take back their item.”
So this seems like a big thing to watch out for, right? There are only a few specific ways to reduce your chance of Theft in game, so let’s first talk about how you can steal items in game, and the specifics of what can be stolen and what can’t be stolen.
HOW can you Steal Items?
While outside of the Wasteland, there are a few ways to get items in an illicit manner from another character:
The Larceny Skill
On page 118, you can find the basic rules for the Larceny skill. This is the core mechanic that allows you to steal items that are currently in possession of another character. This skill requires you to place a black clothespin on a targeted piece of equipment or Supply Bag without your target noticing. Unlike a lot of other Skills in the game, this actual requires a bit of player talent to pull off effectively. A few reminders for this Skill:
You MUST perform the placement of the clothespin in the presence of a Guide.
The clothespin needs to be placed near the item being stolen or on the Supply Bag itself.
If your victim notices you place the clothespin, they know that you picked their pocket and can act on that information accordingly — usually violently!
Because the Skill requires Active Roleplay (p. 102), it is also visible to anyone nearby if they notice you place the clothespin. They can also act on that information — usually through blackmail or violence!
You must still be mindful of a person’s boundaries when placing a clothespin. If they have a brew attached to their chest, you can instead attach the clothespin on the arm nearest the brew.
Basic Larceny rewards you with ONE random item card from the Supply Bag. The Guide will retrieve this item card for you and can deliver it to you discreetly.
Proficient Larceny rewards you with the highest value item card from their Supply Bag (which is at the discretion of the Guide, not the thief!)
Remember, this is the ONLY way to steal an item in another person’s possession without consent. The only other person that could be targeted outside of the Wasteland is someone registered with the SES, but they’ve effectively agreed to the risks of Theft by signing up.
Looting a Corpse:
The rules for looting a fallen opponent are on p. 158. Let’s cover the basics:
If the item is obvious and visible, you only need to engage in a few seconds of Active Roleplay to take the item.
This is generally used to take weapons for Salvaging, removing injectables from a fallen foe, or to kick away a shield. While it’s technically possible to remove Armor with a ‘few seconds’ of roleplay, this violates the spirit of Rule 3.
You can only loot another player character that is within the Wasteland, a registered member of the SES system, or with explicit consent.
You must spend 30 seconds of Active Roleplay on a Subdued (p. 107), Unconscious (p. 108), or Dead (p. 208) target. The body must still be present if they are dead!
You can loot any item cards, blueprints, currency, or in-game generated items.
You must still check with the player for permission to touch them!
You can also take items directly from the hands of a Stunned (p. 107) enemy to disarm them.
Stealing an Unattended Item:
This topic in the book is woefully incomplete, and only mentioned in passing in basically one line (p. 163). I really wish this was spelled out more clearly, as it’s probably one of the most misunderstood parts of CvC. However, if we apply some context we can see a few rules that apply to these items. Let’s break down a few points of importance that we can infer from the other sections of the book.
You may steal an item from an active play area (see below) that is left unattended.
The item must have a phys-rep, or be something that is itself a phys rep like Blueprints, currency, weapons, shields, armors, or brews.
You must have been in play for 4 hours prior to the theft, and must stay in play for 4 hours after the theft.
There are certain items you cannot steal, by the nature of their condition.
So since this is such an unclear section on the process of thievery, let’s explore each of these restrictions below…
Where can you not steal from?
While areas inside the Wasteland are obvious targets for theft, let’s talk about the places that cannot be targeted for theft:
You cannot steal from a person’s personal sleeping area (bed or bunk). (p. 163)
You cannot steal items from a bathroom or shower area. (p. 163)
You cannot steal items from a character not currently in play (p. 29)
This includes items for secondary characters and while you are on NPC shift!
You cannot steal items from places on a person other than their Supply Bag. (p. 163)
NO digging through pockets or clothing!
IMPORTANT NOTE: Every character should bring a section of black fabric (a black sheet or something similar works well) that you wrap around your out-of-character items that are stored out of sight in main play spaces (p. 29). This lets Guides and other players clearly know those items are out of play. This is a perfect way to protect your items and props for a secondary character that you will be playing later in the weekend or while you are on shift as an NPC or Guide. You can even include a handy sign that marks the equipment “Out of Character” if you like.
However, you cannot use these places to hide in-game items on purpose. If you are caught using a car, your cabin, your sleeping area, or another out of game location to store items you are using in game, you could receive a warning from a Guide or even potentially lose the item cards involved (p. 163). If it has an in game function, keep it on you or in a visible place that’s not a bed or bathroom! You can still hide something physically in the active play space, but if it’s found it can be stolen.
What can you steal?
So the book outlines a few items and locations that you can steal from. I’ve attempted to clarify a few places here as well as include some items from the blueprints that have specific mechanics involved as well.
The most important rule: you can only steal IN-GAME ITEM CARDS!!!
If there is a prop involved, that prop MUST be returned to the player after the theft. This is the main reason we use a Theft Log and require a Guide - we want to make sure your super cool phys rep makes it back to you! You obviously cannot steal wallets, purses, iPads, phones, or anything else like that either. That’s a real-life crime and you will be immediately removed from our game, reported to the police, and banned from ever returning.
Let’s break down all the eligible targets for a robbery in Dystopia Rising:
Items you can steal:
Items inside a Supply Bag or a carried phys rep with an successfully attached black clothespin
UNATTENDED in-game tagged items with a prop (weapons, shields, brews, etc.)
Currency (Brass) and Blueprints are their own phys rep, so these items can be taken if they are found unattended and can be kept outside of a Supply Bag.
Items inside a Supply Bag from a defeated and helpless opponent inside the Wasteland or that is a registered member of the SES.
If your Supply Bag is looted, the DR: TX staff asks that you should surrender any unprotected Currency or Blueprints you have on you as well! We want to encourage folks not to look in other pockets, but these items can still be taken when looting a target.
Items you cannot Steal:
Item Cards NOT in a Supply Bag - Because Item Cards are not phys reps by themselves and must have a phys rep to be outside of the Supply Bag (p. 168), you can’t really steal a stack of loose item cards like Herb or Scrap unless they have an attached prop. These should probably be inside a Supply Bag and not left unattended anyways.
Supply Bag - Because a character must have a Supply Bag as part of their costume, you cannot steal a Supply Bag. You can take the items INSIDE the bag, but you cannot take the Supply Bag itself. You must leave it behind after a robbery.
Vehicle Item Cards - Because Vehicle items are normally impossible to represent in character, they are considered to be just outside the play space and cannot be stolen. These rules are printed on every Vehicle item card.
Crew Tattoos - This is a unique gizmo item from the Sailing buy list, and can’t be stolen for obvious reasons - it’s part of the character!
Costume Pieces (p.158) - Sorry, you can’t take that cool hat or scarf without specific consent.
Starter Weapons - These are items marked with a WHITE tag, and represent non-item card equipment. Since you can only steal item cards, this isn’t an eligible target. While you could technically steal one of these props, you can get these weapon tags at any time from the Post Office for FREE. So, there’s really no reason to steal one. You can still turn these into the Post Office as lost items, but there’s not an item card that can be stolen.
When can I get my cool loot from theft?
One of the often overlooked rules of CvC involving Theft or Infection loss is the TIME requirement. You must be in play long enough to be confronted after the act of CvC, as well as been your in play for a period of time before the event. The person that has been stolen from also has the license to hunt you down and respond in kind because you have been “flagged” for CvC in the act of committing the crime.
When you steal from another player or remove an Infection, you must have been in play for at least four hours before the act of CvC, and remain in play for four hours AFTER the fact (p. 163).
This means there are a couple of obvious moments when you can’t steal. We can extrapolate that you cannot steal in the following examples:
Your NPC shift is due in less than 4 hours. If you go on shift, you’ll be out of play.
You just switched into your secondary character. That character has not been in play for at least 4 hours.
You just came off of NPC shift. Sorry, you haven’t been in play for at least 4 hours.
If you just stole an item, you cannot leave the site, go to NPC shift, or switch into another character until 4 hours after the incident.
The end of game on Sunday is less than 4 hours away. This means Sunday morning is pretty safe from thievery, especially after 8:00 am, as game ends at 12:00 pm noon in DR:TX.
You just entered game on Friday night. You can’t start to steal until 2:00 a.m in DR:TX, because our game on call is at 10:00 pm on Friday night. Sorry, not sorry!
This means that unless you have a No Casting ticket, there is a very narrow window of when you can steal, with a 12-hour break in the middle (4 hours before NPC, the shift itself, and the 4 hours after). If you switch characters, it becomes even more restricted.
Finally, let’s explore exactly how you get your ill gotten item cards from a victim:
In the case of an unattended item:
You must keep a stolen phys rep item on your person for 30 minutes after the theft. This gives people a chance to notice the item is missing and catch you in the act.
You must surrender the phys rep to the Post Office after that 30 minutes, so the victim can retrieve their prop later.
The Theft will be reported in the Theft Log at the Post Office
When the victim comes to the Post Office, they will need to surrender the item card of that phys rep to the Post Office, and you can pick it up at a later time once the theft has been noticed and the item card turned in.
In the case of Larceny:
The Guide will bring you your item card after the theft has been reported to the victim. Ideally, they will bring this item to you discreetly but I’ve always found it helpful to set up a place in advance to meet the Guide later to get the stuff that’s out of sight of your victim.
“Hey, That item looks like mine!”
So, you’ve successfully taken an item from another, spent your 30 minutes with the prop, and gotten away. Now what?
When you retrieve your stolen item at the Post Office, the stolen Item Card will be marked with the player number of the character it was stolen from on the back.
This theft will also be recorded in the Theft Log for later reference if a Guide needs to check on the people involved in a theft.
Stolen goods are still identifiable to others, particularly notable or recognizable items like weapons, shields, or armor. These items will have the original owner’s player number marked on the weapon tag using a letter in from of it. This will look something like “S-4337” on the tag. The “S” means the item is STOLEN.
In order to remove this marking, you can sell the item through the black market to have it “washed” using the Proficient Criminal Influence skill (p. 119). When you do, you will be able to get the proceeds from the sale discreetly and your buyer will be able to get a card or item without the stolen Player Number on it at the next Criminal meeting.
Can I protect myself versus Theft?
So we’ve talked a lot about the how’s and why’s of thievery, but is there any hope for folks that don’t want to be robbed? Yes!
There are quite a few items that interact with Theft and can offer some measure of protection. Clearly, the best way to avoid theft is to keep your items on you and stay out of the Wasteland, but sometimes you want that extra peace of mind. Remember, under normal circumstances an item you have on you can only be stolen outside of the Wasteland using the Larceny skill and a black clothespin, and that’s generally limited to only 1-2 item cards at a time.
Here’s some important items to consider:
Freeiron Dry Pack - This is the perfect tool to deter a pickpocket. It can protect your more valuable item cards by giving them an unexpired herb instead or even MANGLE the limbs of the would-be thief.
Hidden Wallet - This item from the Trade Connections buy list lets you protect 50 currency cards from being looted or pickpocketed. Always have a stash of money safe!
Document Case - This item can stop people from being able to access up to 25 blueprints from being pickpocketed.
Dead Man’s Hand - the PFA ability of this item protects a small weapon, firearm, or thrown item from being looted or pickpocketed for a short time.
Containers - There are several of these items in the game, but all allow you to lock or place traps on them to prevent a thief from gaining access. The Merchant’s Stall Heavy Lock Box can be acquired from Master Trade Connections buy list or a Locking Box can be bought from the Criminal Influence buy list. The Entertainer's Kit and Angry Anchor Storage Box also counts as a Container that can be trapped.
Traps! - While these don’t so much prevent a thief from actually stealing something, it can make it so they have a bad day. Particularly deadly traps might even make sure the thief is in Bleed Out before they can get away. There are several varieties available from blueprints, including the OOPH Room Trap, the Toothpiq Box-Trap, the Slappi Snap-Trap, the Daline Smart-Trap, or the Greenlight Grave Trap.
There’s also some items that even IMPROVE your ability to steal from another!
Steelpaw Finger Mitts - This set of gloves lets you place TWO clothespins instead of one.
Sosweet Clay Replica Mold - This item can get into a locked container by making a temporary key, and even delay a trap from going off so you can evade it!
G. G. Locksmithing Tools & Lock Poppers - These items can speed up the process of lock picking so you can get away more quickly. The Lock Popper single-use items are available from the Criminal Influence buy list.
Mountain Trap Snapper Kit - This item lets you quickly disarm a trap by destroying it.
We might even see some more items soon once the Augment prints are released, so keep your eyes out for neat items that can help you out against the criminals out there.
Remember the law!
Remember that Stealing is currently a crime in the San Saba Territories! Just because you were successful in taking that item from another player doesn’t mean that they are the only one that can come after you! If you are particularly brazen with your crime, you could have Law Dogs like BOSS WYATT on your trail, or even earn the distrust of other criminal types by drawing too much attention to them. Particularly visible crimes could even earn a bounty or honor hunt with the Red Ledger or Murder, Inc.!
Common courtesy - Honor amongst thieves
While this next part is not specifically part of the rules in the Corebook and I can’t make you follow them, I think this is a common sense rule when approaching CvC that helps control emotions regarding the loss. Consider this a best practice, heavily recommended by the staff of DR:TX.
Steal or Kill. Not both.
Theft is one of the most brutal ways to affect another character in Dystopia Rising, matched only by the loss involved with losing Infection, or losing a Character for good. Items made in game can take hours to build and can be difficult to replace. Infection costs 10 XP to get back, and requires a complicated and risky process to even be able to get it back.
Don’t add insult to injury by murdering another character and then stealing everything they own. It’s just not a good idea. It’s a punishing way to commit CvC, and I promise it will earn a response in return. Always make sure to check in with the other person before committing CvC, and make sure you are considerate of their feelings as well.
Our in-game CvC faction of the Red Ledger will actually encourage this paradigm and look to build a culture of behavior around this point. We want to reward the folks that want to get into the violent side of CvC, but we want to make sure it stays fun for everyone!