Running a Campaign for a Party of Thieves
Once in a long while it will happen to every dungeon master; the entire party will be made up of a single class. Sometimes that's simple to deal with. Clerics, for instance, can have their edicts come down from the high-priest, and the combination of martial abilities and magical powers provides the party with a wide range of skills that can make a campaign very engaging. Fighters make a simple, straightforward campaign (kick in door, kill orc, for a very simplified version, or operating as an advance party for a larger force, or even taking part in a battle as a company of an army). Wizards might band together to research new spells or hunt for valuable magical items that would allow each of them to increase their powers and prowess.
Motivating a Band of Thieves
Slay the Monster. Rescue the Princess, Save the Village. There are some fairly common tropes that every DM can rely upon to motivate a party of player characters. Thieves, though, are particularly tricky. When dealing with men and women who are individually motivated not by doing the right thing, or fighting for the greater good, but instead are purely and only concerned with their own interests can be difficult. How, exactly, do you convince them that defeating the death cult in Shadowfell Keep is worth their while?
Sure, they are motivated by cash. That's the easy answer. But thieves, by their nature, will want to get as much cash as possible with as little risk as possible. Which means they would much rather steal 500 gold pieces than be paid it to chase a young black dragon out of its newly acquired den.
But any group is going to quickly become bored by robbing another merchant or breaking into another wealthy heiress' estate. So, how do you, exactly, make an adventure for a group that's specifically designed to steal things? The answer is actually quite simple. Survival. No thief gets to enjoy the product of their labors if they are dead.
There are very many threats to the well-being of a thief. First, the obvious entity of law enforcement. There's surely some constable, or some abbot if they live in a particularly religious area, who is going to want them apprehended and strung up by their necks.
The more interesting answer is more thieves, of course. What better to get a party of thieves up and about for an adventure than to have all of their hard-won belongings stolen by a bigger, badder band of thieves? A cunning guild master who used the party to accomplish a goal, only to steal their spoils makes for two interesting adventures. First, the theft itself. Second, the party will inevitably react to having been used or exploited, and can pursue the guild who stole from them. For the example above, perhaps the orchestrating thief is the same character who is an integral character from Shadowfell keep, providing an excellent reason to engage your party of thieves in a non-stereo-typically thief campaign (for even more fun, let the thief survive your party's vengeance, and keep him/her as a recurring villain)
Never Split the Party; Why Do You Keep Splitting the Party!!?
One problem always occurs with parties of thieves. They always split the party. Perhaps it is just the nature of the rogue, a loner, a one-off player who prefers his own company to that of others. Or, maybe it is the nature of being sneaky, quiet and hidden, that it is simply easier to do something like this without a group. In any case, whatever the reason, prepare for the trouble that ensues when the party is split.
Keeping Everyone Engaged
Splitting the party necessarily means that some members will get left out of the immediate action. I only bring this up because it was an issue that was pointed out to me by one of our newer players. When one character, acting solo, capitalizes a significant amount of time, the rest of the party is unfairly expected to just sit still and wait. Pacing a campaign even if the party is split becomes an even greater issue. I suggest not allowing action to occur without the entire party having some part to play in it. For instance, if the burglar is climbing up through a high-level window, the fighter/thief should be waiting below for the rope to drop, or at the very least, doing her best to sneak about the grounds to subdue their guards and secure an exit route.
Crime Is a Dangerous Profession; Healing & Other Problematic Mechanics
A well rounded party has a significant advantage. A healthy mix of all skills, and the ability to have someone lead the party
Thieves are notoriously cowardly (yes, there are exceptions that prove the rule), and for good reason. With just over half the hit die of a fighter, and a quarter of that of an ogre at first level, there arent many fights the thief will want to stand up to. So creating a d&d thieves campaign must be balanced away from combat. Or, at the very least, be willing to award experience to characters, even if they don't try to face down a fire giant with a dagger and a set of lock picks. Award even more experience if very thief-y planning goes into combat. Traps set up ahead of time? whether they work or not, that's just awesome role playing.
MURDER
Let's talk murder. However much you might be playing with a group of friends who usually get along, it might happen that with good role playing, one character decides to kill another for profit. They are unsavory thieves, after all. This isn't always an easy thing to deal with, and if you've ever dealt with players who react poorly to character death, it will only be worse when it is at the hands of another player. Normally, as a DM, you should discourage inter-party killings, but in this case, it is the product of good role playing. But there's the catch. Its only okay when it is the product of good role playing. If your player is killing other party members just for the fun of it, or to try to create annout-of-game conflict, you should sit the troubled player down and discuss how that isn't okay. Everyone has gathered at the table to have fun, not just so one person has an outlet for some kind of murderous glee. The moment it affects the enjoyability for no gain other than the opportunity to kill another player, it might be time to fudge the role behind the DM's screen and have the murderous character removed. Finally, if it is a repeat offense, you might need to consider removing the player from the table. Its never fun, but its better than having noone show up to your next session.<\p>
Surprise! Goddamn Thieves.
Finally, and mos importantly, be prepared for nothing to work. Your adventure will be garbage by the end. Nothing that you had planned to happen will actually happen. But don't let that bother you, in fact, that means you're doing it right. The fact that they are crafty little bastards and thwart your attempts at story-crafting only means that they are thinking for themselves, and are enjoying it enough to de-rail what you've been working on. The advice i have on this one is to not worry about crafting an excellent campaign, but rather, focus on the setting. Be prepared to describe alleyways, gutters and sewers, anywhere a thief might run down to evade the constable. What are the roofs like? Are they tile? will a failed dexterity check punch a foot through a thatched roof? Where are the livestock kept? Are there dogs in the alleys? How dangerous are the rats? How does light get into the sewers? Even if you dont have it planned ahead of time, being able to improvise the details of your campaign setting will prove to be invauable as thieves improvise how they react inside of it.
The last bit is to keep track of what they didn't accomplish. If the point of your adventure was to thwart a local gang's exploits, and they stole a shipping barge instead, that original band of thieves still exists, and should persist as a threat (increasing in its severity) until it is eventually dealt with. Never let a good plot point go to waste.
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