Lawful Operations

A thieves' guild might actually turn to actions which do not conflict with the rule of law for several reasons. First, it might have many lawful members (this is implausible except in a very lawful society). Second, it might have strong contacts with some outside group which makes some lawful operation a special case—having good relations with merchants could lead to the protection scenario detailed below. Third, it might just be good public relations. The guild does some "legal work" to maintain a veneer of public respectability while blaming its really nefarious activities (kidnapping, drug smuggling, etc.) on rogue elements outside the guild. It might also be a temporary diversion to keep the heat off when the guild has over-reached itself or been blamed for some particularly spectacular heist or wicked crime. Surprisingly, there are lots of reasons why poachers may turn gamekeeper for a while. Two examples are:

Security testing: Thieves might be employed to test defenses of a secure area. Who better, after all? Gemcutters and jewelers, pawnbrokers, and rich merchants who keep a lot of money around are obvious potential customers. Equally obviously, they won't approach the thieves' guild unless they already have some understanding with them. They will also top up the defenses after the thieves have tested the first set, even if the thieves say the defenses are very sound (or maybe especially if they claim this!).

Of course, if freelance good-aligned (or lawful-aligned) specialists in such work are available as independents, they will be the most likely to carry out this work. A thieves' guild is likely to go to great lengths to get these people to join the guild, or else to eliminate them!

Transportation: Sometimes, someone wishes to move something (a fabulously valuable gem, a religious icon, etc.) from one place to another by normal means (e.g., not teleporting) and is fearful that it may be stolen en route. Thieves are employed to create decoys and diversions and to smuggle the object in secrecy. Since thieves are masters of concealment, and also know a thing or two about stealing things in transit, their skills will be put to good use here. In the case of a really important item being transported, a thief might be asked to submit to a spell such as quest/geas to ensure his cooperation.

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