Thieving

Thieving is a members-only skill that allows players to obtain coins and items by stealing from market stalls, chests, or by pickpocketing non-player characters (NPCs). This skill also allows players to unlock doors and disarm traps.



Pickpocketing
This is the act of walking up to an NPC and right-clicking them, then selecting Pickpocket. In the case of a Master Farmer, only a single left click is required to attempt to pick their pockets. If successful, you will gain Thieving experience and possibly coins or various items. The higher the thieving level, the more NPCs the player is able to pickpocket from.

However, it is possible for the NPC to notice a pickpocket, in which case the NPC will yell "What do you think you're doing?", or a Master Farmer will say "Cor blimey, mate! What are ye doing in me pockets?" and will stun you for a few seconds and cause damage. The amount of damage taken is proportionate to the amount of Life Points the player currently has, specifically 30 damage per 1,000 life points (LP) starting at 0 LP (60 damage at 1,000 LP, 90 damage at 2,000 LP and so on). This damage is not classified as melee damage, and Protect from Melee/Deflect Melee does not prevent the damage as such. Because of the possibility for damage, it is recommended that players bring healing familiars, regen bracelet, or food such as cakes that can be stolen from cake stalls. The best food to bring is a basket of strawberries, because although you need to consume it in several bites, overall it heals more than rocktails. This is excellent for thieving as NPCs hit small amounts of damage. The direction that the NPC is facing does not have any effect on the chance of success of the pickpocket

Also, if a player attempts to pickpocket an attackable NPC just before its death, the player thieving it will get a message saying: "Too late; they're dead."

The equipment that a player wears does not affect the success rate, aside from an Ardougne cloak (although the Ardougne cloak 1 and 2 enhance pickpocketing only in Ardougne), or Gloves of silence. However, equipping a Snowball, a salamander without the tar needed, or a (cross)bow without projectiles makes it impossible to accidentally attack an NPC.

To help increase the success rate, players with 62 or higher Summoning may choose to summon an Abyssal lurker familiar, and use Abyssal stealth scrolls, which provide a +4 visible boost to Thieving.

You can also use the defensive ability Freedom to remove the stun caused by failing pickpocketing allowing one to move but not pickpocket sooner.

Thievable non-player characters
Levels for stealing multiples of normal loot all follow these formulae ([level] stands for the base level required to steal from the NPC):

Double Loot = [level]+10 thieving and [level] agility

Triple Loot = [level]+20 thieving and [level]+10 agility

Quadruple Loot = [level]+30 thieving and [level]+20 agility

After completing the Lost Her Marbles miniquest from Buyers and Cellars, the loot from NPC's level 40 and below is increased. Men/Women have 20 coin drops, Farmers improve to several low level seed types (cabbage, marigold, tomato) and Master Farmers appear to have an improved high-level seed rate.

Prifddinas Training
At level 91 (extended at level 93, 95 and 97), a new training method becomes available. The elves of Prifddinas can be pick-pocketed by a single (left) click. Unlike thieving in the rest of Runescape, one click starts an endless series of pick-pocketing, until you are eventually noticed. At mid 90 level, a single click can often result in more than 5 continuous minutes of training, resulting in over 10,000 XP, and more than 10,000 coins, plus other loot. Once noticed, the NPC does not stun, but he/she can no longer be thieved from. Two more in the same area can still be pick-pocketed. After three NPCs notice you, they warn the others and no more can be trained on in the area until a timer resets (approx. 30 minutes). There are four areas containing elves that are pick-pocketed at level 91, 93, 95 and 97, therefore at level 97 players can thieve from 4 areas per reset period. The reset times run independently for each area. However, even at level 97 it takes much less than 30 minutes to exhaust all four areas and so it is not possible to train constantly in Prifddinas. However, the ease of training makes this an essential part of even intensive high-level training.

Note. The second elf in any area notices much quicker than the first, and the third one even more so. However, the reset timer only begins after the third elf has noticed and so it is always necessary to pick-pocket all three in each area before moving on.

An Ardougne cloak (three or four) and Gloves of silence increase the time before being noticed significantly.

{| class="wikitable"

Other NPC's
In addition to the standard thievable NPCs, the workers involved in the Tower of Life quest may also be pickpocketed by players with level 1 thieving. Successfully pickpocketing a worker give the player a Triangle sandwich and 8 thieving experience. The workers are: 'Black-eye', 'Gummy', 'No fingers', and 'The Guns'. Their supervisor, Bonafido, cannot be pickpocketed. The workers can be pickpocketed regardless if the quest is finished or not.

Stalls


There are a large number of stalls throughout RuneScape, and many of them are in the Ardougne Market. Stealing from stalls is the left-click option.

When nearby guards or the stall owner sees someone thieving they may attack, or prevent the player from stealing. Because of this, it is recommended that the player thieve from a side of a stall that is well hidden from the owner and guards.

When the item is stolen, it will take a short period of time to respawn. However, the higher thieving level it takes to steal from a stall, the longer its respawn time will be. It should be noted you may not buy from or sell to the stall owner for about 20 minutes after the last theft from their stall type (except for the market stalls on Ape Atoll), otherwise, the merchant will shout for the guards. If a player carries the Vial of stench (a), from the caper A Guild of Our Own, the stall owner will not recognize the player having stolen from them and will then buy most stolen goods back from the player without the 20 minute wait.

In order to avoid guards from attacking while stealing from stalls, a convenient method is to allow the guard to attack, then enter the nearest building, then take one step outside and close the door, thus effectively trapping the guard.

Thievable stalls

 * {| width="90%" class="wikitable sortable"

!Stall !Level !Exp. ! class="unsortable" |Items !Location !Required Quest(s) !Respawn Time !E.P.S.

Vegetable stall
 * 2
 * 10
 * Onion, Cabbage, Potato, Tomato, or Garlic
 * Miscellania, Etceteria, Burthorpe
 * The Fremennik Trials for Miscellania and Etceteria
 * 2 seconds
 * 5

Baker's stall
 * 5
 * 16
 * Cake, Bread or Chocolate slice
 * East Ardougne, Keldagrim, Burthorpe
 * The Giant Dwarf for Keldagrim
 * 2.5 seconds
 * 6.4

Crafting stall
 * 5
 * 16
 * Chisel, Ring mould, or Necklace mould
 * Ape Atoll, Keldagrim, Burthorpe
 * Monkey Madness for Ape Atoll, The Giant Dwarf for Keldagrim
 * 7 seconds
 * 2.3

Monkey Food stall
 * 5
 * 16
 * Banana
 * Ape Atoll
 * Monkey Madness
 * 7 seconds
 * 2.3

Monkey general store
 * 5
 * 16
 * Pot, Hammer, or Tinderbox
 * Ape Atoll
 * Monkey Madness
 * 7 seconds
 * 2.3

Tea stall
 * 5
 * 16
 * Cup of tea
 * Varrock
 * None
 * 7 seconds
 * 2.3

Rock cake stall
 * 15
 * 6.5
 * Rock cake
 * Gu'Tanoth
 * Watchtower
 * 7 seconds
 * 0.9

Silk stall
 * 20
 * 24
 * Silk
 * East Ardougne
 * None
 * 8 seconds
 * 3

Wine stall
 * 22
 * 27
 * Jug of water, Jug of wine, Grapes, Jug, Bottle of wine
 * Draynor Village, Burthorpe
 * None
 * 16 seconds
 * 1.7

Seed stall
 * 27
 * 10
 * Various seeds
 * Draynor Village, Burthorpe
 * None
 * 11 seconds
 * 0.9

Fur stall
 * 35
 * 36
 * Fur, Grey wolf fur
 * East Ardougne, Rellekka
 * The Fremennik Trials for Rellekka
 * 15 seconds
 * 2.4

Fish stall
 * 42
 * 42
 * Raw salmon, Raw tuna, or Raw lobster
 * Rellekka, Miscellania, Etceteria
 * The Fremennik Trials
 * 16 seconds
 * 1.7

Crossbow stall
 * 49
 * 52
 * Bronze bolts (3), Bronze limbs, Wooden stock
 * Keldagrim
 * The Giant Dwarf
 * 11 seconds
 * 4.7

Silver stall
 * 50
 * 54
 * Silver ore
 * East Ardougne, Keldagrim
 * The Giant Dwarf for Keldagrim
 * 30 seconds
 * 1.8

Customs evidence files
 * 63
 * 75
 * Rune scimitar, uncut diamond, uncut ruby, uncut emerald, uncut sapphire, sharks, mithril bar, gold bar, iron bar, Pirate boots, Stripy pirate shirt, Eye patch, steel sword, steel scimitar, iron scimitar, bronze scimitar, clue scroll, 300 coins
 * Rock Island Prison
 * Rocking Out
 * 30–60 seconds
 * 2.5-1.3

Spice stall
 * 65
 * 81
 * Spice
 * East Ardougne
 * None
 * 80 seconds
 * 1

Magic stall
 * 65
 * 100
 * Air, Earth, Fire, Water, or Law Rune
 * Ape Atoll
 * Monkey Madness
 * 80 seconds
 * 1.3

Scimitar stall
 * 65
 * 100
 * Iron scimitar, steel scimitar
 * Ape Atoll
 * Monkey Madness
 * 80 seconds
 * 1.3

Gem stall
 * 75
 * 160
 * Uncut sapphire, Uncut emerald, Uncut ruby, Uncut diamond
 * East Ardougne, Keldagrim
 * The Giant Dwarf for Keldagrim
 * 3 Minutes
 * 0.9
 * }
 * Note: In Keldagrim, stalls often differ in respawn time and their experience given. The gem and silver stalls respawn twice as fast, but yield half the experience. The bakery stall, however, respawns twice as slow, but gives twice the experience.
 * You can't steal from the stalls in Ape Atoll when you have a Greegree equipped.

Chests
There are chests scattered throughout RuneScape, and some of them have traps. To disarm them using the Thieving skill, right-click on the chest and select "Search for traps Chest" to allow for disarmament of traps and obtaining the items inside.

After a player thieves from a chest, there is a slight respawn time. Some chests such as the Nature-rune chest change colour to indicate whether it can be looted again.

Thievable chests

 * {| width="90%" class="wikitable sortable"

!Chest !Level !Exp. ! class="unsortable" |Items !Location !Respawn Time !E.P.S.
 * 10-coin chest
 * 13
 * 7
 * 10 coins
 * Ardougne, Rellekka, Rogue's Den
 * 7 seconds
 * 1
 * Ogre coffin
 * 20
 * 27
 * Various, see article
 * Jiggig
 * 20 seconds
 * 1.35
 * Nature-rune chest
 * 28
 * 25
 * 3 coins, Nature runes
 * Ardougne, Rellekka
 * 21 seconds
 * 1.2
 * 50-coin chest
 * 43
 * 125
 * 50 coins
 * Ardougne, Axe hut
 * 55 seconds
 * 2.3
 * Arrowtip chest
 * 47
 * 150
 * 5 Steel arrowtips, 20 coins
 * Hemenster, Rellekka
 * 210 seconds
 * 0.7
 * Dorgesh-Kaan (Average chests)
 * 52
 * 200
 * See Dorgesh-Kaan Average Chest
 * Dorgesh-Kaan
 * 210 seconds
 * 1
 * Blood rune chest
 * 59
 * 250
 * 500 coins, 2 Blood runes
 * Chaos Druid Tower
 * 210 seconds
 * 1.2
 * Paladin chests (2)
 * 72
 * 500
 * 1,000 coins, Raw sharks, Adamant ores, uncut sapphire
 * Ardougne Palace, behind locked doors on north and south wings of second level. After looting "Suddenly a second magic trap triggers," sending you to Witchaven (Unless wielding Ardougne Cloak 3, then you are sent to the north-most bank in Ardougne.).
 * 400 seconds
 * 1.25
 * Dorgesh-Kaan (Rich chests)
 * 78
 * 650
 * 500-2,500 coins, uncut sapphire, uncut ruby, uncut diamond, uncut opal, uncut jade, uncut red topaz, bullseye lantern, Mining helmet, Frog-leather armour, iron bar, Light orb, Empty light orb, Cave goblin wire, Charms (all types)
 * Dorgesh-Kaan
 * 400 seconds
 * 1.6
 * }
 * Dorgesh-Kaan (Rich chests)
 * 78
 * 650
 * 500-2,500 coins, uncut sapphire, uncut ruby, uncut diamond, uncut opal, uncut jade, uncut red topaz, bullseye lantern, Mining helmet, Frog-leather armour, iron bar, Light orb, Empty light orb, Cave goblin wire, Charms (all types)
 * Dorgesh-Kaan
 * 400 seconds
 * 1.6
 * }
 * }


 * Because the Dorgesh-Kaan Rich Chest takes so long to respawn, some players will find a house containing two of these chests and loot them. Then they will switch worlds and repeat the process, giving 1,300 experience per world visited. This is a low risk and simple way to get experience, but other methods like Pyramid Plunder give faster experience.



Doors
Certain doors in RuneScape cannot be opened by players unless the lock is picked. In order to pick a lock, right-click on a door and select "Pick Lock". If the player has the required thieving level, the door will then be opened. Some doors will require a lockpick to successfully pick the lock.

Pickable doors

 * {| class="wikitable sortable"

!Door !Level !Exp. !Location !Lockpick?
 * Cell in Port Sarim Jail
 * Port Sarim
 * No
 * Door to 10-coin chest
 * 1
 * 3.5
 * East Ardougne
 * No
 * Door to Nature rune chest
 * 14
 * 15
 * East Ardougne
 * No
 * Ardougne house door
 * 14
 * 15
 * East Ardougne
 * No
 * H.A.M. trapdoor
 * 15
 * 4
 * East of Draynor
 * No
 * Axe hut door
 * 32
 * 25
 * Level 54 Wilderness
 * Yes
 * Ardougne sewer gate
 * 32
 * 25
 * Ardougne sewers
 * No
 * Pirates' Hideout
 * 39
 * 35
 * Level 54 Wilderness
 * No
 * Chaos druid tower
 * 46
 * 37.5
 * North of Ardougne
 * No
 * Paladin door
 * 61
 * 50
 * Ardougne Castle
 * No
 * Yanille dungeon door
 * 82
 * 50
 * Yanille
 * Yes
 * }
 * Paladin door
 * 61
 * 50
 * Ardougne Castle
 * No
 * Yanille dungeon door
 * 82
 * 50
 * Yanille
 * Yes
 * }
 * Yes
 * }

Other

 * {| width="90%" class="wikitable Sorable"

!Name !Level !Exp. !Location ! class="unsortable" |Possible loot !Stun time (seconds) !Stun damage
 * Candle table
 * 20
 * 20
 * Entrana church
 * Candle
 * 1
 * 10 - A higher power smites you.
 * Wire machine
 * 44
 * 22
 * Dorgesh-Kaan
 * Cave goblin wire
 * 5
 * 50
 * Wall Safe
 * 25
 * 70
 * Rogues Den
 * 10, 20, 30, 40 coins, Uncut gems (Sapphire through Ruby )
 * 1
 * 10 - 60
 * }
 * 1
 * 10 - 60
 * }

Agility benefits
As of the 19 January 2010 update, adventurers with high Agility and Thieving levels now stand a chance of pickpocketing double, triple or even quadruple the usual amount of loot from unsuspecting targets. When this happens, an animation with the player rapidly alternating his hands while pickpocketing the victim will be shown. A grab will be made for each bonus looting one does, and the hands will get a "sparkle" applied to them. Additional experience is NOT gained acquiring these random influxes of loot, only the standard amount of experience for a single pickpocket.

Temporary boosts

 * A Bandit's brew, purchased at the desert bandit camp for 650 coins, will boost thieving by 1 level.
 * A yellow spicy stew has the potential to raise or lower the thieving level by up to 5 levels.
 * The summer sq'irk juice from the Sorceress's Garden minigame raises Thieving by 3 levels.
 * The Thieving Fingers special move of a magpie will boost thieving by 2 (requires Summoning level 47).
 * Gloves of silence improve the success rate of pickpocketing. Gloves of silence are automatically destroyed after a player is caught 62 times while pickpocketing with them. However, they can be repaired by using dark kebbit fur on them with a needle, thread, and knife in the inventory or toolbelt. (A Hunter level of 54 is needed to wear and a Crafting level of 64 is required to accomplish this.)
 * The Abyssal Stealth special move of an Abyssal lurker will boost both thieving and Agility by 4 levels (requires Summoning level 62).
 * Operating or equipping the Thieving cape will boost one's thieving level by 1, from 99 to 100.
 * The Ardougne cloak 1 reduces your chance of being caught when stealing from the stalls in Ardougne market.
 * The Ardougne cloak 2 gives you a better chance of pickpocketing in Ardougne in addition to the bonus from the Ardougne cloak 1.
 * The Ardougne cloak 3 gives you a better chance of stealing and pickpocketing anything in RuneScape.

Random events (discontinued)
There were two different random events specific to thieving, with one of them being removed at a much earlier date.
 * Poison Gas - At one point in time, it was possible to activate a poison gas trap upon opening a chest. To avoid this, players would have to merely exit the room.
 * Pillory - It is possible that your character will be teleported to a pillory in Yanille, Varrock or Seer's Village, where shapes must be matched in order to pick the lock and return to where your character was thieving. However, players can get it even when they are not thieving. It is possible for players to throw rotten tomatoes at the trapped player, although it won't do any damage. The rotten tomatoes can be bought for 1gp each and can't be bought while you are currently in the cage.
 * This replaced the Watchman, who would attack players who were thieving when the event occurred. He had the same level as all other hostile random events. He was replaced due to complaints that he would kill the player too quickly, as many would not wear armour while pickpocketing.

Thieving minigames
There are a number of minigames that are based on, or include Thieving:
 * Pyramid Plunder - The desert city Sophanem has a pyramid where you can thieve for artifacts, including the Pharaoh's sceptre. As you get further into the Pyramid, higher thieving is required but it brings increasing amounts of Thieving experience. One of the fastest methods to train Thieving (see bottom of page).
 * Flash Powder Factory - This is a minigame that replaced the old Rogues' Den minigame. The aim of the game is to make flash powder. This can be obtained by mixing reagents from the reagent machines A and B, marked with blue and orange arrows on the minimap respectively. To navigate the map, players must pass agility obstacles that separate each room. Players are rewarded with points which can be used to buy Agility and Thieving experience or pieces of the factory outfit from Brian O'Richard.
 * Sorceress's Garden - An interesting minigame where you dodge guards and try to get fruits to make sq'irk juice. Requires patience, pestle and mortar, beer glasses, a bit of skill, and experience, but yields excellent experience, with moderate Farming experience also gained. Has four levels each giving increased experience at levels 1, 25, 45, and 65. Empty beer glasses can be obtained for free at the shelves at the Sorceress's house. Also, a possible alternative source of Herb collecting. (Note: Completion of the Diamond in the Rough quest is needed to play.)
 * Stealing Creation - A combat and skilling minigame where you try to produce more sacred clay items than the other team. In the game, you may pickpocket others to gain items from their inventory.
 * Heist - A cops and robbers game where robbers try to secure loot undetected while guards attempt to uncover and arrest the robbers before time runs out. Points earned can be exchanged for bonus experience in thieving and hunter.

Strange rock
Although the examine text of the Thieving strange rock says "borrowed from a pocket" you can obtain it by picking pockets, stealing from stalls, and stealing from chests. They are used to construct the Dahmaroc statue in the Shattered Heart Distraction and Diversion.

Thieves' Guild
The Thieves' Guild is found under a trapdoor north of Lumbridge. Available after completing Buyers and Cellars, players could additionally do capers to expand the guild. There are coshing volunteers and an advanced pickpocketing trainer (despite the title) available for blackjacking (a rubber blackjack, bought from Dodgy Derek's Dirty Deals in the guild, is required) and pickpocketing volunteers and a pickpocketing trainer for pickpocketing, as well as wall safes, locked doors and chests.

All thieving done inside the guild would not yield any material gain. Players instead gain hanky points that could be traded in for more experience. Negligible damage is done when failing to pickpocket or knock out NPCs, and the trap under wall safes consists of rubber spikes.

Trivia

 * The door in Port Sarim's jail can be picked from the inside. The door is available to all players. Any player can pick the door by talking to Shantay. This is done by telling him you are an outlaw. Shantay will send you to his jail, and when the player refuses to pay the fee to leave the jail he/she will be sent to Port Sarim jail.
 * When you get a level-up on Thieving under level 50, the music sounds like a part of the Mission Impossible theme.
 * When you complete While Guthix Sleeps, and you use one of your 100k xp on thieving you get the message: "You feel your respect for others' property slipping away." The same message appears when you receive Thieving experience from the Tears of Guthix D&D, and when you receive exp in thieving from the seasonal guthix butterflies.
 * If you get stunned while pickpocketing, even if your character isn't wielding a shield, your character does the defending animation as if the character was equipping a shield.
 * A player with 95 Thieving, wearing gloves of silence and an Ardougne cloak 3, will never fail to pickpocket certain NPC's such as Master Farmers and Knights of Ardougne.
 * If a player attacks an NPC, quickly pickpockets them and fail, the NPC will do stun and damage as usual but becomes non-aggressive.
 * Since thievable NPCs perform their attack animations when they stun a player after catching them stealing, gnomes with bows stun players by firing an arrow at them.
 * After the EoC update, players (when stunned) can use Freedom to prevent waiting for the player to come back to their senses. However, one still may not pickpocket again until the time at which the normal stun duration would have ended.