Differences

This shows you the differences between two versions of the page.

--- shared_worlds:thick_as_thieves_stealth [2015/10/31 00:07] – [2.) Stealthing without the use of equipment] Petike
+++ shared_worlds:thick_as_thieves_stealth [2016/08/28 14:17] – [4.) Guard alertness] petike
@@ Line 160: / Line 160: @@
 Nevertheless, when the need sometimes arises, even a thief who takes great pride in the art of sneaking undetected has to cave in and pacify a threat or obstacle that is hard to evade. While there isn't a particularly big arsenal of tools to deal with threats and obstacles, the few that exist are more than sufficient for this goal, provided they are used creatively.
+----
+==== 4.) Guard alertness ====
+One thing to remember about inadvertently alerting guards is that there are some degrees to raising suspicion. Unless you deliberately run into a guard, or appear in front of him in full visibility, none of them will automatically go into an attacking frenzy aimed at you. Any guard will first attempt to check a suspicious sound, glimpse of movement or disorder in a room. The following two subsections will explain this in greater detail.
+=== a.) Alertness Levels ===
+Everyone performing guard duty has an Alertness Level (AL) at any given moment of that duty. There are multiple levels of alertness, depending on the rising levels of suspicion and awareness a guard holds towards what might be an illegal infiltration. Such an infiltration of course means that a guard is suspecting the presence of thieves or other criminals and intuders.
+When a guard's level of suspicion goes over a certain threshold, he moves on to a higher level of alertness. That's bad news for a thief. The good news is, alertness levels can also decrease over time. Nevertheless, such a reversion is not worth abusing, due to several obvious factors: It is time-consuming, it requires a thief to hide well during the "cool down", and last but not least, there's also the added issue of the Paranoia Level (see further).
+The levels of alertness are not easy to generalise and will always vary from situation to situation, but we could say there are five broad categories.
+^ **No.** ^ **AL** ^ **Cause** ^ **Guard behaviour** ^
+|1| Startled | Minor suspicious sounds, like louder creakings, accidental louder footsteps on surfaces, heavy breathing, falling of objects on cushioned surfaces. | Stopping for a moment if walking, listening carefully to suspicious sounds, proceeding again shortly afterward if nothing odd is heard again. |
+|2| Slightly suspicious |  | Stopping and detouring for a short while to check on suspicious sounds and visual glimpses, or on minor changes to furnishings or potential loot (slightly moved or tipped over recently, etc.). Pondering aloud, but without making verbal threats. |
+|3| Strongly suspicious |  | Preliminarily searching for a suspect/intruder, entering rooms with suspected criminal activity, searching shadowy areas briefly. Occassionally turning on lights or observing a place more carefully (especially if furnishings or potential loot has been clearly moved or tampered with a bit). Making occassional verbal threats, for the most part quietly. |
+|4| Vigilant | Making heavy, easily heard footsteps (by running, etc.), running around in spaces where shadows are easily cast or glimpses can be caught, leaving equipment or dropped loot behind in a fully-lit space or in a guard's way. | Actively searching for a suspect/intruder, scouring rooms and spaces carefully, turning on or relighting lights. Looking into easier or more obvious hiding place. Making audible verbal threats, showing minor signs of irritation or frustration.  |
+|5| Fully alert | Coming into full sight, being in a fully lit area, stealing loot in front of others, making a massive amount of noise, creating an explosion. | Pursuing, attacking and apprehending (or killing) a suspect/intruder. (Stun weaponry might be used in addition to deadly weaponry.) Making audible verbal and physical threats, showing clear anger or frustration. |
+=== b.) Paranoia Levels ===
+In addition to the Alertness Levels, there's the added value of Paranoia Levels (PL). This is purely a modifier of existing guard alertness, and is meant to reflect the amount of times a thief has been seen or met by a guard, but evaded capture. If a thief gets caught red-handed during a "job", but manages to escape and hide for long enough for a guard to give up on further searching/pursuing, this modifies the alertness level to a degree.
+When a certain critical amount of these close-calls with alert guards has been accumulated over time, it gives rise to a level of paranoia in a guard. A development like this also counts for groups larger than an individual. If a single guard managed to call in reinforcements, and they all gave chase to the thief before he hid and "vanished", then those other guards will also have a heightened Paranoia Level.
+The Paranoia Level can be kept at complete zero during any playthrough of any mission. It will only begin to rise if the player is not careful enough to avoid raising a guard's Alertness Level to 5. Like with the Alertness Levels, it's not easy to over-generalise Paranoia Levels, but the following table offers a simplified overview.
+^ **No.** ^ **PL** ^ **Guard behaviour** ^
+|1| Low Paranoia | Much more mindful of his/her surroundings now that he/she's aware there's a thief about. |
+|2| Medium Paranoia | Near-constantly on the lookout for tresspassers and threat of theft now that he/she's aware there's a thief about. Attempts at actively catching a thief (or thieves) might occur. |
+|3| High Paranoia | At this point, entire groups of guards are uncompromisingly alert and there is a very real chance of them alerting further authorities and requesting external backup. Lockdowns of the entire area might occur. |
 ----
 ==== See Also ====