Any point in NOT paying a "Thief" 50 coins?

[Pandamatak]

So you have three choices - one of them involves no hostility or fighting whatsoever (thieves guild).

Choice 1: Fight - You may or may not kill the thief, but he gets the drop on you and it's a fair one on one game from then on (except for the fact that maybe you're dragonborn and he isn't). If you kill him, you take his stuff and leave.
PROFIT: Thief's Items
LOSS: Health, possibly ammo. Higher mortality rate.

Choice 2: Hand over items/gold - You're items/gold get transferred over to the thief's inventory. You let him go and can strike him back by surprise at any time since he lets his guard down. For certain characters, this basically means you kill him in one hit. For others, it gives an advantage nevertheless to be able to get the first strike (preferably at a range or with some nice summons). If you kill him, you take your stuff and his stuff, then leave.
NET PROFIT: Thief's Items
LOSS: Unless you fail to kill him in one hit, a little health, but nowhere as near as option 1.

So, why would you not hand over your stuff. Even for RP purposes handing over your stuff is more realistic (who would want to get hit by a sword a few extra times?)

[Lotet]

who would want to get hit by a sword a few extra times?

someone Obnoxious might think that's cowardly.

[I_am_one]

And besides, a true strong Nord would never give him items to a thief.

[I EAT pain]

Dude, the [&@%!] thief can be killed EASILY. Like, when he hits me, it tickles. My health regeneration heals me back to full health after 2 seconds after a blow from that wimp.

[Spartacus]

Never hand over your valuables.I use it as a chance to increase my speech level. If not, time to die and then I'll take your valuables.

[Justice knight]

And if you're that worried about taking a little scratch from a Thief, then join the Thieves guild and tell the thief- then when the Thief is walking away then get him- absolutely no damage on your part.

[Evil-i]

"I don't have time for this."

Honestly, thieves are nothing to worry about, even at the lowest levels. If you can't reliably deal with a thief, you deserve what's coming.

[Redguard_Master]

Cause I can slap around ancient dragons, a thief ain't gonna scare me.

[Pandamatak]

Okay, maybe at lower difficulties the situation changes entirely. I tried just going from Master to Expert and found that thieves are so easy to kill that the extra speech experiences outweighs the possible loss of extra health. However, I'm referring to master difficulty OR a level at which the thief actually poses a significant threat.

[I EAT pain]

...But he never posses a threat... he's like a towns person, just with a knife and an appetite for blood. Still nearly harmless, though.

[shu]

...But he never posses a threat... he's like a towns person, just with a knife and an appetite for blood. Still nearly harmless, though.

You mean his own blood, right?

[Dohva.]

My Altmer is way too proud to easily hand over her hard earned valuables. No one rips her off.

[Voice of the North]

I've got 99 problems but a thief ain't one.
Seriously, even the Adoring fan could beat up a thief. After all, they're just thieves - why do they even engage you in open combat?

[rpbraley868]

I agree with everyone else lol. They arent much of a threat. I usually just backstep quickly letting their power attack to hit air then automatically get a finisher with my nice greatsword

[Aeturnus]

There's no way in hell I'm giving my stuff to a thief. If he, or she, wants it that badly, they'll just have to take it off of my body.

[Derp53]

I smith all my base gear myself, a thief thinks he's gonna take my stuff he's gonna have to talk to my legendary ebony sword, a true nord never gives up without a fight.

[Dark Spark]

Choice 1: Fight - You may or may not kill the thief, but he gets the drop on you and it's a fair one on one game from then on (except for the fact that maybe you're dragonborn and he isn't). If you kill him, you take his stuff and leave...

Choice 2: Hand over items/gold - You're items/gold get transferred over to the thief's inventory. You let him go and can strike him back by surprise at any time since he lets his guard down. For certain characters, this basically means you kill him in one hit...

...So, why would you not hand over your stuff. Even for RP purposes handing over your stuff is more realistic (who would want to get hit by a sword a few extra times?)

The surprise one-hit kill delivered into the back has the disadvantage in that you never see the fear in your victim's eyes.
















Why are you staring at me like that?

[I EAT pain]

Choice 1: Fight - You may or may not kill the thief, but he gets the drop on you and it's a fair one on one game from then on (except for the fact that maybe you're dragonborn and he isn't). If you kill him, you take his stuff and leave...

Choice 2: Hand over items/gold - You're items/gold get transferred over to the thief's inventory. You let him go and can strike him back by surprise at any time since he lets his guard down. For certain characters, this basically means you kill him in one hit...

...So, why would you not hand over your stuff. Even for RP purposes handing over your stuff is more realistic (who would want to get hit by a sword a few extra times?)

The surprise one-hit kill delivered into the back has the disadvantage in that you never see the fear in your victim's eyes.


What about kill cams?














Why are you staring at me like that?

[Voice of the North]

Now that I think of it, I might consider handing my stuff over with my Altmer. Like a REAL Altmer [censored]..

[Lyn1964]

I don't ever give up stuff willingly, unless I'm at a very low level with crap weapons and armor and little gold and don't have much worth taking anyway. And traveling alone without a follower. I don't want to risk death over 6 septims and a pickaxe.

Once I'm at the point where my chances are better, I either choose "I don't have time for this" or the Persuade option, which lets me attempt to convince the thief that I have nothing worth taking. The Persuade option is especially fun because if they fall for it and walk away I attack them anyway, because, hey, it's a thief. For most of my characters, ridding the world of their kind is part of my job description.

The only time I haven't done that is on the one character where I joined the Thieves Guild, where I had the option to point that out and be left alone. Then I didn't kill thieves because I was one, provided they were willing to let it go and move on to the next victim. Sadly that option disappeared or stopped coming up on a regular basis, in which case I felt perfectly justified in refusing to hand over anything and killing them if they persisted.

I had a thief run up and do his thing last night on my current PC, while walking back to Whiterun after doing one of the Companions quests. I did Persuade and he bought it and turned to run away at which point I just shouted Fus Ro Dah and blew him halfway down the road. I had Farkas with me and by the time the thief got up Farkas was already on him and chasing him back in my direction, where he ran right into the business end of the ol' Axe of Eastmarch. It was awesome.