a) Perception as a way to protect yourself

"An observant ranger might notice a thief with a hand in his pocket but a wise ranger carries no booty for the thief to palm."

Basically this means that a ranger who trains in perception might notice a thief trying for his pocket but a smart ranger uses the bank often and doesn't usually carry large amounts of coins on him. Also when you carry gems on you, close the container you carry them in. This lessens the chance that someone might walk away carrying your newfound sparklies.

b) Stealing as a means to protect you
Now onto a subject that some of your guild mates find unrangerly, the learning of the skill of the pickpocket. Some see it as a skill that we rangers need not worry ourselves about. And there are others who see it as a way to decrease the chance of getting your hard earned money taken from you, as a way to survive in towns. The theory is this; learn how to steal so that you know what to watch for. Some rangers learn it, some refuse. This is up to you to choose.

c) Common ways to get scammed

(1) Item thieves and the snatch and run

(a) Another kind of theft is the item theft, or the snatch and run. This can be a bit upsetting after spending hours hunting that critter to get all the nice gems and other booty, to have someone just walk in and grab it all and run. The best way to avoid this is to pick up all the stuff you want to keep. The standing rule of the lands is if it's on the ground its fair game. Though most people have enough etiquette to leave the items in the area to the hunters there, or to ask if they can have it. Thieves who commit this scam walk off with adventures stuff daily. So keep your room clean if you can and pick up the stuff you want to keep.

(2) Grave Robbing

(a) This leads me to the subject of Grave robbing. This is a nasty practice of a thief to walk into the area of a dead adventurer and walk of with their treasured weapon or shield or items from a grave. The best way to avoid this is to try not to die! No seriously, the easiest way to loose an expensive weapon is to have it taken from your dead body. Try not to use your prized weapon during invasions or when the weather seems bad in the lands. The best way to make sure your items are safe after you die is to never depart without getting a Paladin to bond your weapon and to Glyph your body. Remember, many a good ranger has lost a prized bow when someone walked off with it.

(3) The Scam Artist

The last kinds of theft are the scams.

(a) The first is where the thief in question gets you to hand him your prized item so he can appraise it. Do not be fooled by this one. There are many cases where the thief will just walk away with the weapon you handed him and more or less laughs in your face. Most items a person can appraise as you hold it. Show <item> to the <person> and whisper to them to "appraise my item."

(b) The next kind of scam is the barter scam. Where the thief in question gets you to give over the item because he can't barter because of his debt. Again don't be fooled, most times this is a thief trying to get your item and run.

(c) And the third kind of scam is the barter for less then you agreed on. Make sure you know how much you're agreeing to in coppers and how many coppers make up silver, gold, and platinum coins. Some good rangers have been stiffed on the price of there purchase in this way. Here is a money chart of how many coppers make up each type of coin.

(d) Coins to coppers.
1 copper = 1 copper
1bronze = 10 coppers
1 silver = 100 coppers
1 gold = 1000 coppers
1 platinum = 10000 coppers