CHAPTER S : YOU AND THE WORLD AROUND YOU
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matching her skills against the best this place can throw against her. The very thought of encountering a new kind of lock, a unique trap, or an unsolved mystery is an irresistible lure. Some who do not share this feeling liken it to an addiction for danger, but that snap judgment misses the point . This rogue feels alive only when she's using all her skills to overcome the odds, just as a master chess player lives to match wits against the best. Ifthat means placing her life in mortal danger on a regular basis, so be it. Moral Imperative : Adventuring is just a means to an end-this rogue has a greater goal in mind. Perhaps she intends to take back the ill-gotten goods ofsomeone who once wronged her family-a pocketful at a time, ifnecessary. Perhaps she sends all her loot to the poverty-stricken village where she was born to pay for badly needed food and supplies. Or perhaps she's a once-greedy thief who had a change ofheart and now seeks to make amends for her previous crimes . Some rogues have gone beyond personal motives and adopted a philosophy called distributism . As first formulated by a sage named Orlogue, its first and only tenant was, "Some people have too much and others not enough ." To this, the rogue Ashmore Tuck later added a moral imperative, "And I'm going to do something about it!" Adherents of this philosophy are called Distributists . Distributists do not form organizations to acquaint others with their beliefs ; instead, their ideas spread
through grass-roots movements. A rogue who hears of the idea decides to put it into practice locally, then another rogue who's just passing through learns of her efforts and decides to duplicate them in his own home region . Since distributism spreads so randomly, law enforcement agencies find it very difficult to snuff out. (The hapless sage whose ideas gave rise to the philosophy, however, was burned out of his tower by furious notquite-as-wealthy-as-they-had-been victims of Distributists . But a rogue stole the deed to another tower and presented it to him shortly thereafter.) A Distributist rarely advertises her beliefs, since that could cause wealthy property owners to put a hefty price on her head. Instead, she singles out the ostentatiously wealthy as targets and passes along the bulk of her booty to deserving locals . Unless her loot comes in the form ofcash, she takes care to fence it first, lest any recognizable items get the recipients in trouble with the law later. A Distributist usually makes her donations anonymously, both out of innate caution (recipients can't give her away to authorities ifthey don't know who she is) and to avoid self-aggrandizement (it's not about building up a reputation, it's about doing the right thing) . Naturally, Distributists are very popular with those who benefit from their generosity and equally unpopular with those who become unwilling donors to their causes . Greed: Diametrically opposed to a Distributist is the rogue who is in it for the money. Born with a keen
