Forensic Evaluation

By Petra Fyde, October 2011

This skill gives the title ‘Detective’ and is useful to role players and people wishing to gain the skill ‘honesty’

Using Forensic Evaluation:

• on a corpse will reveal the name of the killer and of those who looted the corpse.
• on a player will reveal their affiliation with the Thieves Guild.
• on a lockable chest will reveal who has recently picked the lock of that container.

Training the Skill

NPC’s to train the initial few points can be found on all shards except Siege or Mugen. The skill is trained by:

Bloodletter, Healer(Shopkeeper), Healer(Wandering), Healer Guildmaster, Fortune Teller.

From that level to approximately 36 skill you will need to examine corpses. It is perfectly acceptable to examine corpses of creatures you have killed yourself. Use the skill on each corpse until successful, then move on to the next. You can only gain off the corpse once. Yew sheep fields or Jhelom farm are optimal training areas at this level.

This will take you to 41.1 if desired, which is the level at which you can begin examining picked boxes or chests. Alternatively at around 36 you can begin examining blue npc beggars in town.  At this level the ball of knowledge deems this activity  to be ‘very challenging’, but you can examine the same npc an unlimited number of times.

The skill level 41.1 is the point at which you may successfully ascertain the town to which a lost property item (see ‘Honesty’ linked above) should be returned, though it may take a considerable number of attempts. You can continue to gain from the beggar npcs, for variety you can now also gain from boxes and chests which have been picked.  A treasure hunter’s lockpick training box or a picked paragon chest is ideal for this.  There is no limit to the number of times these can be examined.

Examining boxes can take you to GM, but gains will slow down as the task becomes ‘easy’, and eventually ‘very easy’ as judged by the ball of knowledge.  NPCs can make this task easier.

61 skill

The beggar NPC registers as ‘optimal’ and you will also begin to be able to ascertain the exact owner of the lost property items.

71 skill

I recommend examining thief NPCs

91 skill

Examine the Thief Guildmaster NPC. This individual remains ‘optimal’, as judged by the ball of knowledge, all the way to GM.

 

For those choosing to build a full ‘Detective’ the following skill set is suggested:

• Forensic Evaluation
• Detect Hidden
• Tracking
• A Weapon Skill
• Anatomy
• Tactics
• Healing

The following excerpt is taken from an essay by Heathwalker, Grandmaster Detective, Europa

You look around you. Everywhere in Felucca you see menacing figures lurking in shadows, sense thieves stealing past you, see thugs brazenly standing in the daylight, known criminals laughing at justice. By the bank, linchpins of the very economy, the situation is even worse. Some banks are infested with scum training and practicing their craft. British’s guards sometimes intervene, but often miss the nefarious activities of the more skilled scoundrels. And, of course, outside the small protected zones, the thief operates with impunity.

Every day there are more. Attracted by the exhortations of the Secret Society, or lured by the scent of an easy profit.
Few stop them. Few are versed in their ways yet hate them. But you are an exception, you are a detective, licensed to detect crimes, hunt criminals and exact whatever justice you see fit.

You will have few helpers. The guards will ignore you. The citizenry you seek to protect will largely spurn you. And the art itself, the skills of being a detective, have been mostly forgotten. Let me, Heathwalker, explain how you can help repel the tide, and teach you a little of the half-forgotten profession of Detective.

And never forget, there is one basic job at the heart of the detective role.
Detect the crime, find the thief, apprehend (kill) him.

Most detectives aim for strength of between 90 and 100, dexterity of between 90 and 100, and 25 intelligence. Set these attributes accordingly. You need to be strong enough to kill thieves when you find them. Hence the need for high strength and dexterity. There are two basic categories of thieves you will come across, Scoundrels, or pure thieves, with limited resistance to your halberd, and Thugs, thieves with GMed fighting skills, who are usually Despicable. Beware the latter. They kill many a detective.

It is recommended that you pursue a combat skill, rather then magic. As most of your work is involved inside town, magic is normally a disadvantage here. This is only a recommendation. If you choose a sword or fencing skill, it is a great advantage to have an ally who can provide you will deadly poisoned weapons.

It is strongly recommended that you wear a guard’s costume when working. The most important factor in fighting is surprise! A combat thief will kill quickly if warned, and a defensive thief will outrun you. This is where dressing up as a guard helps. When you are dressed as a guard you put everyone at ease. It allows you to wander around and close to people.

You should have the following actions bound to keys (in your macros)

Macro #1	Last Target
Macro #2	Last Object
Macro #3	Yell “You will regret thine actions! Swine!” This will scare the living daylights out of the thief letting you get in the first few whacks and they will sometimes sit there for a few seconds thinking they are being guard whacked
Macro #4, #5	Should be a yell saying something like “Stop thief!” or “Freeze Police!”. You should yell this occasionally when chasing the thief so as to let people know what you are doing (some will help, others will hinder you).
Macro #6	Attack Last Target

The thief now knows you are not a guard, but in fact a detective. Some will call the guards, some will run, some will attack (and some will just sit there and take it). If they attack, then backing off or letting them chase you can be an advantage as you can get them to a more remote location (which helps). Never continue combat if you can’t win, you can always get them again.
If the thief is a defensive thief, they will start running trying to lose you to hide then stealth. When chasing them Yell for them to stop (Macro #4, #5) Also if they turn a corner keep hitting “Attack Last Target” as it helps stop them from hiding easily (it’s still possible for them, just not easy). The attack last target will help sometimes force them to break hide by defending.
When chasing a defensive thief, try to run them to areas with fewer people. This keeps others from interfering (to others you will both look blue).
If the thief manages to hide do not do detect hidden straight away! Do tracking first. Once you have the person tracked it will be nearly impossible for them to lose you while stealthing. Also if they change their disguise while hidden you can find them straight away.
In a crowded area in town, where tracking can be difficult, you can always ask a town guard “Guard, where is [name]” and the Guard will give you directions if he has seen the thief.
When tracking it’s important to know that the furthest away appear first in the list. This is why secluded areas are helpful as you have less to scroll through. If you are sure you are standing right beside the thief who is hidden, they will always be last in the list if no one else is near.
Once they are tracked, start the detect hidden. Another trick to try is to have low level purple potions. Stand where the thief is hidden and double click the potion but do not throw it, it will explode hurting you and the thief, but will force the thief out of hiding.

If you come across other detectives, try to work with them. Share information on hangouts, strategies, known ringleaders. There are few enough of you to fight to tide of crime.

I wish you every success in the relentless struggle. I hope these words help you to detect, chase & catch the thief, find and execute justice.

Heathwalker, Grandmaster Detective, Europa