Does Nash Crosby's Still appear after the first task?
Shifty, the Thief Chief
Shifty, the Thief Chief is located in the Department of Shadowy Arts and Crafts. Shifty decides whether or not you may enter the guild by giving you tasks and judging your ability to complete them. Upon completion of the first three tasks, you are elegible for training by Lefty. Upon completion of the fourth task, you are permitted to purchase items from The Shadowy Store.
First task
The first task is to play 11-Card Monte (capable of completion with raw Moxie of 6, perhaps less.)
Shifty looks you over as you approach. "So, you want to join the Department, do you? Well, to gain access to the various perks we offer, you'll have to succeed in a series of tasks, each more difficult than the last.
The first one is simple -- we're going to play a straightforward game of 11-Card Monte. If you can find the Queen, you have passed the test."
Message when failing it:
Shifty quickly moves the cards around on the table, seemingly at random. When they come to rest, you hesitantly point to the fourth card from the left. Shifty turns it over, revealing it to be the Ace of Post-Hole Diggers.
"Come back when you are more Moxious," says Shifty, shaking his head.
Message when completing it:
Shifty quickly moves the cards around on the table, seemingly at random. When they come to rest, you hesitantly point to the third card from the right. Shifty turns the card over, revealing it to be the Queen of Pointy Things.
"Nicely done, Initiate," says Shifty. "Welcome to the Department of Shadowy Arts and Crafts."
"Here, take these -- you can get more at the Barrel Full of Barrels, in the Big Mountains. I'll mark it on your map.
N is 3 on one's first ascension run, 2 on the second, 1 on the third, and 0 on all subsequent runs.
After completing this task, if you have will appear.
Second task
The second task is to steal Izzy's wallet (not capable of completion with raw Moxie of 11, but capable of completion with a buffed Moxie of 12)
Message before doing it:
Shifty nods at you. "Ready for the next task? This one's a little harder: you see that guy over there? That's Izzy the Lizard. I want you to steal his wallet, and bring it back to me. If you can do it without him noticing, I'll let you use the Department's meatcar.
Message when failing it:
You approach Izzy the Lizard and attempt to steal his wallet. As you're reaching into his pocket, his arm snaps out and grabs your wrist.
"Nice try, rookie," says Izzy. Shifty shakes his head ruefully.
Message when completing it:
You approach Izzy the Lizard silently and stealthily. You deftly hork his wallet and bring it back to Shifty.
"Nice work, Initiate," says Shifty. "Here are the keys to our meatcar. Ask Izzy where he parked it."
Third task
The third task is to steal a beer from the bar behind the bar (capable of completion with a buffed moxie of 16, but not a buffed Moxie of 15)
Message before doing it:
"All right, Initiate, only one task remains to prove yourself as a member of the Department.
In the back room of this building, there is a bar. Behind the bar, there is a bar. You must sneak past the bar, and grab me a beer from the bar."
Message when failing it:
You stride past Shifty and go through the door in the back of the room. You only make it about three steps toward the bar before the bar wakes up and beats you soundly about the head and neck.
Message when completing it:
You stride past Shifty and go through the door in the back of the room. You deftly maneuver (and muscle for rank) past the bar, and make your way to the bar. You grab a beer, and take it back to Shifty. He cracks it with a smile.
"Congratulations, <name>," he says. "You are now a full member of the Department of Shadowy Arts and Crafts."
Fourth task
The fourth task is to steal your own pants (requires 18-23 buffed moxie)
Message before doing it:
"You have done well so far, my friend. You have almost earned access to the Shadowy Store in our back room. In order to do this, you must complete another challenge:
Steal your own pants, without alerting yourself to your presence..."
Message when failing it:
You stealthily move your hands towards your pants, but almost immediately become aware of what you are doing. Perhaps you should try again when you're more Moxious.
Message when completing it:
You sneak up behind yourself and remove your pants before you realize what's going on.
"Nice work!" says Shifty. "I'll let the guys in the back room know you're cool to shop there now."
Message after completion
You have already passed all of the challenges of your Guild.
References
In the first task, the box says, "Play the Game," which is a famous song by Queen. Conveniently, you must find the queen. Since, you know, that's the objective in 3-Card Monte, which the task parodies.
Post-hole diggers is a reference to the spade in a deck of playing cards. Spades are commonly used to dig holes for posts.
In the third task, "You deftly maneuver (and muscle for rank)" is a quote from the song "The Distance", from the album Fashion Nugget by Cake.
