Lockpicking and Prison in Sword & Shield Simulator
Picks at the anvil, cellars under Danburg, and a two-minute wait if the guards still win.
Lockpicking is a listed Early Access system, not a meme. You craft picks at the anvil, you test doors that are not yours, and you can sit in a cell if a guard disagrees. The Thieves Guild devlog sold hidden cellars and catacombs. Launch day sold accidental prison: clip a guard with the cart, wake up behind bars, and wonder how long the sentence lasts. The Day One Patch (1.0.26.08.12.3) changed that loop. This page is the current rules, not the trailer.
Craft the picks with How to Forge. Spend them in Danburg. If you came here because the wagon kissed a helmet, also read cart priority and How to Travel Regions — a cell is a travel problem.
Craft the picks first
Devlogs say you can make lockpicks on the anvil with the small-ironwork loop, or find them in corners of the world. Do not start a cellar run with one bent pin. Make a small stack during a quiet forge session, next to nails and knives, then save. Unique blades do not belong in a lockpicking save you are about to throw away.
No two locks are the same in the studio copy: humble doors versus fortified secrets. That is flavour. In play, treat every lock as a chance to fail loudly. Save before the minigame. If the UI double-clicks because a chest preview is open — a Day One Patch target — close the extra window first. The patch added a cooldown to pop-ups and fixed a double UI input bug when an item preview sat beside another window.
What the Day One Patch changed
Before 1.0.26.08.12.3, running over a guard with the cart could send you straight to prison. After the patch, that clip is supposed to open a conversation about your behaviour instead of a loading screen into a cell. If you still jail from a wheel bump, update the build, then test on a spare save. Guards were also given new paths on Bloodlands.
If you do end up in prison anyway — lockpicking, theft, or a remaining bug — you can now wait it out. After two minutes a guard is supposed to let you go. That is the studio’s answer to “how long is this sentence.” Do not alt-tab for twenty minutes hoping the cell is a quest. Time two minutes. If nobody comes, that is a regression; record it and reload.
Guards in prison can no longer see you through barrels. If you were using barrel LOS as a stealth puzzle, that cheese is gone. Play the wait, or play the bribe the older copy mentioned, but do not sit in a barrel arguing with a patch note.
Thieves Guild, cellars, catacombs
Devlog #19 described an underground guild, dangerous quests, and a hidden cellar into ancient catacombs. Devlog #25 adds sleeping powder from a herbalist that makes stealth and lockpicking easier. None of that is a reason to skip Getting Started. The guild is optional. Prison is a listed failure. Prepare picks, a save, and a way back to the forge.
Talstein’s full version still promises a thieves’ guild as a place, not only a rumour. See the Talstein page and the roadmap. Do not clip through a Danburg wall looking for a cathedral crypt that is not in the three-region slice.
A careful cellar loop
- Save in the street, not in the lock.
- Close extra UI. Item previews plus chests were a double-input bug.
- Use a pick. If it fails, leave. Guards exist.
- Take what the quest names. Leave furniture. The cart cannot eat a house.
- Walk out the way you came. If a guard stops you, talk. After the patch, talk is cheaper than a cell.
- If you are in a cell, wait two minutes. Then go home and make nails until your hands are honest again.
Lockpicking is how Danburg grows secrets. It is also how a smith loses an evening. The Items Hub will not list a pick DPS table. Make a handful, save often, and keep the masterpiece blades in a chest the guards cannot see. When a later patch adds more locks, this page will name them. Until then, the rule is small: picks, patience, two minutes, and a cart that no longer jails you for a bump.
Frequently Asked Questions
Quick answers to the most common questions.
How do I get out of prison now?
After the Day One Patch, wait about two minutes for a guard to release you. If nobody comes, reload and report it.
Will hitting a guard with the cart jail me?
On 1.0.26.08.12.3 it should open a dialogue instead. Update, then test. Older builds sent you to a cell.
Where do I craft lockpicks?
On the anvil with other small ironwork. Make a stack before you hunt cellars.
Is the Thieves Guild required?
No. It is optional, gated by picks, and can still end in a cell. Finish the forge loop first.
