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This is why many of the pay-for-perks games do one or more of the following to the perks:
- Set up donation items so they can't be taken from the donator.
- Defang PvP action so no permanent consequences (item loss, permadeath, etc.) can occur.
- Only allow the purchase of perks which can't be taken or consumed in the first place, like character advancement.
All of these can be softened by appropriate disclaimers, but you eventually run into risk.
As an example, there was a case discussed on these boards where a game allowed you to buy training sessions which advanced skills. Now, you could join a clan-like structure, and you'd get new skills, and you could use these sessions (which you likely paid for with RL money) to advance new skills. The problem is, players (not even staff) could evict you from the clan, and you'd lose the use of those skills. I believe some sort of refund system was set up after complaints grew, but without a refund I think a player has a legal gripe-- other players took his RL money's purchase away from him.
That's not much different from the 'thief' scenario you posit above, of course. Is there a perks system out there where the perks are truly "up for grabs"? As in, you can buy a supersword, but you can be disarmed/robbed/killed and lose it without your consent?
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