Oditio's Cant

The pie shop doorway will not please a goodwife, so leave off the dull. Come punch time, we'll be fat with the waif. Her dustup's the vine seller's swamp, so look sharp.

— Note to thieves guild member,
indicating that the back door will be unlocked at sundown
and the safe is in the floor in the wine cellar.

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Structure of the Cant

Oditio's Cant is an ever shifting method of communication between members of the thieves guild and other Oditians. At heart, it is a vulgar rhyming slang that is always being updated by the people who use it regularly. Those immersed in it can generally decipher novel uses, especially if the context is known going in.

A breakdown of the quoted example:

• A pie shop is for a snack, or back, doorway
• A goodwife is pleased by a cock, or a lock, so not pleased is unlocked
• The front is blunt, or dull
• Punch in a fight for night time
• Fat with the waif is rich from the safe
• The vine seller is the wine cellar, while floor is moor, or swamp

Usage of the Cant

The cant allows for communication of simple phrases to hide information in plain sight. It is expected that it can be broken with a little thought, but people immersed in the cant can quickly translate even novel uses. Novel uses are common in written communication that is meant to be discarded, as it is about buying time. More standardized and well used phrases are often sprinkled in in spoken communication done in public. Enough phrases, said quickly, will likely prevent any attempt by someone not fluent to decipher a discussion.

Members of the underworld will use the cant to make contact and as a shibboleth to identify others. Some phrases can be slipped into normal conversation, and have an expected call back. Missing the call backs will mark someone as an outsider, which can have disastrous results in the wrong place.