Magic Items available for purchace?

[Derren]

I'm not saying you couldn't do high magic and have it turn out well by any stretch. I just don't like the industrial scale mass manufacture ideas some gamers have. I mean, Harry Potter did high magic very well, but the minutia was well thought out. Spells that killed people, subverted their will, or were designed merely to cause pain and suffering were outlawed and taboo. As long a well thought out system was implemented that made sense it might be great to play.

Mass manufacture was already part of the late middle ages. Do you really think the people crafter only 1-2 armors a year? Weapons and armors were produced continuously in the industrial centers. So now a little bit of magic gets slapped on top of them.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Mass manufacture- of some items, like certain kinds of glass vessels- started at least as early as the Roman Empire.

 

[Adimus]

Not denying its existence, just still don't like the idea.


The fact that the system simplified magic item construction is as I said, my hang-up. On one hand I like that it codified rules for magic items, but I kind of miss the strange procedures and exotic components vaguely described in older editions. What I'm saying is now all you have to do is throw money, a spell, and some xp away and "poof" magic item. The way items are described in older editions heavily implied that they could never be mass manufactured. Besides...


"Where did you get that sword?"
"This is the heirloom of House Mcguffin. Its name is Balmung. Long ago, it slew a dragon, and legend says its blood strengthened the steel and imparted it with its ardent glow."
"Where did you get yours?"
"Ed's Discount Flaming Sword Emporium."
"..."

What sounds more compelling?

 

[Adimus]

Sorry, double post.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

What sounds more compelling?

OTOH, the "Emporium" shows up in fiction as well. Usually, though, the Emporium is not chockablock with magical goodies...at least, not obviously so.

And the ones that are? Well, how does the adage go? If it seems too good to be true...

FWIW, I don't usually have "Magick Shoppes", I have merchants who may or may not happen to have magic versions of their wares.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Double post

 

[Nezkrul]

honestly, OP, there is no point in giving gold pieces to your characters if you don't let them use it to advance their characters. They don't need it for basic supplies, that is what skill checks and roleplaying are for.

 

[Adimus]

honestly, OP, there is no point in giving gold pieces to your characters if you don't let them use it to advance their characters. They don't need it for basic supplies, that is what skill checks and roleplaying are for.

There's no point in having a sword if you don't kill stuff with it, but when a player says "I kill the orcs!" you don't just say "Okay, they die."
There is a difference between XP and gold. XP is a player reward. The character doesn't know what 'level' he is. Gold is a character reward. That is, the character has a pocket full of money, but its not under his control what shops have what item anymore than than he can just will the orcs to die. Gold doesn't entitle them to rummage through the DMG the same way you pick and choose new skills and feats. How can a character use it to 'advance' himself? Advance the story. Why can't skill checks and roleplaying work for magic items as well-the most rare and wonderful things in the world?

 

[trancejeremy]

The balancing factor in the 3.x magic item creation system was supposed to be the XP cost, but in my experience, that part kind of got ignored.

As this thread shows - where would the makers of mass manufactured magic items get the XP from? Would they have assembly lines of monsters to kill?

 

[Man in the Funny Hat]

The balancing factor in the 3.x magic item creation system was supposed to be the XP cost, but in my experience, that part kind of got ignored.

As this thread shows - where would the makers of mass manufactured magic items get the XP from? Would they have assembly lines of monsters to kill?

As far as 3.5 and earlier versions are concerned, NPC's do not now and never have EARNED their xp - they are ASSIGNED xp by the DM to set their experience levels and abilities wherever he wants/needs them to be. When an NPC "requires" more xp the DM does not need to explain to the players what adventures the NPC then undertakes, what monsters he kills, etc. He just assigns the NPC the xp. If the DM has some unexplained compulsion to justify the xp "gain" to himself with extraneous tales of NPC deeds that's a personal issue and not a game requirement.

XP costs for magic items are otherwise present for control of Player Character creation efforts. The DM can (and should!) and generally will do whatever he likes including gleefully violating XP item cost limitations in order to enable NPC's to do whatever he wants them to do. Those constraints have no binding effect upon a DM or his NPC's.