Rules for Advancing Magical Items

[eXodus]

in the forgotten realms game i am running i have eliminated the overwhelming number of magical items hanging around. i want the ones that the pcs end up with to have history behind them, something to build adventures around and provide deeper flavor then 'yet another +1 long sword.'

what i want is a way to advance certain magical items as the characters progress, perhaps via some quests, just unlocking abilities through study, etc.

are there any supplements out there that deal with this topic?

i have checked out 'weapons of legacy' but it does not quite seem to offer what i am looking for. i do not want pcs to have to use a feat selection just to use a magical item.

thanks in advance, folks!

 

[Nightfall]

X, the feats are free. It's the rituals and the "penalties" that suck.

 

[Someone]

You just discarded Weapons of legacy which was the obvious one. I don't know if ther are 3rd party supplements out there that deal with it, but if there are not, I recommend you to use the wealth by level as a guideline and allow the PCs to upgrade their equipment "just because" through normal use (for more subtle bonuses, like adding a +1 to the sword's enhancement) or with magic placed on them by allied spellcaster, as a quest's reward or themselves (For the moments when the sword gains the Flaming ability, for example)

Remember however that the more time the PCs and the players spend questing, sudying and rolepleying how they adquire their magic items the less time they spend on actual adventures. Magic items are a part of D&D, not the only part, and sometimes handwaving the buying of some potions or wands are the best thing you can do.

 

[Nightfall]

Someone,

Arms and Armor 3.5 had something that kind of worked as a system for leveling items.

 

[shilsen]

Rather than looking for a particular system, you could simply add on abilities to the weapon as time goes on. Maybe choose the abilities based on what the character wielding it is like, what the character has been doing, the particular flavor you want for the sword, etc. I've done that a few times in my game without bothering to look for a particular external system, and I've found it to work out just fine.

 

[Mistwell]

Arcana Evolved has the system you are looking for I believe. Monte Cook is big on advancing items.

 

[Nightfall]

Mist,

Really? I must have missed that. What book was it in?

 

[eXodus]

i again read through weapons of legacy and it does not do quite what i am looking for. it is too much about unlocking new abilities, quests around the items, etc.

i am simply wanting a system where a fighter's +1 sword he really likes, perhaps has names, and has saved his life many times does not just get tossed aside when something better comes along. what i am looking for is a way to make magic memorable.

i will look into these other books.

thanks a lot folks

 

[Mistwell]

Mist,

Really? I must have missed that. What book was it in?

I must be on crack. I looked again and didn't see anything in the index. Nor for Book of Eldritch Might. Maybe I was thinking Unearthed Arcana instead? Like item familiars or Legendary Weapons or something? I could have sworn it was a Monte Cook thing though...

 

[Nightfall]

Mist,

I'm betting it's UA, not AE/AU.

X,

If you want to make the magic more memorable, he has to quest for it. Arthur didn't just get Exacaliber. He earned it.