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What makes a magic item interesting?
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<blockquote data-quote="Ariosto" data-source="post: 4812704" data-attributes="member: 80487"><p>In my mind, special interest comes from special distinction, unusualness of <em>some sort</em>.</p><p></p><p>In real life, we have all sorts of common gadgets. Any one of those is unlikely to hold much particular interest because of the commonality. A rare specimen can stand out, though -- as witness the many kinds of collectors' items.</p><p></p><p>In a low-tech fantasy world, something functionally equivalent to, say, a cell phone might be interesting -- not only to characters but to players -- because of its rarity. If such items keep turning up, the novelty at some point gets too diluted to inspire much interest.</p><p></p><p>In the real world, there are some impractically powerful and rare "hand cannon" pistols. I imagine one of those could make an interesting accessory for a character ... unless every gunslinger started "overcompensating" in the same way.</p><p></p><p>Beyond that, I think what makes a magic item exceptionally interesting is what events arise from its pursuit, possession or (especially) use. An adventure game is really about <em>action</em>, not inventory!</p><p></p><p>So, the most interesting items may well be those that come into play rarely, or even but once -- and in ways that radically change the situation.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Ariosto, post: 4812704, member: 80487"] In my mind, special interest comes from special distinction, unusualness of [i]some sort[/i]. In real life, we have all sorts of common gadgets. Any one of those is unlikely to hold much particular interest because of the commonality. A rare specimen can stand out, though -- as witness the many kinds of collectors' items. In a low-tech fantasy world, something functionally equivalent to, say, a cell phone might be interesting -- not only to characters but to players -- because of its rarity. If such items keep turning up, the novelty at some point gets too diluted to inspire much interest. In the real world, there are some impractically powerful and rare "hand cannon" pistols. I imagine one of those could make an interesting accessory for a character ... unless every gunslinger started "overcompensating" in the same way. Beyond that, I think what makes a magic item exceptionally interesting is what events arise from its pursuit, possession or (especially) use. An adventure game is really about [i]action[/i], not inventory! So, the most interesting items may well be those that come into play rarely, or even but once -- and in ways that radically change the situation. [/QUOTE]
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