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I wouldn't even go that far -- could just be "outlaw campaign" or "political campaign." An outlaw campaign doesn't have to be an evil one, especially if the local regime is pretty despicable OR if the PCs justify their law-breaking in the service of a greater good. Comes up in all kinds of...

I know, I was exaggerating to illustrate the concept that versatility=power. I'm not sure what the misc. items will look like, but just flipping through the MIC there seemed to be a lot of low-cost items that were like "Ongoing bonus X plus 3 charges per day and you can do Y for 1 charge and Z...

Personally, I despise magic shops. But if 4E wants them, it's possible to make it so they don't break the system. For example: make Miscellaneous Six so low-priced that you can't trade them in for the Big Three. The Leprechaun Pipe sells for 50 GP, and you need 5,000 GP for the +1 armor...

We've been told that the "optional" magic items don't affect the power level because they add new options, and don't improve your existing ones. If you gave a 3E wizard the "spells per day" as listed, but let them use ANY spell from the lists without need for preparation or even having it in...

The complaint is there in Wulf's sig: If they design the "optional" items as so trivial that they don't really increase a PC's power (or, if they all cost actions and the opportunity cost of using them is very high), then it might work. But if items give a significant bonus without a...

The interaction is part of that, right? Whether you are up against an Army interrogator or a hostile lawyer. In either case, they have some skill at listening and some skill at asking the right questions to trip you up. At least, that would be my guess. That probably should be modeled in the...

Only with a lot of mustard. Yes. With an axe.

I used the DMGII rules for letting players create magic items through rituals. The Brb defeated a monster of CR 2 higher than his level, using his greathammer (greatsword stats). This let him use the Ritual of the Blood. He needed the +1, liked the Flaming ability, and liked when I pointed out...

And items of See Invisible, Fly, and FoM/Dim Door. Read ANY discussion of what high-level fighters need to compete. Beyond stat boosts, these capabilities are always mentioned (particularly the first two). They are not the so-called "Big Six," and they might be considered "quirky" and...

Try the Artifact section of the Master's Set from BECMI. Every artifact is based on something from legend. I found in the game I ran that permanent bonuses were better than temporary bonuses. I ended up giving the barbarian a Belt of Giant Strength to alleviate two problems: 1) He'd badger...

Did you ever play BECMI? Only one stat-boosting item in the entire game (Gauntlets of Ogre Power), and that overlapped, did not stack. So if your Ftr had an 18 Str, you didn't need the Gauntlets, and if you had 16 or 17 Str, you got a marginal benefit. All ability scores capped at 18. No...

It may be that coming from earlier editions, I anticipate an "ask your DM" before each of those lists. Something like "Sample animal companions are described below, but may vary by setting. Ask your DM what animals are available for your druid." That was the general mentality in earlier editions.

In 3.5, it was certainly true that items that granted See Invisibility, Fly, and one of {Freedom of Movement, Dimension Door, Teleport} *did* affect the power curve very significantly. Because Invisibility and Fly were such good defensive tactics, and containment (Entangle, Solid Fog...

I wasn't speaking about D&D in particular, but about gaming in general. Whether I'm playing the Conan d20 in Hyborea, 2E D&D in a "green-book Celtic setting," 3.5 D&D in Ravenloft, or what have you, I expect a certain amount of consistency with the setting. (Although as I noted, some settings...

There I agree with you. I was referring to how easy it was in-game. Low level requirements, trivial XP cost, no exotic quests. Just some gold and a bit of time. Like the "drawback" tables at the back of the DMG? Those were pretty good, and I found that players generally liked them if the...

Where 3E went wildly wrong and took the Christmas Tree effect to a whole new level was this combination of decisions: 1) Magic items much easier to make than in earlier editions 2) Buying and selling magic items not only allowed but expected as a player's right 3) The frequency of magic shops...

Just trying to think of the most "this doesn't fit" thing for Ravenloft. I'm sure there's worse possible. Right. Which is why Greyhawk is not Middle-Earth. It's a different setting. So if I thought I was playing Middle-Earth, and now we're dealing with illithid and drow and color-coded...

As to the non-stat-boosting items being "optional, not necessary" -- In 3.5, many posters here have taken the view that a high-level fighter basically needs to have items of See Invisibility, Fly, and Dimension Door/Teleport (to escape Forcecage if nothing else). These are not stat-boosting...

Really depends on the setting. If a setting has a clearly-defined flavor, I'll be leery of anything that throws off that flavor. Especially if it is introduced late in the campaign. Mecha in what I was envisioning as an Arthurian setting? Bubbly 16-year-old girls with pink hair and silly...

It will matter if later additions to 4E DO allow such boosts. If they do not hold the line on what magic items can and cannot do, if they later allow supplements with bracers or shields that DO give an AC boost, then you're going to run into the same arms race that 3.5 had. And because...