D&D General Belts of Giant Strength?

[Crimson Longinus]

I think it's only really ramped up in importance in 5e. 3e, damage was still based on strength and you needed a feat to use dexterity for hit bonus. 4e it was just another attack stat which was tied to class powers so it didn't matter as much.

I think it was a mistake to allow finesse to fully substitute strength with dex. It should have been so that it only does so for to hit, but not for the damage.

 

[Pauln6]

The way I have done it was inspired by the difference between enhanced strength and super strength from Mutants and Masterminds.

Gauntlets of Ogre Power: +2 strength (max 19); treat wearer as large for the purposes of carrying and feats of strength related to size (such as pushing or grappling).

Girdles of Giant Strength: +2 to +4 strength (max dependent on the belt); treat wearer as huge for the purposes of carrying and feats of strength related to size (such as pushing or grappling).

So anyone dumping strength doesn't get crazy attack rolls but can trip a giant or pull a massive laden cart to keep that super strong vibe.

The 1e version also let characters hurl boulders so you could bring that back too.

 

[jmartkdr2]

It is dumb, but then how much use (and-or how survivable) is a low-strength Fighter going to be during the time before a strength device shows up? That's a fairly big player-side gamble, I think.

That, and if someone's rolling up a warrior type and doesn't put at least a half-decent stat into strength it might be worth asking why; and if the answer comes back "I'm putting a strength device on my wish list" or similar you've probably got a problem on the horizon.

This does make building around the item (eg dumping strength and expecting the belt to cover the difference) impossible, which I think most of us would agree is a good thing for preventing cheese (barring certain kinds of silly games where munchkining is encouraged)

It can have a weird side effect of making the "set to 19" items not actually useful to the classes that use those stats the most - a wizard is actually the class that wants a headband of intellect the least since they probably want a 20 intelligence anyways. So the headband tends to end up on the dumbest pc. Similar story with gauntlets of ogre power; the barbarian is probably already stronger than an ogre so who wants some gloves?

I don't know if this is good or bad. But it is a thing.

(This doesn't really apply to the amulet of health because no one is likely to have maxed out constitution but everyone wants more constitution.)

 

[Zardnaar]

Playee kinda dumped strength a bit (it's 16).

Real game would have been18 or 20 before the item turned up.

Probably shoukd have said no. It's not gonna be a long term thing so care factor was low.

Could have been worse. Coukd gave asked for 25 strength one.

 

[cbwjm]

Playee kinda dumped strength a bit (it's 16).

Real game would have been18 or 20 before the item turned up.

Probably shoukd have said no. It's not gonna be a long term thing so care factor was low.

Could have been worse. Coukd gave asked for 25 strength one.

I think a 16 is fine, I'd even accept a 14 if starting high level.

 

[Distracted DM]

Straight up + bonuses are boring as hell. Use or create unique magic items with interesting powers. Some with downsides.

I'd agree, but some of my players wouldn't- because as characters get more features, items with interesting powers are less attractive and/or less predictable, and it's just more stuff to keep track of for them. This wasn't as much of a problem with 5e14 at release, but later additions and newer systems like LU A5E that give lots more PC features really make (my) players just want simple bonus items that'll make their character features work more reliably (higher to-hit, higher DC, etc).

Kind of disappointing since I spend a good amount of time finding and/or designing items, and sometimes they just get tossed aside

 

[James Gasik]

Ioun Stones might be better for most characters. Turning an 18 into a 20 would at least save you an ASI. Though it's amusing that they are both Very Rare and can be damaged or taken away and still require attunement. I think I'll introduce one to my current game soon to see how the players react- will they find it useful even with all the caveats, or will they try to offload it for something else?

 

[Lanefan]

This does make building around the item (eg dumping strength and expecting the belt to cover the difference) impossible, which I think most of us would agree is a good thing for preventing cheese (barring certain kinds of silly games where munchkining is encouraged)

It can have a weird side effect of making the "set to 19" items not actually useful to the classes that use those stats the most - a wizard is actually the class that wants a headband of intellect the least since they probably want a 20 intelligence anyways. So the headband tends to end up on the dumbest pc. Similar story with gauntlets of ogre power; the barbarian is probably already stronger than an ogre so who wants some gloves?

I see those items as, ideally, to a greater or lesser extent taking you beyond what you can otherwise normally achieve. Otherwise, what's the point?

I mean, your Fighter's up to 20 Str already, where does she go from there? Girdle of Giant Strength: bam - Str 25 coming online!

There's something to be said for lesser items of stat boost to help those who are pathetic e.g. Gloves of Elven Dexterity* that take your Dex to the better of 16 or whatever it already is.

* - just made this one up, don't look for it in the rules.