Choosing Magic Items: Daily Powers?

[Dausuul]

When selecting magic items for your character (assuming your DM gives you a way to pick your own, be it through wish lists, item creation, starting items at higher levels, or Magic Item Mart), how often do you choose items for their daily powers - as opposed to properties, encounter powers, et cetera?

 

[Joshua Randall]

I vastly prefer Properties or Encounter powers, though I will choose a Daily power if it is either (a) really cool, (b) really strong, or (c) really likely to come up.

Absolutely the worst, to me, would be having an item with a Daily power that you don't have the opportunity to use every day.

Examples:

(a) cool -- Exodus Knife: you rip a hole in the fabric of reality and go into an extradimensional "room".

(b) strong -- Steadfast Amulet: when you would be stunned or dazed, as an immediate interrupt, save against that effect.

(c) likely to come up -- any "elemental" magic weapon (frost, fire, lightning...) because you are almost certainly going to hit with it at least once per day.

 

[Alisair Longreach]

If I am forced to use magic items by Rules-As-Written I don't select ones with daily powers. Why? Because of the Milestones limitation it is not worth it to have more than two magic items with a daily power.

Most adventurer's forays are seldom more than three encounters between extended rests so having more than two magic items with a daily power forces a player to choose which two to activate and having to ignore the daily powers of the rest. This also encourages hoarding behaviour which leads to not using the magic item daily powers.

After a while most players just stop using and wanting magic items with daily powers because they are an expensive and scarce resource that is just too valuable to use. Also because the magic item daily powers are seldom used they get boring.

Then the players only want magic items with at-wills/encounter powers and static bonuses because they can be used every encounter and thus are more fun.

The sad thing about it all is that roughly 75% of all magic items have a daily power will be dismissed by savvy gamers.

 

[Victim]

I generally grab some cheap utilitarian daily powers - like rerolling an attack, some additional way to save, or a power recovery item - but otherwise usually prefer encounter powers or properties.

But often I'm working with found items or the best in slot at level X, so my characters generally pick up additional daily powers.

 

[NMcCoy]

I almost never pick up property-less daily items (unless it's a really solid power like Dwarven Armor and there's nothing better for the slot). I am, however, substantially more likely to use a daily wondrous item than a daily "slotted" item because it doesn't compete with a useful property.

 

[fba827]

i am the sort that always frets that there will be "some better time to use it" as a result, I rarely get around to using my daily powers, magic item powers, or consumables (potions, etc).

Because of this, I prefer magic items with passive abilities (i.e. always 'on' cool effects / properties).

But, having said that, I really find lots of magic item properties to be bland (which is intentional, I understand that; PCs are supposed to have the 'cool' powers to focus on, and I like that design decision) so I really only take daily powers in to consideration as a tie breaker between other equally-valid choices.. but they in themselves are never the reason for the choice.

 

[pauljathome]

I (mostly) ignore daily magic item powers. I almost completely ignore daily powers when picking my "prime" items.

I then have a whole bag full of cheap magic items with daily powers that may be of some use in some particular circumstance. I sometimes even remember them when appropriate .

I do have a bunch of frost whetstones that I'll use if it looks like I'll be going into melee a lot this encounter (I'm a Wizard with the WOTS paragon path)

 

[malraux]

Now that my group has reached 13th level, I'm really enjoying daily item powers. Paragon tier characters can keep going forever, so there's a lot more milestones, and thus daily item powers. In addition, you can pretty easily pick up a heroic tier item for a pittance.

 

[hvg3akaek]

It helps being (a) paragon, and (b) having an artificer in the party.

My current level 13 fighter has had dwarven armour (daily power to heal as if spending a surge), and I constantly use it, in an effort to allow the artificer to use his healing on the rest of the party. Also, not being a dwarf, SW-ing means I loose my attack.

But best of all, I can use it twice a day (thanks to the artificer's recharge)!

I agree, though - most of my items are based around the more renewable powers.

 

[MarkB]

I might consider an item with a Daily power if it also has a really useful Property that I know will benefit me. Otherwise, no, I avoid anything that only has a Daily ability. Like fba827, I'd never get around to using it.