Do *Players* like to buy magic items?

[Wormwood]

As a player, I know what my character needs and wants a hell of a lot better than my DM does.

"Allowing" me to buy items simply enables me to customize my character's abilities.

All this from a DM who used to subscribe to the 'you'll take what I give you and like it' school.

 

[LGodamus]

I dont mind commisioning items or going through a broker..but I dont really like the idea of going to Magic-mart ...( anyone remember those?) and picking up any item I need.

 

[Ylis]

For me, it depends on the GM.
If a GM throws my character tons of high-powered magic items at stores, in dungeons, etc, I usually refuse all of them (and, on the off chance that one of them "binds" itself to me, I usually hack off the arm, etc that it is on...I like being in charge of my character's development....of course, this is JUST the GMs that try to railroad my characters...).
If a GM allows me to find/buy low-powered items occasionally, I don't mind finding one (eventually) that is high-powered.
If a GM never brings in magic items, that's good with me, too...so long as everything else in the world isn't spilling over with magic

 

[Janx]

Ignore the "commisioning" or building of magic stuff for a bit, I would suspect most GMs allow that.

Since the towns have a Highest Priced Item variable in the DMG, it is concievable that this number can be higher than all the mundane items in the PH. At point, isn't it obvious that the DMG implies that magic items can be purchased, since they are the only expensive items available.

From an economics standpoint, it is supply and demand. People want magic stuff (heck, PCs kill for it). Therefore prices are high. Some people have spare magic stuff (PCs who kill lots of other people for their magic stuff) and are going to convert their spare magic into cash. Thus, it is inherently obvious that selling and buying of magic stuff will occur.

As E-Bay teaches us, somebody will sell anything, and somebody else will buy it.

What I think would be cool is hooking a treasure generator up to the "Max Cost" variable and building a tool that generates the inventory of a "Magic Shop" Thus I can print out what's in the shop currently, when the players ask. Since the town has a Wealth factor, that would what limits how much stuff is in the shop.

Janx

 

[Mr. Sparkle]

In one of the campaigns I play in, there is an annual festival which is a major social and political event (my character got married at the last one). We get to run a session that is not a typical adventure with contests, intrigue and lots of roleplaying.

Anyhow, one of the events at the festival is an auction for high-powered magic items. Usually, there are at least 2 items up for sale that each character might be interested in, though we can normally only afford to buy one. Since we gain 3 to 4 levels between festivals, the auction gives us a great opportunity to adapt our equipment to new challenges and changing roles within our party.

While we all enjoy getting nice items from killing bad guys, getting the occasional choice in major items lets me tailor my equipment to fit my view of my character.

 

[Parlan]

In one of the campaigns I play in, there is an annual festival which is a major social and political event (my character got married at the last one). We get to run a session that is not a typical adventure with contests, intrigue and lots of roleplaying.

Anyhow, one of the events at the festival is an auction for high-powered magic items.

I really like Mr. Sparkle s festival idea.

I want to be able to buy minor items that I think will balance out or develop my character concept. (Especially at higher levels, getting an Amulet of Natural Armor +1 should not be an impossible task...)

OTOH, I don t want to be able to buy major items at the drop of a hat. Such items should be difficult to acquire and rare, ie, the sort of thing that should be researched and then quested for.

The annual fair would provide a good balance.

Not doable in my present campaign because we re playing in SL, and AFAIK (heck, I m only a lowly PC), magic items are NEVER sold in SL. (Correct me if I m wrong Nightfall)

 

[kigmatzomat]

In one of the campaigns I play in, there is an annual festival which is a major social and political event...

I've been using this idea for about 3 years in my game and it works out really well. For one thing, it puts the characters in a role other than "guy who kills monsters." IMC, the players have bought permits and act as merchants at the fair, hawking the loot they've picked up. I tend to have treasures fairly high in art or masterwork items so they interact with a wide variety of people. The handfulls of 3gp rings are sold to the commoners, the platinum flatware goes to the merchants, the amateur historian priest buys the golden icons and the guardsmen and mercenaries buy the weapons & armors.

At the same time, the thieves guild is deputized to act as guards giving the party rogue something to do while the cleric is making converts with his "free ale and candy" stand. The bard, of course, enjoys the crowds and acquiring stalkers (Danged rolls in the mid-high 30's.)

I've discovered that by having them hold onto the treasure for a few months causes it not to be "coin waiting to happen." The tapestries get stored in their house. They spend the winter in the house and think "Hey, why don't I put those tapestries up on the wall?" When the fair comes if they don't actively need cash they often decide against selling it and thus their house starts to look like a home. It also looks suspiciously like the place they got the treasure from in the first place.

Anyhow, one of the events at the festival is an auction for high-powered magic items. Usually, there are at least 2 items up for sale that each character might be interested in, though we can normally only afford to buy one.

For the first time, my players actually got to sell something at the auction. They were so happy to be on the "in" with the big boys. Afterwards several of the players were convinced to begin investing in merchant caravans "rather than hide their coin like well-armed dire squirrels." Ahh, the plot-hooks to come from that....

 

[Altalazar]

I like being able to get a particular item if I think it really enhances the character concept. Mostly, though, in the games I've been in since 3E, I've been content to deal with what was given out in treasure. The only "buying" I did was as part of character creation in an OA game that started at like 7th level. And then it was all about enhancing the character concept.

I am more than content, usually, to deal with what the group has. But sometimes buying or commissioning would just be something the CHARACTER would want to do in certain circumstances.

 

[Faraer]

I raised the point on the last thread, and no, as a player it doesn't appeal -- it's not mythologically satisfying, and it isn't part of any genre I want to emulate. I think the concept is farcical.

 

[Henry]

But what about the joy of improvising; the pleasure of using the fairly-wrong tool for the job in a clever fashion becuase that's the only tool you've got?

Nope, no fun; not for me, anyway. My character concepts aren't gadgeteers or "Macguyvers", and if I want one, I'll play one - usually a gnome wizard with lots of small single-use magics for the job at hand.

But as a player, when I am using a crossbow, and the ONLY thing I can find is enchanted bows, then either I've got to change my concept or just not use a magic item - or I've wasted a number of 2E weapon proficiencies or 3E feats. As for the cleverness of it, there's only so many ways a PC can use a magic longsword. If I'm a whip user, then once I get that magic dagger or longsword, that whip is coming out at best once every 5 games. I'd rather have the option of hiring a greedy Wizard with a cash-flow problem and cater to his needs in order to get my nice +1 whip of flaming, which I'll name Pyreme... hmm... *writes that down*

Don't me wrong, as a player I enjoy a good shopping expedition as much as the next PC. But I can't help but remember how entertaining it was playing in older campaigns where magic wasn't rare per se, just less ummm, commercial. I had a lot of fun trying to turn the tide in combat with a Decanter of Endless Water or an Eversmoking Bottle. In a sense, I think being able to purchase what you believe to be your optimal magic-item loadout cheats you out of some of the fun of playing.

Besides, magic ought to be a little cantakerous, tricky, and spiteful. Never exactly what you need but always what you cannot do without.

In our older campaigns, the DM's were usually good at registering to players' needs, and if the player had, say, a dagger thrower/knife fighter, the party might find one or two enchanted daggers with unusual properties, or magic items that helped facilitate that dagger wielder. No one wanted a character who just blew three weapon proficiencies in order to be good with a halberd, to never get one.