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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Tony Vargas" data-source="post: 5381870" data-attributes="member: 996">In AD&D (and earlier), the Rust Monster was one of the least fearsome and most feared of monsters.  It was comical looking, and the effect it had on 'brave' armored Fighters and Clerics was just as comical.  The reason was that magic items were rare, very hard to make, and were really the only thing that made your non-caster character worthwhile.  Without magic armor you'd get beaten to death in no time.  Without your trusty magic weapon - your golf-bag of trusty magic weapons - you couldn't 'hit' half the monsters you were exected to fight.  It was silly, it was fun at the time, but I think it's nice that D&D has gotten away from that sort of thing.Essentials, of course, is trying oh so hard to be retro, so, yes, magic items are 'rare' can't be made/bought, and are more character-defining.  A few, precious, 'uncommon' and 'rare' ones, that is.  Enough like the olden days to be retro, not /quite/ enough like the olden days to completely ruin the game.  Your Essential Slayer or Knight doesn't exactly have a whole lot of interesting and different things to do based on his basic-attack-spamming class, either, so he /needs/ a nice cool rare sword or something to make him stand out a little.  All very retro.  Your brave Knight running and whimpering like a little girl at the sight of a goofy-looking rustmonster?   Also retro.  Hey, you signed up for this abuse when you bought HotFL.  Don't say WotC never listened to customer feedback.  If, as a DM, you don't want to turn back the clock all the way to 1980, you can simply decide that the 'redisuum' harvested from a Rust Monster that has eaten a Rare item is a 'unique re-agent' suitable for re-creating /that specific Rare item/.  The character is deprived of the item until the Mage deigns to re-create it for him using said re-agents, and that could take time (and not just because the Mage likes watching the Knight whimper like a little girl - Enchant an Item doesn't have a short casting time), so there's certainly enough 'risk' and 'consequence' to go around.  If you really want a game with goofy looking monsters that send players into paroxysm of fear and laughter - play Gamma World.  It's a hoot.</blockquote>

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