Have you used "signature items"?

[kengar]

I am thinking of trying to get away from the "Magic Market" in the DMG and using items a character keeps for the long term. Items which can grow more powerful as the PC gains levels (ancestral blade, etc.). Does anybody have house rules for these kinds of "signature items" or know where I could look at some sample rules?

Thanks.

 

[Norfleet]

I've quietly given players signature items even when they're not magical. Because I ran the campaign over the Internet, I had full control over quiet dice-fudging, and, as a result, whenever the character used his "signature" weapon, the dice would always be quietly fudged in his favor.

The player, of course, was utterly unaware of this, but quickly became very attached to his particular weapon, believing it to be his lucky weapon, and always chose to use that weapon instead of even technically superior weapons.

 

[Spatzimaus]

Some Prestige Classes have rules for signature weapons that increase in power by spending XP (Weapon Master? I know the Psionic Weapon Master, from Mind's Eye, does this). There are also weapon enchantments that do similar things, with their power based on some increasing aspect of the user (HP, skill points, power points, attributes). Use the Psychic enchantment, from the PsiHB, as a guideline for this.

It'd be nice if there was some sort of official ruleset out there for this, but since it requires DM input I'm glad there isn't. I mean, let's say your Paladin finds a holy sword named "Shatterspike" in the Sunless Citadel. It's only a +1 Flaming sword with a minor special ability. For normal weapons, you either end up selling it, or having it enchanted.
If the DM increases its power as you level for free, he should withhold a bit of treasure from the loot tables, to compensate for what you WOULD have upgraded to/sold to pay for enchantments.
But, on the other hand, he might not give you any choice in which enchantments it upgrades to, which should make it somewhat cheaper. Maybe you didn't want it to upgrade to a +1 Keen Flaming Burst Sure-Striking Body Feeder sword, maybe you'd rather just have a +5 Flaming sword.

 

[kengar]

Interesting way to handle it

I've just begun something similar with one PC. They dropped pile of cash on an Adamantine Double-Sword and are looking to beef it up magically down the road. In the final battle of the current adventure, the party fought a Black Dragon. When the the beast died, the acidic blood left strange "etchings" on the surface of his blades. No damage, just glyphlike squiggles.

The idea is that the spirit of the dragon somehow altered the blade as it died. It's my plan to have his weapon start to manifest a new ability (in this case "Keen" because the edges of the blades were "polished" by the dragon's blood and left preternaturally sharp).

What I'm trying to figure out are good ways to handle this if I want to make this kind of thing happen more in the game.

 

[Norfleet]

Except I prefer not to tell the players about it, but rather, simply let him quietly develop an unconcious attachment to his weapon, as he begins to believe that it is somehow lucky, and quietly program the dice-machine to fudge all the rolls by displaying something consistent with what he is observing, rather than revealing the actual roll. I've had players who have been conditioned into treating their weapon as if it were a sort of favored pet, speaking to it, lavishing praise upon it for good performance, and scolding it for performing poorly.

It's more subtle this way, although you have to avoid having the sword manifest any obvious effects such as bursting into flames.

 

[kengar]

I wonder what the best way to handle that at a tabletop game is? Possibly just quietly add the plusses without telling the PC or doubling their damage when they get a critical due to a "Keen" edge they don't know about?

 

[kramis]

article in dragon

Dragon Magazine about a year ago had suggestions on weapons that grew more powerful as the players using them did. Don't remember what issue though.

I ran a campaign once where there was a broken intelligent weapon that was only a generic +1 weapon, but had a legend around it and they had to seek out a fire giant smith to fix it, which they couldn't do till later, at which point it's full powers were restored. At one point they found a gifted lesser smith who restored some of it's minor powers before then. Worked out well.

 

[Norfleet]

I wonder what the best way to handle that at a tabletop game is? Possibly just quietly add the plusses without telling the PC or doubling their damage when they get a critical due to a "Keen" edge they don't know about?

Make the players throw the dice such that they can't see the results. Either have you throw them, or have them lob them in such a way that they fall behind the DM screen. Then regurgitate the results to them.

The latter approach is probably preferred, since it gives the players are more involved feel when it comes to die rolling, yet still lets you spit back the modified results without giving things away.

Make this a standard procedure for everything, and a lot of dice-related problems can be solved before they even start. Also helps if you have a reputation for being fair and impartial about things, so that they don't suspect you of fudging. If you're implementing this as a new policy, tell them I said to do so.

If they don't believe you, horribly kill somebody in a fair and impartial manner: Randomly, with visible dice.

 

[Pyrex]

In return for services rendered, a wandering cleric
in my game performed a 'bonding ritual' for each
character and their selected item (weapon, armor,
good luck charm, etc).

This had two benefits. At will the character could use
'Locate Object' as an SU ability with a caster level of
their total character level to find their bonded item.

Also, the item gained magical properties (determined
by me with suggestions made by the player). To keep
it simple, the magic item always had a GP value <=
to the character's total XP.

--Pyrex

 

[Narkaious]

http://enworld.cyberstreet.com/showthread.php?threadid=46690

That is the shortcut to my thread on personal growth weapons you can use it if you like.