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Message: <blockquote data-quote="FireLance" data-source="post: 5831434" data-attributes="member: 3424">It looks like you need to make better use of wish lists around Christmas. <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f61b.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":p" title="Stick out tongue    :p"  data-smilie="7"data-shortname=":p" /> Yet another way that playing D&D can have real life benefits! <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f600.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":D" title="Big grin    :D"  data-smilie="8"data-shortname=":D" /> As for magic items (and Christmas presents, by the way), I think the key is exceeding the recepient's expectations. This is easy in the beginning - a new player, for example, or a child. It's also easier if magic items are not expected because they are seen as wants and not needs (and I know certain DMs like to hold this line). I know some DMs don't like wealth by level or treasure parcel and wish list systems because they make magic items look more like mundane gear to be purchased or somehow "expected" from the DM, instead of rewards which are handed out, sometimes in a random fashion. I try to make the these expectations work for me, instead - I give the players a system which makes clear that they are getting what the system expects them to have (I had various house rules to do so in both 3e and in 4e), and then I give them additional magical items on top of that. I also pull out some of the previously-mentioned tricks to make sure that these additional magic items feel special: making them plot-relevant, making sure that they have unique abilities and cannot be found in the DMG and other books, ensuring that their abilities are mysterious and gradually revealed over time, etc.Frankly, it makes little difference to me whether the PCs have complete control over the run-of-the-mill "magic items" that the system expects them to have. They get their fun customizing their character sheet and I am spared the hassle of second-guessing what they want (or randomly rolling) and putting the results of my guesswork (or my random rolls) into the adventure. I can focus instead on making those additional magic items (and IMO, the "real" magic items) feel special to the players.</blockquote>

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