Inteligent Items

[Distracted DM]

If the party doesn't have a regular hireling or NPC along, it's basically that- another voice.
If you already have some distinct NPCs around the party regularly, it's another mind you have to keep in ... mind ... constantly that the table.

I found them fun in the past, but over time I got a bit more weary of them because it became a "command performance" sort of thing.

 

[Kobold Stew]

I love them in practice, and have introduced them; the emotional connection for players outweighs the potential benefits of an amped-up extra +1, for example. I've not had them in any games in which I have played, but I do sometimes narrate things to suggest there might be a low-level intelligence there at work, even if the DM hasn't given that to me explicitly.

 

[Duke_]

As a DM I like adding them to games, but usually only for short periods of time. I don't see an intelligent item wanting to stay with one person or creature for a long period of time unless there are extenuating circumstances or it has asserted some control over its "owner". As a player I don't really remember ever getting any.

Unless the item has a means of moving on its own, it definitely has incentives to stick with a person. "This person takes me interesting places and isn't a complete jerk" should be more than enough, I would think.

 

[R_J_K75]

Unless the item has a means of moving on its own, it definitely has incentives to stick with a person. "This person takes me interesting places and isn't a complete jerk" should be more than enough, I would think.

Guess that all depends on the type of item, its personality and its motivations. One could easily state the opposite of what you said. Even if the item has no means of moving on its own, it may have many reasons of wanting to find another person to possess it. "This person doesn't take me interesting places and is a complete jerk". I would think this to be even more true if the item has no self means of movement. It would make sense to find a person aligned with their goals to posses them rather than being with someone who doesn't care about them.

 

[Duke_]

Guess that all depends on the type of item, its personality and its motivations. One could easily state the opposite of what you said. Even if the item has no means of moving on its own, it may have many reasons of wanting to find another person to possess it. "This person doesn't take me interesting places and is a complete jerk". I would think this to be even more true if the item has no self means of movement. It would make sense to find a person aligned with their goals to posses them rather than being with someone who doesn't care about them.

I mean, obviously? You said you couldn't see any reason, I gave an example. Your answer that the opposite could also be true doesn't exactly refute my point. If anything, an item with no means of movement is more likely to stick with around with someone because there's a dependency. There's a very good chance it literally doesn't have a choice if it can't move on its own.

Look at the Ring of Power in LOTR. It can try to manipulate things to get back to Sauron (who it wants to stay with forever, another example of it wanting to stay with one person). But it doesn't have a choice but to go where Frodo is taking it, and goes on a long and tedious journey with him because it literally can't get away.

And how about Stormbringer and Elric? Another intelligent item that latches on to character and doesn't leave until the bitter end.

These are arguably the two most iconic intelligent items in fantasy literature.

 

[DrunkonDuty]

I don't use them a lot. But they can be fun.

The last time I did use one was a few years ago. It was an intelligent, dragon slaying spear. All it wanted to do was fight dragons. All it wanted to talk about was fighting dragons. The heroes were more your "let's have few drinks and charm our way through any situation type." They certainly had no interest in making dragon slaying their living. They sold it to an order of Heironean Paladins for a mint.