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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Gothmog" data-source="post: 1193692" data-attributes="member: 317">Very true- magic items are still commodities in my game, but the circumstances surrouding their changes in ownership are vastly different than in most standard D&D games.  While I still use the GP value in the DMG for them, I also use a silver standard for the monetary system, and most people in the world, including the PCs don't have the monetary funds to buy one outright.  Only the most wealthy nobles or merchant princes could afford to do that, and in all liklihood, it would ruin them financially.  Instead, magic items are given as rewards to loyal followers, for very large purchases (a crystal ball for 3000 acres and a stronghold), or as a way to cement relations between nations.  Somone attempting to simply sell a magic item on the market more potent than a 2nd level potion or scroll would be very harshly dealt with by local authorities- that is magic that could potentially be used against the local lord, and wouldn't be tolerated.  The few items that are bought and sold are usually on the black market, and the seller would likely get 85-125% of the item's value in those cases, depending on if the item was stolen and how badly the local authorities were after the seller.Commissioning and creating magic items then becomes a very expensive, and dangerous affair IMC.  Most wizards and clerics won't be willing to simply make a magic item for anyone who asks for it.  The person would need to be trusted by the character, and would need to demonstrate up front they had the ability to compensate the character for the item.  In addition, if the item was something that could potentially be dangerous in the wrong hands(a vorpal sword, wand of fireballs, etc), the local authorities would take a very dim view of the creation of such an item, and could imprison the creator, as well as the buyer for it.  In addition, I require crafting rolls for spellcasters when creating an item- one for actual creation of the masterwork item, and creation rolls that get progressively harder for each enchantment laid upon the item.  Failure on these rolls can range from very bad to annoyances- from summoning of a demon to strange quirks the item possesses that manifest every time it is used.  Finally, I require special material components and magical substances to create an item- some of which can be dangerous to harvest and/or use.  If it sounds like a pain to make an item, it is- I want it to be since I enjoy running a low-magic world.  However, the items that do exist tend to be fairly potent, and do things beyond adding a bonus to attack, AC, or whatever.  Many items also have quirks that cropped up during the creation process- which IME helps make every item unique and memorable to the players.  Magic shouldn't be a science that always produces predictable results- by the very nature of what magic is it is unpredictable at times, and has consequences the caster might not forsee.I know I have a very different view than most people do of magic items in the campaign, and how they should be handled- what matters in the end is that you enjoy what you use, and are consistent with it.  I do have a problem with the core 3E tenant that the gear defines the character and his effectiveness, rather than the character's abilities defining the character.  I have made some other modifications to compensate for the lessened magic item level (extra feats and a few other things) that reduce the character's reliance on magic items to be effective.</blockquote>

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