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ShortQuests -- individual adventure modules! An all-new collection of digest-sized D&D adventures designed to plug in to your game.

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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Quasqueton" data-source="post: 1437900" data-attributes="member: 3854">Are magical items in D&D really all that "magical"?Some DMs want magic items to be rare rather than fairly common as they seem to be (in the niche field of the professional adventurer) in the core rules. This seems to be based on the concept that magic items should be mysterious and fantastical things that invoke awe and reverence from the PCs. But really, most magic items aren't all that flashy.I mean, take the ubiquitous +1 sword. It increases the wielder's attack chances by only 5 percentage points. But so does a masterwork sword. The only thing the magic sword has over a masterwork sword is the +1 to damage and the ability to hit some creatures with DR -- and this can be duplicated a simple 1st-level spell available to 5 base classes. Sure, its nice to have that "magical effect" on all the time, but is it really all that impressive in the game world?Many magic items are merely game mechanic boosts, sort of like cyberware in sci-fi. There's nothing flashy or fantastic about them. Most of the weapons and armor are like this. I could easily imagine many fantasy heroes having such items without the book/movie/whatever actually mentioning them. There could be a couple dozen such items among the [movie] Fellowship of the Ring without there needing to be any mention or highlighting of them. (Didn't *all* the hobbits have magical weapons?)[Movie] Gimli could have +2 armor of fortification, +2 axe, +2 cloak of resistance, and a +4 belt of strength without anyone really noticing.Most of the flashy items are wands and such that just duplicate spells the wielder can probably already cast. So the wands don't really *add* any effects that aren't already seen in the game world.I just looked through the list of magic items of the six 6-8th level PCs in my campaign -- 40 magic items (other than potions and scrolls)! Wow, that seems like a whole lot. But they are equipped within the DMG guidelines for wealth at their level. Only 7 of the items would be identified as magical to anyone seeing them in use -- a couple handy haversacks, three 1st-level wands, an ioun stone, and a ring of featherfall -- nothing amazing or awe-inspiring, really. All the other stuff is just +1 this or +2 that -- things that only show up in the game mechanics, not really noticable in the game world.If you restrict magic items in your campaign, do you deferentiate between "flashy" magic and "subdued" magic?If you restrict magic items in your campaign, do the Players really oh and ah over a +1 sword?And if you don't restrict magic items in your campaign, how many magic items does your adventuring party have?Quasqueton</blockquote>

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