Magic-Mart (AKA Solving the treasure dilemma)

[Nonlethal Force]

I would love to see you "show your work" on this assumption.

Perhaps some other time. I'm not really interested in going down that trail because it intentionally distracts from the purpose of this thread. This thread is about an alternate way of thinking about gold pieces and how treasure is collected and spent. Esentially, this thread is about thinking of the magic nature of equipment in other terms beyond something that can be bought. I don't mean to be blunt or snippy, but neither do I really desire to get into a debate on a topic this thread wasn't meant to handle.

Put it simply. There are DMs out there who are tired of Magic-marts and tired of feeling the tension between players, themselves, and the teasure expectations. I just wanted this thread to announce that anyone interested is welcome to check out an alternate way of thinking about that whole dilemma. As to game designer assumptions on whether or not certain items are mandatory, can we please leave that to another thread?

 

[Wulf Ratbane]

Post removed by Admin. As you know, chatting with a mod is a lot more useful than being rude and snarky if you think a thread is in the wrong place. ~ PCat

 

[Piratecat]

Holy stealth press release, Batman! Sounds cool, but the wrong forum.

Moved to Publishers.

 

[Nonlethal Force]

Thanks, Piratecat. As I said in my first post I would have put it here to begin with but not being a publisher I didn't want to step on any toes. Again, thanks for the assist.

 

[Piratecat]

Thanks, Piratecat. As I said in my first post I would have put it here to begin with but not being a publisher I didn't want to step on any toes. Again, thanks for the assist.

Not a problem in the least. The dividing line usually comes down to: is the thread designed to promote the product, or discuss it? There's nothing at all wrong with the former, but we try to keep those in the Publisher's forum. I'm psyched you wrote something that people are seeming to love.

 

[fissionessence]

Not a problem in the least. The dividing line usually comes down to: is the thread designed to promote the product, or discuss it? There's nothing at all wrong with the former, but we try to keep those in the Publisher's forum. I'm psyched you wrote something that people are seeming to love.

Not to threadjack, but does that mean it would be okay to post a thread in the general forum asking for feedback and criticism of my free rune soldier heroic tier playtest? (link in my sig)

More on topic . . . I am also intrigued by this proposed solution, as I've been contemplating magic items myself recently. I've added this product to my wish list for further consideration. However, the sole reviewer on RPGNow so far doesn't seem quite as convinced that the solution you've proposed is as 'end-all' as you're suggesting.

~ fissionessence

 

[Nonlethal Force]

More on topic . . . I am also intrigued by this proposed solution, as I've been contemplating magic items myself recently. I've added this product to my wish list for further consideration. However, the sole reviewer on RPGNow so far doesn't seem quite as convinced that the solution you've proposed is as 'end-all' as you're suggesting.

To be completely fair to the reviewer, I agree wth his review of the work. The premise of the work is to take away the empasis of of having to buy the items - and by doing so to take away the need for Magic-marts and even handing out balanced treasure as the party adventures. The solution that the work is based on is that each character cn exert an influence over their items rather than having to buy them from a magic shop. Not all DMs are going to accept that, which is why the review is accurate.

However, for those that accept that premise, the work does what it claims. It maintains game balance with the designer's standards perfectly because of the way it was designed to interact with the wealth-by-level rules. It may not be the be-all solution for everyone; but that isn't because it doesn't work. Rather, it is because not all DM's are going to accept the basic flavor premise of characters being able to influence their items rather than have to buy them from someone else.

I do hope that helps clarify the work and the review, fissionessence.

 

[fissionessence]

Yes, thanks for the explanation. I was already planning to ask my players how they'd prefer for magic items to work. That is, do they want to just stick with the traditional 'you get what you find and hope it's good', perhaps even with me using a random treasure generator; or would they rather get stuff off their wish lists (that they haven't made); or would they like to see something like what it seems you've presented, where their favored items will upgrade. If they choose the last choice, I'll probably pick up a copy of the book for inspiration and guidance.

~

 

[Papa-DRB]

FYI, I purchased the PDF, and asked my guys last Sunday night if they wanted to convert to this system in the current game (they are 5th level). The answer was No, at least for now. We will give it a go when this campaign ends, perhaps another year, and we start a new one.

The big reason is that this system changes the economics of the campaign. GP is almost irrevalent, even with using the variant of you have to purchase special materials and masterwork items and anything less than 3000 gp, ie potions and scrolls, is destroyed when used. Two of the characters would be severly "penailzed" by this new economy because of the way the characters are setup.

So next year, we will give it a go.

 

[Nonlethal Force]

In case anyone reading this thread didn't see the announcementfrom Dreamscarred Press, they are having a 35% off sale over at their website. If you are interested in buying Complete Gear (or Complete Comtrol or any other DSP product) follow the links in my sig below!