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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Henry" data-source="post: 4330320" data-attributes="member: 158">First of all, Mourn, let's dial back on the masturbation references. <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile    :)"  data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" />Second, pr1, your point in your post was that the Players only play in the world, which implies they don't have any creative input into it. I submit that a DM needs players just as much as the players need the DM, and that intentionally or not, they DO have creative input into the game, even if it's only flooding the local economy with the loot they just took from a monster hoard.If their actions ultimately have no effect in the world, then many gamers (myself included) would find that a pretty boring game. I've always championed a DM as final arbiter on what happens in a game, but I find players who do have creative input to offer are a godsend, whether I use it or not. I try to be one of those players myself when I play, if nothing else to give the DM ideas in inspire his own. One of those areas is magic items. If I see Bob favoring daggers for his Warlock, then when they party plants the killing blow in Felistides the Evil Warlock, and they scavenge Fellforge, his grey and bloodstone-flecked Pact Blade from the body, then Bob's warlock is going to say, "POWER IS MINE!" and Bob is immediately going to say, "oh, YEAH, baby..." <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile    :)"  data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" /> Bob is a happier camper, and looking even more forward to putting that wicked steel to good use next session, and he's having a blast.Now, randomly rolling, if The party gets a +1 Orb, and there's not even a single wizard in the group, what's the group gonna do? It's going to turn around, try to sell the orb, get a fraction of it's value, and buy a +1 Pact Blade. Generic. I could make up names, histories, etc. of the magic item for sale in town, but why make up an orb's history if all it turns out to be is portable cash? That orb could have the most interesting history this side of The One Ring, but they players will call it (1) portable cash, or (2) macguffin, if all they can do with it is carry it around so someone else bad can't get their hands on it.Which leads to my other point: fantasy genre precedents. Conan didn't buy the Phoenix Sword. He found it. (or was given it, I forgot which.) Elric didn't sell something else to get Stormbringer. King Arthur didn't trade his +4 Dagger for Excalibur. In most cases, the heroes found, robbed, or killed for the weapon, and it was EXACTLY what they needed at that point in their careers.I know, one school of thought is, "Your characters aren't Conan, Elric, or Arthur; they're the other guys." It's certainly valid, but it's not the only way; It would be easy enough to assign a random table for 1-2 Armor3-6 Weapon7-11 Headgear12-14 Footgear15-18 Hands19 Miscellaneous20 NecklacesOr some such, roll 1d4 for number of levels above the party level for what the item's level would be, and you'd have a very workable random system - just as workable as picking your own out of the tables.</blockquote>

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