Okay, who here LIKES the magic items and magic system in D&D?

[VirgilCaine]

Why is it that I am annoyed so much by people who play D&D and yet have a hate-on for the Vancian system or for "Magic not being special."

You can read all the books you want and watch all the TV shows and play all the other RPGs you like where magic is mysterious and dangerous and unpredictable and SPECIAL. But I LIKE having magic that is predictable and safe to use. I LIKE having magic items that are bought and sold and yes, not treated as if they are unique and special because you can't get another one. I LIKE having magic that can be understood by humans and magic items that can be created by PCs.

Anyone agree with me?

 

[MrFilthyIke]

Anyone agree with me?

I've got yer back Virgil

 

[DragonLancer]

I like the Vancian magic system, it works very well for D&D.

But I can't agree with that portrayal of magic items. Potions, scrolls, and even wands, yes. But everything else is too common place. Theres nothing special to it.

 

[BiggusGeekus]

I always noticed that people would just cast the unsafe spells in safe conditions, which would sort of undermine the point.

 

[Storminator]

I'm with you. I like the playability aspect of D&D magic.

GRR Martin said he would never write up rules for how magic works in his stories, because rules and predicability suck all the wonder out of magic. I think that's the crux of it. Magic is mysterious because it's unknown, often unknowable.

But that makes for a very different game, one that's much more firmly tied to the DM's whims (as opposed to the player's choices). Such a game may be fine, but it's not for me.

PS

 

[Navar]

I like Pretty much all of D&D as it is. All of the RAW. Even the spaltbooks, even the frez Berz.

 

[The_Universe]

I like D&D magic - it works very well for that type of game. It doesn't work very well for say D20 Modern, but a quick tweaking (as can be found in Bad Axe Games' Grim Tales) is really all it takes to make D&D magic fit.

I wouldn't change a thing about the way the system works, as it allows me to handle scarcity/rarity on my own, rather than *assuming* so.

Good stuff.

Me gusta.

 

[Slobber Monster]

Yes, I agree 100%.

My first priority with D&D is to play a fun game with my friends, and in our opinion PC control of magic is more fun than the alternatives. Unreliability and Bad Things Happening is, again in my opinion, a poor game mechanic because it's not fun for the person who wants to cast spells.

Something people seem to miss is that D&D magic is not 100% reliable, only nearly so. There are rules in the DM's guide for creating magic items with drawbacks or curses. Spells such as wish, teleport, planar binding, and contact other plane can have serious repercussions to the user. The mechanic is used judiciously for balance and flavor.

 

[WayneLigon]

I LIKE having magic that can be understood by humans and magic items that can be created by PCs.

It depends on the tone of the campaign and setting, but in general I don't mind it. The only reason that all of our literature views magic as special and unique is that it never existed in our world. In a world where it did work, and work predictably, it would be as special as having a law degree. (This is assuming standard D&D; you could certainly require it to be an inborn gift, in which case it becomes as special as being an Olympic Athlete; ie, very special indeed). You may not have one, but you probably know someone who does and you certainly have worked with someone who did. You could get one yourself, if you wanted to put in the time and money.

I don't mind PC's being able to create magic items. That's one of the things I love about 3E: what's good for the goose is good for the gander. In other words, there's nothing that only special NPC's can do. If I wish to restrict their making such items, I can limit the spells they get access to, or say 'no, you're not taking that feat'.

 

[diaglo]

i love the magic in D&D.

my hat of what they did to it to make it d02 knows no limits.