D&D 4E Stealing Attunement

[Garthanos]

Attunement I have liked since it came out in the playtest.

I like the flavor it gives to magic item design (though reflavoring item slotting limitations can do some of the same tricks).

For instance a fencers gauntlet which effectively takes up weapon slot grants to hit and damage enhancement bonus and maybe some nice auxiliary benefit like an item bonus on climbing and thieving skill.

There might alongside that be another weapon with no pluses but which allows one to ignite it for a different damage type and which provides a measure of fire resistance and cannot be broken. Technically its weapon slot but its not providing the enhancement bonuses expected.

Attunement also provides for items which grant different benefits when you attune them vs not attune them which is very nice too.

5e playtest had a variant where attunement limits were based on Cha which wouldn't make sense if the attribute was almost always a major dump stat, it could make for an encouragement not to it seems like it might be too impactful.

However in 4e I can really see that interacting with divine boons "charism" - meaning divine gifts (and since one can have legendary boons and grandmaster trainings putting that kind of
limit in there is more like flavoring too.

 

[Tony Vargas]

Attunement I have liked since it came out in the playtest.

I've liked the idea of attuning items since I first encountered it in RQII. ;P

I like the flavor it gives to magic item design (though reflavoring item slotting limitations can do some of the same tricks).
Attunement also provides for items which grant different benefits when you attune them vs not attune them which is very nice too.

The latter could be a good implementation for 4e. The former, IDK, there's a lot built into item slotting, right now.

But taking a long rest, for instance, to attune an item would prevent some of the item-swapping tricks you sometimes see. We might not've had't've seen Veteran's Armor nerfed so hard, for instance, had their been attunement.

However in 4e I can really see that interacting with divine boons "charism" - meaning divine gifts (and since one can have legendary boons and grandmaster trainings putting that kind of
limit in there is more like flavoring too.

You run into an issue with basing attunement off a stat, that being that classes who have that stat primary will have bonuses starting from +3 or +5 up through +8 to +10, while a class that has the alternate stat of the same pair primary or secondary is going to have it's bonus stay down near 0 somewhere.

 

[aco175]

5e has attunement limited to 3 items only. It works, but I tend to allow another slot after 7th level. I think the big reason that it was implemented was that in 2e/3e there was the 'golf bag' mentality where the PC had a bunch of magic weapons and pulled one for each encounter depending if they needed to fire sword or the defending one.

You do not really need it, but it keeps things a bit more level.

 

[Garthanos]

But taking a long rest, for instance, to attune an item would prevent some of the item-swapping tricks you sometimes see. We might not've had't've seen Veteran's Armor nerfed so hard, for instance, had their been attunement.

I would be curious about undoing those... seems a good thing

And yes i seen it in Stormbringer too ... aka wild and crazy RQ II

You run into an issue with basing attunement off a stat, that being that classes who have that stat primary will have bonuses starting from +3 or +5 up through +8 to +10, while a class that has the alternate stat of the same pair primary or secondary is going to have it's bonus stay down near 0 somewhere.

I was mostly being silly... it would have been more like 2 + stat mod /3

 

[Garthanos]

The former, IDK, there's a lot built into item slotting, right now.

Gloves of the duelist providing enhancement bonus to to hit and an item bonus to thieving skill and item bonus to reflex saving throws and a nice riposte daily or some such.

Be sure to make bonuses typed. Then you have the unbreakable blade which allows ongoing damage and extra critical die size but no enhancement bonus.

Just spit balling.

 

[Tony Vargas]

I was mostly being silly... it would have been more like 2 + stat mod /3

...OK, here's a random thought on an attunement system:

> Use item slots like normal.
> You do not need to attune an item to gain it's enhancement bonuses.
> Short-rest attunement into a slot gives you the item's properties.
> Require long-rest Attunement into a slot to open up item powers.
> Slotless items (Wonderous, Boons, etc) have a further attunement limit of 1/Tier.
> Each milestone you can attune an additional slotless item, or swap out a slotted item as if you'd taken a long-rest Attunement. (This could also be required to open up Rings' milestone specials.)

 

[Garthanos]

...OK, here's a random thought on an attunement system:

> Use item slots like normal.
> You do not need to attune an item to gain it's enhancement bonuses.
> Short-rest attunement into a slot gives you the item's properties.
> Require long-rest Attunement into a slot to open up item powers.
> Slotless items (Wonderous, Boons, etc) have a further attunement limit of 1/Tier.
> Each milestone you can attune an additional slotless item, or swap out a slotted item as if you'd taken a long-rest Attunement. (This could also be required to open up Rings' milestone specials.)

It comes off as more take away than give but a DM could include more properties and powers on items without them becoming easy golf club swap out fixes. Though the ability to fast draw is mildly nerfed

Peripheral advantage, changing items is now similar to a wizard changing her personal dailies.

 

[Garthanos]

The former, IDK, there's a lot built into item slotting, right now.

Care to elaborate? i almost think we might need another typed bonus of some sort but other than that.

 

[Tony Vargas]

It comes off as more take away than give but a DM could include more properties and powers on items without them becoming easy golf club swap out fixes. Though the ability to fast draw is mildly nerfed

Yeah, I suppose you could have, like, one weapon attuned per hand, or something? Or one each of a melee, thrown, projectile? IDK. You could also just make weapons the exception and either say they don't need to be attuned, or there's no particular limit on them...
…/or/.. you could have two weapons attuned and additional weapons count towards the 'slotless' limits.

But I do like the idea of needing to attune a thrown weapon in order to get the returning benefit.

You could also have items - most consumables, for instance - that simply don't need attunement. For instance, 'magic items' that aren't really magical, just y'know, 'sufficiently advanced.'

Care to elaborate?

I assume items that go into the same slot are designed on the assumption that they can't be used together. IDK how careful designers were about that, overall, though.

 

[Garthanos]

But I do like the idea of needing to attune a thrown weapon in order to get the returning benefit.

Oh definitely.