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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Celebrim" data-source="post: 4957003" data-attributes="member: 4937">I recognize that, but I was speaking as someone who had gone at least part way down this path before.I think you recognize what you are trying to avoid when you say that the effects are not intended to be controllable, but I think that you'll find that when you systematize anything that it becomes controllable.When you start talking about the body parts of slain monsters having magical effects, even if those effects are random, what you are in essence saying is that a monster drops random treasure.  Indeed, we can call these corpses random magical items as they will, once you can figure out what they do and which are usuable and which are simply dangerous, will be used just like magic items.  Indeed, figuring out what they do and which are usuable and which are simply dangerous in some ways merely returns magic items somewhat to their Gygaxian roots.  In a majority of groups I've played with, once it becomes clear that extra treasure is to be had in the form of body parts, the group will immediately begin taking steps to maximize that profit.  With something like the system you describe it would be:1) Prepare alot of detect curse, detect magic, and remove curse spells.  Never underestimate the resourcefulness of PC's.  Whatever barriers you try to erect to stop PC's from doing something generally not only prove insufficient, but generally convince the players that doing it is really worthwhile.  It's like putting a big obviously hard to open door in a dungeon.  The players will generally assume that the harder the door is to open, the more worthwhile it probably is to do so.2) Try to convince you that identify and analyze dweomer spells will work on body parts, and if not rely on old fashioned trial and error techniques to identify things.3) For any given monster, attempt multiple trials on body parts, hopefully trying to get you to make multiple random rolls for "The Blood, The Brains, The Eye or eyes, Tongue, The Horn or horns, The Scales, The Claws or nails, The Heart, etc."  Each roll is essentially a random trip through the magic item tables.  Some will turn out lethal, but some will turn out advantageous.  The lethal or inconveinent will be identified and hopefully neutralized.4) Learn taxidermy.  Preserve as much of a corpse as possible to haul out of the wilderness to be sold or utilized at a later point.  The problem is that while you never necessarily intend industrialized monster harvesting, your players live in a modern, industrial society, and are motivated strongly to maximize their character's power.  Even good RPer's IME engage in at least a little min/maxing and survival mode behavior, if only because they love their characters and don't want to lose them.The risk here of course is that in an attempt to make monsters more monsterous, numinous, and horrific, you'll just end up comoditizing them further.  Certainly that's what happened to dragons in my campaign where I attempted something of the sort.  It very much reminded me of this:</blockquote>

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