The Most Powerful Item

[Glyfair]

While not original, the "piggy" was a ceramic pig that would hiccup once in a very long time and destroy the dimension its in. Of course, the legend is that it destroys every other dimension and saves the one its in.

We got kicked out of hell and told not to come back...ever, because we were carrying the pig. In fact, we bragged that we were on "the list" (of people not allowed in hell) during that campaign.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

Blackrazor (My first PC no less!)

Same here. Ah, the good old days.

 

[Rothe]

A sphere of annihilation, and a special bag we could keep it in.

 

[Drowbane]

2e

El Ravager (of Knights of the Dinner Table fame) +12

 

[kenobi65]

IOther than those, the minor artifacts in 'White Plume Mountain' come to mind.

We wound up with a long quest to destroy Blackrazor (the moral equivalent of pitching The One Ring into the Cracks of Doom). I don't think we used the sword much, despite carrying it around with us for months...IIRC, the DM gave it some additional brain-rotting powers that made it unattractive. OTOH, one of the PCs ended up with Whelm (the dwarven hammer from WPM), which was moderately broken, too.

I'd totally forgotten...in a 1E campaign we played in college, I had a cleric of Thor who got the "Big Three" (Hammer of Thunderbolts, Gauntlets of Ogre Power, Girdle of Giant Strength). That was ugly.

And, I've got a wizard with a Staff of the Magi. Would probably be more broken if I abused it more; mostly, it's a vehicle for lots of Invisibility. (I don't use the spell-absorption power defensively, since I don't want to risk blowing it up; I recharge it by casting spells at myself and absorbing 'em, so I always know how many charges are in it.)

 

[KrazyHades]

I allowed one once (as a DM) for which the idea was based on the Ring of the Ram (or something like that). Just one thing...this one used the spirit of an Ancient Red Dragon, a spirit made out of force. Using the right words would call forth the beast's spirit to do a specific thing, such as breath fire, or make wielder fly with spectral dragon wings, or release a mist-like dragon claw (attached to an equally cool ghostly arm) to attack or perform tasks like carrying things. It had other powers too.

There were thousands of trigger words, each for different things. And all the words were in draconic. The players spent a lot of time, and quests, searching for the knowledge of new trigger words for the ring.

Just one drawback...if the player (and therefore, the PC) mispronounced the trigger word at all, there would be a problem. The dragon would still come forth, and it would still have to do whatever the action the word was for, but it could do it to whatever or whoever it wanted within 1000 feet. THAT was fun

 

[Grog]

Candle of invocation beats it.

I'll take Iron Bands of Binding for the win. Instant death once per day to a non-spellcaster (and maybe even spellcasters too) with a ranged touch attack (okay, not quite, but it's close).

 

[Slife]

I'll take Iron Bands of Binding for the win. Instant death once per day to a non-spellcaster (and maybe even spellcasters too) with a ranged touch attack (okay, not quite, but it's close).

How does that beat unlimited wishes and/or titans?

 

[Grog]

How does that beat unlimited wishes and/or titans?

Unlimited? The candle is consumed after using it to cast Gate.

 

[Slife]

Unlimited? The candle is consumed after using it to cast Gate.

Gate in an efreet
"What is your command, oh master?"
I order you to grant me three wishes with your SLA
Wish 1: Another Candle of Invocation
Wish 2: Something else
Wish 3: a 25,000 GP gem for the efreet.

OR (for the unlimited titan cascade)

Gate in a Titan
"What is your command?"
"Gate in another titan and order him to obey me"

Needless to say, it's houseruled to be something more sane.