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ShadowJack
Senior Scribe
USA
350 Posts |
 Posted - 27 Jul 2006 : 17:24:55
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I am on a limited time frame to develop the "next chapter" of my campaign. To date I have not included much magic. So far the PCs have found a staff +1, dagger +1 and one potion that is not a healing potion. I am fairly unexperienced as a DM and would like to include a "nice" magic item and give it a history that goes with my campaign. Namely, the PC's are helping a comrade, a Gold Elven bard, restore his family heritage and honor after their disgrace at the time of the fall of Earlann... The characters are all 1st and second level, with one character at third level. Obviously, I do not want to place anything too powerful or give too much away. They will have to work hard to discover/win this treasure as they will be facing numerous Gnoll mercenaries guarding a 6th level Red Wizard (who will escape again to be a recurring villian)(at least a few more times)they will also have to deal with a few drow.
I am not sure why this is such a huge issue, I am not coming up with any good ideas, help! I would appreciate the input of the Candlekeep Sages.
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ShadowJack |
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Mace Hammerhand
Great Reader
Germany
2296 Posts |
Posted - 27 Jul 2006 : 17:34:58
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Hmmm...one thing to consider is: when you hand out items that the opposition could use, such as a +1 sword, let them use it. So if you have gnolls, maybe the gnoll captain could have the +1 sword.
Hand out minor items but items that do help. Maybe even introduce to-be-assembled items, like the crossbar of a legendary sword. These kinds of things may turn your campaign-planning upsite down cuz the character will prolly try to find out more about the sword.
I ran my last lvl 1 game 5 years ago and due to second and 1st edition AD&D counting xp=gp the folks ran around with tons of money to spend... now that will change, but in that regard think of what you want to accomplish.
Do you want the characters to be epic heroes? (and I don't mean epic in the 20+level sense) If so every item they might get should also be accompanied by a worthy battle. If your players have too easy a time wasting those gnolls, don't give them the treasure. Let them struggle for it...and let them wanting for more...more lore, story etc. Always keep that carrot dangling before their noses.
Hell, one of my players told me, she'd think that their gear is far too good and I should tone it down... so down it goes, to zero. No more treasures for a while.
They need some sort of reward for their actions...maybe the crossbar of a sword would be a cool idea, they might never find the other pieces but it again is the proverbial carrot. |
Mace's not so gentle gamer's journal My rants were harmless compared to this, beware! |
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Sian
Senior Scribe
Denmark
596 Posts |
Posted - 27 Jul 2006 : 17:39:25
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| if you have the DMG then look at it and give them some very cheap items ... maybe some Silversheen (and throw some Lychanthopes at them at a later point) or a wand of cure light wounds (somewhat used allready) ... or maybe even some lowlevel Spell scrolls |
what happened to the queen? she's much more hysterical than usual
She's a women, it happens once a month |
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Mkhaiwati
Learned Scribe
USA
252 Posts |
Posted - 27 Jul 2006 : 19:59:30
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Are there any wizards in the party? How do you allow them to add some new spells to their spellbook?
If you only allow them spells that they come in contact with, how about an old book, scroll, diary, or something like that. If it is sufficiently old enough, say from the time of Earlann, it could provide clues to the past and hints for future adventures for that elven bard. Feel free to include a few spells buried within the book or diary. Also, maybe the bard would also treasure old songs, stories, or poems. This would be a great opportunity to place some mysteries to the players.
Have fun with it. It isn't a great magic item, but it could provide a lot of story-line fodder for your group, and the songs and spells might be treasured for what they are.
Mkhaiwati |
"Behold the work of the old... let your heritage not be lost but bequeath it as a memory, treasure and blessing... Gather the lost and the hidden and preserve it for thy children."
"not nale. not-nale. thog help nail not-nale, not nale. and thog knot not-nale while nale nail not-nale. nale, not not-nale, now nail not-nale by leaving not-nale, not nale, in jail." OotS #367 |
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GothicDan
Master of Realmslore
USA
1103 Posts |
Posted - 27 Jul 2006 : 20:36:58
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Erm. They're only first level?
I think they have more than enough magical items as it is (new spells included). But that's just because I'm used to uber-lower magic item games. |
Planescape Fanatic
"Fiends and Undead are the peanut butter and jelly of evil." - Me
"That attitude should be stomped on, whenever and wherever it's encountered, because it makes people holding such views bad citizens, not just bad roleplayers (considering D&D was structured as a 'forced cooperation' game, and although successive editions are pointing it more and more towards a me-first, min-max game, the drift away from 'we all need each other to succeed' will at some point make it 'no longer' D&D)." - ED GREENWOOD |
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Mace Hammerhand
Great Reader
Germany
2296 Posts |
Posted - 27 Jul 2006 : 21:14:27
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You wouldn't like my game then...
Dwarf owns an ancestral battleaxe
Elf has a moonblade |
Mace's not so gentle gamer's journal My rants were harmless compared to this, beware! |
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Kuje
Great Reader
USA
7915 Posts |
Posted - 27 Jul 2006 : 21:33:38
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Well..... why don't you write some history for the other +1 weapons that you already gave them? A +1 could have just as much history as say.... any other magical item.
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For some of us, books are as important as almost anything else on earth. What a miracle it is that out of these small, flat, rigid squares of paper unfolds world after world, worlds that sing to you, comfort and quiet and excite you... Books are full of the things that you don't get in real life - wonderful, lyrical language, for instance, right off the bat. - Anne Lamott, Bird by Bird
Scribe for the Candlekeep Compendium |
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GothicDan
Master of Realmslore
USA
1103 Posts |
Posted - 27 Jul 2006 : 21:43:04
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I just meant for lower level. :)
Highest level RL game I've played was 10th level. |
Planescape Fanatic
"Fiends and Undead are the peanut butter and jelly of evil." - Me
"That attitude should be stomped on, whenever and wherever it's encountered, because it makes people holding such views bad citizens, not just bad roleplayers (considering D&D was structured as a 'forced cooperation' game, and although successive editions are pointing it more and more towards a me-first, min-max game, the drift away from 'we all need each other to succeed' will at some point make it 'no longer' D&D)." - ED GREENWOOD |
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warlockco
Master of Realmslore
USA
1695 Posts |
Posted - 28 Jul 2006 : 03:26:39
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quote:
Originally posted by GothicDan
Erm. They're only first level?
I think they have more than enough magical items as it is (new spells included). But that's just because I'm used to uber-lower magic item games.
Two +1 magic weapons at 1st level, they are actually doing fairly well even for a standard-magic campaign. |
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GothicDan
Master of Realmslore
USA
1103 Posts |
Posted - 28 Jul 2006 : 03:30:34
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quote:
Two +1 magic weapons at 1st level, they are actually doing fairly well even for a standard-magic campaign.
I wasn't sure. I'm not really up on what one should have at what level. I just take whatever my DM gives me, and I'm thankful. :)
In the first AD&D game I played in, by 6th level the only magical item my character ever got was a Libram of Silver Magic, which was just about the most awesome item ever.
But I didn't have ANY other items. |
Planescape Fanatic
"Fiends and Undead are the peanut butter and jelly of evil." - Me
"That attitude should be stomped on, whenever and wherever it's encountered, because it makes people holding such views bad citizens, not just bad roleplayers (considering D&D was structured as a 'forced cooperation' game, and although successive editions are pointing it more and more towards a me-first, min-max game, the drift away from 'we all need each other to succeed' will at some point make it 'no longer' D&D)." - ED GREENWOOD |
Edited by - GothicDan on 28 Jul 2006 03:31:33 |
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Kentinal
Great Reader
4689 Posts |
Posted - 28 Jul 2006 : 03:56:23
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Well character wealth is a guide line, that if nearing level two a few minor plus weapons are posible, over all wealth should be a guiding factor. Plate mail or a +1 weopon.
A potion of who knows what might be worth 25 or 75.
The most common advice I see though is not to over magic with enduring magic items, the +3 sword found at level 1 play can distrot balance greatly, potions and scrolls are one time use items that might be out of balance to a degree (*finds 5 potions of cure moderate wounds*) but can be fixed quickly as well. Fire can burn paper and boil water, thus easy to take away. The +3 sword would require a theft of some kind or a sunder or other more involved way of dealing with in a fair manner.
Not sure party is over magiced as a whole, however a few characters might indivdually be over wealth. |
"Small beings can have small wisdom," the dragon said. "And small wise beings are better than small fools. Listen: Wisdom is caring for afterwards."
"Caring for afterwards ...? Ker repeated this without understanding.
"After action, afterwards," the dragon said. "Choose the afterwards first, then the action. Fools choose action first."
"Judgement" copyright 2003 by Elizabeth Moon |
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ShadowJack
Senior Scribe
USA
350 Posts |
Posted - 29 Jul 2006 : 13:12:01
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| Thanks for the advice! The characters are mostly first and second level. I think I will take the majority advice here and not give them any more enduring magic weapons at this point... Kuje, I think I may write some back history for the +1 staff. It is a relic from Earlann that acts as a key to the portals created by the Elven Bard's ancestors, so it will be interesting to develop it... Mkhaiwati, I will also use your idea and let the PCs find a tome with more info leading them to the next adventure... Thanks all! |
ShadowJack |
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Kuje
Great Reader
USA
7915 Posts |
Posted - 29 Jul 2006 : 16:52:30
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quote:
Originally posted by ShadowJack
Thanks for the advice! The characters are mostly first and second level. I think I will take the majority advice here and not give them any more enduring magic weapons at this point... Kuje, I think I may write some back history for the +1 staff. It is a relic from Earlann that acts as a key to the portals created by the Elven Bard's ancestors, so it will be interesting to develop it... Mkhaiwati, I will also use your idea and let the PCs find a tome with more info leading them to the next adventure... Thanks all!
Cool beans.
I mentioned it because someone had to sometime make even a +1 item and so there should be some history to it. Hells, even a +1 item could have existed for hundreds of years and have seen a lot of "history" |
For some of us, books are as important as almost anything else on earth. What a miracle it is that out of these small, flat, rigid squares of paper unfolds world after world, worlds that sing to you, comfort and quiet and excite you... Books are full of the things that you don't get in real life - wonderful, lyrical language, for instance, right off the bat. - Anne Lamott, Bird by Bird
Scribe for the Candlekeep Compendium |
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GothicDan
Master of Realmslore
USA
1103 Posts |
Posted - 29 Jul 2006 : 20:46:21
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ShadowJack, I also like that staff. It's pretty cool. :)
I like anything related to portals/planes/etc. |
Planescape Fanatic
"Fiends and Undead are the peanut butter and jelly of evil." - Me
"That attitude should be stomped on, whenever and wherever it's encountered, because it makes people holding such views bad citizens, not just bad roleplayers (considering D&D was structured as a 'forced cooperation' game, and although successive editions are pointing it more and more towards a me-first, min-max game, the drift away from 'we all need each other to succeed' will at some point make it 'no longer' D&D)." - ED GREENWOOD |
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Rinonalyrna Fathomlin
Great Reader
USA
7106 Posts |
Posted - 29 Jul 2006 : 23:31:19
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quote:
Originally posted by Kuje
Cool beans.
I mentioned it because someone had to sometime make even a +1 item and so there should be some history to it. Hells, even a +1 item could have existed for hundreds of years and have seen a lot of "history"
Yeah...I've played a low-powered NWN module set in the Forgotten Realms (Saleron's Gambit), and that series features a ring that the PC has that actually dates back to the time of Netheril, and was in fact created by Ioulamn.
It only gives a few +1 bonuses.  |
"Instead of asking why we sleep, it might make sense to ask why we wake. Perchance we live to dream. From that perspective, the sea of troubles we navigate in the workaday world might be the price we pay for admission to another night in the world of dreams."
--Richard Greene (letter to Time) |
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Jorkens
Great Reader
Norway
2950 Posts |
Posted - 30 Jul 2006 : 04:38:28
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There is also the possibility of magical items with little or no use in combat. A saddle that never lets its rider fall out, a medallion that lets one talk to one species of bird, a "rain-cloak" that never lets one get wet, dice+1 for the gambling characters, a small dog statue that can come to life for one minute a day and answer one question about what it smells.
These sort of items can be fun for some players and can definitely have their uses in a campaign if given to imaginative players. I have in fact met many players who prefer these sort of items to the offensive/defensive items. The characters get magic and the power level is not increased, |
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Kuje
Great Reader
USA
7915 Posts |
Posted - 30 Jul 2006 : 04:47:15
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quote:
Originally posted by Jorkens
There is also the possibility of magical items with little or no use in combat. A saddle that never lets its rider fall out, a medallion that lets one talk to one species of bird, a "rain-cloak" that never lets one get wet, dice+1 for the gambling characters, a small dog statue that can come to life for one minute a day and answer one question about what it smells.
These sort of items can be fun for some players and can definitely have their uses in a campaign if given to imaginative players. I have in fact met many players who prefer these sort of items to the offensive/defensive items. The characters get magic and the power level is not increased,
I do this all the time as well. Another is armor/weapon that is enchanted to not rust. |
For some of us, books are as important as almost anything else on earth. What a miracle it is that out of these small, flat, rigid squares of paper unfolds world after world, worlds that sing to you, comfort and quiet and excite you... Books are full of the things that you don't get in real life - wonderful, lyrical language, for instance, right off the bat. - Anne Lamott, Bird by Bird
Scribe for the Candlekeep Compendium |
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ShadowJack
Senior Scribe
USA
350 Posts |
Posted - 31 Jul 2006 : 16:45:56
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Awesome ideas... I am thinking about the statue idea! kind of like an elven Kiira gem with a more mundane use. A small statuette of an elven minstrel that plays a few songs on command... Maybe with a few trinkets of Earlann lore hidden in the lyrics of the song...
GothicDan, thanks for the encouraging words on the staff. the players got drawn into this gate hopping campaign after they chased a Red Wizard slaver through one. It has taken them from the island of Mintarn to the Silver Marches area. The staff has to be used in conjunction with a phrase to access these gates created by the ancestors of the Elven Bard. these gates were not disabled after Earlann's fall due to his family almost being wiped out. Thanks All! |
ShadowJack |
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Help with magical treasure...
