Deciding What Loot to Give Out

[Draco_Lord]

This is more of a general question, but I'd love to hear people's opinions about this. How do you decide what loot to give your party? Do you prefer to give out items yourself, or give out gold, and let them buy their own items?

If you give our items, do you try and give everyone something in a session, or just what ever you feel like at the time?

[Bonzai]

We don't keep track of general loot. When a player levels, they get the gold equivalent of their wealth by level, and can spend it on what they like.

It just saves so much hassel. No fights, no situations like this. Players are free to develop their characters as they like. Every one is happier all around in our group.

[Seto]

When it's experienced players, I generally give them gold and let them buy what they want. When it's new or casual players, I prefer to give them useful items directly so they don't have to go looking through dozens of books to find the perfect item for them. I do, however, like to give everyone a custom or homebrew item made especially for them, from time to time.

I keep track of everyone's loot after each session and make sure that everyone has gotten the same GP value since the start of the campaign. However, I don't necessarily give out everyone's loot at the same time. First something for the Rogue, then next session a Pearl of Power for the Wizard, etc. What matters is that it balances out over the course of a few sessions. (I have, however, recently run into problems with a player who complained that the Paladin got a lot of cool stuff and he didn't. I didn't feel too bad, as the Paladin was several thousands GP behind the group at that time. It is true that I could have handled it more subtly, though.)

[Meepo_]

Generally I spread loot in the forms of gold, gems, and items thoughout the dungeon so that if divided evenly everyone would be happy. Then I sit back and watch them kill each other trying to divide it evenly.

[bobthehero]

Our DM made us pick 3 items valued 10, 12 and 15k, he will hand them out at major points (and not necessarily major fights, either, last time we got a 20k item for poisoning the free bread given to the poor, which was our main objective) as for minor stuff, we make gold through secondary quests and spend that on whatever little goodies we want/need.

[ZamielVanWeber]

My DM sticks heavily to the loot table, so we need to do some serious selling of stuff when we hit towns. Cities tend to have higher level casters so they have decent magic marts. There is one truly massive city covered in 20th level characters and has an impressive magic mart, but thus far we have gotten there with the help of the Church of Isis and I don't think they will be as generous in the future.

[Honest Tiefling]

Personally, I try to do a mix of both. It doesn't always make sense in the story that they can spend their gold as they like, but when it presents themselves, I prefer to give them time between sessions to think of some goodies they want. I do try to find ways for the story to have reasons to drop loot they'd probably want, like a different type of spellcaster having scrolls.

I also try to convince groups to use systems like pathfinder's automatic bonus progression, so the loot can focus on thematic and interesting stuff, not what they need to not die horribly.

I am that sort of DM who will give a pole arm using fighter a sword, just to see if they try to just unload it or find a buyer who really wants the sword and will pay more for it.

[Kelb_Panthera]

I tend to just use the random generation tables most of the time though I'll occasionally throw a bone to someone who's lagging behind with an item suited particularly to their needs and playstyle. I'll even key it to their class as a custom item if it's something I think they desperately need but is broadly useful. Loot is sold in towns that can support the sales per the DMG guidelines.

The trickier part for me is placement of treasures and monitoring WBL. It doesn't make a whole lot of sense for the players to win a battle and then just have gold and random gewgaws fall out of the collapsing corpse like a JRPG.

Humanoid shaped enemies are easy emough, they use the loot you strip from their dead bodies. Some other creatures can be more difficult. Of special note are dragons. In order to make their hordes more impressive, I collect all the nonessential loot from the adventure leading up to the fight with the dragon and add it to his horde. For example; a dragon worshipped by a tribe of kobolds will leave his minions all of the equipment they need to function but every coin, gem, art piece, or whatever other thing the table generates for each kobold that doesn't contribute directly to their capability goes in the horde.

[StreamOfTheSky]

I list out all the loot (plus gems, coins, and art; but those are just expressed in their total worth) and how much it sells back for. I divide up the total evenly, after taking out any "party items" (cure wands, scrolls of restoration, bag of holding, stuff like that, which is useful for the entire group and they would split anyway) and everyone gets an equal share. They can then "buy back" whatever items they want, the benefit being that they get them for half market price. If multiple want an item, I leave it to them to work out, though of course if one person has a bunch of other stuff claimed and the disputed item is all the other person wants...

I hate random treasure, it's just dumb and seldom helpful to the party. I pick items that make sense (stuff the foe used in the battle, for starters...) and things that thematically connect to the opposition if possible. Beyond that, I kinda just surf the lists in the back of the MIC and pick out interesting things to throw in. Every so often, I'll make a point to specifically try and include a magic item that each of the PCs would presumably really want. Not all the time, that'd be way too much work, but sometimes...
Also, if one PC is clearly weaker than the others, I might try and slip some more items in tailored to his/her build that would be useful to give the player a bit of aid.

[daremetoidareyo]

Streamofsky does something very similar to myself.

I see it this way, the magic gear that you receive from questing was made or commissioned by other people for their own purposes. So your choice of magic items is dominated by narrative needs, the personalities of the NPCs, and a little bit of randomness. (Why is this wand of rope trick nearly full?)

Within this, I can strategically place items that are of specific use to builds and character choices that could use a power boost. Otherwise, the gold and gems in the loot, as well as PC side hustles, is what the PCs can use to custom craft their character's gear needs.

[Solaris]

For the most part, loot is what makes sense for the dead guys to have had. I'm not a huge fan of magic marts, though, and so while players can go buy stuff I much prefer to seed adventures with items that they want in the locations where it makes sense (such as putting a monk's belt for my druid player on an evil priestess). Thus, I'll periodically ask my players about their desired treasure and character goals to accommodate where possible and reasonable. Santa doesn't give them everything on their Christmas List, but most things get dropped in there somewhere.

It's also a good way for me to make sure I'm not falling too far behind on loot handouts, as I have them inform me of their treasure and belongings when I do this as well. It's a sort of informal audit that helps me keep on track.

[Telok]

Give then the fun stuff, the interesting stuff, and the weird stuff. Give them the stuff they'll never buy on thier own.

They'll buy the boring +# stuff and other boring but needed to keep up with the numbers. They won't buy a Daren's Instant Fortress, Cube of Force, or a Flying Carpet because that "takes too much money away" from the boring number boosters that the game pushed at them.

Give them something fun and **** the WBL table.

[Solaris]

Give then the fun stuff, the interesting stuff, and the weird stuff. Give them the stuff they'll never buy on thier own.

They'll buy the boring +# stuff and other boring but needed to keep up with the numbers. They won't buy a Daren's Instant Fortress, Cube of Force, or a Flying Carpet because that "takes too much money away" from the boring number boosters that the game pushed at them.

Give them something fun and **** the WBL table.

I agree with this completely.

I've found that an item's cost in gold pieces is, at best, a rough guesstimate of its value. I like looking at what the item does a lot more when I decide whether or not I want it in the game just yet.
I find "Can the primary casters do this yet?" as a pretty good rule of thumb for whether or not it's too early to bring in a magic item.

[Tvtyrant]

If it is a monster I let them take pieces of the body which are valuable. Basically think of Pete's Dragon.

With humanoids or intelligent monsters the party gets the monster's equipment. What Grell does not have a hat of disguise, a lighting rod and a collar of perpetual attendance? Money is fairly hard to trade across species/countries/worlds, so bartering in items is most common anyway.

[Quertus]

Hard to say how I decide treasure. Probably something like...

Step 1 - the NPCs have what the NPCs have. Some of this is builds (usually for sentient foes), some of this is random treasure (usually for foes that just happen to have whatever random stuff they've found).

Step 2 - intentionally planted items

Step 2a - does the party really desperately need something, and, if so, do I want to give it to them? {I usually answer "no", re:realism, but sometimes you just gotta put silver in the adventure somewhere when the party is facing werewolves}

Step 2b - do I want to try to balance the party? If so, do I want to throw a bone to the weak(er/est) character(s)? {I probably always answer "no", re:realism, and re:balance=???}

Step 3 - other intentionally planted items

Step 3a - insert your McGuffin here. If the PCs came her because they heard the ancient Ming vase they need to complete their set is here, well, it probably should be here somewhere. Probably.

Step 3b - random stuff. When all is said and done, ten years from now, the players probably won't remember the Ring of Evasion and Protection +3 they found on the dead marilith's hand. But they're more likely to remember the incredibly soft pillow stuffed with clouds from Mt. Celestia she was carrying, or the sentient everburning torch she had stuffed in a soundproof container filled with unholy water - especially if its incessant complaints about her trying to drown it was the hint that let the party realize this particular marilith didn't have Spellcraft and so couldn't possibly be the evil mastermind of evil who was behind the evil plot of evil.

Step 4 - do I want to balance WbL? If so, how much coinage do I need to add/remove? {I usually answer "no", re: I rarely track this}


I list out all the loot (plus gems, coins, and art; but those are just expressed in their total worth) and how much it sells back for. I divide up the total evenly, after taking out any "party items" (cure wands, scrolls of restoration, bag of holding, stuff like that, which is useful for the entire group and they would split anyway) and everyone gets an equal share. They can then "buy back" whatever items they want, the benefit being that they get them for half market price. If multiple want an item, I leave it to them to work out, though of course if one person has a bunch of other stuff claimed and the disputed item is all the other person wants...
Every so often, I'll make a point to specifically try and include a magic item that each of the PCs would presumably really want. Not all the time, that'd be way too much work, but sometimes...
Also, if one PC is clearly weaker than the others, I might try and slip some more items in tailored to his/her build that would be useful to give the player a bit of aid.

I'm never sure which to be more worried about - if I build the items with the PCs in mind that I might start showing favoritism, or that if I don't build the items with the PCs in mind that I might inadvertently help (or hurt) one PC more than the others. But then I stop worrying about it. I've been on both the high and low end of getting items I wanted, and the high and low end of wealth in various parties. The wealth never bothered me, and the items I want? This is 3e, magic marts are built into the system, so people are not dependent on DM drops to get what they wanted.


We don't keep track of general loot. When a player levels, they get the gold equivalent of their wealth by level, and can spend it on what they like.

It just saves so much hassel. No fights, no situations like this. Players are free to develop their characters as they like. Every one is happier all around in our group.

I was actually considering adding something like this to one of my campaign worlds. Magical items had no power in and of themselves - they only worked in the hands of a Hero. Characters would have, simply enough, the ability to power exactly as many items as the WbL table indicated. And magic items were much easier to create in some ways (the local blacksmith could make your +5 sword just fine, and much more quickly than 3e veterans would expect) and harder in others (if you wanted a custom item made, getting the materials for it was much more important). Wasn't sure what to do about expendable items, though, so I never went through with it.

[Nibbens]

This depends totally on what type of game I'm playing and which players I'm playing with.

My less experienced players I lean more toward the "here, your character needs this item."

With my more experienced players, I'm more on the "I use random loot (specifically the Don Jon Generator) because I shouldn't have to cater to your every whim. You can take care of yourself." It should also be noted with my more experienced players I like to throw my homebrew sentient items and homebrew cursed items at my PCs. They are more able to handle dire situations and power better than the lower level PCs.

[Curmudgeon]

Most of loot is the equipment the enemies use against the PCs. If it makes sense, I'll include an item or two that the players have been looking for for their characters. Of course, giving the enemies better equipment will increase the likelihood of the PCs having to run away to survive, thus missing out on all the loot. The DMG says that fully 5% of all encounters should be of "overpowering" difficulty, and another 15% "very difficult". If the players don't learn to flee from about 1 in 5 encounters, they're going to get their PCs dead.

[Yahzi]

I... don't understand the question. I never give the PCs loot. Why would I do that?

I give the NPCs the best gear and magic items they can afford. They buy stuff they can use, and then they use it. Now it happens that sometimes the PCs kill my NPCs, and then I guess they can take their stuff or whatever. But in my world they're mostly killing them to suck their souls out of their brains and enslave them into perpetual servitude granting the PCs powers like spells and hit points (i.e. levels).

[nedz]

NPCs have gear, which is often useful. At mid levels though the party usually has a stash of +1 items no one is using.

I also use random treasure. I wrote some code to run the random tables from the DMG so I usually have a list of hordes by level which I can use. I do customise the list however: in the Dwarf game I replaced lots of Swords with Axes.

I occasionally place some special items but these will either be thematic or an artefact or relic.

There will always be the possibility of trading, several players do like to go shopping. This has occasionally got to the point where the other players complain, to the player, about spending too much time on acquisitions.

[Thisguy_]

If I sell magic items, they're junk found by an old Wizard College drop-out who doesn't really know exactly what they do/can't control them or tell you how to.

I tend to give out gold and whatever magic items I think I need to.

[Telok]

I think my problem, as a player, with the "gear npcs as pcs and that's the loot" method is that it's boring. During the mid levels our parties end up awash in +1 amulets of natural armor, rings of protection, weapons, armor, shields, and cloaks of resistance.
Since pcs need the +# stuff to keep up with the powerful monsters then when they fight npcs the npcs need the +# stuff to keep up with the pcs. Which ends up with a party loot stash of twelve +1 swords, six +1 rings, three wands of lesser vigor, yadda yadda yadda. BORING!

Don't be boring. Give them something fun.

[StreamOfTheSky]

I'm never sure which to be more worried about - if I build the items with the PCs in mind that I might start showing favoritism, or that if I don't build the items with the PCs in mind that I might inadvertently help (or hurt) one PC more than the others. But then I stop worrying about it. I've been on both the high and low end of getting items I wanted, and the high and low end of wealth in various parties. The wealth never bothered me, and the items I want? This is 3e, magic marts are built into the system, so people are not dependent on DM drops to get what they wanted.

IME, going random treasure inevitably means some will benefit more than others, possibly to a large extent. (The system itself is biased... a fighter only really wants one specific weapon and the right armor for his dex modifier out of many dozens that could be rolled, and then it must be better than his current one and not have any unwanted special properties that will just make it prohibitively expensive to improve later on. Meanwhile, a useful scroll, wand, staff, or metamagic rod can be picked up and made use of by any caster that it's available for).
You may be more generous to some than others when intentionally choosing items that'd help each of the party, but the inequality will still almost certainly be less than if you just leave it up to the dice.

Also, since this was in reply to me, I feel the need to state that players are NOT "dependent" on me to get loot they want. I use magic marts, too. When I put in things specifically that I think they'll like, it's just me being nice and wanting to make them happy. I don't do it w/ every treasure haul, just as a fun little "present" sometimes. It's only if a player's really falling behind the others that I'll outright try and stack the loot in his/her favor to help him/her out.


I think my problem, as a player, with the "gear npcs as pcs and that's the loot" method is that it's boring. During the mid levels our parties end up awash in +1 amulets of natural armor, rings of protection, weapons, armor, shields, and cloaks of resistance.
Since pcs need the +# stuff to keep up with the powerful monsters then when they fight npcs the npcs need the +# stuff to keep up with the pcs. Which ends up with a party loot stash of twelve +1 swords, six +1 rings, three wands of lesser vigor, yadda yadda yadda. BORING!

Don't be boring. Give them something fun.

Not every foe with treasure is an NPC humanoid w/ class levels. You can have practical +1 this and +1 that which no one in the party needs anymore, and still mix in some fun stuff. And I do like to give my classed NPCs an interesting item and not always just +numbers gear, because that's boring...for me.

[Honest Tiefling]

I'm never sure which to be more worried about - if I build the items with the PCs in mind that I might start showing favoritism, or that if I don't build the items with the PCs in mind that I might inadvertently help (or hurt) one PC more than the others. But then I stop worrying about it. I've been on both the high and low end of getting items I wanted, and the high and low end of wealth in various parties. The wealth never bothered me, and the items I want? This is 3e, magic marts are built into the system, so people are not dependent on DM drops to get what they wanted.

Have any players complained about this in the past? I feel that in functional groups, players will generally agree who needs the magic item lovin' more then others and not be terribly upset if someone is a teensy bit ahead for a spell. Then again, if you like the magic mart approach, who cares as long as it works for your table.

[nyjastul69]

I tend to give items I think will suit the characters as gear used by their opponents. If this is difficult to work in story wise they'll get a bit more dough and have to figure out how to translate that into useable gear.

I will admit though, too often when I drop grear for a particular character that I think will be useful to them, they often don't think it's as useful as I do.

[nedz]

I think my problem, as a player, with the "gear npcs as pcs and that's the loot" method is that it's boring. During the mid levels our parties end up awash in +1 amulets of natural armor, rings of protection, weapons, armor, shields, and cloaks of resistance.
Since pcs need the +# stuff to keep up with the powerful monsters then when they fight npcs the npcs need the +# stuff to keep up with the pcs. Which ends up with a party loot stash of twelve +1 swords, six +1 rings, three wands of lesser vigor, yadda yadda yadda. BORING!

Don't be boring. Give them something fun.
Well you could give your NPCs more interesting equipment.

I tend to give items I think will suit the characters as gear used by their opponents. If this is difficult to work in story wise they'll get a bit more dough and have to figure out how to translate that into useable gear.

I will admit though, too often when I drop grear for a particular character that I think will be useful to them, they often don't think it's as useful as I do.
Whenever I've tried to drop an item geared toward a specific PC the party have invariably given it to someone else.

[Curmudgeon]

Whenever I've tried to drop an item geared toward a specific PC the party have invariably given it to someone else.
I've found this happens even if one player has specifically stated they're looking for that particular item for their character.

[Shoat]

I don't give out much gold because I really dislike the idea of "I will always have X gold by level Y and I can always exchange any amount of gold for magic items". It just feels wrong.
Instead I'll tailor what magic items are available for loot after a dungeon/encounter - based half on "what could this enemy reasonably HAVE?" (obviously, intelligent enemies will use their loot against the players) and half on "what do I think my players would have fun with?" (though I refuse to give the 22 int wizard anything that boosts spellcasting further).



But the difficult part is watching how your party uses (or refuses to use) the items you give them.

Sometimes they'll almost get wiped out completely on a difficult encounter because they didn't make use of the powerful stuff they got in the previous session.

I once have had the party loot a slightly-cursed sword (similar to the minus two longsword, but modified) that had only one specific method of getting rid of it (another person who realizes that something's wrong with it has to willingly take it), only to somehow give it to the only party member who uses swords. They all know that he's now stuck with this really **** sword, but none of them seem to want to give it back to a party member who would care less about the curse.

Also, I tend to have MANY cases of people looting something, not identifying it, and then just having it sit in their inventory forever (the enchanted horseshoes are still sitting in the inventory of the only party member that has hooves... but he doesn't seem to care about identifying them or putting them on.). My first campaign forever ago even had a decently-important quest item (along with some magical jewelry) forever forgotten in one player's backpack (and then they kept wondering what to do).

[Antariuk]

I use a 50/50 approach.

About half the loot is rolled off a table, or what the module says is there. The other half I seed manually, with an eye towards what the party wants and also what might make an interesting find. So there will be simple +1 longswords, but not a dime a dozen. In my experience this results in everyone having at least 1-2 important items they'd have bought anyway, but also players experimenting with weird stuff or deciding not to advance as planned because utilizing item X was more fun than they thought so now they're going for that instead.

The custom loot I inject manually comes from all kinds of weird sources and tends be unique within the game world. For example in my current PF hexcrawl I use stuff from Paizo's RPG SuperStar entries (great ideas to be found there!), old d20 splatbooks and equipment ideas from other RPGs that I homebrewed into the game. The oracle player in that game still carries around a +1 heavy crossbow that allows her to roll twice for miss chances because magic. Has it been useful? A bit. Would it sell for lots of gold? Hell yeah. Will she ever let go of it? Doesn't seem bloody likely :)

Also, if the adventure takes place in a remote wilderness, I'll reduce the amount of copper peaces and ivory statues in favor of weaponry and magic bling, while the reverse might be true for an urban adventure where buying and selling can be done in 5 minutes.