Magic Items Contest!

[Baron]

New contest! This time, you will be creating a series of related Magical Items for a generic D&D setting. These items can be psionic items if desired. Here are the rules:

1.) You will be creating at least 5 items, one from each of the following categories, plus 2 others from any category.

1: Weapons & Armour
2: Rings, Rods, Staffs and Psicrowns
3: Wondrous Items

1a.) You may create more items if you wish. A series of items like bracers of armour that have multiple versions but at different modifiers will count as only one item.

2.) All items created must be thematically linked. The theme is up to you, but it must be clearly stated at the start of your entry post. Stating that all items were created by the same person is not enough of a theme; they should all relate to the same type of person, place, effect, motif, etc. Feel free to include flavour text for how the spells were created and for what purpose.

3.) Items should be for D&D only, and not specific to Forgotten Realms or Eberron. Try to avoid referencing non-core books if possible, but do what you have to do.

4.) All items will need to list the relevant details as per standard descriptions, including magical aura, CL, feats & spells required for construction and cost as appropriate for the item.

5.) Each new set of items should be started on a new thread here on the Contests board, dedicated to just that set of items and the discussion of it. Put the tag [Magic Items] in front of the title of that thread. Any thread without this tag will not be officially entered.

6.) Post on this thread to let the mods know that you have entered a list of spells. We'll try to keep a post with all the entries listed in one place for easy reference.

7.) The contest begins today, 1st February. All entries may be altered and revised up until the deadline, 28th February; you may even add additional items to your set. On 1st March, we will lock all entry threads temporarily for the voting period (details of which will be announced at that time).

8.) Categories of voting and judgement will include the following:

• Best Set of Items
• Best Item. (The single item you most would be interested in bringing into your campaign immediately; for this award, just choose ONE from someone's list to vote for.)
• Funniest Items
• Best Exploration of a Theme
• Website Staff Award (this will not be voted on by the general public, but judged by Amber, Rich and the Mods).

9.) All winners will receive a custom title for the months of March and April, so they can gloat. ;D

Edited to include psionic items.

[GeekDaddy]

Up to and including artifacts? What about Epic level items? Or is this more of magic for the common people?

[Premier]

I'd say whatever you think would be suitable.

Even though personally, I think rule 1 is pointlessly restrictive. A suit of armor (cuirass, pauldrons, greaves, gauntlets etc.) plus fitting weaponry could make a great set, but you can't do it because it wouldn't have a ring, rod, etc. Similarly, a full outfit for a powerful magus (who'd find actual hand-to-hand combat beneath him) would be interesting, but can't be done because of the mandatory weapon inclusion. Ah, too bad.

[Baron]

In the hope that more people will be able to benefit from the submissions, I'm going to rule that the 5 items will need to be non epic and not including artifacts. You shouldn't be surprised to see the item within the relevant section in the DMG.

If you wish to create more items, feel free to do so. These can be epic level items and artifacts and may well help you with votes for "Best Set".

As you say, "magic for the common people" :)

[Aran]

I also disagree with the restrictions on item types. It makes it much harder to actually design a "set" of items, and pulls the contest more into the realm of "multiple items with no thematic connection but held together by a thin thread of cheesy plot because the creator HAS to have a wand included in his set of equipment that was once wielded by a powerful warrior." I suppose I can roll with it, however, since I have to.

[Baron]

Appologies if you feel rule 1 is pointlessly restrictive. I will disagree though.

I designed these rules so that a broad range of magical items would be created. If you wish to create designed primarily for a fighter, you still can. For example 2 weapons, a suit of armour, a ring and a helm (as they appear within wonderous items).

Your archmage? Many of those will still carry a weapon of some sort, even if it's a dagger. You only need to design one weapon, the rest can be from the other section.

It should at least encourage a series of simple weapons that an archmage, might actually consider useful to take along with him.

[Aran]

Alright, I can live with it I suppose.

One more question: Can we use psionic items? For example, can we have a dorje in place of a rod/staff/ring? Or a psicrown in place of a wondrous item?

[Baron]

Thinking about it, yes psionic items can be entered.

I'd leave out dorjes out of the 5 for the same reason I left wands, potions and scrolls out. They just allow an existing spell/power to be cast. I'd also say the same for psionic tattoos and power stones. As before, if you want to add them as extra "flavour" to your entry feel free.

I'd say that Psicrowns are more similar to staffs than generic wondrous items, so they can go in that category.

I'll edit the rules to reflect this change.

[Premier]

If you wish to create designed primarily for a fighter, you still can. For example 2 weapons, a suit of armour, a ring and a helm (as they appear within wonderous items).

Yes, but that still doesn't address the issue of sets where the common feature is NOT the identity of the owner. What about, say, 5 magical elemental bows created by the same mystic fletcher? (Or 5 swords by a mystic blacksmith, or 5 staves/rings by a mystic enchanter, etc.) Certainly a set that follows a strong theme, but no way to fit it around the rules. "Set" doesn't necessarily mean they're used by one single person.

[Hydro]

I also think that rule #1 is a bad idea. That rules out both the item set ideas that have been shared so far: White Blade's biblical set doesn't include a weapon (unless he, say calls Araon's staff a weapon rather than a staff), while his katana set is.. well, composed entiraly of katanas.

The Regalia of Evil from the Book of Vile Darkness has a crown, a rod, and an orb but no weapon or armor. Monte's various Rods of Branding, from the Complete Book of Eldritch Might, are all rods. The Orbs of Dragonkind are all orbs. All awesome item sets.

[GeekDaddy]

At the risk of seeming like I'm sucking up (only mildly) or angering anyone (not intended), I have no problem with rule # 1 at all. In fact, with a little imagination it becoems quite easy to fulfill the requirements of the contest while staying within its confines and making a plausible set of items, completely cheese, dairy and lactose free! Creating a set of five identical items with different properties is not as challenging, IMHO.


I would go into more detail, but you will just have to wait until I post my entry :)


Oh, sorry, one more question: May we have multiple entries? Not more than one sets of armor in a set, but say two complete sets different in makeup, theme and everything?

[White Blade]

Guys your making a big deal out of nothing, you only have ti have one of each catogory, then its free rain as many as you want. I'll get my entrey up soon, but I am still debating wether to use the weapon that murdered able, or david's sling..

[Baron]

Blimey!! :o

I didn't think running a contest cause this much grief so quickly!

Come on guys, it's not as if this is going to be the last ever contest ever run. It's all meant to be a bit of fun, where you all get to show off your ideas, lazy DM's get to go "that's a good idea!"

There are many different variations I could have gone for with a design some magic items; Design a set of weapons, Staffs for all comers, Rods and Rings etc etc etc.

Rather than just go design 5 magical items I figured that a little restriction would mean that you'd have to push yourselves slightly by having to think about bringing in an item you wouldn't maybe have done.

Also it makes it easier to compare between entries than 5 katanas vs 5 rings. My initial thoughts were just wonderous items, but I thought that would be restrictive against those with ideas for weapons. One just for weapons would cut out all the other items people might want to do.

My comprimise was to give you some flexibility (ie the spare two items), but also make you think about some of the other kinds of magic items there are. and integrate them.

Maybe after this competition I'll run another just on weapons or another just on rings. Though with the flack I'm getting over "restricting" your choices, I'm not sure I want to....

Sorry, but I really didn't think you'd all be so unhappy with the choice. I rather hoped you'd rise to the challenge.

[Baron]

Oh, sorry, one more question: May we have multiple entries? Not more than one sets of armor in a set, but say two complete sets different in makeup, theme and everything?

No problems with that at all. As many seperate entries as your imagination allows.

[Hydro]

More challenging, yes: in the sense that it rules out some possibly cool ideas and makes the writer come up with new ones which may or may not be better than what he had in mind origionaly, but will more closely resemble the entry of the poster next to him. I'm not sure that that's a good thing.

I may still enter, but my first two sparks of inspiration (a set of rings linking the members of an elite assemblage of mages, and a set of thematicaly-related weapons and sheilds) will have to be discarded, and while I'm sure I will come up with something I'm not sure it will be as cool.

For the record, I'm not upset, and have no beef with Baron what so ever. He is him so he sees things his way, I am me so I see things my way. And, as always, I am unwavering in my quest to make people who are not me see things my way as well. ;)

I would go with Kane's weapon. I mean, it was the first weapon used to kill a human, ever. Making David's sling magical might be a streatch, but in even a low-fantasy world how could the first murder weapon ever not be tainted with residual evil?

[Baron]

I am going to assume in my happy land that you're joking. :D

Please, you are joking aren't you? :'(

:)

Edit: Er..... White Blade did I just remove your post by accident or was that you??

[White Blade]

Um I did that, you said that we weren't using artifacts in the first three right because I read this...

In the hope that more people will be able to benefit from the submissions, I'm going to rule that the 5 items will need to be non epic and not including artifacts. You shouldn't be surprised to see the item within the relevant section in the DMG.

its that how on earth would the bible item set work with the ruling that I can't use artifacts in the first five. The thing is that would crush my entire idea all of it, I can't even think of how to do that....
Wait I didn't read it in the offical rules, run and make your thing quickly wait o can't old computer broke now will have to right up moses' staff all over again....

[Hydro]

(accidental double-post, but can be put to good use)

You can have mortal-level magic items that are completely unique, you know. The only disadvantage is that they can be broken or negated by other mortal magics. So, if I were you, I would make the least of the items as magic items with high caster-levels and call the big ones (like the holy grail and such) artifacts.

[Hydro]

Yes, basicly I was joking. That was a dramatization, I'm realy quite willing to agree to disagree. Things would get pretty weird otherwise.

"GRR!! MUST MAKE BARON AGREE WITH ME! WHERE PUT MY WAND OF SUGGESTION?!" [/ogre voice]

The truth of the statement was this: debate is second nature to me, especialy when I'm pretty sure I'm right (which is essentialy all the time). So, if I disagree you, don't take it personaly. It doesn't mean I'm angry or that I'm trying to be hostile or anything, I just disagree.

You haven't caused me any greif. I'm happy that you got the contest going. And most of all, I'm sorry that you took my comments as flack, because I didn't mean them as a complaint and didn't mean any harm or slight at all by them.

Cool?

[Baron]

This doesn't half get confusing. ::) My posting above about joking was in response to White Blades post on artifacts that dissappeared.

I've still got to say, I'm suprised at the response. I really am. It would appear that the contest I have put up is very different to the one you all imagined.

Think about it this way, next month we can have a contest to design artifacts, so that White Blade can do his stuff, the month after we can do one on weapons and armour, so that you can do yours, in May, we can do low level wondrous items so that starting players can afford interesting but not expensive items, "A Series of Staffs" in June....

Sorry I'm probably turning a bit cynical here... ::)

If you really don't like the contest then feel free to not enter. If you think you can come up with something interesting please do so.

But I don't feel like being lynched for trying to run a contest today. Sorry... :)

PS Hydro I shall never agree with you, for it is a matter of principle now! :P ;D

Edit: and you can stop writing at the same time as me too. That just makes things even more complicated! :P

Yes, Cool. Suprisingly even though I might sound a bit miffed, I'm all happy! :)

[Hydro]

I LOVE The restrictions on this contest!!! It is always better to challenge writers and have every entry touch on a number of mechanical bases! After all, it's just a contest, and they should be able to rise to the challenge anyway!

Agreed?



...

*watches* o.O

[Gorbash Kazdar]

Hydro, stop trying to break Baron's brain.

[White Blade]

Yes, basicly I was joking. That was a dramatization, I'm realy quite willing to agree to disagree. Things would get pretty weird otherwise.

"GRR!! MUST MAKE BARON AGREE WITH ME! WHERE PUT MY WAND OF SUGGESTION?!" [/ogre voice]

The truth of the statement was this: debate is second nature to me, especialy when I'm pretty sure I'm right (which is essentialy all the time). So, if I disagree you, don't take it personaly. It doesn't mean I'm angry or that I'm trying to be hostile or anything, I just disagree.

You haven't caused me any greif. I'm happy that you got the contest going. And most of all, I'm sorry that you took my comments as flack, because I didn't mean them as a complaint and didn't mean any harm or slight at all by them.

Cool?

hey wait a second I'm an ogre... Your insultng me later...
Baron is right, limt to creativity good very excellent excellent perfect I love it...

[JumpingBean]

I have posted my magic items. And I call first. :)

Lord of the Dervish Items

[White Blade]

How could you, we were barginning for our rights how coud you. [/angry reverant voice] welcome

[JumpingBean]

Sorry about that. Just a newbie and had brain-explosion jump into my head and a short term memory. That and I didn't read the rest of the posts.
Joking or not joking with me, I just wanted to get it started anyways.
;D

[Gorbash Kazdar]

White Blade is (mostly) joking (I think). At this point, I think Baron's rules are pretty much what it's going to be, and even if they should change, your entry would probably still work.

In any case, you may want to link your entry in your post, or at least identify it.

[McMouse]

It wouldnt be much of a challenge if we could do whatever we wanted, now would it?

[Premier]

Yes, it WOULD be a challenge still. The challenge should arise from the need to create believable, interesting, novel, useful entries with high quality writing and rules, and not from having to conform to an ultimately arbitrary set of restrictions.

Or to put it in another way, such restrictions WOULD pose a challenge, but this challenge does not necessarily translate into QUALITY.

[Baron]

Rules are as they are.

Feel free to have a ten minute sulk about them, before trying to create wonderous magical items.

;)