Elric RPG and Magic items.

[danskmacabre]

Hi again, I've searched through all the Elric books I have and noticed there's not much in the way of Magic items, apart from some potions and stuff like that.
There ARE demonic weapons (in my Elric MRQ1 Magic of the young kingdoms book), but they are too powerful to use as general treasure.

In the old days there were demonic weapons, which sorcerors made, so the equivalent of magic items I suppose (with a twist).
But they would seriously unbalance the MRQ2 version of Elric.

So I'm looking for suggestions of what type of superior quality items (weapons armor etc) and even magic items that might be appropriate to the Elric RPG , that won't unbalance the game.
As just making weapons do more damage may easily unbalance combat (which is pretty deadly compared to DnD.

I know I could add ancient armor, like melnibonean stuff, so lighter and good armor points etc, but any other ideas?

Like rings? robes, shields, etc , also utility items and so on?
But I don't want to do this in a DnD magic items style.

 

[danskmacabre]

I know you can add magic abilities to items via rune magic, assuming there's a character with rune magic, but they're only temporary (like hours), so you can't really add a magic sword with a rune on it, as the rune would have expired most likely. that is until someone can recharge it.

Maybe that's just the nature of the young kingdoms, but it would be nice to add not powerful but utility items maybe from a bygone age.

As far as superior quality weapons and armor, what would they do that makes them better quality?
Better APs, or resist vs breakage? or encumbers less or has a lesser Strike rank penalty?
Does that sound reasonable?

Would a superior quality say Longsword do 1d8+1 damage maybe or is that too much? A +1 non-magical sword in DnD is no big deal, but adding damage to weapons in RQ can have a serious impact on combat.

 

[Da Boss]

IMO its likely only unfair to use powerful weapons and items if:

1) Only one side has them
2) They don't have any drawbacks and most things in Elric have a consequence
3) they are just another +1 Sword rather than a uniqu items
4) The GM is not ready for them

The Magic of the Young Kingdoms has plenty of fun stuff - I think otherwise healing potions are always essential in most rpgs........

Weapons that are banes to certain creatures - if you have Vikings some interesting ideas there as well.

 

[danskmacabre]

There are magical items in magic of the young kingdoms, but for the most part they're really powerful.

I could throw in some salves that could be applied to hit locations, some salves could even be magical I guess and poison antidotes.
I'm kinda loathe to add generic healing potions as I never really read much in the way of magic healing potions in the novels.

I don't have the vikings book.

I wonder if the equipment book delves into magic items?

 

[danskmacabre]

I just downloaded Dan's Eberron PDF, it has loads of magic items and stuff.
here http://dtrue.dk/filer/Eberron/Eberron.pdf

I'll be adding disadvantages to the magic items tho to add the Elric RPG flavor.

 

[DamonJynx]

Also, don't forget inscribed runes, which are pretty powerful and long lasting. One of my players created an item that I hated; he called it a Flaming Skull of Vengeance or something similar. Basically he inscribed the runes of air and heat into a human skull (not sure whether it was sculpted or bone) and was able to fling it around and cause fire damage to whomever it touched. It was pretty damned clever I thought.

 

[danskmacabre]

Yes you're right, but runes have a very limited duration, so if there's noone in the party that can use runes, a sword with a rune on it ( That say the party gains as part of loot) is no good to them.

After saying all this, maybe that's just the way it is in Elric, looking at the stats for major personalities in the Young kingdoms, nearly ALL of thm have no magic items at all, apart from Elric, which is true to the books really.
So I have to decide whether I want to be true to the books and not use much int eh way of personal magic items, or power it up a bit, but then NPCs will need to be powerd up the same too.
But this will also have an impact on combat, as suddenly weapons will commonly do more damage, making deadly combat even more deadly.
But I suppose there are armoring Runes as well......

 

[PhilHibbs]

So I have to decide whether I want to be true to the books and not use much int eh way of personal magic items, or power it up a bit, but then NPCs will need to be powerd up the same too.

Not necessarily, it just changes the feel of the game a little. Let them wade through hordes of nameless mooks, then hit them with something unexpected like a "moral consequence", a choice of loyalty-vs-loot, an old-fashioned puzzle trail, or a demon that is immune to whatever their best magic items do and they have to negotiate with some primitive shaman for a special demon-killing stone or something.

 

[DamonJynx]

Yes you're right, but runes have a very limited duration, so if there's noone in the party that can use runes, a sword with a rune on it ( That say the party gains as part of loot) is no good to them.

That's not necessarily true. When a rune is inscribed it's power lasts as long the creator devotes MP to it. Say I inscribe a chainmail coat with a rune of protection and invest 5 MP. As long I invest those points the wearer will gain 5 AP to the abdomen, chest and arms.

It may be possible (entirely your call here) to find a sorcerer who knows how to invest items with the owners MP rather than his own. Of course there will be a fairly hefty price to pay over and above the MP and monetary costs...

 

[danskmacabre]

That's not necessarily true. When a rune is inscribed it's power lasts as long the creator devotes MP to it. Say I inscribe a chainmail coat with a rune of protection and invest 5 MP. As long I invest those points the wearer will gain 5 AP to the abdomen, chest and arms.

It may be possible (entirely your call here) to find a sorcerer who knows how to invest items with the owners MP rather than his own. Of course there will be a fairly hefty price to pay over and above the MP and monetary costs...

That's a very interesting idea.
It wouldn't be the sort of service you could just buy in any large town, but as a result of a "Quest" sure why not....
Thanks for that, you jsut helped me write the next scenario in my Elric campaign for my son

 

[Loz]

Elric is dark Swords and Sorcery. Magic is very rare, devastatingly powerful, corrupting, and feared by most people.

There are no magic rings, wands of fireball, or invisibility cloaks. Runes and charms, when encountered, are limited and subtle. Some items, like the Actorios Ring, are symbolic of pacts and deals rather than having any innate magic or containing charms.

It is, of course, up to you how much magic you want to include. If you're looking for an authentic Elric game, magic items will be exceedingly rare and in the hands of powerful individuals who allow access to them only under certain conditions.

If your players are used to more freely available magic, because they've played a lot of D&D, then I'd try to communicate that Elric has a very deliberate, different feel and see if they're prepared to try such a style. If that meets with outrage, and there's an insistence on some form of magic within a party, or the chance to find magic items in the course of an adventure, make even a mundane Ring of Invisibility or enchanted, +5% sword, heavy with its rarity, a murky history, a hint at a darker purpose, or some kind of roleplayable penalty for its use.

Another option is to set the campaign far back in the YK's history, at a time when the Bright Empire was very strong and sorcery much more common place - but, again, still with a hefty price.

 

[danskmacabre]

I agree with your statements Loz, it's just currently I'm only running this for my Son, who has come from playing Pathfinder, so he commented about magic items and stuff.
For the most part I'm practicing running the game with him and have taken some of the adult elements out of Elric, so I just want to run it with DnD style magic items to keep him happy (he's only 10).
When I run it for adults later, I'll keep it as the core rules state.

But it's a nice compromise to transfer MPs via some ritual as part of a quest meanwhile.

 

[Loz]

Ah - hadn't realised the age of the audience!

I'd still keep magic items quite rare, but why not let him find, or quest for, the legendary treasures of Earl Aubec - one of his swords, his shield, a ring, or a cloak perhaps. He should have to fight hordes of clakars to retrieve the treasures which are naturally held in some grim underground tomb where Myshella stored his bones.

Give them all some form of magical power: +10% to hit for the sword and +2 damage say, or it always ignores the first 2 AP of an opponent.

But, to use the magic items, he has to first call Aubec's name 'Aubec, I call upon Thine Aid!' (or something suitably Elrician), make a Persistence roll, and spend a Magic Point if the roll's successful to activate the magic. The magic lasts for 1D6 minutes or perhaps even his character's POW in Combat Actions, before he needs to call for aid again.

Its all vaguely reminiscent of how pacts and runes work, without the need to go down the whole 'learn sorcery/lose your soul' route and satisfies his desire for all things shiny and magical.

 

[danskmacabre]

Heh that sounds like a great idea Loz.
And yeah I've deliberately left out sorcery, demon summoning and all that out of it until he gets a bit older.

Runemagic I'm ok with as it's fairly neutral really, I think I'll use a bit of the Runemagic idea to start off with and build up to a nice magic item like the Aubec idea a bit later.. I have a nice longterm quest going now , thanks all

Like I said in another thread, my son prefers MRQ2 to PF now, largely due to the combat maneuvers and hit locations etc...

 

[DamonJynx]

Hi Loz, great ideas re "storied magic items". Not that I intend to do much of that sort of thing, but a very useful tool.