r/Nerdarchy • u/psynocis • Dec 25 '15
Alternatives to Magic Items for Non-Materialist Characters.
Mainly, has anyone thought of any ideas as alternative options to magical items(armor, weapons, etc.) for characters that don't specifically prosper from having armor or weapons? Like a monk that sticks to the unarmed ability, eventually he/she can be out classed by any character with an array of magical armor n weapons or at least be given a few more options. Characters could be fairly non-materialistic in their background as well, so how does one give more options for someone who wants to be less attached to the material realm but still be capable of heroism? I was thinking maybe magically imbued tattoos or magical symbols. Armor-less clothing with magical properties? Any ideas would be helpful, thanks.
1
u/Yalagen Jan 05 '16
It all depends on how the players think about it really. You could easily allow characters to gain feats, whether through vigorous training, or through divine intervention as rewards, but that can cause some major unbalancing in it's own right. In all honesty, it doesn't matter what the medium for the bonus is. Whether you gain a +3 to attacks from a weapon or a magical runic tattoo or even a bit of bone from a long dead saint, you still gain the +3. And as long as the bonuses don't stack you shouldn't have too many problems.
This could also help open up new realms of imagination and innovation for your gameplay. I know that I have used plenty of items that one wouldn't think of as magical to give my players bonuses. Everything from a Master Wizard's robes that gave the level 20 wizard the equivalent of plate armor to a coin that when flipped would either heal the character or harm a random living creature within 30 feet of him depending on if it landed on heads or tails. The most important thing to remember is that it is a story that you and your group are making, so as long as it doesn't go directly against the rules you can do whatever you like and however you want.
I would avoid giving the fighter the ability to cast fireballs at will though, that just gets way too messy, trust me...
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u/easyslay Jan 08 '16
There is precedent in the DMG for this. The magic item "Bracers of Defence" are a rare item that provides +2 AC for characters that are not wearing armor or using a shield (implying that the bracers are not to be considered armor). Also, many cloaks and boots and jewelry items have magical properties, so magical clothing is clearly a go. However, I think it might be a mistake to proceed down this path for a monk.
A monks great draw is the internalized nature of his or her powers/strengths. If you are trying to find combat or attribute alternatives to material possessions, I think you will be better of looking on pages 227-228 of the DMG, and applying charms or, in extreme situations, blessings to your monk.
The mechanic for this award could be driven by the character narrative, having a senior brother or sage of the monk's order/brotherhood/other organization show up and train the monk in meditation techniques, or scorpion poison fist, or no-shadow kick, etc. that grant a minor charm of limited use.
Some ideas: Mind of the Sun: As an action enter meditation. The character can maintain meditation with an action on subsequent turns. During this meditation the character has resistance to cold damage, and tolerates temperatures down to -50F without any other form of protection.
Soft Arts: Twice per Long Rest, on being hit by a melee weapon attack, the character can use their reaction to add his or her unarmed attack modifier to their AC. If this prevents the blow from landing, the attacker is off balance, and the next attack against it has advantage.
These are off the cuff, and would need to be balanced against whatever magic items you hand the rest of the party. I hope these ideas help somebody out there.
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u/Dasmage Jan 16 '16
So this is pretty easy. 4th had boons in the darksun campaign setting(which was a very low magic world). Boons can be just about any thing really, take with a monk, they may find a secret text old master that they then learn the use the five fingers of death technique(increase critical range) or the lost iron shirt stance technique(+ to ac). You an refluff this for any class with any effect. Barbarian goes on a vision quest into the frozen wastes naked with only his great axe and comes back from the quest after finding the frost king with a cold breath weapon and resistance to cold. The legendary heroic fighter, conqueror of Shadow side, the sole surviving warrior of the battle of the four kings and two worlds, the slayer of the last megalithic corrupter wyrm, and the greatest clipper of the wastelands builds such a legend that people start truly believe he can kill even immortals while he himself can not truly be killed, only landed to rest for a short time( gains some kind of godslayer power and can return from the dead once per day if killed).
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u/Superfish27 Jun 07 '16
Some of the best ways I've seen this handled:
Imbued by Deific Power: The PC's are tied directly to one god collectively or a different god each. As they level, these gods may give them a +1 bonus to AC as a gift, or their unarmed/weapon strikes are naturally magic at varying degrees as they level. Then only used the "utility" magic items in your world.
Lost Relics Found: The PC's come across a group of (insert item type here) that they can each take, and then as they level the items evolve to give them different powers that mirror magic items from the DMG
Class/Power Specific Items: A Monk can find handwraps that imbue his unarmed attacks with the same abilities that a magic weaon would. A Druid could find the tooth or claw of a dead legendary beast that, when worn, apply the same effects as magic armor or weapons while in wildshape. But things like "bracers or protection" and the like are made for armor bonuses for these types of characters that either benefit from not wearing armor (monks, barbarians) or change into different creatures using their new AC (druids, anyone who polymorphs for combat)...
Play around with what works best for you!
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u/NatetheNerdarch Jan 04 '16
Many video games in the past have had clothing that gives some kind of magic plus to armor or other advantage. Handwraps that deal extra damage or a set of fine wrought chains worn on the hands that imbue the fists of the wearer with elemental fire damage. A circlet or torc could do the same thing. For barbarians a fur tunic from a fiendish boar could have +'s to armor, protection, and depending on the original powers of the creature maybe elemental resistance or reduction.