Enchanted Items

[Petri Heinila <hevi@lut.fi>]

On Thu, 27 Apr 1995, Mark Wedel wrote:

>  enchanting all items can get a little difficult in some regards.  Some
> objects use the same element in the object structure to mean different
> things.

Enchanting all items is, say, conceptual aim, in practice the
enchanting is done related to the type.
 
>  However, alloying other items to be enchanted is withing the real of
> possibility.  However, if that fireborn can create super rings, so should that
> fighter, mage, or whatever else.  And if a character can end up having
> several of these items, and use all of them out the same time, balance really
> starts to disappear.

Yes, this is balance problem really. But there can be dynamics in
enchanting, as good results and bad results, but no restrictions.
Some ideas for that dynamics (some presented before)

 * The enchanting might be a skill, play have to train to enchant items,
   more items had enchanted better the results are. But there are needed
   scrolls etc. also

 * there might be faults in enchanting: from normal fumble and wonder
   effects to the shatter of item. The change of fault can be depend
   on enchant skill and magic potential (plusses) of the item.

 * high magic potential (many very enchanted items on player) can
   results some actions: there could be upkeep from spell points,
   summoning (high magic interests things from beyond), wonder effects,
   or players with low wisdom can be confused easily. 

>  As for artifacts:  Do you mean the ones in the lib/artifacts file (standard
> items get transformed into them), or the special artifacts (darkblades,
> dragon armor, eyeshield, etc..)

I mean the orginal Artifacts (written in capital :), Excalibur, etc.

>  The second type are still useful.  The only real reason that they can't be
> put in the artifacts file is that many use special animations, and I
> don't believe the artifact file supports it.  Also, crossedit doesn't really
> support creating of the lib/artifact items - you could do it by hand (change
> the appropriate fields and stuff).

Yes, this abylity is really missing from crossedit, and more general
there should be archetype editing possibility (indeed there's now
inderect one, you can create an object into selection map, modify
it and the select the item from there), including variables and
image management.
 
>  The only problem is that some of the lib/artifacts are better than the
> special artifacts.  Teh bow of Auriga (sp) is much better than the elven
> long bow, and also seems easier to find.  That pretty much makes the
> elven longbow have no use anymore.

In other words, the problem with original artifacts is, that
they are more difficult to change.

<A HREF="http://www.lut.fi/~hevi/">Petri.Heinila@lut.fi</A>