Legendary weapons

[hollowcrown]

Are we going to be able to make legendary weapons? Once feature I loved in BG2 was collecting the components and crafting the legendary weapons like the Silver Sword, Crom Faeyer and The Equaliser in BG2. The Equaliser was mad hard to get because you had to do both the Beholder and Mindflayer lairs and the quest started in Irenicus' dungeon back in Chapter 1. It was crazy. 

 

What's your opinion on this and would you like to find legendary weapon components and craft them into weapons of great power, perhaps with a story attached on (like the Githyanki hunting you if you had the Vorpal blade).

[motorizer]

Whilst it could be cool, you do have to ask the question..

If they're that legendary, why are they in bits?

[JFSOCC]

I don't know how I feel about legendary weapons.

For one, I don't think we would have known about Excalibur if King Arthur never found it, it's the knight that makes the sword famous, not vice versa.

Nor do I like the legendary weapons in Baldurs Gate II, since they were very class specific.

 

On the other hand, Epic loot, of course, why the hell not? As long as it doesn't break the game, having really cool weapons is fine by me.

I prefer to have weapons be legendary narratively rather than in item strength. The old IE games were pretty good at giving items backstories even if they were 'only' moderately powerful, and I think that's the way to go.

 

When only a few items are considered legendary, then taking those items becomes a no-brainer. I kind of prefer to have or grow an attachment to my weapons, but that can't happen if they are objectively inferior to other found] weapons. It'll become just a numbers game at that point.

 

This is why I'm worried about the crafting skill. I would have preferred to have very modular weapons which you can personalise.

 

That said, I see no reason why both these options couldn't exist next to eachother.

 

Like I said, I'm a bit conflicted.

[motorizer]

 

 

I prefer to have weapons be legendary narratively rather than in item strength. The old IE games were pretty good at giving items backstories even if they were 'only' moderately powerful, and I think that's the way to go.

 

 

This

Excalibur never really did anything that any other sword couldn't have done, with the exception of getting stuck in a rock, it was a symbol.

Weapons with a small bonus and a backstory are the way to go, rather than making something so powerful you feel you have to use it.

[JFSOCC]

Excalibur never really did anything that any other sword couldn't have done, with the exception of getting stuck in a rock, it was a symbol.

I just want to point out that Excalibur was given to King Arthur by the Lady of the Lake, and is not the same sword he pulled from the stone.

[motorizer]

In that case, it did even less.

[PIP-Clownboy]

Carsomyr was really lame. 

 

But I'm totally in for upgrade-able hand placed stuff, but the cost needs to be insane so you have to pick and choose what your character will invest in. Uber Urist-Mcsmith should be able to upgrade most weapons though, rather than just a select overpowered few (see: FOA). 

[Leferd]

I'd rather keep the weapons to be relatively mundane. At least for the first game. Characters will still be at lowere levels. Let the gameworld allow you to breath and leave room to grow for future sequels and expansions.

 

That doesn't mean items have to be uninteresting - just not overpowered.

[hollowcrown]

Carsomyr was really lame. 

 

But I'm totally in for upgrade-able hand placed stuff, but the cost needs to be insane so you have to pick and choose what your character will invest in. Uber Urist-Mcsmith should be able to upgrade most weapons though, rather than just a select overpowered few (see: FOA). 

Carsomyr would've been way cooler if it was actually craftable.

[SophosTheWise]

I'm already glad if the rarer weapons have a story behind themselves. I don't really care for special stats or whatever. The most interesting aspect behind legendary things is in the name itself: legendary. It's not about the stats. It's about the tales. The legends.

[PK htiw klaw eriF]

Not for the first game(pre-expansion). IIRC, the party will be the equivalent of D&D level 12, so having something as powerful as Carsomyr wouldn't fit.

[hollowcrown]

Not for the first game(pre-expansion). IIRC, the party will be the equivalent of D&D level 12, so having something as powerful as Carsomyr wouldn't fit.

What about weapons that maybe are powerful and require a quest to forge/search for the components? I like that idea more than ridiculously OP weapons.

[nikolokolus]

If I had my druthers enchanted arms and armor would only be "Legendary" and exceedingly rare and dangerous to both the wielder/wearer and their enemy.  The idea that there are "run-of-the-mill" magic items is a bit of a contradiction and one of the worst things to ever happen to fantasy gaming/literature.

 

I'm all for tiers of masterwork items and things like Ulfbehrt swords and Damascus steel that distinguishes something from the common dross that the village blacksmith can forge, but a magical item in good fantasy literature is almost always something to be in awe of and even feared.

Edited October 20, 2013 by nikolokolus

[ManifestedISO]

things like Ulfbehrt swords

 

I saw the coolest show about a modern smith who makes his own Ulfbehrt swords in the same manner as the originals. 

 

I love the idea of legendary weapons, but questing for pieces, not so much. If it's legendary because it was crafted unique to other weapons, that might be more gratifying than a magic enchantment. 

[Osvir]

The whole talk early in this thread about Excalibur and the significance of the "Knight" (or Squire/Stable-boy, which Arthur was first and foremost I believe) gives me an idea.

What if we could forge a sword that someone else gets, an NPC, who then later can become an enemy or a friend. Maybe we forge a sword as a gift for a King or Queen, or maybe just a stable-boy, who then later becomes a powerful man or woman in the game. Choice & consequence kind of thing.

Or we could forge a sword, it gets stolen during a rest sequence, then we find rumors about it during our passing. How it switches hands, or it gets further stolen, or NPC's talking about it as a dreadful weapon, or a peace-keeping weapon. All in the soul of the hammer (i.e. What the Player chose to forge it into). 

EDIT: Of course, the Player should be able to gain these Legendary Weapons as well, but by giving them away they gain more story and perhaps even more buffs/enchantments. You get the weapons later, but they suddenly have more story and more "Legendary" to them.

Edited October 20, 2013 by Osvir

[Giantevilhead]

I think it would be cool if there were legendary weapons that were just regular weapons without any kind of enchantment but have symbolic power that means a lot to a certain culture/civilization.

[Hiro Protagonist II]

I think it would be cool if there were legendary weapons that were just regular weapons without any kind of enchantment but have symbolic power that means a lot to a certain culture/civilization.

 

I don't see the point. Why would you keep a legendary sword that is just the same as a normal mundane sword without any enchantments? Especially when a regular +2 sword is much better in battle. I'll take the +2 item over a mundane legendary item without enchantments any day.

[rjshae]

 

 

I prefer to have weapons be legendary narratively rather than in item strength. The old IE games were pretty good at giving items backstories even if they were 'only' moderately powerful, and I think that's the way to go.

 

 

This

Excalibur never really did anything that any other sword couldn't have done, with the exception of getting stuck in a rock, it was a symbol.

Weapons with a small bonus and a backstory are the way to go, rather than making something so powerful you feel you have to use it.

 

A mythical sword that never existed... never did anything? Imagine that.

 

I think you have to consider the context -- in our mundane world swords became famous because of their owners. In a realm where magic is powerful, it may well be the other way around.

[rjshae]

 

I think it would be cool if there were legendary weapons that were just regular weapons without any kind of enchantment but have symbolic power that means a lot to a certain culture/civilization.

 

I don't see the point. Why would you keep a legendary sword that is just the same as a normal mundane sword without any enchantments? Especially when a regular +2 sword is much better in battle. I'll take the +2 item over a mundane legendary item without enchantments any day.

 

It might be cool to have a magical sword that became more effective based upon the context. Magical weapons may possess a certain sense of place and may choose not to reveal their full power until the circumstances are right. In an ordinary battle against grunt guards that legendary sword may choose to behave in an almost ordinary manner, but in a battle against a powerful figure of evil the sword would assert itself and become a weapon of terrible vengeance.

[Chairchucker]

 

Excalibur never really did anything that any other sword couldn't have done, with the exception of getting stuck in a rock, it was a symbol.

I just want to point out that Excalibur was given to King Arthur by the Lady of the Lake, and is not the same sword he pulled from the stone.

 

 

Also, the sword Arthur pulled from the stone made him king, so actually the sword was pretty inherently important, and in fact made him famous.

 

If I had my druthers enchanted arms and armor would only be "Legendary" and exceedingly rare and dangerous to both the wielder/wearer and their enemy.  The idea that there are "run-of-the-mill" magic items is a bit of a contradiction and one of the worst things to ever happen to fantasy gaming/literature.

Guess that depends on the setting. P:E is apparently a relatively low magic setting so yeah, I guess so. On the other hand, a setting like Planescape is one in which the magical and bizarre are commonplace, and you'd absolutely expect to have run of the mill magic stuff. It's all down to the bias of the reader/gamer that they'd take their baggage from reading or gaming in low magic settings into other higher magic settings.

[Hiro Protagonist II]

It might be cool to have a magical sword that became more effective based upon the context. Magical weapons may possess a certain sense of place and may choose not to reveal their full power until the circumstances are right. In an ordinary battle against grunt guards that legendary sword may choose to behave in an almost ordinary manner, but in a battle against a powerful figure of evil the sword would assert itself and become a weapon of terrible vengeance.

 

What you're describing is a weapon with enchantments, something that some posters don't want. Some people don't want enchantments at all. We've seen stuff like this in the IE games. Items like Balduran's butter knife which I always sell because I prefer a knife with an enchantment that is useful in the game for characters like my Mages.

[Giantevilhead]

 

I think it would be cool if there were legendary weapons that were just regular weapons without any kind of enchantment but have symbolic power that means a lot to a certain culture/civilization.

 

I don't see the point. Why would you keep a legendary sword that is just the same as a normal mundane sword without any enchantments? Especially when a regular +2 sword is much better in battle. I'll take the +2 item over a mundane legendary item without enchantments any day.

 

 

Because possession of the weapon gives the wielder political power and the ability to sway the populous and boost morale.

[rjshae]

 

It might be cool to have a magical sword that became more effective based upon the context. Magical weapons may possess a certain sense of place and may choose not to reveal their full power until the circumstances are right. In an ordinary battle against grunt guards that legendary sword may choose to behave in an almost ordinary manner, but in a battle against a powerful figure of evil the sword would assert itself and become a weapon of terrible vengeance.

 

What you're describing is a weapon with enchantments, something that some posters don't want. Some people don't want enchantments at all. We've seen stuff like this in the IE games. Items like Balduran's butter knife which I always sell because I prefer a knife with an enchantment that is useful in the game for characters like my Mages.

 

Yes there are a small number of outspoken posters who are adamant about having little to no magic. I don't agree with that preference--magic may be uncommon, but so is the party. They are more likely to run into holders of such equipment than is the average person. From what I've heard, the enchanted items in the game are going to be on a par with the content in the IE games.

Edited October 20, 2013 by rjshae

[Messier-31]

A weapon doesn't need to do +614,2 fire damage and give you the aura of awesomeness to be "legendary". Sometimes it's just its name and the story behind it that makes it special. Besides, aren't some of these "uber" gadgets over the top?

[motorizer]

I can't wait for the sense of awe and wonder as I find a flamey sword...I can put it on the pile of other flamey swords I've found in every other fantasy RPG I've ever played.

 

Actually I don't mind if the legendary weapons are magic or not, powerful or not, as long as they are interesting. And the main thing for that is an interesting history.

I would prefer magic weapons to have a downside of some sort though, rather than just being an obvious better choice...think stormbringer....

or, on a smaller scale, a fire sword could burn your hand..

Edited October 20, 2013 by motorizer