The Magic Item Reset (XV): Consumables

(Updated 18/7/11: Fixed item levels for Potion of Cleansing)

 

And finally we get to the last batch of items: consumables.

I recommend applying the following variant rule when using consumable items:

 

A character can only use one consumable item per encounter.

 

This prevents characters from hoarding potions and using them all at once to annihilate a specific encounter. More importantly, it encourages players to use consumables with regularity, since, much like action points, they otherwise run the risk of being unable to spend them all. The items have been balanced under this assumption, although they should also work with the default rules - rarity keeping all potions but the healing ones from coming up too often.

 

A future article will discuss how the DM should hand out consumables and other items.

Potion of Healing - Level 1+ Common Consumable
Level 1, 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30
Power (Consumable, Healing): Minor Action. Spend a healing surge. Instead of the hit points you would normally regain, you regain  6 hit points.
    Level 5: 12 hit points
    Level 10: 18 hit points
    Level 15: 24 hit points
    Level 20: 30 hit points
    Level 25: 36 hit points
    Level 30: 50 hit points

Potion of Defense - Level 1+ Uncommon Consumable
Level 1, 6, 11, 16, 21, 26
Power (Consumable): Minor Action. You gain a +3 enhancement bonus to all defenses until the end of your next turn.
    Level 6: +4 enhancement bonus
    Level 11: +5 enhancement bonus
    Level 16: +6 enhancement bonus
    Level 21: +7 enhancement bonus
    Level 26: +8 enhancement bonus

Potion of Accuracy - Level 2+ Uncommon Consumable
Level 2, 7, 12, 17, 22, 27
Power (Consumable): Minor Action. You gain a +3 enhancement bonus to attack rolls until the start of your next turn.
    Level 7: +4 enhancement bonus
    Level 12: +5 enhancement bonus
    Level 17: +6 enhancement bonus
    Level 22: +7 enhancement bonus
    Level 27: +8 enhancement bonus

Potion of Resistance - Level 3+ Uncommon Consumable
Level 3, 8, 13, 18, 23, 28
Special: Choose one of the following damage types when the weapon is created: Acid, Cold, Fire, Force, Lightning, Necrotic, Poison, Psychic, Radiant, or Thunder.
Power (Consumable): Minor Action. Until the end of the encounter, you gain resist 2 against the chosen damage type.
    Level 8: resist 4
    Level 13: resist 6
    Level 18: resist 8
    Level 23: resist 10
    Level 28: resist 12

Potion of Cleansing - Level 4+ Uncommon Consumable
Level 4, 9, 14, 19, 24, 29
Power (Consumable): Minor Action. You make a saving throw. If you attempt to save against an effect of level 7 or higher, you take a -5 penalty to the roll.
    Level 9: -5 penalty against effects of level 12 or higher, and +5 bonus if level 6 or lower.
    Level 14: -5 penalty against effects of level 17 or higher, +5 bonus if level 11 or lower.
    Level 19: -5 penalty against effects of level 22 or higher, +5 bonus if level 16 or lower.
    Level 24: -5 penalty against effects of level 17 or higher, +5 bonus if level 21 or lower.
    Level 29: no penalty, and +5 bonus if level 25 or lower.

Energy Potion - Level 5+ Uncommon Consumable
Level 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30
Special: Choose one of the following damage types when the weapon is created: Acid, Cold, Fire, Force, Lightning, Necrotic, Poison, Psychic, Radiant, or Thunder.
Power (Consumable): Minor Action. Until the end of your next turn, all damage dealt by you is of the chosen type, and you gain a +3 enhancement bonus to damage rolls.
    Level 10: +4 enhancement bonus
    Level 15: +6 enhancement bonus
    Level 20: +7 enhancement bonus
    Level 25: +9 enhancement bonus
    Level 30: +10 enhancement bonus

As usual, any feedback will be greatly appreciated.

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The Magic Item Reset (XIV): Wondrous Items

There are very few items for this slot, but they are very customizable, and have a wondrous power level. Go figure!

Figurine of Wondrous Power - Level 10+ Uncommon Wondrous Item
Lvl 10 (Heroic); Lvl 20 (Paragon); Lvl 30 (Epic)
Figurine: A character can only activate a single figurine between extended rests.
Power(Daily). Minor Action. Effect: You conjure a Medium mystic animal (See below for stats) in a space adjacent to you, and give it 25 temporary hit points. The creature can be attacked, and it remains until it is reduced to 0 or less hit points, you take an extended rest, or until you dismiss it as a free action. Every action it takes costs you a minor action, and the creature cannot exceed the normal allotment of actions (a standard, a move, and a minor action) each turn.
    Level 20: 35 temporary hit points. 
    Level 30: 50 temporary hit points. 
Special: When this item is created, choose the type of animal it conjures, and one of the following traits. Your conjured creature gains the abilities from that trait. 

• Sentinel: +2 to all defenses, the creature’s attacks mark targets on a hit.
• Harrier: Fly 8, when the creature attacks, it can shift 2 squares before or after the attack.
• Mount: Size Large, Speed 8, an you can ride the creature.
• Brute: Size Large, reach 2, +2 bonus to damage.
• Sneak: Deals double damage while invisible, and as a Standard Action, the creature becomes invisible until the end of its next turn or until it attacks.
• Artillery: The creature can use its melee attack as a ranged 10 attack.
• Aquatic: Swim 8, the creature is Aquatic (can breathe underwater, +2 to attack rolls against nonaquatic creatures while in aquatic combat), and its attack slides the target 1 square on a hit.
• Elemental: When the item is created, choose one of the following energy types: fire, cold, lightning, acid. The creature gains resist 5 against the chosen type, and its attacks deal damage of the chosen type. Once per encounter, the creature can use its melee attack as a close blast 3.

Conjured Creature – Medium natural animate
Initiative as conjurer - Senses as conjurer
HP 1
AC your level + 14, Fortitude, Reflex and Will your Level + 12
Speed 6
Standard Action - At-Will
  Attack: Melee 1 (one creature); Your level + 5 vs AC
  Hit: 5 damage.
     Level 20: 10 damage.
     Level 30: 15 damage.

Greater Figurine of Wondrous Power- Level 5+ Rare Wondrous Item 
Lvl 5 (Heroic); Lvl 15 (Paragon); Lvl 25 (Epic)
Figurine: A character can only activate a single figurine between extended rests.
Power(Daily). Minor Action. Effect: You conjure a Medium mystic animal (See below for stats) in a space adjacent to you, and give it 25 temporary hit points. The creature can be attacked, and it remains until it is reduced to 0 or less hit points, you take an extended rest, or until you dismiss it as a free action. Every action it takes costs you a minor action, and the creature cannot exceed the normal allotment of actions (a standard, a move, and a minor action) each turn.
    Level 15: 35 temporary hit points. 
    Level 25: 50 temporary hit points. 
Property: When you gain a milestone, you can spend a healing surge to regain this item’s daily power. 
Special: When this item is created, choose the type of animal it conjures, and two of the following traits. Your conjured creature gains the abilities from those traits.  

• Sentinel: +2 to all defenses, the creature’s attack marks the target on a hit.
• Harrier: Fly 8, when the creature attacks, it can shift 2 squares before or after the attack.
• Mount: Size Large, Speed 8, an you can ride the creature.
• Brute: Size Large, reach 2, +2 bonus to damage.
• Sneak: Deals double damage while invisible, and as a Standard Action, the creature becomes invisible until the end of its next turn or until it attacks.
• Artillery: The creature can use its melee attack as a ranged 10 attack.
• Aquatic: Swim 8, the creature is Aquatic (can breathe underwater, +2 to attack rolls against nonaquatic creatures while in aquatic combat), and its attack slides the target 1 square on a hit.
• Elemental: When the item is created, choose one of the following energy types: fire, cold, lightning, acid. The creature gains resist 5 against the chosen type, and its attacks deal damage of the chosen type. Once per encounter, the creature can use its melee attack as a close blast 3.

Conjured Creature – Medium natural animate
Initiative as conjurer - Senses as conjurer
HP 1
AC your level + 14, Fortitude, Reflex and Will your Level + 12
Speed 6
Standard Action - At-Will
  Attack: Melee 1 (one creature); Your level + 5 vs AC
  Hit: 5 damage.
     Level 15: 10 damage.
     Level 25: 15 damage.

As usual, any feedback will be greatly appreciated.

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The Magic Item Reset (XIII): Rings

Updated (v1.1) 26/06/11

With apologies to Geoff Johns...

Ring of Passion - Level 11+ Uncommon Ring 
Lvl 11 (Paragon); Lvl 21 (Epic)
Power(Encounter). Minor Action. Target: one adjacent ally. Effect: Until the target is no longer adjacent to you, you and the target gain 5 temporary hit points at the beginning of the target's turns. If you have reached at least one milestone today, you and the target cannot be pushed, pulled or slid while the effect lasts. 
   Level 21: 8 temporary hit points. 

Ring of Terror - Level 11+ Uncommon Ring 
Lvl 11 (Paragon); Lvl 21 (Epic)
Power(Encounter, Fear). Minor Action. You gain an aura 1 until the end of your next turn. Your enemies treat squares in that aura as difficult terrain. If you have reached at least one milestone today, enemies in the aura grant combat advantage unless they have combat advantage against you. 
   Level 21:  The power gains 'Sustain Minor: The effect persist until the end of your next turn'. 

Ring of the Sentinel - Level 11+ Uncommon Ring 
Lvl 11 (Paragon); Lvl 21 (Epic)
Property: Enemies marked by you or affected by your defender aura take a -3 penalty to damage rolls against your allies. If you have reached at least one milestone today, they also grant combat advantage to you until the end of your next turn whenever they attack an ally. 
   Level 21: –5 penalty. 

Ring of the Frenzied Berserker - Level 11+ Uncommon Ring 
Lvl 11 (Paragon); Lvl 21 (Epic)
Property:  At the start of each of your turns, choose an enemy closest to you. You gain a +2 power bonus to damage rolls against that enemy this turn. If you have reached at least one milestone today, your critical hits against the chosen enemy also deal an extra 2d6 damage. At the end of turn, if you haven't attacked the chosen enemy, you cannot benefit from this damage bonus until the end of the encounter, and you grant combat advantage until the end of your next turn. 
   Level 21: +3 power bonus, 3d6 extra damage on critical hits. 

Ring of Mercy - Level 16+ Uncommon Ring 
Lvl 16 (Paragon); Lvl 26 (Epic)
Property: When you use a power that allows an ally to spend a healing surge, if the ally is bloodied, he or she regains an additional 1d6 hit points. If you have reached at least one milestone today, the ally gains a +1 bonus to all defenses until the end of your next turn. 
   Level 26: An additional 2d6 hit points. 

Ring of Shared Hope - Level 16+ Uncommon Ring 
Lvl 16 (Paragon); Lvl 26 (Epic)
Property: Your allies can reroll attack rolls of 1 against enemies they flank with you. They must use the second result. . 
   Level 26:  Allies adjacent to you can also reroll attack rolls of 1 of any attack made with combat advantage. 

Ring of Covetousness - Level 16+ Uncommon Ring 
Lvl 16 (Paragon); Lvl 26 (Epic)
Power(Encounter). Free action. Trigger: You use an encounter attack power and miss every attack roll. Effect: The power has no effect, and it is not expended. 
   Level 26: Encounter or daily attack power.  

Ring of Death - Level 11+ Rare Ring
Lvl 11 (Paragon); Lvl 21 (Epic)
Power(Encounter). Free action. Trigger: You reduce an enemy to 0 HP, or an enemy adjacent to you is reduced to 0 HP. Target: The triggering enemy. Effect: At the end of the target’s next turn, it stands up with 1 hit point and becomes dominated until the end of its next turn. The target cannot regain hit points while dominated. When the domination effect ends, the target drops to 0 HP. If you have reached at least one milestone today, the power gains 'Sustain Minor: The dominated condition persists until the end of your next turn'.  
    Level 21: The target gains temporary hit points equal to your healing surge value.

Ring of Life - Level 16+ Rare Ring
Lvl 16 (Paragon); Lvl 26 (Epic)
Requires: Extended rest.
Property: You gain an aura 2. Dying creatures within the aura gain resist 10 all.
    Level 26:  Aura 5, and the creatures gain resist 15 all.
Power(At-Will) Free Action. Trigger: A creature within the aura fails a death saving throw. Effect: You spend a healing surge without regaining hit points, and the triggering creature succeeds on the death saving throw.
Power(At-Will) Free Action. Trigger: A dying ally within the aura regains hit points. Effect: The ally stands up.
Power(Daily) No action. Trigger: You or a character within the aura is reduced to 0 hit points. Effect: The triggering character can spend a healing surge.

As usual, any feedback will be greatly appreciated.

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Class Compendium: Cleric. Goodbye, controller powers.

If it isn’t broken, don’t fix it. Or should you? The latest installment of the Class Compendium series (available for free here) reprints the cleric class with a new format, incorporating all previous errata. However, unlike similar articles for Fighters and Warlords, this time the update comes with a good deal of brand new errata which definitely goes beyond mere clarifications. To say most of these changes were unexpected would be quite an understatement.

One thing that has to be understood about the cleric is that, while fairly competent, it is by no means a powerhouse of a class. It had its brief time in the sun somewhere after the release of Divine Power, where healing bonus stacking got to the point that you could outheal one or two monsters’ worth of damage at no surge cost, just with your at-wills - whereas parties could become nigh unkillable in any encounter where a daily prayer was involved. Thankfully, this was put to stop through an errata that brought drastic cuts to most common methods used to boost healing, particularly of the non-surge-required variety.

After that update, clerics were left as very strong healers (probably the best in the game, at least regarding single-target heal output), but became otherwise unremarkable leaders, noticeably behind all-stars like the Warlord. So what are we to think, when Warlords go through their Class Compendium revision mostly intact, yet Clerics get weakened significantly? Have the developers gone crazy? That may be the case but, as we will see, there is a method in this madness...

Here is a summary of the updates, classified by what got changed:

Area attacks with reduced area/damage/friendliness
Turn Undead (feature), Flame Strike (Daily 9), Holy Spark (Daily 15), Pufifying Fire (Daily 15), Seal of Warding (Daily 15), Enthrall (Encounter 17), Fire Storm (Daily 19), Healing Torch (Encounter 23), Sacred Word (Daily 25), Astral Storm (Daily 29), Astral Wave (Paragon Path Encounter 11), Healing Sun (Paragon Path Utility 12), Radiant Brilliance (Paragon Path Daily 20), Battle Pyres (Paragon Path Daily 20).

Options switched to Strength/Weapon
Holy Wrath (Daily 19), Seal of Protection (Daily 25), Angelic Avenger (Paragon Path), Warpriest (Paragon Path)

Clarification
- Spiritual Weapon (Daily 5) , Astral Refuge (Utility 10), Thunderous Word (Encounter 17), Clarion Call of the Astral Sea (Utility 22), Angel Ascendant (Paragon Path Utility)

Other
- Consecrated Ground (Daily 5) - removed area mobility.
- Nimbus of Doom (Daily 25) - added miss damage.
- Radiant Servant (Paragon Path) - crit-boosting feature now requires cleric powers. - Warpriest (Paragon Path) - renamed to Tactical Warpriest to prevent confusion with the Warpriest.
- Warpriest (Paragon Path) - marking feature toned down, now works 1/encounter.

So we see a couple of trends here. Apart from a few clarifications and a handful of random changes, there are two major update categories: improving support for the Strength Cleric build, and nerfing the Nine Hells out of the cleric’s area damage capabilities. The Strength Cleric thing is not earthshaking by any means, but it does mean that all strength-based attacks are now weapon based (which is a good thing, since requiring an implement made these powers virtually useless), and that there are two very solid paragon path options for the build, where there previously was almost none (one of the weakest points of the build, by far). This is still one of the least supported builds in the game, but going over the book, I could see that it now gets two solid choices at almost every level, and as much as we’d all want some more, I’d say the build is now in a decent shape.

As for the fact that virtually every cleric area attack in the PHB has gotten worse... well, I really didn’t see that one coming. Yet, in hindsight, it does make sense, in a way. Let me begin by pointing out that this in no way answers any game balance issue: The revised powers didn’t make the cleric any stronger than (or, some will argue, even as strong as) other leaders. Or characters of other roles, for that matter. On the other hand, I don’t think this creates a game balance issue, either - the cleric still has a lot of cool stuff going on, and is wholly capable of performing its role in a capable, if not spectacular way. More important, though, is the fact that the revised powers are still playable, and in some cases pretty good.

No, really. Look at them. It’s easy to come to the conclusion that, if something that wasn’t game breaking gets weaker, it surely has to become worthless. And, although that is often the case, I don’t think it is what has happened here. When I read the new power list without looking at the old versions, nothing stands out to me as particularly weak (or, at least, none of the powers that actually got changed), because the new values really reflect the current standard for the game. And even with the smaller, less damaging, and more unwieldy areas, clerics still have some impressive controller abilities. On the other hand, even if the update isn’t disastrous, that doesn’t mean it was justified. Why change things for change’s sake? I think that the main reason behind this is the fact that the cleric stepped a bit too much on the toes of real controllers. I mean, there are few, if any, area attacks hitting as hard as pre-nerf Astral Storm in the game, and Sacred Word was one of the most brutal ways to stun the opposing team, particularly after other classic options, like the wizards’s Legion’s Hold had got their own errata. This is not to say that every revised power was problematic, but as a whole, this collection of area attacks had little to envy that of a Wizard, and in some cases could make other controllers cry with envy. So this may be an attempt at drawing a line for what kind of controlling effects should be available for controllers and non-controllers. And we still only know half the story. The Compendium version of the wizard still has to come out, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see some powerhouses that are currently considered benchmarks for area damage, like Flaming Sphere or Stinking Cloud getting their own, well deserved revisions.

Overall, I think this isn’t as big a deal as one would think by looking at the long list of affected powers. If you enjoyed playing a cleric before, your character will still play just fine. Oddly enough, the characters suffering the most from this update won’t be clerics: Warpriest (or should I say, Tactical Warpriest) was the paragon path of choice for many defenders or defender wannabes, but didn’t fit as easily in cleric archetypes - and while the new version is still strong enough, players who relied too much in its defender mark will suffer. But it’s hard to shake the feeling that this is all downside for cleric players, who won’t see much relief in the thought that class roles in the game become slightly better defined because of this. I mean, the update is good news for Strength Clerics, but otherwise most clerics don’t get much to compensate for the loss, and with the current rate of content release, are unlikely to do so in the foreseeable future.

Oh, well. I’m glad that Consecrated Ground got the axe. But I still don’t understand how they missed Divine Oracle.

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The Magic Item Reset (XII): Hands items

Updated (v1.1) 26/06/11

We are almost finished now. Here are a handful of items to boost your attacks in a variety of ways.

Gloves of Sleight of Hand - Level 2+ Common Hands
Lvl 2 (Heroic); Lvl 12 (Paragon); Lvl 22 (Epic)
Property: You can use a +4 bonus instead of your dexterity modifier when making Thievery checks.
   Level 12: +7 bonus.
   Level 22: +10 bonus.
Power(Encounter). Free action. Special: Use this power only during your turn. Effect: You draw a weapon or a stored object, or you sheathe a weapon or stow an item. 
    Level 12: You can use this power as an at-will, but only once per turn.
    Level 22: You can draw a weapon or object, and you can sheathe a weapon or stow an item. Resolve both effects in any order.

Gauntlets of Glancing Blows - Level 4+ Common Hands
Lvl 4 (Heroic); Lvl 14 (Paragon); Lvl 24 (Epic)
Power (At-will). Minor action. Until the end of turn, your damaging attacks take a -2 penalty to damage and deal 3 damage on a miss.
    Level 14: -4 penalty to damage, 6 damage on a miss.
    Level 24: -6 penalty to damage, 9 damage on a miss.

Gloves of Piercing – Level 6+ Common Hands
Lvl 6 (Heroic); Lvl 16 (Paragon); Lvl 26 (Epic)
Property: Your attacks ignore up to 3 points of resistance. . When you hit an enemy, if the enemy has resistance against any damage types of your attack, you reduce its resistance against those damage types by 5 until the end of your next turn
    Level 16:  Ignore 6 points of resistance, reduce resistance by 10.
    Level 26:  Ignore 9 points of resistance, reduce resistance by 15.  

Gloves of Mercy - Level 8+ Common Hands
Lvl 8 (Heroic); Lvl 18 (Paragon); Lvl 28 (Epic)
Property: You can use a +4 bonus instead of your wisdom modifier when making Heal checks.
Level 18: +7 bonus.
Level 28: +10 bonus.
Power (At-will). free action. Trigger: You damage an enemy with an attack. Effect: You take a -3 penalty to the attack damage. If the attack does not reduce the target to 0 hit points, the next time you use a power that allows an ally to spend a healing surge this turn, the ally regains 1d6 additional hit points.
    Level 18:  -6 penalty, 2d6 additional hit points.
    Level 28: -9 penalty, 3d6 additional hit points.

Gloves of the Wind - Level 3+ Uncommon Hands
Lvl 3 (Heroic); Lvl 13 (Paragon); Lvl 23 (Epic)
Power (At-will). Minor action. Until the end of turn, you take a -2 penalty to attack rolls, and whenever you hit an enemy with an attack that pushes, pulls, or slides, increase the distance moved by 1 square. At the end of this movement, the target grants combat advantage to all adjacent characters until the end of your next turn.
    Level 13: 2 squares.
    Level 23: 3 squares.

Gloves of Fearsome Abandon - Level 5+ Uncommon Hands
Lvl 5 (Heroic); Lvl 15 (Paragon); Lvl 25 (Epic)
Power (At-will). Minor action. You take a -2 penalty to all defenses until the start of your next turn. The next enemy you hit this turn takes a -3 penalty to damage rolls until the end of your next turn. This is a fear effect.
    Level 15: -6 penalty.
    Level 25: -9 penalty.

Bloodclaws - Level 6+ Uncommon Hands
Lvl 6 (Heroic); Lvl 16 (Paragon); Lvl 26 (Epic)
Power (Encounter). minor action. You take 1d4 damage, and your next melee or ranged attack this turn deals an extra d10 damage on a hit.
Level 16: Take 2d4 damage, and deal extra 2d10 damage.
Level 26: Take 3d4 damage and deal extra 3d10 damage.

Gloves of the Brawler - Level 7+ Uncommon Hands
Lvl 7 (Heroic); Lvl 17 (Paragon); Lvl 27 (Epic)
Property: You can make unarmed attacks as if you were armed with a +2 magic club. Power (Encounter). Minor Action. You make a grab attack with a +2 power bonus to the attack roll.
    Level 17: +4 magic club, +4 power bonus to the attack roll.
    Level 27: +6 magic club, +6 power bonus to the attack roll.

Gauntlets of Ogre Power - Level 2+ Rare Hands
Lvl 2 (Heroic); Lvl 12 (Paragon); Lvl 22 (Epic)
Property:  You can use a modifier of +4 instead of your Strength modifier when making an athletics check, an strength ability check, or a damage roll for a melee basic attack.
    Level 12: +7 modifier.
    Level 22: +10 modifier.
Power(Daily) Minor Action. Until the end of the encounter, your melee attacks deal half damage on a miss and push targets 1 square on a hit.
   Level 12: Push 2 squares on a hit, and gain a +3 bonus to damage rolls.
   Level 22: Push 3 squares, and gain a +6 bonus to damage rolls.

Gloves of Admixture- Level 7+ Rare Hands
Lvl 7 (Heroic); Lvl 17 (Paragon); Lvl 27 (Epic)
Power (At-Will) Minor action. Choose one of the following damage types: fire, cold, lightning, thunder, acid. The next attack you make this turn gains that damage type in addition of any damage types it already has.
Power (Encounter) Minor action. The next time you damage an enemy with an attack this turn, that enemy takes an extra d4 damage for each damage type of the attack.
    Level 17: 1d8 damage for each damage type.
    Level 27: 1d12 damage for each damage type.

As usual, any feedback will be greatly appreciated.

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The Magic Item Reset (XI): Arms items

Updated (v1.1) 26/06/11

The arms slot is a strange one, in that it combines two very different types of items: bracers and shields. If you have ever wondered what it would be like to fill your arms slot with something that didn’t grant an item bonus to damage, this selection is for you.

Covering Shield – Level 2+ Common Arms
Lvl 2 (Heroic); Lvl 12 (Paragon); Lvl 22 (Epic)
Requires: Shield.
Power (At-Will) Opportunity Action. Trigger: You are targeted by an area or close attack. Effect: One ally targeted by the attack gains partial cover against the attack.
    Level 12: One or two allies targeted by the attack.
    Level 22: All allies targeted by the attack. You can use this power as a free action.

Shield of Deflection - Level 5+ Common Arms
Lvl 5 (Heroic); Lvl 15 (Paragon); Lvl 25 (Epic)
Requires: Shield.
Special: When this item is created, choose ranged attacks or area and close attacks.
Property: You gain resist 2 against the chosen types of attack.
    Level 15: Resist 4.
    Level 25: Resist 6.

Throwing Shield - Level 8+ Common Arms
Lvl 8 (Heroic); Lvl 18 (Paragon); Lvl 28 (Epic)
Requires: Shield.
Property: This shield can be used as a +2 magic throwing hammer to make melee and ranged attacks.
    Level 18:  +4 magic throwing hammer.
    Level 28: +6 magic throwing hammer.

Bracers of Armor - Level 1+ Common Arms 
Lvl 1 (Heroic); Lvl 11 (Paragon); Lvl 21 (Epic)
Property:  While wearing light armor, you can use a +2 modifier instead of your dexterity or intelligence modifier to calculate your AC.
    Level 11: +4 modifier.
    Level 21: +6 modifier.

Bracers of Opportunity - Level 2+ Common Arms
Lvl 2 (Heroic); Lvl 12 (Paragon); Lvl 22 (Epic)
Property: Your opportunity attacks deal an extra 1d6 damage.
    Level 12: 2d6 damage.
    Level 22: 3d6 damage.

Armbands of Power - Level 5+ Common Arms
Lvl 5 (Heroic); Lvl 15 (Paragon); Lvl 25 (Epic)
Special: When this item is created, choose melee attacks, ranged attacks, or close and area attacks.
Property: Your critical hits with attacks of the chosen type deal an extra d8 damage.
    Level 15: 2d8 damage.
    Level 25: 3d8 damage.

Bracers of Cleaving Strikes - Level 9+ Common Arms
Lvl 9 (Heroic); Lvl 19 (Paragon); Lvl 29 (Epic)
Power(Encounter). Free action. Trigger: You hit an enemy with an attack. Effect: Deal 1d8 damage to an enemy adjacent to the triggering enemy.
    Level 19:  You can use this power twice per encounter, but only once per turn.
    Level 29: 2d8 damage. 

Recoil Shield - Level 5+ Uncommon Arms
Lvl 5 (Heroic); Lvl 15 (Paragon); Lvl 25 (Epic)
Requires: Shield.
Power(Encounter). Immediate Reaction. Trigger: An enemy hits you with a melee or close attack. Target: The triggering enemy. Effect: You knock the target prone.
    Level 15: Effect: You push the target 3 squares and knock it prone.
    Level 25: Target: The triggering enemy and all enemies adjacent to you.

Fortress Shield - Level 10+ Uncommon Arms
Lvl 10 (Heroic); Lvl 20 (Paragon); Lvl 30 (Epic)
Requires: Shield.
Property: You gain resist 2 against attacks without combat advantage.
    Level 20: Resist 3.
    Level 30: Resist 4.

Quickhit Bracers - Level 5+ Uncommon Arms
Lvl 5 (Heroic); Lvl 15 (Paragon); Lvl 25 (Epic)
Power(Daily). Trigger: You hit or miss an enemy with an attack. Effect: You make a basic attack against an enemy other than the triggering enemy.
    Level 15: Effect: You make a basic attack against up to two targets within range.
    Level 25: Effect: You make an at-will attack against up to two targets within range, with a +2 power bonus to the attack roll and a +5 power bonus to the damage roll.

Bracers of Accuracy - Level 10+ Uncommon Arms
Lvl 10 (Heroic); Lvl 20 (Paragon); Lvl 30 (Epic)
Power(Daily). Until the end of the encounter, you gain a +1 power bonus to attack rolls, and your attacks score critical hits on rolls of 19-20.
    Level 20: Crits on rolls of 18-20.
    Level 30: +2 power bonus.

Dragonslayer Shield - Level 6+ Rare Arms
Lvl 6 (Heroic); Lvl 16 (Paragon); Lvl 26 (Epic)
Requires: Shield.
Property: You become immune to fear. You gain resist 5 against area and close attacks.
    Level 16: Resist 10.
    Level 26: Resist 15.
Power(Daily). Immediate Interrupt. Trigger: You take damage from an attack. Effect: You reduce the damage taken by 2d6. An enemy adjacent to you takes that much damage.
    Level 16: 4d6 damage.
    Level 26: 6d6 damage.


Golden Bracers of Riposte - Level 3+ Rare Arms
Lvl 3 (Heroic); Lvl 13 (Paragon); Lvl 23 (Epic)
Property: Whenever an enemy misses you, it grants combat advantage to you until the end of your next turn, and gains vulnerable 2 against your attacks until the end of your next turn.
    Level 13: Vulnerable 4.
    Level 23: Vulnerable 6.
Power(Daily) Immediate reaction. Trigger: An enemy hits you with an attack. Effect: The attack also hits the triggering enemy.

As usual, any feedback will be greatly appreciated.

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The Magic Item Reset (X): Head items

Updated (v1.1) 26/06/11

Helmets, crowns, tiaras, masks, and the odd set of glasses… we may not have a lot of items for the head slot, but there’s quite a bit of variety in how they are implemented.

Helm of Fortification - Level 1+ Common Head
Lvl 1 (Heroic); Lvl 11 (Paragon); Lvl 21 (Epic)
Property: When an enemy scores a critical hit against you, roll a d20. On a roll of 16 or more, the attack becomes a normal hit.
    Level 11: On a roll of 11 or more.
    Level 21: You treat all critical hits against you as normal hits.

Helm of Tactics - Level 3+ Common Head
Lvl 3 (Heroic); Lvl 13 (Paragon); Lvl 23 (Epic)
Property: You can use a +4 modifier instead of your dexterity modifier for initiative rolls.
    Level 13: +7 modifier.
    Level 23: +10 modifier.

Tiara of Unshakeable Loyalties - Level 5+ Common Head
Lvl 5 (Heroic); Lvl 15 (Paragon); Lvl 25 (Epic)
Property: You gain a -2 penalty to attack rolls against your allies.
    Level 15: -4 penalty.
    Level 25: -5 penalty, and you can't score critical hits against your allies.

Horned Helm - Level 7+ Common Head
Lvl 7 (Heroic); Lvl 17 (Paragon); Lvl 27 (Epic)
Property: The first time you hit with a charge attack in an encounter, you deal an extra d6 damage.
    Level 17: 2d6 damage.
    Level 27: 3d6 damage. 

Helm of Warning - Level 2+ Uncommon Head
Lvl 2 (Heroic); Lvl 12 (Paragon); Lvl 22 (Epic)
Power(Encounter). No action. Trigger: You roll initiative. Target: An ally you can see. Effect: The target can reroll the initiative roll.
    Level 12: Targets you and an ally you can see.
    Level 22: Targets you and any number of allies you can see.

Goggles of Vision - Level 4+ Uncommon Head
Lvl 4 (Heroic); Lvl 14 (Paragon); Lvl 24 (Epic)
Property: The blinded condition does not cause you to grant combat advantage, and you do not grant combat advantage to invisible enemies.
Power(Daily). Minor Action.  Until the end of turn, you treat enemies with total concealment as though they had partial concealment, and ignore partial concealment on other enemies.
    Level 14: You can use the power as an encounter power.
    Level 24: Until the end of your next turn, you ignore partial concealment and total concealment.

Helm of Mental Resolve - Level 6+ Uncommon Head
Lvl 6 (Heroic); Lvl 16 (Paragon); Lvl 26 (Epic)
Property: The dazed condition does not cause you to grant combat advantage, and you gain a +2 item bonus to saving throws against effects that cause that condition.
    Level 16:  Dazed or stunned conditions.
    Level 26:  Dazed, stunned or dominated conditions.

Crown of Victory- Level 8+ Uncommon Head
Lvl 8 (Heroic); Lvl 18 (Paragon); Lvl 28 (Epic)
Property: You can use a +4 bonus instead of your Charisma modifier when making Diplomacy checks. 
   Level 18: +7 bonus.
   Level 28: +10 bonus.
Power(Daily). Minor Action. Until the end of the encounter, you and any allies that can see you gain a +1 power bonus to damage rolls and saving throws.
    Level 18: +2 power bonus.
    Level 28: +3 power bonus.

Glasses of True sight - Level 2+ Rare Head
Lvl 2 (Heroic); Lvl 12 (Paragon); Lvl 22 (Epic)
Property: You can use a +4 bonus instead of your Wisdom modifier when making Perceptionchecks. 
   Level 12: +7 bonus.
   Level 22: +10 bonus.
Property: You gain resist 5 against psychic damage, and treat enemies with total concealment as though they had partial concealment.
    Level 12: Resist 10 psychic. You treat enemies with total concealment as though they had partial concealment, and ignore partial concealment on other enemies.
    Level 22: Resist 15 psychic, ignore partial and total concealment.
Power(Encounter). Minor Action. Until the end of turn, you can see all creatures within 6 squares regardless of cover, concealment, hiding, or blocking terrain.
    Level 12: 12 squares.
    Level 22: Until the end of your next turn.


Mask of Terror - Level 7+ Rare Head
Lvl 7 (Heroic); Lvl 17 (Paragon); Lvl 27 (Epic)
Property: You can use a +4 bonus instead of your charisma modifier when making Intimidate checks. 
   Level 17: +7 bonus.
   Level 27: +10 bonus.
Property: Enemies you hit take a -2 penalty to damage rolls until the end of your next turn. This is a fear effect.
    Level 17: –4 penalty.
    Level 27: –6 penalty.
Power(Encounter, fear) Close Blast 3. Target: Enemies in Blast. Attack: Primary ability +4 vs Will. Hit: You push the target 2 squares, and it grants combat advantage until the end of your next turn.
    Level 17: Primary ability + 7 vs Will, push 4.
    Level 27: Blast 5, primary ability + 9.

As usual, any feedback will be greatly appreciated.

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The Magic Item Reset (IX): Waist items

Updated (v1.1) 26/06/11

We continue with a collection of belts and girdles that will boost your durability and ensure that monsters don’t catch you with your pants down...

Note: Some of these items require an extended rest. An item that requires an extended rest only works if you have worn it without interruption since your last extended rest.

Belt of Vigor- Level 2+ Common Waist
Lvl 2 (Heroic); Lvl 12 (Paragon); Lvl 22 (Epic)
Requires: Extended rest.
Property:  You gain a +2 item bonus to your healing surge value.
    Level 12: +4 item bonus .
    Level 22: +6 item bonus .

Belt of Resolve - Level 4+ Common Waist
Lvl 4 (Heroic); Lvl 14 (Paragon); Lvl 24 (Epic)
Property: While weakened, your attacks deal half damage +5 instead of half damage. If this effect would cause you to deal more damage than if you were not weakened, you deal damage as if you were not weakened instead.
    Level 14:  Half damage +10.
    Level 24:  Half damage +15. 

Belt of Giant Strength – Level 6+ Common Waist
Lvl 6 (Heroic); Lvl 16 (Paragon); Lvl 26 (Epic)
Property: You can use a modifier of +4 instead of your Strength modifier when making an athletics check or strength ability check.
    Level 16: +7 modifier.
    Level 26: +10 modifier.

Durable Belt - Level 8+ Common Waist
Lvl 8 (Heroic); Lvl 18 (Paragon); Lvl 28 (Epic)
Requires: Extended rest.
Property: Your number of healing surges increases by 1. Whenever you spend a healing surge during a short rest, you regain 1d8 additional hit points.
    Level 18: 2 healing surges, 2d8 additional hit points.
    Level 28: 3 healing surges, 3d8 additional hit points.

Shielding Belt - Level 3+ Uncommon Waist
Lvl 3 (Heroic); Lvl 13 (Paragon); Lvl 23 (Epic)
Property: Whenever you gain temporary hit points, you gain a +1 item bonus to the amount gained.
    Level 13: +2 item bonus.
    Level 23: +3 item bonus.

Belt of the Mountain - Level 5+ Uncommon Waist
Lvl 5 (Heroic); Lvl 15 (Paragon); Lvl 25 (Epic)
Power(Encounter). Immediate Interrupt. Trigger: An attack pulls, pushes or slides you. Effect: Reduce the pull, push or slide by 1.
    Level 15: You can use this power as an at-will power.
    Level 25: Negate the pull, push or slide.

Belt of Health - Level 7+ Uncommon Waist
Lvl 7 (Heroic); Lvl 17 (Paragon); Lvl 27 (Epic)
Requires: Extended rest.
Property: You gain a +4 item bonus to your total hit points.
    Level 17: +8 item bonus.
    Level 27: +12 item bonus.

Belt of Heroic Recovery - Level 9+ Uncommon Waist
Lvl 9 (Heroic); Lvl 19 (Paragon); Lvl 29 (Epic)
Power (Daily) Minor action. Until the end of the encounter, you gain a +2 power bonus to Fortitude and regeneration 5.
    Level 19: Regeneration 10.
    Level 29: Regeneration 15. 

Belt of Regeneration - Level 3+ Rare Waist
Lvl 3 (Heroic); Lvl 13 (Paragon); Lvl 23 (Epic)
Requires: Extended rest.
Property: You gain regeneration 3 while bloodied.
    Level 13: Regeneration 5.
    Level 23: Regeneration 7.

Girdle of the Giant - Level 8+ Rare Waist
Lvl 8 (Heroic); Lvl 18 (Paragon); Lvl 28 (Epic)
Power(Daily) Minor Action. Until the end of the encounter, your melee reach becomes 2 and your size becomes large. You can dismiss this effect as a minor action.
    Level 18: You can use this power as an encounter power.
    Level 28: Melee reach 3, size huge.

As usual, any feedback will be greatly appreciated.

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The Magic Item Reset (VIII): Feet items

Updated (v1.1) 26/06/11

We start our look at secondary items with the feet slot. Here is a fine assortment of comfortable boots and slippers for adventurers of all sizes.

Running Boots- Level 3+ Common Feet
Lvl 3 (Heroic); Lvl 13 (Paragon); Lvl 23 (Epic)
Property: You gain a +1 item bonus to speed when you run or charge.
    Level 13: +1 item bonus to speed, +2 item bonus when you run or charge.
    Level 23: +2 item bonus to speed, +3 item bonus when you run or charge.

Wavestrider Boots - Level 5+ Common Feet
Lvl 5 (Heroic); Lvl 15 (Paragon); Lvl 25 (Epic)
Property: During your turn, you can walk across liquid as if it were normal terrain. If you are still on liquid at the end of your turn, you fall in.
    Level 15: You can walk or shift across liquid as if it were normal terrain at all times. You don't fall in at the end of your turn.
    Level 25: You also gain a swim speed equal to your speed+2.

Elusive Boots - Level 7+ Common Feet
Lvl 7 (Heroic); Lvl 17 (Paragon); Lvl 27 (Epic)
Property: You gain resist 5 against opportunity attacks.
    Level 17: Resist 10.
    Level 27: Resist 15.

Slippers of Spider Climb- Level 9+ Common Feet
Lvl 9 (Heroic); Lvl 19 (Paragon); Lvl 29 (Epic)
Property: During your turn, you gain a climb speed equal to half your speed. .
    Level 19: Climb speed equal to your speed.
    Level 29: You gain the climb speed at all times.

Trekking Boots - Level 2+ Uncommon Feet
Lvl 2 (Heroic); Lvl 12 (Paragon); Lvl 22 (Epic)
Power(Encounter). Minor Action. Until the end of your next turn, you gain a +1 power bonus to speed and ignore difficult terrain while walking.
    Level 12: Gain a +2 power bonus to speed, and ignore difficult terrain when you move or shift.
    Level 22: You can use this power as an at-will power.

Slippers of the Escapist - Level 4+ Uncommon Feet
Lvl 4 (Heroic); Lvl 14 (Paragon); Lvl 24 (Epic)
Power(Encounter). Minor Action. You can ignore the slowed condition this turn.
    Level 14: You can ignore the slowed, immobilized and grabbed conditions this turn.
    Level 24: You can ignore the slowed, immobilized, restrained and grabbed conditions until the end of your next turn.

Acrobat Boots - Level 6+ Uncommon Feet

Lvl 6 (Heroic); Lvl 16 (Paragon); Lvl 26 (Epic)
Property: You can use a +4 bonus instead of your dexterity modifier when making Acrobatics checks. 
   Level 16: +7 bonus.
   Level 26: +10 bonus.
Power(Encounter). Minor Action. You stand up from prone.
    Level 16: You can use this power as an at-will power.
    Level 26: You can use this power as a minor action or as an immediate reaction that triggers when you are knocked prone by an attack.

Boots of Shifting- Level 10+ Uncommon Feet
Lvl 10 (Heroic); Lvl 20 (Paragon); Lvl 30 (Epic)
Property: When you shift, you gain a +1 item bonus to the distance shifted.
    Level 20: You also gain a +1 item bonus to speed.
    Level 30: You gain a +2 item bonus to speed and to the distance shifted.

Winged Boots - Level 5+ Rare Feet
Lvl 5 (Heroic); Lvl 15 (Paragon); Lvl 25 (Epic)
Property: You gain a fly speed equal to half your speed, and an altitude limit of 2.
    Level 15: Fly speed equal to your speed, altitude limit 3.
    Level 25: +2 item bonus to speed, no altitude limit.

Boots of teleportation - Level 10+ Rare Feet
Lvl 10 (Heroic); Lvl 20 (Paragon); Lvl 30 (Epic)
Power(At-will) Move Action. You teleport 2 squares.
    Level 20: Teleport 3 squares.
    Level 30: Teleport 4 squares.

As usual, any feedback will be greatly appreciated.

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The Magic Item Reset (VII): Neck items

Updated (v1.1) 26/06/11

We get to the neck slot: cloaks, amulets, brooches, and other shiny things.

Magic Cloak- Level 1+ Common Neck
Lvl 1 (+1); Lvl 6 (+2); Lvl 11 (+3); Lvl 16 (+4); Lvl 21 (+5); Lvl 26 (+6)
Enhancement: Fortitude, Reflex and Will

Elven Cloak - Level 2+ Common Neck
Lvl 2 (+1); Lvl 7 (+2); Lvl 12 (+3); Lvl 17 (+4); Lvl 22 (+5); Lvl 27 (+6)
Enhancement: Fortitude, Reflex and Will
Property: You can use a +4 bonus instead of your dexterity modifier when making Stealth checks. 
   Level 12: +7 bonus.
   Level 22: +10 bonus.

Feather Cloak - Level 2+ Common Neck
Lvl 2 (+1); Lvl 7 (+2); Lvl 12 (+3); Lvl 17 (+4); Lvl 22 (+5); Lvl 27 (+6)
Enhancement: Fortitude, Reflex and Will
Power (Encounter). Free action. Trigger: You fall. Effect: You take no damage from the fall, regardless of its distance, and do not fall prone at the end of the fall.

Cloak of Resistance - Level 3+ Common Neck
Lvl 3 (+1); Lvl 8 (+2); Lvl 13 (+3); Lvl 18 (+4); Lvl 23 (+5); Lvl 28 (+6)
Enhancement: Fortitude, Reflex and Will
Special: When this item is created, choose one of the following damage types: force, poison, necrotic, radiant, psychic.
Property: You gain resist 5 against the chosen damage type.
   Level 13: Resist 10.
   Level 23: Resist 15.

Amulet of Life - Level 3+ Common Neck
Lvl 3 (+1); Lvl 8 (+2); Lvl 13 (+3); Lvl 18 (+4); Lvl 23 (+5); Lvl 28 (+6)
Enhancement: Fortitude, Reflex and Will
Property: You gain a +2 item bonus to death saving throws.

Periapt of Wound Closure - Level 4+ Common Neck
Lvl 4 (+1); Lvl 9 (+2); Lvl 14 (+3); Lvl 19 (+4); Lvl 24 (+5); Lvl 29 (+6)
Enhancement: Fortitude, Reflex and Will
Property: You gain a +2 item bonus to saving throws against ongoing damage.

Resilience Amulet - Level 5+ Common Neck
Lvl 5 (+1); Lvl 10 (+2); Lvl 15 (+3); Lvl 20 (+4); Lvl 25 (+5); Lvl 30 (+6)
Enhancement: Fortitude, Reflex and Will
Property: The first time you make a saving throw during each encounter, you can roll twice and use either result.

Ironskin Amulet - Level 2+ Uncommon Neck
Lvl 2 (+1); Lvl 7 (+2); Lvl 12 (+3); Lvl 17 (+4); Lvl 22 (+5); Lvl 27 (+6)
Enhancement: Fortitude, Reflex and Will
Power (Daily) Minor action. You gain resist to all damage equal to twice the amulet's enhancement bonus until the end of the encounter.

Amulet of Shared Suffering - Level 3+ Uncommon Neck
Lvl 3 (+1); Lvl 8 (+2); Lvl 13 (+3); Lvl 18 (+4); Lvl 23 (+5); Lvl 28 (+6)
Enhancement: Fortitude, Reflex and Will
Power (Encounter). Free action. Trigger: An attack gives you ongoing damage. Effect: The attacker gains an equal amount of untyped ongoing damage (save ends), and has a -5 penalty to saves made against the ongoing damage this turn.

Cloak of Distortion - Level 4+ Uncommon Neck
Lvl 4 (+1); Lvl 9 (+2); Lvl 14 (+3); Lvl 19 (+4); Lvl 24 (+5); Lvl 29 (+6)
Enhancement: Fortitude, Reflex and Will
Property: You gain partial concealment against all ranged attacks from 5 or more squares away.

Amulet of Rapid Recovery - Level 5+ Uncommon Neck
Lvl 5 (+1); Lvl 10 (+2); Lvl 15 (+3); Lvl 20 (+4); Lvl 25 (+5); Lvl 30 (+6)
Enhancement: Fortitude, Reflex and Will
Power (Daily) Minor action. Until the end of the encounter, the first time you make a saving throw each turn, you can roll twice and use either result.

Necklace of Fireballs - Level 3+ Rare Neck
Lvl 3 (+1); Lvl 8 (+2); Lvl 13 (+3); Lvl 18 (+4); Lvl 23 (+5); Lvl 28 (+6)
Enhancement: Fortitude, Reflex and Will
Property: You gain resist 5 fire.
   Level 13: resist 10.
   Level 23: resist 15.
Power (Daily). Standard action. As the wizard's Fireball power. You can use this item as an implement for the power, applying its enhancement bonus to attack and damage rolls. You can use your primary ability modifier instead of your intelligence modifier for the attack rolls, and gain a +1 item bonus to attack rolls and damage rolls for the attack. 
   Level 13: +2 item bonus.
   Level 23: +3 item bonus.


Cloak of Invisibility - Level 4+ Rare Neck
Lvl 4 (+1); Lvl 9 (+2); Lvl 14 (+3); Lvl 19 (+4); Lvl 24 (+5); Lvl 29 (+6)
Enhancement: Fortitude, Reflex and Will
Property: When making stealth checks, you can roll twice and use either result.
Power (Encounter): Minor action. You become invisible until you attack or until the end of your next turn. 
   Sustain minor: The power persists until you attack or until the end of your next turn.

As usual, any feedback will be greatly appreciated.

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The Magic Item Reset (VI): Level and rarity distribution

One of the main differences that come up when you jump from designing a bunch of magic items to planning a full, standalone set is the need to find the right spread of items over levels. I don’t think this was a high priority for the designers of 4E, as the first PHB had an irregular level distribution for its items (with some slots barely featuring a couple of options at certain tiers), whereas the Adventurer’s Vaults just used brute force, giving us so many different enchantments that you ended up with plenty of options at any given level, anyway. However, I intend to use a relatively limited amount of items, so making sure that they are distributed as evenly as possible across levels becomes far more important. In today’s article, I’ll explain how I approached this challenge and, in a related note, how I dealt with item rarity.

Why Rarity?

I think it’s worth dedicating a few lines to the subject of rarity. The item rarity rules were introduced in the Essentials books, classifying magic items into three categories (common, uncommon, and rare), and restricting item crafting to just the common ones, to the dismay of more than a few fans. Unfortunately, item rarity hasn’t received much support since then, except for a errata that turned most existing items into uncommons. Which is a pity, because rarity doesn’t work all that well when tacked on an existing system.

On the other hand, designing an item collection from scratch can really make rarity shine. The main advantage, from a designer’s point of view, is that it gives you freedom to create items that would become problematic if PCs could freely craft them, stacking them in multiples or acquiring them for negligible amounts of gold at higher levels. This is most evident in, though not limited to, items with encounter or daily powers. Without a rarity system, any item daily power is prone to exploiting at higher levels, which is why most of these powers had to be released with an abysmal power level. Encounter powers aren’t much better off, since they can easily become at-will powers once a PC can buy a bunch of a given item. By moving these powers to uncommon items, we can forget about these issues, and focus on the items themselves.

The other upside is the introduction of rare items, which are scarce and awesome. Rares cover a middle ground between regular items and artifacts, and in my experience can add a lot of excitement to the process of monster looting.

Assigning level and rarity

As I explained in a previous article, one design decision that I made early on was to have all of my items scale from heroic tier to epic. This was meant to make item lists much easier to navigate for players, but also streamlined the design considerably. Basically, I was left with two item categories with different requirements with regards to level assignment. On the one hand, there are what I call primary items, which is how I refer to anything with an enhancenment bonus: weapons, implements, armor, and neck items. Each of these items would have 6 different versions, ranging from a +1 enhancenment bonus to a +6; internally, I would use the +1 version as a reference for level, so that every primary item would have a level between 1 and 5. On the other hand, secondary items (i.e. everything else) would have 3 different versions, one for each tier. In this case, the level reference would be for the heroic version of the item, and levels would vary between 1 and 10.

When assigning item levels, I followed these rules:
- The total number of items available at any given level should be stable. This meant that I had to spread item levels as evenly as possible, across all tiers.
- Power should grow with level. This is kind of a no-brainer, but I’ve seen too many items in the game miss this crucial rule. Of course, when dealing with wildly different effects, assessing power is far from a hard science, but no item should feel patently weaker than another of lower level. An exception would be that primary items will almost always be stronger than secondary ones. As for different versions of items of the same level, it bears mentioning that primary items don’t always need their additional effects to scale, since increasing the enhancement bonus is usually enough. As a rule of thumb, for these items I tend to give scaling only for powers and properties directly related with damage or resistance.
- Primary items of level 5 need to be scarce and strong. For a primary item, level 5 is a tricky point, since we’re just one level short from increasing the enhancement bonus. It’s difficult to make a level 5 item strong enough for players not to want to automatically replace it with a plain magic item with 1 more point of enhancement bonus. Ideally, the decision between a level 5 item and the level 1 item immediately above it should be a hard one.

I also applied the following rules regarding item rarity:
- Common items should be straightforward, and with few or no powers. At-will powers can be used in a common item, as they can’t be exploited with PC crafting, but daily powers are out of the question. As for encounter powers, they should only appear on worn items (i.e. those you can’t swap during an encounter), since otherwise it’s too easy to use them in multiples as virtual at-wills.
- Uncommons are more complex, can have any power, and are at least as strong as commons. It’s not necessary for all uncommons to be stronger than their common counterparts, but they should never be clearly weaker. This is a point where the official item set often fails, because encounter and daily powers as a base mechanic are generally not as effective as continuous properties. For this reason, I have to put special care in making any power-based uncommon item playable, if not great. Daily powers in particular are usually very difficult to get right.
- Rares should be amazing. A rare item should not break the game, but it will definitely be better than a non-rare of similar level. Rares will typically have multiple abilities, and it is strongly suggested that at least one of them is something exciting that can’t easily be replicated by other items.
- In primary items, average level should increase with rarity. If you look at my lists, you’ll see that most common weapons tend to be in levels 2 and 3, whereas uncommons lie around 3-4, and rares have a relatively high proportion of 5’s.
- Each rarity needs to work on its own. This applies mostly for commons and uncommons - it’s not enough that items as a whole have a uniform level spread and cover abilities for all class roles, but the same has to apply when looking just at the items of one rarity.

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