Renegade Magic Item Handbook
Magic Items in the Renegade LARP Campaign are objects; created by a Guild Grand Master; that have had Elemental Creatures bound to them by High Priests to perform a series of commands for their owner. At the beginning of the Golden Age; before the War of the Gods; Magical Items were created as a way of celebrating, honouring and respecting the power of the Gods. These Magic Items also assisted the Priesthood with providing visible manifestations; demonstrated by these Magic Items; of the Power of the Gods to the people; in addition to the powers given to the Priesthood by the Gods.
Golden Age Magic Item Creation by High Priests involved the binding of representatives of all four Elements; or two opposing Elements; to the Guild Grand Master artifact; controlled by strict Binding Commands in order to achieve balance of power and stability of purpose. These artifacts reflected an attribute of God worshiped by the High Priest creator.
Beginning with Magical Armor and Weapons to cater to Militaristic Nobility; Items were created with a range of Active and Passive Powers; including improved focus on skills. A common Passive Power of Magical Armor might be to protect the wearer from mundane attacks but also from attacks by opposing Elemental powers.
A common Passive Power of a Magic Weapons might be to cause additional injury to those they were wielded against as well as damage to an opposing Elemental Creature. Soon, Non Weaponry Magical Items, such as clothing and jewellery were created with similar properties to those of Magical Armor and Weapons.
However, in the centuries toward the end of the Golden Age; as with many objects; Magic Items became subject to fashion as the most powerful people in the Empires of Ralsted began to request and commission Flamboyant Objects with powers far exceeding their needs. Over time many respected Artificers and High Priests of the Twenty Gods began to cater to the whims of the rich and powerful; only to find that these Magic Items were soon passed over for new and more exciting Magic Items.
While many if these once cherished Magical Items were handed down to lesser nobility many found themselves gathering dust; forgotten; or were modified or harvested to provide Elemental power to new items. In the last century before the War of the Gods, any semblance of the original idea of celebrating, honouring and respecting the gods was perverted as the creation of Magic Items became competitive; subject to the whims of fashion as millions of Gold Pieces were spent on developing and creating newer and more exciting Magic Items to suit some festival or ball or as specialty gifts to one another.
At the same time, Elementalist Shaman also created Magic Items for the common people as a demonstration of the advantages of Elemental Worship instead of the Gods. Though the Shaman could only bind the Element that they served to an Object, the Rank of the Elemental was greater than many of those created by High Priests and Binding Commands that were negotiations between the Elemental entity and the user of the Magic Item rather than Commands. This willingness to create items for the common people assisted greatly in conversion of some of the poorest to the worship of the Elements themselves. Combined with the corruption of the Priesthood and decadence and misuse of Magical Power by the Nobility, Elemental Worship became more appealing to the masses.
During the War of the Gods, the High Priests of the Gods perished and with their passing, the knowledge of binding four Elementals; or opposed Elementals; to a Magic Item was also lost. Since that time, only unbalanced Magical Items have been created by the Priesthood and are commonly available and used throughout the World of Ralsted; though with many interesting side effects as the Elemental’s own personality, needs and desires leak; often changing those who use them.
Yet many balanced Magic Items still remain; entombed with their owners or passed down through generations of the same family. Some; for a hefty price; are available through private sale or occasionally in Magical Stores as family fortune forces the sale of these prized possessions. Some have been found in long lost tombs and plundered; though they are sold at a discount due to the Undead curse. Nobody wants to be hunted by the Undead.
In the Renegade LARP Campaign, the creation of Magical Items is strictly an OOC mechanic and no Player Character will have the power to create them. However, Priests can still capture Elemental creatures and contain them inside a vessel such as a Crystal or inside an existing Magical Item, improving its power. Magic Items enhanced in this way are frequently more powerful than they were when they were created. Additionally, Magic Items absorb the power of Elemental Creatures that are defeated in the presence of the Item. As some of these Magical Items are now more powerful than the Binding Commands with which they were created many have become unstable…and dangerous.
Despite the added complexity, Renegade Team Building have incorporated a high level of Magic Item use in the Renegade LARP Campaign to serve the story and not simply as another piece of loot to be accumulated, coveted and sold. Magic Items will enable many Player Characters and NPC’s a taste of the power of a Priest as they use the Elemental Powers within the Item.
In many IC scenarios, Magic Items can greatly increase the chances of success, but in others, the Magic Item can be a liability. The side effects of Poorly balanced Magic Items taking over a Character’s personality adds to the roleplaying potential and the unstable nature of some Magic Items can create interesting and lethal detonations that may cause a chain reaction. Some Magic Items will coveted by others and their possessors will frequently be the target of IC theft and Murder. Regardless; the Genie is out of the bottle and it is hoped that the inclusion of Magic Items will provide a valuable roleplaying challenge for players in the Renegade LARP Campaign.