Severing threads

Discussion on game mastering Earthdawn. May contain spoilers; caution is recommended!
thezombiekat
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Re: Severing threads

Postby thezombiekat » Sun Dec 11, 2011 9:30 am


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Re: Severing threads

Postby arma » Sun Dec 11, 2011 9:52 am

Giving players the opportunity to just weave threads to their own pattern items, even for a story tie-in, has several issues attached:
1) The item may just be rooted in character background, possibly introduced from start of play, introduced by the player because knowing he could weave threads to it. Also, this is static, there's little actual character development in there.
2) The game is about what happens in play, however. You're not supposed to just present your GM with a pattern item as a player, or in any way co-author pattern magic in the setting by putting pressure on the issue by just pulling out a pattern item.
3) Pattern items are tied not only to meaning for the character, but meaning to the world. To that degree, a mere keepsake doesn't have real meaning, unless you used it towards magical purposes or legendary deeds. Like other things legendary, the GM is the judge of things (you could, in theory, draw a direct correlation between LP received for actions undertaken with an item and the threshold for the item becoming a pattern item--but the GM sets the threshold).
4) If, in any case, a keepsake-type item becomes a pattern item, things still are much more significant if you pass it on to someone else (like the old "this was my grandmother's wedding ring" cliche).
5) If you want to let an item have meaning, in a non-static way, you can always go threaded item, and ED3 provides a detailed set of guidelines with several examples of ways to do it for you.
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Mataxes
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Re: Severing threads

Postby Mataxes » Sun Dec 11, 2011 11:01 am

Josh Harrison --
Troubadour and Magic Theorist
Line Developer: Earthdawn

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Re: Severing threads

Postby Telarus_KSC » Sun Dec 11, 2011 1:00 pm


thezombiekat
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Re: Severing threads

Postby thezombiekat » Sun Dec 11, 2011 4:00 pm

You are correct a player cannot control the development of his own pattern items, but he can influence it. I certainly don’t allow people to just start with them (other than a grimwar which is always a minor pattern item in ed2)

You can encourage an item to become a pattern item by making it a recurring part of your story. Bringing it up appropriately in play, and using it often. some examples, when bragging about killing a horror a sword master draws his sword and makes a big deal about how this was the sword that slayed the beast. Or the player of an obsidemen mentioning before a fight that he touches his life stone for luck. These are the items that hold meaning to the charicter and form a persistant part of his legend, they will probably become pattern items, when the GM is ready.

Conversely you can discourage the formation of a pattern item. The sword master keeps several swords and when bragging about killing a horror makes no mention of the weapon he used, instead selling or destroying it. The obsidemen simply fails to follow the tradition of the life stone (it may take his spirit a little longer to get home but it does still get there).

Dragons have well defended lairs where they keep all the items they have such personal connections too. This allows them to collect items they consider significant in relative safety as almost every potential pattern item is in there control and much harder to steal than an item an adventurer is carrying around. How icewing managed to lose track of the same item twice is an open question.

As to the pattern item neutralising agent, for core pattern items there is none, if destroyed they reform, and probably not where you have control of them. Minor pattern items however are as easily destroyed as there mundane counterparts and once physically destroyed are no longer a threat. So for most items a blacksmiths forge is quite up to the task.

Thread items do have a story to them, and I do use them but there story is not the characters story as is the case with pattern items

thezombiekat
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Re: Severing threads

Postby thezombiekat » Sun Dec 11, 2011 4:17 pm


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Re: Severing threads

Postby Mataxes » Sun Dec 11, 2011 8:46 pm

Josh Harrison --
Troubadour and Magic Theorist
Line Developer: Earthdawn


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