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Statistics:Posted by yankeeschic — Tue Jun 03, 2025 3:09 am
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Statistics:Posted by yankeeschic — Sun May 25, 2025 3:13 am
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LouP wrote:...
Does that help?
Take Care,
Lou Prosperi
Yes, thank you.Does that help?
Take Care,
Lou Prosperi
Statistics:Posted by Tattered Rags — Fri Feb 03, 2017 4:34 pm
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I'd have to go back and re-read the ED1 rulebook and companion (in particular any examples of using Weapon/Item History on a thread item) to be 100% certain, but I *think* my interpretation now is what I would said then.Tattered Rags wrote:This implies that the original ED1 design intent was the "skipping ranks" concept capped by your Item History rank. I'd be interested in knowing what the ED1 intent was, if you could share it.LouP wrote:Hello,
For what it's worth (and that's probably not that much), I would lean towards the "skipping ranks" interpretation. This is based primarily on the specific use of the term "Key Knowledges".
That said, I don't think either approach is "bad" or "wrong", and neither is likely to cause any serious issues in a campaign.
Take Care,
Lou Prosperi
The intent of the Key Knowledge system is to provide a(nother) reason for characters to go out on adventures. In order for a character to get the full effect of a cool magic item, they have to go out into the world and research its history and legend (building their own legend along the way). Each Key Knowledge can lead to a different adventure, whether they be simple and small, or epic-like and earth-shattering.
This was the reason we published Blades - as an example of adventures born from researching magic items. Blades also provided a (IMO) cool example of a group magic item.
Given this intent, I think it makes sense that Weapon/Item History tests would result in information about Key Knowledges, not just thread ranks.
Does that help?
Take Care,
Lou Prosperi
Statistics:Posted by LouP — Fri Feb 03, 2017 2:44 pm
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Mataxes wrote:Part of my... surprise... is that in over 20 years of playing the game and talking with a wide variety of people who have played the game, I haven't ever encountered the "skip empty ranks" interpretation. This is as after significant involvement in the online ED1 community, playtesting/consulting for ED2, work on the Classic Compendia and (to a lesser extent) ED3, and now ED4. So... coming across something new like that is a bit surprising, and I had to take a few steps back, go back to original sources, track changes from edition to edition, that sort of thing.
Huh, interesting. While i haven't been playing Earthdawn that long, two members of my group have been playing since First Edition, and they would both probably be surprised to learn of the other interpretation. This is actually not the first time i've seen what seems like a fairly straightforward piece of writing turn out to have been interpreted in completely different ways by different sections of the fandom. Given the vagaries of languages, it seems like something that's just bound to happen to any longstanding game with lots of legacy material. Vampire is a good example here, made the greater by its sizeable and widely distributed fandom. It didn't occurs to me that this might have been another such case, and i really should have known better.Statistics:Posted by Lys — Wed Feb 01, 2017 11:28 pm
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LouP wrote:Hello,
For what it's worth (and that's probably not that much), I would lean towards the "skipping ranks" interpretation. This is based primarily on the specific use of the term "Key Knowledges".
That said, I don't think either approach is "bad" or "wrong", and neither is likely to cause any serious issues in a campaign.
Take Care,
Lou Prosperi
This implies that the original ED1 design intent was the "skipping ranks" concept capped by your Item History rank. I'd be interested in knowing what the ED1 intent was, if you could share it.For what it's worth (and that's probably not that much), I would lean towards the "skipping ranks" interpretation. This is based primarily on the specific use of the term "Key Knowledges".
That said, I don't think either approach is "bad" or "wrong", and neither is likely to cause any serious issues in a campaign.
Take Care,
Lou Prosperi
Statistics:Posted by Tattered Rags — Wed Feb 01, 2017 6:33 pm
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For what it's worth (and that's probably not that much), I would lean towards the "skipping ranks" interpretation. This is based primarily on the specific use of the term "Key Knowledges".
That said, I don't think either approach is "bad" or "wrong", and neither is likely to cause any serious issues in a campaign.
Take Care,
Lou Prosperi
Statistics:Posted by LouP — Wed Feb 01, 2017 5:25 pm
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Mataxes wrote:Let me add an addendum to my prior post.
Part of my... surprise... is that in over 20 years of playing the game and talking with a wide variety of people who have played the game, I haven't ever encountered the "skip empty ranks" interpretation.
As a player since ED1, we've played with "skipping ranks" since the beginning. So all this is very enlightening.Part of my... surprise... is that in over 20 years of playing the game and talking with a wide variety of people who have played the game, I haven't ever encountered the "skip empty ranks" interpretation.
Statistics:Posted by Dougansf — Wed Feb 01, 2017 2:24 pm
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The Undying wrote:Aww, come on, you can join our crew. First beer is on me! 
I doubt you're in Tokyo, though ...
I would gladly come and "police" your game but the distance even from Osaka makes it a little complicated. I doubt you're in Tokyo, though ... About wording: Being a new player to the setting I sometimes struggle with the wording, and not just with Item History. When I read the book the first time I especially found the magic section confusing. Whether it's because of the above mentioned "the readers will know what we are talking about" writing style I cannot say.
But it is nice to see the community is alive and helpful and the writers themselves are more than willing to clarify issues.
Statistics:Posted by PiXeL01 — Wed Feb 01, 2017 9:47 am
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Mataxes wrote:I have neither the time nor inclination to police your game.
Aww, come on, you can join our crew. First beer is on me! I doubt you're in Tokyo, though ...I know, it all comes down to "play the game that feels right to you," and that's definitely the way it should be. We're all going to make the changes that make sense. I just always like knowing what the intent is, in case I'm missing something. The method you've described in this thread is definitely more attractive to me than what I (and it sounds like others) took away as RAW, so it's always nice getting the designers' (and other players') perspectives.
Thanks for carving out the time for the input.
Statistics:Posted by The Undying — Wed Feb 01, 2017 3:09 am
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While I understand the fear of a player "wasting" LP on an item only to find that higher ranks don't do what they want... communication is key. Talk to the player, find out what they're interested in/looking for and provide an item that does that -- whether you take it directly from a book, tweak an item to better suit, or build one from scratch.
This communication should continue as the campaign develops -- there's nothing preventing you from changing a higher-rank power that hasn't been woven yet. Or even, if things really aren't working, retconning an item to fix problems. As long as you're (generally) following the guidelines presented, the group is happy, and you're having fun? More power to you. I have neither the time nor inclination to police your game.
Statistics:Posted by Mataxes — Wed Feb 01, 2017 2:58 am
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