Item Benchmarks

A number of examples are provided below to illustrate typical item schticks, but this list is by no means comprehensive or limiting; use it as a source of inspiration and as a benchmark.

Comfortable Armor

Item Schtick can remove or mitigate the Reflex penalties of armor. In general, a suit of armor has a Reflex penalty equal to half it's armor value. Each Item Schtick used reduced the penalty by one. Such armor is still visible, and has a concealability depending on it's protective value. These are the types of armor that are available without paying Item Schticks; any improvements have to be paid for.

Some armor is based on force fields, nano-thin webbing or other effects that make it invisible and nonencumbering. This can also be used to reinforce an existing suit of armor. Each Item Schtick gives one point of armor.

Improved Weapons

Base the weapons characteristic on any contemporary weapon. Each Item Schtick improves the damage value of a weapon by one point. Alternatively, it can give the weapon some special ability, like those of Melee Weapons or Gun Schticks, though gun-schtick like effects are often limited in some fashion (you might have a very large magazine, but not an unlimited one). A weapon can also have it's Concealability, Range or some other attribute improved by one category.

Magic Foci

A Magic Foci is an item designed to be used with the Blast Sorcery schtick. A magic foci improves the damage rating of a specific type of Blast by an amount depending on the size of the foci. Further Item schticks can be used to increase the damage, on a one-by one ratio, or to make the foci work with additional types of blast (one extra schtick - three blasts, two extra schticks - all blasts).

Magic Enabler

One of the most difficult types of items to create while maintaining game balance, a sorcerous item allows the use of a specific Sorcery or Creature Power effect. Because sorcery effects vary so tremendously in power, it is usually wiser to stick to Creature Powers when possible.

A Magic Enabler can either have a limited number of charges per session (usually three), or it can cost a Magic point to use each time.

A Potion is a specific class of Magic Enabler, that can only be used once per session, but which allows great flexibility from session to session.

Power Battery

A power battery stores Chi energy for use with mystic abilities. There are three different types, Lucky Charms, Fu batteries and Magic Batteries. All Power Batteries recharge each session. They need not resemble batteries at all; charms, amulets, mementoes, all work well.

Lucky Charms: These store Fortune points, and generally only one. If a lucky charm is somehow limited, so that it only works under certain circumstances (a portrait of a loved one, that can only be used when striving to be reuinited), the ratio might be better; two points, or even three points if quite restrictive.

Fu Battery: These store Fu points. If these are good only for one specific schtick, the capacity is 15, points, if it works for a whole path (or animal type), the capacity is 10 points, and if it works for any Fu power, the capacity is 5 points.

Magic Battery: These store Magic points. If these are good only for one specific sorcery effect or creature/arcanowave schtick, the capacity is 5, points, if it works for a whole sorcery schtick, the capacity is 3 points, and if it works for either sorcery, arcanowave or creature powers, the capacity is 2 points and if it works for anything, the capacity is but one point..