Going from LW 12 to 13

[Al]

Hi All,

I am currently changing my character from the LW 12 to 13, and would like to know how people felt about the special item limits? Do you interepret it to mean that these are the magical special items, or all special items? Because to me it makes no sense why I should give up armour and a shield. (Also why I do not get the firesphere, that was the handiest of all the non combat items methinks)

I am thinking I am going to take my shield and leather waistcoat with me, simply because it makes sense. I am a big fan of bending the rules for common sense (both to my advantage and disadvantage)

What did you all do?

Al

[North Star]

Think about it. Since you cannot take them normally, you will not be relied upon to have them. Therefore, they are likely to be useless!

NS.

[Al]

What do you mean? I have been using these for ages now, but now it says I have to discard them? I do not get it. I assume that you discarded them, though, like the rules stated. Oh well. So is no 13 any good?

[Black Cat]

Just discard them. If the Firesphere is not on the list, it means that you won't need it anymore (IIRC, there's no places in the GM books asking you to use a lantern or something similar to shed some light in a dark place: you have disciplines that allows you to see in the dark!). As for the shielding things that are not on the list, they were giving a small advantage in the earlier books, but I think that they were removed to lower your stats and make the GM series a little bit harder than the precendent series.

[Smyslov]

They`re removed for balance.
Plus, a lot of the things Lone Wolf does probably would not be possible with a shield, even though he does them in the earlier books. I can`t imagine the jumping, rolling, crawling, and all that, with a shield.

[Al]

I know about that, I think of the firesphere more as a portable BBQ than anything else though

I still cannot understand the sheild though. Maybe others had a different experiance in LW 1-12, but for me most of the encounters were either in the -8 or worse range or the +8 or better range, so to me a couple of CS will either cement a done deal or give me a fighting chance... but this is just my (in)experiance

Al

[Smyslov]

If you run into a battle in the GM books that is of extreme difficulty, you also have some things to help out. Check out some of the descriptions of the powers of Curing and Deliverance. I think you can do a "health dump" once per book or once every other book. That`s worth something. You get Psi-Surge automatically, which can be put to good use very often.

I think the removal of shields was extremely deliberate. For the purist, I think you must obey Joe Dever`s decision. But nobody will know if you cheat.

[Dusk Fox]

Allan said:

I am thinking I am going to take my shield and leather waistcoat with me, simply because it makes sense. I am a big fan of bending the rules for common sense (both to my advantage and disadvantage)

What did you all do?

Al

Okay, so you've heard from some die-hard rules lawyers, you've heard from the moderates, and now you're going to hear from a dyed-in-the-wool cheater. I may get a rep for this sort of thing if I stick around the board long enough.

First off, any Special Item that doesn't have some obvious and apparent benefit (like the random stuff you pick up along the way--Black Sash, Onyx Medallion, Amory Cess) is not going to come in handy. Dump it. You're told not to take it with you because it's never going to be requested again.

Secondly, items with obvious but short-lived benefits (Platinum Amulet, Psychic Ring, Fireseeds, and the amazing Kalte Firesphere) are likewise probably not going to be used, no matter how much your logical mind rebels at throwing out perfectly good magical treasure. Unfortunately, this isn't D&D--once you hit the Grand Master adventures, it's simply going to be assumed that you don't have this stuff anymore, even if you have it right on your Action Chart. I guess you can rationalize it by saying you left them all at the Kai Monastery, or gave them to friends as gifts. Whatever. They're out.

Thirdly, you have the list of items which exist essentially to boost your CS or EP (Sheild, Padded Leather Waistcoat, et al). It tells you to drop them, and as everyone has said, this is mostly a balance issue. I figure you may as well keep them if you want them--you earned them, didn't you? Drop them if you want more of a challenge, keep them if you're from the school that believes that you should only ever grow more powerful, never less powerful. This also applies to any magical/special weapons you pick up along the way (Bronin Warhammer, Magic Spear) that you feel like keeping for one reason or another.

Fourthly, there's the two items that appear on the list in Book 13 and not Book 14 (Korlinium Scabbard, Silver Bracers), and are continually not on the list for the remaining books (I think). My thoughts on this matter are the same as on the previous category--screw it. I earned them, didn't I? I don't think the Korlinium Scabbard is going to be much of an issue, but those Silver Bracers were pretty damn cool.

And fifthly, you have the list of items you get to keep, and you should keep them. In fact, you should probably have them all. If you don't, you made a wrong turn somewhere (likely in book 12) and missed them.

Oh, an in case it bears mentioning, it's really no big deal to drop your Quiver, since you get one in the beginning of the book anyway, but it seems pretty stupid to me.

And that's a cheater's perspective.

[outspaced]

Dusk said:

Fourthly, there's the two items that appear on the list in Book 13 and not Book 14 (Korlinium Scabbard, Silver Bracers), and are continually not on the list for the remaining books (I think). My thoughts on this matter are the same as on the previous category--screw it. I earned them, didn't I? I don't think the Korlinium Scabbard is going to be much of an issue, but those Silver Bracers were pretty damn cool.

Actually, those two items are restored in Book 17 because * * * SPOILER, HIGHLIGHT TO READ * * * The Dagger of Vashna and Helshezag are destroyed in Book 16 and are therefore permanently removed from the Special Item list from Book 17 onwards.

So there is method in the apparent madness.

[Darkash]

Dusk said:

This also applies to any magical/special weapons you pick up along the way (Bronin Warhammer, Magic Spear) that you feel like keeping for one reason or another.

Why does everyone think the Bronin Warhammer is a Special Item? It says very specifically in the text that it is a Weapon with a +1CS bonus, no more and no less. So list it as a Weapon and take it with you to the Grand Master series, for Kai's sake!

[Dusk Fox]

You are totally right. It doesn't make any mention of it being a Special Item, does it? Damn. I guess I just felt it was special enough to be included. It doesn't totally ruin my list, it just makes for an incorrect entry.

[North Star]

Perhaps that's because it has a title-case name, gives a special bonus and is actually rather cool!

NS.