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Story Items

Source GameMastery Guide pg. 107
Magic items in fantasy literature often have a narrative attached to them. When the group gets a powerful item, you can use it as a springboard for story developments. Any item can be used as the focus of a story. Using a term made famous by Alfred Hitchcock, screenwriters refer

to an object that serves as the motivating factor to drive a storyline as a macguffin. Famous macguffin include the Maltese Falcon, from the book and movie of the same name, and Pulp Fiction’s glowing suitcase. Mythological macguffin include the Golden Fleece and Holy Grail.

Any mission that sends the PCs to find a particular item is a macguffin story, whether a former owner dispatches them to find it or the group finds reference to it in an old tome. Once the group finds the macguffin, it might fade into the background as just another item of treasure, or gradually lead to a more sweeping narrative. Alternatively, you can introduce your big storyline sneakily, by having the item appear as just another piece of dungeon loot. Only after they begin to use it do the adventurers find themselves in a swirl of epic events.

With or without a macguffin, you can gradually build your magic item storyline until it reaches sweeping proportions. Classic magic item storylines include the following:
  • The object to be destroyed. The item is a work of evil. Disaster looms if it falls into the wrong hands. The PCs must undergo an extensive quest, at the end of which they must destroy the item. Along the way, they must evade pursuers who seek to take it from them. The object grants power if used, but tempts those who employ it to become its slaves.
  • The royal symbol. Like King Arthur’s Excalibur, the ability to wield this item and awaken its powers indicates that the owner is some kind of chosen one. By taking possession of the item, the group embroils itself in a wider conflict to defend a kingdom, empire, or secret society.
  • The weapon of destiny. The item (which need not be a literal weapon) will turn the tide of a great war—if only the heroes can find it and use it correctly. As with the object to be destroyed, enemy pursuers complicate matters, trying to stop the item's arrival at the pivotal battle.
By making an item central to your storyline, you’re granting extra attention to the player whose character wields it. If you make an item usable only by one hero, find reasons for the other characters to also have a stake in the overall objective. You might give the item to a quiet or hard-to-motivate player to draw them into the story, while tying it into existing plot lines for PCs who have already established clear goals. Alternatively, use items that multiple PCs can make use of. Depending on the makeup of your group, a relic could grant one power to a fighter and another to a cleric.