Loot
Flavor Text, One of Life's Simple Pleasures
The elven adventurer waited with bated breath while the Lootmonger worked his magic. It was a simple Identification spell, she had seen it time and time before, but the excitement of learning the lore of newly acquired gear was something she could never get tired of.This time around it was a rather robust claymore she found in a Quest Tier dungeon, nearly three sizes too large in fact, with bright purple runes inscribed along the fuller of the blade, seemingly a mix of Fire and Water to form some Arcane-style effect.As the sword was bathed in the blue light of the many Arcane Circles forming beneath it, the wizard let out a stifled chuckle that broke the aura of mysticism he clearly tried so hard to maintain. She didn't really know what to expect after a reaction like that."Okay you're gonna laugh. This sword is called Claymost of Overkill. It has unique magical properties that take affect when you cleave through multiple enemies, but I'm gonna assume you could sniff that one out.""What about the flavor text?" she asked, still excited to learn its lore. The wizard struggled to contain his smile."The logical conclusion to the art of claying."Her ears drooped in bewilderment.
L
oot is what makes the world go round. Whether it's the usual weapons or armor, charms, trinkets and treasure, potions or spells or the spellbooks that contain said spells, it is an absolute staple of the adventuring career. For many it's the goal driving them into dungeons, for some it's just a nice bonus to go along with the adventure, but for all, it symbolizes some of the many highlights of one's story.
There's a lot more to loot than what most people think so this next bit is usually a surprise for budding adventurers. Even something as simple and mudane as a well-loved coffee mug can have its own name and lore specifically because it was well-loved. The reason behind it is simply unexplained magic, just another one of Oniran's quirks.
Loot Tells a Story
If you happen to come across something particularly special it's good practice to have the item Identified. For clarity, this is referring to the Identify spell. It's a simple spell that most can learn to cast themselves, but for those having a hard time with magic, many taverns and item shops provide loot identification as a service. You should note, however, that it's an Arcane-style spell, so it can only be cast through Wizardry.
What the spell actually does is simple. Identifying an item will reveal its name, a short description of what it is, a description of what it can do (an item being able to do something doesn't always mean it's magical, spell-like abilities are quite common), as well as its flavor text. The term "flavor text" actually originated from an old Elven saying that loosely means "stories are what gives life its flavor".
Everything has Lore
There are a few misconceptions when it comes to how loot works, so to make this as understandable as possible allow me to tell you a story.
Say you are an experienced adventurer wielding a sword you hold in high regard. Perhaps you had it custom made, or it was passed down to you, maybe you found it in your first dungeon, you might've even found it just 5 minutes ago but you're particularly fond of how it looks. You go on a great many adventures with this blade at your side. At this point you've probably given it a name as well. But one day your adventure, at least with that sword, comes to an end.
No matter how long it takes, someone will find that sword again. Should that someone want to know the sword's story, they need only identify it. They won't necessarily learn all of it, in fact, they'll probably end up with only a fraction of what it's been through, but the sword remembers.
Does that mean the sword was sentient? Not really. It's actually extremely rare that you'll find a sentient magic item. The world just has a way of recognizing an item's significance, insisting that its story be told. Even if that telling is not as . . . serious . . . as one would hope.
In some cases a particular item might be so significant or well-known that it becomes commonplace. This usually only applies to dungeons. The best example of this is the Dungeoneer's Gauntlet, which is so well known that its flavor text had been generalized and reduced to the basic description you see now.
That doesn't necessarily mean its story is lost forever, and I wish the best of luck to those wizards who believe themselves strong enough to peer that far into the past.
Compendiums
Various collections of items, most of them with lore, a good handful of them with game mechanics, and all of them with cool art. Expect this to be pretty empty for a while.
Rarities
Be not afraid, most of these break the 4th wall out of necessity. These descriptions came from my notes and what I've told my friends so I don't wanna change them lol.
Common
Basic gear and equipment. Stuff like longswords, chest plates, backpacks, daggers, trinkets, etc. Most currency-based treasure is classified as Common. Nothing magical.
Uncommon
If you're seeing these then you've probably been adventuring for a bit. The loot you find in dungeons, finely crafted or commissioned gear, simple magic items, etc. The most famous of these is the Dungeoneer's Gauntlet.
Rare
This is what adventurers talk about when they say they're loot hunting. A +1 flame sword is uncommon and a +3 flame sword that creates a wheel of fire around you is rare. When it comes to named loot that people talk or tell stories about this is the highest level of rarity.
Legendary (For D&D Purposes)
These are character specific items. Blade's Quill, Runefist Gauntlets, Skull's Bonecleaver, etc. Having them doesn't mean they gave it to you or that it's the same one, it just means you have an item that was specifically meant for one of my characters. Technically they would just be Rare if not for their design and lore. After all, Sting was just a knife until Bilbo named it.
Mythic
These items are integral to the lore of Oniran. The question isn't if you can get these items, the question is how you got these items and what damn near world changing event led to these items falling into your possession in the first place. If the stakes of your adventure rose to such an Infinity War lookin ass level where you acquire some shit like Sword of the Broken King then congratulations you were the main character of the entire world for however long your adventure lasted.
Bonus Lore
"You look like you drop common loot."- These are fighting words in Stonewood.
- This is what Loot Knight calls loot. He refuses to elaborate.
- This is what Loot Knight uses to refer to fashion he likes. Possibly related to his use of "Sauce". He refuses to elaborate.
Related Sauce
All the art is made by me unless labled otherwise!
Really interesting article! I like the details about rarities. Also, the artwork is so nice!
"If you look upon the stars, know that you look upon a light of the past."
Thanks so much!!!