Equipment
There are certain categories of gear that any adventurer worth the designation is always on the lookout for – new magic swords, staves, or armors that will help them fight enemies more effectively, and flasks of various potions, oils, or miscellaneous unguents that provide a temporary magical boost in a pinch. Yet others scorn this reliance on material possessions, and choose to focus on personal power instead, sometimes coupled with a trusty set of mundane equipment, and other times sticking to their fists. This section provides resources for both kinds of characters.
Items and Characters
| Level | Item Type |
|---|---|
| 1 | Lesser item |
| 2 | |
| 3 | |
| 4 | Lesser item |
| 5 | Greater item |
| 6 | |
| 7 | Lesser item |
| 8 | Greater item |
| 9 | |
| 10 | Relic |
| 11 | Lesser item |
| 12 | |
| 13 | Greater item |
| 14 | Relic |
| 15 | |
| 16 | Greater item |
| 17 | Artifact |
| 18 | |
| 19 | Lesser item |
| 20 |
| Level | Item Type |
|---|---|
| 1 | 1st Circle ability |
| 2 | |
| 3 | |
| 4 | 2nd Circle ability |
| 5 | |
| 6 | Lesser item |
| 7 | 3rd Circle ability |
| 8 | |
| 9 | |
| 10 | 4th Circle ability |
| 11 | Greater item |
| 12 | |
| 13 | 5th Circle ability |
| 14 | |
| 15 | |
| 16 | 6th Circle ability |
| 17 | Relic |
| 18 | |
| 19 | 7th Circle ability |
| 20 |
The presence or absence of a "magic item economy" can be a divisive choice with regards to a game’s playstyle. In some games, treasure is behind every corner and can be bought in every marketplace. At the other end of the spectrum, characters may have to work for every MacGuffin and mystic bauble they use. To avoid this conflict, Legend eschews a concrete "economy" of items. Characters are entitled to a progression of magic items of increasing quantity and power over the course of their careers, but can also choose to give up this progression for Full Buy-In: a much slower item progression coupled with a fourth ability track.
These two options, illustrated in the tables, make various points on the spectrum of item management not only functional and equivalent but also fun and balanced. By choosing between a stronger item progression or Full Buy-In, a luxuriously-equipped holy knight can adventure alongside a barbarian who braves the wild with naught but his trusty club and bearskin. The same choice also allows players who would prefer to avoid micromanaging items to do so through Full Buy-In.
We strongly recommend the option of Full Buy-In for one-shots and rapid character generation, as it removes a lot of the worries and miscellaneous choices involved in selecting items. It also elegantly conveys the flavor of a Made Man, Samurai, Guild-Mage, or similar character archetype. The bonus track Full Buy-In provides can even be used to represent possession of a single powerful item that grows with its bearer over time.
With GM permission, characters who choose the Full Buy-In option may be able to change their chosen track. This should be a serious in-character ordeal, but should never be regarded as impossible for mechanical reasons. Despite this option, beyond one-offs or rapid generation, Full Buy-In is safest for advanced players with a clear idea of what they want and need.
Mundane Items
These are items that you might purchase with gold in most games. As we don't track gold at a mechanical level, nothing will break if you allow this to slip from the attention of your players and your game entirely. In general, these items represent a fairly limited subset of the things that an adventurer might care about in day to day life. Likewise, nothing will break if you want to run a gritty game where every arrow counts. Better still, you can run such a gritty game without fear of shattering the balance of the system. You may need to refluff magic items as blessings or guardian spirits, but such a thing can be done. This class of item is almost entirely decoupled from the rest, and has pretty minimal effects on the mechanics of the game.