So, here's an idea I was running through my head yesterday--the game could use a magic shop. No, no, not like the Portable Hole. I mean a place that you can buy basic gear like Bracers of Strength +3, that sort of thing. Here's how it would work:

  • The gear would be the most basic stuff imaginable. Just one single bonus on a piece of gear.
  • It would have its own color border to show that it was Store Gear. Perhaps black or gray.
  • It would have a (slightly) higher ML than loot of the equivalent level. Kind of like the opposite of masterful craftsmanship. Call it "mass produced".
  • It would be purchasable for platinum.
  • Each bonus would occur in one, and only one, slot. So, Dex would be boots only. Strength would be gloves only. Etc.
  • The best you could buy would be slightly less-good than what you could find on loot. So stat items would cap out at +5, say, and skill items at +13. (This is aimed toward heroic levels.)
  • It would be Bind to Character On Acquire.
  • You could not deconstruct it or otherwise use it for crafting.
  • No weapons or armor.
  • Perhaps have a method whereby you could add a single colorless slot to a piece.


So, why do this? Well, it'd make it easier for newbies to the game to get basic gear at a basic price. If you want to flesh it out a little more, make a couple of new low-level harbor quests that culminate in getting access to Ye Olde Magick Shoppe. Maybe the Coin Lords and Free Agents are squabbling over control of the store so it's temporarily closed down. Or possibly the Sharn Syndicate is involved. Having some kind of magic store is a staple of the genre.