• ArbitraryValue@sh.itjust.works
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    8 hours ago

    Because I hate fun, I assume that the people in a fantasy world aren’t all fools so if there’s an application of magic that seems obvious but isn’t already happening in the setting, there’s a good reason for that.

    • CileTheSane@lemmy.ca
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      4 hours ago

      There’s also the rule of “if you can do it, so can NPCs”. Even if your character has thought of something no one in the universe has thought of before, word will get around.

      • jagermo@feddit.org
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        4 hours ago

        I have it as: “cool idea, i’ll let you get away with it once. Start abusing it and all the NPCs start using it.” works pretty good.

    • owenfromcanada@lemmy.world
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      7 hours ago

      This is a good take, but it partly depends on the setting. Specifically, if these magic artifacts are fairly rare and valuable (even something meager like this ring), it’s entirely possible that people haven’t explored that kind of application of magic. It could also be viable if there are very few inventors/scholars in the setting.

      In any case, the conservation of mass thing another commenter mentioned would make this less viable, so you’re right on the money. That being said, laws of physics can be bent for rule-of-cool if that’s your table. Personally, if I were DMing it, I’d probably try to find a way to balance between realism and making their research process hilarious and/or dangerous, with the end result being them producing something useful but not gamebreaking (e.g., you can carry and deploy the cannonballs, but the gun doesn’t really fire them, but in combination with a method of flight, could still be awesome–or they apply this method with a large boulder and have that to work with instead).

    • nesc@lemmy.cafe
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      7 hours ago

      Sounds as if you play as most unimaginative character that does everything in a dullest way possible. What’s the point of playing tabletop then? I mean half of the fun of tabletop rpgs is exploring the possibilities and creativity (for me).