Rune rings

[Spark]

I thought I'd ask what people think of this idea that just popped in my mind.

Rune ring. Literally a rune weapon condensed down to the size of a ring. So you are limited to just using it as a fist weapon, but you have full use of the spells. I though this would be a great idea for someone that would want to keep a powerful weapon discreetly. Now being that it is so some I can only image that you cannot have a blood drinker or really anything above a lesser rune. I think this because to have a Greater or more power level would give far too much to such a small item.

What would you think of allowing a player have a rune ring found or created in a campaign?

-Spark

[Glistam]

I not only think it's a reasonable idea, but I'm pretty sure Palladium agrees. I seem to recall there's at least one or two talked about in some of the Palladium Fantasy books (the Northern Wilderness ones, maybe?).

[Killer Cyborg]

Western Empires has a Dwarven Rune Ring.
Which indicates that there might be other types. Yes, it does it's damage when punching, IIRC.

[Razzinold]

I see no problem with Rune Rings, especially if the spells in them were kept to a reasonable level.

I could see the ring allowing you to punch harder, cast things like Globe of Daylight, Fingers of the Wind, etc.

Basically almost any spell were the range is touch and/or self and I would allow some that are not. Basing off that you could build yourself a TW Ring and do sort of the same thing. Go all "Manadarin style" and have multiple rings and each one casts a different spell.

[Zer0 Kay]

I could have sworn there was a set mentioned in Rifts. Unless it was just one of the CCG cards. As far as capability... who said size had anything to do with the capability of a rune weapon? That is like saying Daggers can only be lesser and Lances and polearms can only be greatest making swords, at max (minus the zweihander, nodachi and other 6 footers) greater rune weapons. Maybe it is based on quality or value of the base item. So a platinum ring encrusted with rare stones could potentially be more powerful than am the previously mentioned zwiehander made of steel.

Three Rings for the Elven-kings under the sky,
Seven for the Dwarf-lords in their halls of stone,
Nine for Mortal Men doomed to die,
One for the Dark Lord on his dark throne,
In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie,
One ring to rule them all, one ring to find them,
One ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them
In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie.

I would have originally called those greater with one greatest rune items, but after reading histories and stuff... Why the heck would anyone want to wear them. They grant little power, if any in the case of the dwarven rings. Worst magic rings ever. Most would come out to be regular magic rings in PB, so sad.

[Razzinold]

I could have sworn there was a set mentioned in Rifts. Unless it was just one of the CCG cards. As far as capability... who said size had anything to do with the capability of a rune weapon? That is like saying Daggers can only be lesser and Lances and polearms can only be greatest making swords, at max (minus the zweihander, nodachi and other 6 footers) greater rune weapons. Maybe it is based on quality or value of the base item. So a platinum ring encrusted with rare stones could potentially be more powerful than am the previously mentioned zwiehander made of steel.

Three Rings for the Elven-kings under the sky,
Seven for the Dwarf-lords in their halls of stone,
Nine for Mortal Men doomed to die,
One for the Dark Lord on his dark throne,
In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie,
One ring to rule them all, one ring to find them,
One ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them
In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie.

I would have originally called those greater with one greatest rune items, but after reading histories and stuff... Why the heck would anyone want to wear them. They grant little power, if any in the case of the dwarven rings. Worst magic rings ever. Most would come out to be regular magic rings in PB, so sad.

Nobody. I know I can't speak for anybody else who posted but I made it lesser based on game balance, not based on size. The player is fortunate enough to have a rune weapon to begin with, I'm not going to make it that easy for them though. Some ultimate powerful weapon in a nice little compact ring or pendant.

[Zer0 Kay]

I could have sworn there was a set mentioned in Rifts. Unless it was just one of the CCG cards. As far as capability... who said size had anything to do with the capability of a rune weapon? That is like saying Daggers can only be lesser and Lances and polearms can only be greatest making swords, at max (minus the zweihander, nodachi and other 6 footers) greater rune weapons. Maybe it is based on quality or value of the base item. So a platinum ring encrusted with rare stones could potentially be more powerful than am the previously mentioned zwiehander made of steel.

Three Rings for the Elven-kings under the sky,
Seven for the Dwarf-lords in their halls of stone,
Nine for Mortal Men doomed to die,
One for the Dark Lord on his dark throne,
In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie,
One ring to rule them all, one ring to find them,
One ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them
In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie.

I would have originally called those greater with one greatest rune items, but after reading histories and stuff... Why the heck would anyone want to wear them. They grant little power, if any in the case of the dwarven rings. Worst magic rings ever. Most would come out to be regular magic rings in PB, so sad.

Nobody. I know I can't speak for anybody else who posted but I made it lesser based on game balance, not based on size. The player is fortunate enough to have a rune weapon to begin with, I'm not going to make it that easy for them though. Some ultimate powerful weapon in a nice little compact ring or pendant.

That is completely reasonable then

[Subjugator]

I don't link rune efficacy with size. I'd relate it to how it was made.

[Zer0 Kay]

I don't link rune efficacy with size. I'd relate it to how it was made.

Or the skill of who made it. I really don't think quality of the base item matters much either, seeing as there was the amber sword of doubling from the old Tombs of Gerseidi adventure. Which made it, in a different form into the Library of Bletherad. Iirc the original was a wooden sword.

[eliakon]

There are several Rune Rings mentioned (several by name) in both Nimiro, both Land of the Damned books, and IIRC in Hades and Dyval.
So I would say that there is plenty of precedent for Rune Magic Rings.

[Shark_Force]

Three Rings for the Elven-kings under the sky,
Seven for the Dwarf-lords in their halls of stone,
Nine for Mortal Men doomed to die,
One for the Dark Lord on his dark throne,
In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie,
One ring to rule them all, one ring to find them,
One ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them
In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie.

I would have originally called those greater with one greatest rune items, but after reading histories and stuff... Why the heck would anyone want to wear them. They grant little power, if any in the case of the dwarven rings. Worst magic rings ever. Most would come out to be regular magic rings in PB, so sad.

the 9 rings iirc each basically grant invisibility for an indefinite duration among other possible uses. the ring that gandalf wears is the reason he's amazing at using fire. the ring that galadriel wears is associated with the elves of lothlorien being able to make all sorts of cool stuff; the cloaks, the ropes, their entire awesome forest of awesomeness, etc.

their abilities may not necessarily be clearly defined for us, but the rings do indeed do some pretty impressive stuff.

[Zer0 Kay]

Three Rings for the Elven-kings under the sky,
Seven for the Dwarf-lords in their halls of stone,
Nine for Mortal Men doomed to die,
One for the Dark Lord on his dark throne,
In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie,
One ring to rule them all, one ring to find them,
One ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them
In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie.

I would have originally called those greater with one greatest rune items, but after reading histories and stuff... Why the heck would anyone want to wear them. They grant little power, if any in the case of the dwarven rings. Worst magic rings ever. Most would come out to be regular magic rings in PB, so sad.

the 9 rings iirc each basically grant invisibility for an indefinite duration among other possible uses. the ring that gandalf wears is the reason he's amazing at using fire. the ring that galadriel wears is associated with the elves of lothlorien being able to make all sorts of cool stuff; the cloaks, the ropes, their entire awesome forest of awesomeness, etc.

their abilities may not necessarily be clearly defined for us, but the rings do indeed do some pretty impressive stuff.

The 9 for men make them invisible and subceptable to saurouns control even without the ring.
3 for the elves are the most powerful
The seven for the dwarves has been said that they need gold to create gold, but it's only notable power is to increase the dwarves greed, but doesn't make them particularly controllable.
I'd argue being a lesser Ainur or Maia should already have great control of all magic.

[glitterboy2098]

the rings of power were immensely powerful in the context of the world they are in.

the three elvish rings each had complete control over an element (fire, air, and water, though evidently not exclusively), amplified the bearers own power of craft immensely in the realm of healing, extended life and vitality, and cloaked the wearer from magical spying/remote view. (which is why Sauron never figured out where the 3 elvish rings were.. they had not been made by him, and so were immune from his remote control and corruption, but the power within them came from magics he created and thus were tied to the one ring) the three elvish rings were created to help the elves do their divine task.. to be caretakers of the world until illuvitar's chosen (man) could take over. to this end the rings grant powers akin to the Valar over specific areas.. but middle earth is a world where flashy displays do little, and subtle actions do much. especially when you have suron 'the deceiver' lusting after the power of those rings, and desiring to take them from their hidden bearers.

the 7 dwarvish rings.. we don't have hard info on these, but we know from Tolkiens notes that they extend life and vitality at minimum. since dwarves are mortal, this would have been a big deal on its own. it is also said that the rings began the dwarven kings treasure hoards.. suggesting that whatever powers they had, they dealt with crafting, finding valuables, or the like. the dwarven rings did not have much corruptive effect.. evidently dwarves were more resistant to sauron's corruption, especially since the 7 in question were the great dwarven lords, descendants of those created directly by Aulë's hands.

the 9 rings of men extended life and vitality (men have the shortest lifespans, having received in full illuvitars 'gift of mortality'), and beyond that we don't know but from what we do know, they could make the wearers invisible, and granted magical craft to those without it (the bearers all became powerful sorcerors), though the details as to specifics are not given. men were easily corrupted by sauron's influence (this was true even before the rings of power, the rings just sped things along), which is why the bearers faded to become wraiths and suaron's servants, directly tied to his power.

the one ring was created in the image of the many lesser rings created by the elves.. simple metal bands, with no decoration or gemstones. these lesser rings all had different, albeit weaker, magic.. generally over specific areas, according to tolkiens notes about them. they all had the corruptive effect on the wearer (thus gandalf's warnings to bilbo and frodo about using them) and sauron captured many of them to give to his servants. the fact the one ring resembled a lesser ring, and did not grant much more than invisibility and vitality to the bearer was why it took gandalf so long to figure out what bilbo had found.. the real power of the one ring could only be used by sauron alone.

[Zer0 Kay]

the rings of power were immensely powerful in the context of the world they are in.

the three elvish rings each had complete control over an element (fire, air, and water, though evidently not exclusively), amplified the bearers own power of craft immensely in the realm of healing, extended life and vitality, and cloaked the wearer from magical spying/remote view. (which is why Sauron never figured out where the 3 elvish rings were.. they had not been made by him, and so were immune from his remote control and corruption, but the power within them came from magics he created and thus were tied to the one ring) the three elvish rings were created to help the elves do their divine task.. to be caretakers of the world until illuvitar's chosen (man) could take over. to this end the rings grant powers akin to the Valar over specific areas.. but middle earth is a world where flashy displays do little, and subtle actions do much. especially when you have suron 'the deceiver' lusting after the power of those rings, and desiring to take them from their hidden bearers.

the 7 dwarvish rings.. we don't have hard info on these, but we know from Tolkiens notes that they extend life and vitality at minimum. since dwarves are mortal, this would have been a big deal on its own. it is also said that the rings began the dwarven kings treasure hoards.. suggesting that whatever powers they had, they dealt with crafting, finding valuables, or the like. the dwarven rings did not have much corruptive effect.. evidently dwarves were more resistant to sauron's corruption, especially since the 7 in question were the great dwarven lords, descendants of those created directly by Aulë's hands.

the 9 rings of men extended life and vitality (men have the shortest lifespans, having received in full illuvitars 'gift of mortality'), and beyond that we don't know but from what we do know, they could make the wearers invisible, and granted magical craft to those without it (the bearers all became powerful sorcerors), though the details as to specifics are not given. men were easily corrupted by sauron's influence (this was true even before the rings of power, the rings just sped things along), which is why the bearers faded to become wraiths and suaron's servants, directly tied to his power.

the one ring was created in the image of the many lesser rings created by the elves.. simple metal bands, with no decoration or gemstones. these lesser rings all had different, albeit weaker, magic.. generally over specific areas, according to tolkiens notes about them. they all had the corruptive effect on the wearer (thus gandalf's warnings to bilbo and frodo about using them) and sauron captured many of them to give to his servants. the fact the one ring resembled a lesser ring, and did not grant much more than invisibility and vitality to the bearer was why it took gandalf so long to figure out what bilbo had found.. the real power of the one ring could only be used by sauron alone.

Even the Ainur and Maia don't seem to be as impressive as other deity level beings from other mythologies. Possibly to enhance the importance of the action of mortals upon the world, eh?

[eliakon]

the rings of power were immensely powerful in the context of the world they are in.

the three elvish rings each had complete control over an element (fire, air, and water, though evidently not exclusively), amplified the bearers own power of craft immensely in the realm of healing, extended life and vitality, and cloaked the wearer from magical spying/remote view. (which is why Sauron never figured out where the 3 elvish rings were.. they had not been made by him, and so were immune from his remote control and corruption, but the power within them came from magics he created and thus were tied to the one ring) the three elvish rings were created to help the elves do their divine task.. to be caretakers of the world until illuvitar's chosen (man) could take over. to this end the rings grant powers akin to the Valar over specific areas.. but middle earth is a world where flashy displays do little, and subtle actions do much. especially when you have suron 'the deceiver' lusting after the power of those rings, and desiring to take them from their hidden bearers.

the 7 dwarvish rings.. we don't have hard info on these, but we know from Tolkiens notes that they extend life and vitality at minimum. since dwarves are mortal, this would have been a big deal on its own. it is also said that the rings began the dwarven kings treasure hoards.. suggesting that whatever powers they had, they dealt with crafting, finding valuables, or the like. the dwarven rings did not have much corruptive effect.. evidently dwarves were more resistant to sauron's corruption, especially since the 7 in question were the great dwarven lords, descendants of those created directly by Aulë's hands.

the 9 rings of men extended life and vitality (men have the shortest lifespans, having received in full illuvitars 'gift of mortality'), and beyond that we don't know but from what we do know, they could make the wearers invisible, and granted magical craft to those without it (the bearers all became powerful sorcerors), though the details as to specifics are not given. men were easily corrupted by sauron's influence (this was true even before the rings of power, the rings just sped things along), which is why the bearers faded to become wraiths and suaron's servants, directly tied to his power.

the one ring was created in the image of the many lesser rings created by the elves.. simple metal bands, with no decoration or gemstones. these lesser rings all had different, albeit weaker, magic.. generally over specific areas, according to tolkiens notes about them. they all had the corruptive effect on the wearer (thus gandalf's warnings to bilbo and frodo about using them) and sauron captured many of them to give to his servants. the fact the one ring resembled a lesser ring, and did not grant much more than invisibility and vitality to the bearer was why it took gandalf so long to figure out what bilbo had found.. the real power of the one ring could only be used by sauron alone.

Even the Ainur and Maia don't seem to be as impressive as other deity level beings from other mythologies. Possibly to enhance the importance of the action of mortals upon the world, eh?

Probably because they aren't supposed to be deities......

[Zer0 Kay]

the rings of power were immensely powerful in the context of the world they are in.

the three elvish rings each had complete control over an element (fire, air, and water, though evidently not exclusively), amplified the bearers own power of craft immensely in the realm of healing, extended life and vitality, and cloaked the wearer from magical spying/remote view. (which is why Sauron never figured out where the 3 elvish rings were.. they had not been made by him, and so were immune from his remote control and corruption, but the power within them came from magics he created and thus were tied to the one ring) the three elvish rings were created to help the elves do their divine task.. to be caretakers of the world until illuvitar's chosen (man) could take over. to this end the rings grant powers akin to the Valar over specific areas.. but middle earth is a world where flashy displays do little, and subtle actions do much. especially when you have suron 'the deceiver' lusting after the power of those rings, and desiring to take them from their hidden bearers.

the 7 dwarvish rings.. we don't have hard info on these, but we know from Tolkiens notes that they extend life and vitality at minimum. since dwarves are mortal, this would have been a big deal on its own. it is also said that the rings began the dwarven kings treasure hoards.. suggesting that whatever powers they had, they dealt with crafting, finding valuables, or the like. the dwarven rings did not have much corruptive effect.. evidently dwarves were more resistant to sauron's corruption, especially since the 7 in question were the great dwarven lords, descendants of those created directly by Aulë's hands.

the 9 rings of men extended life and vitality (men have the shortest lifespans, having received in full illuvitars 'gift of mortality'), and beyond that we don't know but from what we do know, they could make the wearers invisible, and granted magical craft to those without it (the bearers all became powerful sorcerors), though the details as to specifics are not given. men were easily corrupted by sauron's influence (this was true even before the rings of power, the rings just sped things along), which is why the bearers faded to become wraiths and suaron's servants, directly tied to his power.

the one ring was created in the image of the many lesser rings created by the elves.. simple metal bands, with no decoration or gemstones. these lesser rings all had different, albeit weaker, magic.. generally over specific areas, according to tolkiens notes about them. they all had the corruptive effect on the wearer (thus gandalf's warnings to bilbo and frodo about using them) and sauron captured many of them to give to his servants. the fact the one ring resembled a lesser ring, and did not grant much more than invisibility and vitality to the bearer was why it took gandalf so long to figure out what bilbo had found.. the real power of the one ring could only be used by sauron alone.

Even the Ainur and Maia don't seem to be as impressive as other deity level beings from other mythologies. Possibly to enhance the importance of the action of mortals upon the world, eh?

Probably because they aren't supposed to be deities......

Well I guess the Maia have been more closely compared to Angels than gods. Even then, less powerful.

[glitterboy2098]

well, the Valar could completely reshape the planet on a whim, so i'd say they were very powerful. (maiar are however nowhere near as powerful, being basically lesser 'angels', where the valar are 'greater angels' turned deities.)

still, they seem to have restrained themselves once the world was shaped, and we get a lot of 'telling, not showing' about their power, so it is hard to comprehend how powerful they actually are in tolkien's works.. Tolkien was writing in a very anglo-saxon style, so grand acts of power are generally implied instead of described, and the actions of the Valar are generally left bereft of details, reduced mainly to "so and so went here and did this". as elves and men began to play a bigger role in the shaping of the world, the Valar and maiar kind of fade into the background.

[Subjugator]

Three Rings for the Elven-kings under the sky,
Seven for the Dwarf-lords in their halls of stone,
Nine for Mortal Men doomed to die,
One for the Dark Lord on his dark throne,
In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie,
One ring to rule them all, one ring to find them,
One ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them
In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie.

I would have originally called those greater with one greatest rune items, but after reading histories and stuff... Why the heck would anyone want to wear them. They grant little power, if any in the case of the dwarven rings. Worst magic rings ever. Most would come out to be regular magic rings in PB, so sad.

the 9 rings iirc each basically grant invisibility for an indefinite duration among other possible uses. the ring that gandalf wears is the reason he's amazing at using fire. the ring that galadriel wears is associated with the elves of lothlorien being able to make all sorts of cool stuff; the cloaks, the ropes, their entire awesome forest of awesomeness, etc.

their abilities may not necessarily be clearly defined for us, but the rings do indeed do some pretty impressive stuff.

The dwarfs rings were awesome...kinda. I think their side effects were things like avariciousness and such, but the reasons the dwarfs didn't show 'em is because they were destroyed.

/Sub

[Zer0 Kay]

Three Rings for the Elven-kings under the sky,
Seven for the Dwarf-lords in their halls of stone,
Nine for Mortal Men doomed to die,
One for the Dark Lord on his dark throne,
In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie,
One ring to rule them all, one ring to find them,
One ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them
In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie.

I would have originally called those greater with one greatest rune items, but after reading histories and stuff... Why the heck would anyone want to wear them. They grant little power, if any in the case of the dwarven rings. Worst magic rings ever. Most would come out to be regular magic rings in PB, so sad.

the 9 rings iirc each basically grant invisibility for an indefinite duration among other possible uses. the ring that gandalf wears is the reason he's amazing at using fire. the ring that galadriel wears is associated with the elves of lothlorien being able to make all sorts of cool stuff; the cloaks, the ropes, their entire awesome forest of awesomeness, etc.

their abilities may not necessarily be clearly defined for us, but the rings do indeed do some pretty impressive stuff.

The dwarfs rings were awesome...kinda. I think their side effects were things like avariciousness and such, but the reasons the dwarfs didn't show 'em is because they were destroyed.

/Sub

Incorrect, three remain in the possession of Sauron.

[Razzinold]

I could have sworn there was a set mentioned in Rifts. Unless it was just one of the CCG cards. As far as capability... who said size had anything to do with the capability of a rune weapon? That is like saying Daggers can only be lesser and Lances and polearms can only be greatest making swords, at max (minus the zweihander, nodachi and other 6 footers) greater rune weapons. Maybe it is based on quality or value of the base item. So a platinum ring encrusted with rare stones could potentially be more powerful than am the previously mentioned zwiehander made of steel.

Three Rings for the Elven-kings under the sky,
Seven for the Dwarf-lords in their halls of stone,
Nine for Mortal Men doomed to die,
One for the Dark Lord on his dark throne,
In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie,
One ring to rule them all, one ring to find them,
One ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them
In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie.

I would have originally called those greater with one greatest rune items, but after reading histories and stuff... Why the heck would anyone want to wear them. They grant little power, if any in the case of the dwarven rings. Worst magic rings ever. Most would come out to be regular magic rings in PB, so sad.

Nobody. I know I can't speak for anybody else who posted but I made it lesser based on game balance, not based on size. The player is fortunate enough to have a rune weapon to begin with, I'm not going to make it that easy for them though. Some ultimate powerful weapon in a nice little compact ring or pendant.

That is completely reasonable then

Thanks.

I'm not saying I would never allow it in my game, but it would have to be some epic awesome quest to obtain it, nothing as simple as you made it or bought it.

This would kind of be a one of kind mighty ring or power so you would have to travel through Hades and back, possibly quite literally that , to get it.

[Zer0 Kay]

I could have sworn there was a set mentioned in Rifts. Unless it was just one of the CCG cards. As far as capability... who said size had anything to do with the capability of a rune weapon? That is like saying Daggers can only be lesser and Lances and polearms can only be greatest making swords, at max (minus the zweihander, nodachi and other 6 footers) greater rune weapons. Maybe it is based on quality or value of the base item. So a platinum ring encrusted with rare stones could potentially be more powerful than am the previously mentioned zwiehander made of steel.

Three Rings for the Elven-kings under the sky,
Seven for the Dwarf-lords in their halls of stone,
Nine for Mortal Men doomed to die,
One for the Dark Lord on his dark throne,
In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie,
One ring to rule them all, one ring to find them,
One ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them
In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie.

I would have originally called those greater with one greatest rune items, but after reading histories and stuff... Why the heck would anyone want to wear them. They grant little power, if any in the case of the dwarven rings. Worst magic rings ever. Most would come out to be regular magic rings in PB, so sad.

Nobody. I know I can't speak for anybody else who posted but I made it lesser based on game balance, not based on size. The player is fortunate enough to have a rune weapon to begin with, I'm not going to make it that easy for them though. Some ultimate powerful weapon in a nice little compact ring or pendant.

That is completely reasonable then

Thanks.

I'm not saying I would never allow it in my game, but it would have to be some epic awesome quest to obtain it, nothing as simple as you made it or bought it.

This would kind of be a one of kind mighty ring or power so you would have to travel through Hades and back, possibly quite literally that , to get it.

It is funny how the gold from one quest used to buy a time weapon just seems to cheapen it, compared to the value a player puts in to an item the closer their character came to death and the harder they had to think.

To test the theory allow them to buy a greater rune weapon and then almost kill them for a basic rune weapon but make sure they have to really work for it. Add extra frosting on it and make it some great warlord they had to kill to stop bin from conquering xyz. Now you've changed it from an achievement into a trophy even if there is a billion copies of the ring, THIS one was used by Warlord Cheiftan Pastor Reverend Doctor General ABC!

[Razzinold]

I could have sworn there was a set mentioned in Rifts. Unless it was just one of the CCG cards. As far as capability... who said size had anything to do with the capability of a rune weapon? That is like saying Daggers can only be lesser and Lances and polearms can only be greatest making swords, at max (minus the zweihander, nodachi and other 6 footers) greater rune weapons. Maybe it is based on quality or value of the base item. So a platinum ring encrusted with rare stones could potentially be more powerful than am the previously mentioned zwiehander made of steel.

Three Rings for the Elven-kings under the sky,
Seven for the Dwarf-lords in their halls of stone,
Nine for Mortal Men doomed to die,
One for the Dark Lord on his dark throne,
In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie,
One ring to rule them all, one ring to find them,
One ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them
In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie.

I would have originally called those greater with one greatest rune items, but after reading histories and stuff... Why the heck would anyone want to wear them. They grant little power, if any in the case of the dwarven rings. Worst magic rings ever. Most would come out to be regular magic rings in PB, so sad.

Nobody. I know I can't speak for anybody else who posted but I made it lesser based on game balance, not based on size. The player is fortunate enough to have a rune weapon to begin with, I'm not going to make it that easy for them though. Some ultimate powerful weapon in a nice little compact ring or pendant.

That is completely reasonable then

Thanks.

I'm not saying I would never allow it in my game, but it would have to be some epic awesome quest to obtain it, nothing as simple as you made it or bought it.

This would kind of be a one of kind mighty ring or power so you would have to travel through Hades and back, possibly quite literally that , to get it.

It is funny how the gold from one quest used to buy a time weapon just seems to cheapen it, compared to the value a player puts in to an item the closer their character came to death and the harder they had to think.

To test the theory allow them to buy a greater rune weapon and then almost kill them for a basic rune weapon but make sure they have to really work for it. Add extra frosting on it and make it some great warlord they had to kill to stop bin from conquering xyz. Now you've changed it from an achievement into a trophy even if there is a billion copies of the ring, THIS one was used by Warlord Cheiftan Pastor Reverend Doctor General ABC!

Back in the day we loved earning quest rewards way more than just earning credits. Don't get me wrong credits are good, you need them to live (or have stuff to barter with), but like you said it can cheapen it a bit.

Working for money makes you more of a merc, or a "lady of the night", than an adventurer and not everyone wants to be a merc. I know in our group we always liked the spoils from the adventure better than any payday.

Whenever our GM would have some cool, relic, scroll, weapon, etc. to be found at the end of the quest it was always something unique/cool. It may not have always been the most powerful thing in the world, but something cool and useful/suited to your character which made it more powerful than if it was used by anyone else.

The only time I liked credits over loot is when we were saving for something big, like group transport or something like that.

[glitterboy2098]

the rings of power were immensely powerful in the context of the world they are in.

the three elvish rings each had complete control over an element (fire, air, and water, though evidently not exclusively), amplified the bearers own power of craft immensely in the realm of healing, extended life and vitality, and cloaked the wearer from magical spying/remote view. (which is why Sauron never figured out where the 3 elvish rings were.. they had not been made by him, and so were immune from his remote control and corruption, but the power within them came from magics he created and thus were tied to the one ring) the three elvish rings were created to help the elves do their divine task.. to be caretakers of the world until illuvitar's chosen (man) could take over. to this end the rings grant powers akin to the Valar over specific areas.. but middle earth is a world where flashy displays do little, and subtle actions do much. especially when you have suron 'the deceiver' lusting after the power of those rings, and desiring to take them from their hidden bearers.

the 7 dwarvish rings.. we don't have hard info on these, but we know from Tolkiens notes that they extend life and vitality at minimum. since dwarves are mortal, this would have been a big deal on its own. it is also said that the rings began the dwarven kings treasure hoards.. suggesting that whatever powers they had, they dealt with crafting, finding valuables, or the like. the dwarven rings did not have much corruptive effect.. evidently dwarves were more resistant to sauron's corruption, especially since the 7 in question were the great dwarven lords, descendants of those created directly by Aulë's hands.

the 9 rings of men extended life and vitality (men have the shortest lifespans, having received in full illuvitars 'gift of mortality'), and beyond that we don't know but from what we do know, they could make the wearers invisible, and granted magical craft to those without it (the bearers all became powerful sorcerors), though the details as to specifics are not given. men were easily corrupted by sauron's influence (this was true even before the rings of power, the rings just sped things along), which is why the bearers faded to become wraiths and suaron's servants, directly tied to his power.

the one ring was created in the image of the many lesser rings created by the elves.. simple metal bands, with no decoration or gemstones. these lesser rings all had different, albeit weaker, magic.. generally over specific areas, according to tolkiens notes about them. they all had the corruptive effect on the wearer (thus gandalf's warnings to bilbo and frodo about using them) and sauron captured many of them to give to his servants. the fact the one ring resembled a lesser ring, and did not grant much more than invisibility and vitality to the bearer was why it took gandalf so long to figure out what bilbo had found.. the real power of the one ring could only be used by sauron alone.

Even the Ainur and Maia don't seem to be as impressive as other deity level beings from other mythologies. Possibly to enhance the importance of the action of mortals upon the world, eh?

to a degree (see my post above)

also though because of the philosophy of the things.. there is a long running trend in tolkiens work. the forces of evil are really more forces of discord. while the forces of good are more forces of harmony. this can be seen in the very shaping of Arda.. illuvitar sang the world (and all of time) into existence, with the valar and maiar contributing their own themes in harmony. except for melkor/morgoth, and those closest to him, who desired a stronger say and who sang a different song in discord with illuvitar, although illuvitar and the rest attempted to work Melkor's discord into their harmony. later, melkor would use his power, and those of his Maiar allies, to disrupt the shaping of the world by the Valar, Maiar, and later elves. by twisting the creations into forms discordant with the goals of the Valar, and destroying things which the valar shaped. the valar in turn changed their plans and shapings to incorporate the results of this discord into new harmony. (case in point, the creation of sun and moon to replace the great tree's of valinor.)
this was one of the reasons the Valar were so reluctant to truely stand against melkor/morgoth in the first place, and why it took a heroic sacrifice to get them to intervene against him. even though morgoth was poised to destroy all of illuvitar's creations, to fight a Valar, one of their own, would disrupt the harmony they sought for themselves. in the later ages you see much the same thing. the elves and those men of the west who listened sought harmony with themselves, others, and the world.. and when they fell it was because of discord.. political, social, and spiritual.

magic in tolkien's works tends to follow a similar theme. good 'magic' (more properly called 'craft', as per the elves) is basically knowledge of the nature world used to shape things into a more harmonous fashion. while bad magic "usually called sorcery in the books) is using that same knowledge towards ends that ultimately cause discord as a result of their use. though this is over simplifying quite a bit..

[Zer0 Kay]

Nobody. I know I can't speak for anybody else who posted but I made it lesser based on game balance, not based on size. The player is fortunate enough to have a rune weapon to begin with, I'm not going to make it that easy for them though. Some ultimate powerful weapon in a nice little compact ring or pendant.

That is completely reasonable then

Thanks.

I'm not saying I would never allow it in my game, but it would have to be some epic awesome quest to obtain it, nothing as simple as you made it or bought it.

This would kind of be a one of kind mighty ring or power so you would have to travel through Hades and back, possibly quite literally that , to get it.

It is funny how the gold from one quest used to buy a time weapon just seems to cheapen it, compared to the value a player puts in to an item the closer their character came to death and the harder they had to think.

To test the theory allow them to buy a greater rune weapon and then almost kill them for a basic rune weapon but make sure they have to really work for it. Add extra frosting on it and make it some great warlord they had to kill to stop bin from conquering xyz. Now you've changed it from an achievement into a trophy even if there is a billion copies of the ring, THIS one was used by Warlord Cheiftan Pastor Reverend Doctor General ABC!

Back in the day we loved earning quest rewards way more than just earning credits. Don't get me wrong credits are good, you need them to live (or have stuff to barter with), but like you said it can cheapen it a bit.

Working for money makes you more of a merc, or a "lady of the night", than an adventurer and not everyone wants to be a merc. I know in our group we always liked the spoils from the adventure better than any payday.

Whenever our GM would have some cool, relic, scroll, weapon, etc. to be found at the end of the quest it was always something unique/cool. It may not have always been the most powerful thing in the world, but something cool and useful/suited to your character which made it more powerful than if it was used by anyone else.

The only time I liked credits over loot is when we were saving for something big, like group transport or something like that.

I think one of the important jobs of a GM, in making an awesome game, is to not so much play to the players desires but to drive the players to show what their characters are really capable of so in the end everyone can take pride in what was accomplished. Because of this philosophy I don't think a hack and slash player will end up having as good a game as a role-player.

[Razzinold]

I think one of the important jobs of a GM, in making an awesome game, is to not so much play to the players desires but to drive the players to show what their characters are really capable of so in the end everyone can take pride in what was accomplished. Because of this philosophy I don't think a hack and slash player will end up having as good a game as a role-player.

Agreed. There were nights where we either didn't roll any combat dice at all, or only once or twice, and they were some of our best sessions. My old GM and myself both loved to read and write fiction so between the two of us we weaved an amazing tale of adventurer. He would come up with these creative ideas to push us and I would push him right back with outlandish ideas of my own.

Our other player(s) were more in to combat and a little shy about the role playing part but they made comments like "watching the two of you guys interact is like watching a movie". We both took great pride in that. Not only did we have a great time but everyone involved in the campaign had a great time and was entertained.

Those sessions were so much fun that we would talk about them all day at work the next day, and our co workers thought we were nuts because they were all in their 30's and 40's and we were like 17 at the time (well except the dude who was into comic books, we actually got him to roll up a character) and none of them had ever gamed before. Years later we still talked about the second campaign he ran for us, he ran a number of them over the years but nothing could ever capture the magic and scope of that second one again.

[kaid]

I not only think it's a reasonable idea, but I'm pretty sure Palladium agrees. I seem to recall there's at least one or two talked about in some of the Palladium Fantasy books (the Northern Wilderness ones, maybe?).

I believe you are correct and there are some examples from nightbane as well of things like rings or even just orbs and other really non traditional type of rune weapons.

[kaid]

On the Tolkien rings one thing to note is their powers were in a lot of ways dependent on the wielder. The more powerful the wielder the more powerful the rings abilities. This is why frodo and bilbo were able to handle the most powerful ring of the bunch so long. The rings in many ways were amplifiers of the innate abilities of the wielders like for galadriel she used her ring mostly to enhance her own magics. The full abilities of the rings though are never really stated clearly because most magic in Tolkiens books happens off stage and of subtle nature.

Even the least of the rings the 9 rings of human kings wound up granting their weilders immortality, enhanced magic capability as well as a number of other pretty impressive things. The downside of the fine print bit them in the ass but the rings gave them exactly what they asked for.

[Tor]

I don't know if the LotR set would qualify as rune if some wussy volcano could destroy them, unless that was one big Scathach cauldron.

[eliakon]

I don't know if the LotR set would qualify as rune if some wussy volcano could destroy them, unless that was one big Scathach cauldron.

I would say that "nothing in all the wide world, up to and including the direct actions of the servants of the gods can harm it save, that it is returned to the fire from which it was forged" is a pretty good definition of functionally indestructible.
In fact it would be even MORE impressive than most Rifts 'indestructible' items since no wussy cauldron is going to do more than just make the writing visible....

[Subjugator]

I don't know if the LotR set would qualify as rune if some wussy volcano could destroy them, unless that was one big Scathach cauldron.

I would say that "nothing in all the wide world, up to and including the direct actions of the servants of the gods can harm it save, that it is returned to the fire from which it was forged" is a pretty good definition of functionally indestructible.
In fact it would be even MORE impressive than most Rifts 'indestructible' items since no wussy cauldron is going to do more than just make the writing visible....

Yeah - given that an actual angel* feared to mess with it, I'd call at at LEAST as powerful as a rune item.

/Sub

*Per Tolkien's writings, the Maiar were actually angels, as described by the Roman Catholic Church.