The Bazaar FAQ (old)

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Q: Can I invent my own materials with special characteristics?

A: Yes.

Just be sure you explain what it is you want to the moderator. Don't have your character walk in and request an item decorated with the antenna of a Mixowickian Blunderbee without also providing what, exactly, you expect that addition to do.

As with exceptionally high-quality items with many enchantments or additions, requesting materials that might be considered "special" will fall into the usual category. If you think your special material might be too powerful, you can always consult a moderator. A good rule of thumb would be to look over the current descriptions for the canonized special materials. If what you've come up with matches those materials in strength, you might consider redesigning your material or going on a quest to find it.

There is also a submission thread for special materials. If you've come up with something that you'd like to see on Althanas, feel free to post it in the submissions thread. Even better, go on a quest to find that material! In the near future, we will come up with a list of "additional materials" made up from player suggestions. These materials won't be added to the "Canon" lists, but will be fitted into our pricing structures and will become available for sale. Players will be credited for their creations, so don't worry about us moderators stealing your ideas!

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Q: Why are technological items so expensive?

A: Althanas, as an interactive world that strives to maintain certain continuities, is placed in a specific time frame. In this world, for example, the best technology is created by the elves on the continent of Alerar, yet still does not advance far beyond early rifles and certain types of steam-magic engines.

Since Alerar keeps its main secrets safe and tries to hoard guns, and since no other gun tech is readily available on Althanas, gun technology tends to be expensive. However, we've tried to make a world that is rough enough around the edges to permit some fudging. The "porous borders" of the Althanas universe, in which some characters have stumbled through strange dimensional rifts to enter from all over any number of worlds, means that from time to time strange objects may enter as well.

However, these objects are bound to be rare, and therefore expensive. Furthermore, the likelihood of an advanced gun just slipping through these strange portals -- along with precisely matching bullets, too! -- means that for the most part we treat high-end gun technology the same way we do special materials. Not only do you need a good IC justification for a thread in which you acquire one, but you also need a good score. (See question 9 for more information!)

Therefore, guns and other gadgets -- such as electronics -- are not banned. But Althanas does revolve around certain motifs, ranging from Low Tech High Fantasy to Middle Tech Low Fantasy. We don't ban guns, but we do try to price them in such a way as to reflect In-Character realities.

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Q: Can I have my possessions enchanted here, or purchase enchanted items?

A: Sure thing, but it could cost you!

You can choose to have items enchanted in a variety of ways, and the price will vary according primarily to the power of the enchantment, the length of the enchantment, and the type of enchantment.

Prices will be highest for powerful, permanent enchantments that are useful in battle. Enchantments geared more towards questing or story-writing in non-competitive settings will be a little less pricey, and weak or short-lasting enchantments will be equally cheap.

You can also choose to enchant in a variety of ways. In the past, people have come into the Bazaar with an item, and left with it enchanted. But they've also done it differently; I walked out of the Bazaar once with a magical rune that I could affix to the blade of my sword to produce a certain effect. This latter sort of enchantment might be a bit reduced in price, as it would be a one-time use item that offered a brief and temporary boost only useful in a single thread.

Above all, feel free to use your imagination. Extremely powerful enchantments may be turned down as a matter of course, but don't hesitate to ask a moderator if you have an idea for an enchantment you might like to purchase.

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Q: Is there a list with all the materials ranked in order of strength?

Since we have recently changed up the tier system, comprehensive listings of strength are not currently available. We are, however, working on a list that will include all types of items, from glass to bone, and will have this available soon. In addition, we hope to produce similar lists for relative material weights, flexibilities, enchanting potential, magic resistance, breaking potential, and a variety of other lists you can use as you consider the benefits of materials against one another.

When these lists are complete, however, we encourage you to try to select materials that fit your character. A lithe fencer would not use dehlar for armor or weaponry. Similarly, a muscle-bound warrior would probably not use only cloth armor. Of course, there can be exceptions to any rule! Just be sure that you pick your items and materials in terms of your character, not just in terms of what's most expensive or what is listed as the "strongest." It is more honorable to wear light, inexpensive leather that suits your character than an expensive adamantine chainmail that is out-of-place.

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Q: My opponent has a oak shield and I have a mythril sword. But she's not playing fair! How is she blocking my blows?

A: At the end of the day, it's not your equipment that matters. It's how you use it.

There are plenty of things that go into how materials interact with one another. A powerful sword, if it scores a direct hit against a shield, might break it apart. But it could also hit the shield on the side or slip harmlessly off the wood. The strength of its wielder also matters; no sword, no matter how strong on paper, can hurt an opponent if it's wielded by someone who lacks the strength for it.

And there even comes a time when different strengths stop mattering. Against simple cloth, for instance, a sharp iron knife probably cuts just as well as a sharp mythril one. And a bronze sword could probably withstand roughly the same number of hits from an iron sword as it could from a titanium one; the difference in this case would be the amount of damaged suffered by the iron sword in comparison to the titanium one. They would both deal similar damage to the bronze (alright, maybe the titanium will do a little bit more), but the difference lies in how much damage each takes in return.

So the advice is this: don't worry too much about the way materials interact. If you're a swordsman who wants the most powerful sword out there, you're going to want adamantine sooner or later, we're all sure of that. But don't expect your super-powerful sword to mow through your opponents without requiring a little bit of work. At the end of the day, your scores will be what matters.

As for the battle you're in now: judges know to take equipment into account when considering whether characters were acting realistically. If your opponent is letting her inferior equipment take tremendous amounts of damage without breaking, then a good judge will penalize her score. Chances are you'll win in the end!