Earthdawn had a nice system for magical items, including magical weapons. They had deep histories which were unknown to someone who found them in some random dungeon (or kaer, in Earthdawn-speak). To discover a magic sword’s abilities, you had to do some research. Find a sage, consult ancient texts, earn the trust of people who are the descendants of the original blacksmith or enchanter…In other words, magic items became quest generators. And you didn’t necessarily get all the answers from a single source.
Earthdawn had a nice system for magical items, including magical weapons. They had deep histories which were unknown to someone who found them in some random dungeon (or kaer, in Earthdawn-speak). To discover a magic sword’s abilities, you had to do some research. Find a sage, consult ancient texts, earn the trust of people who are the descendants of the original blacksmith or enchanter…In other words, magic items became quest generators. And you didn’t necessarily get all the answers from a single source.
This is a great way to build off treasure as a branching questline!