Supporter newsletter 46

Issue
This is a copy of Eternal and Diamond Supporter Newsletter #46, published by Grinding Gear Games.

Hey Diamond, Eternal and Unique Item Creator Supporters,

This week I have been asked to give some more information about making unique items, and what can and can’t be done with them.

The first thing to note is that we can’t give you hard and fast rules to work within, merely guidelines. Part of what gives unique items their specialness is that they transcend the normal items in the game. They blur the edges about what can normally done, mechanically, or by power level or even just by tone and story.

We also know if we invented, say, a points system or picklist, those people after power from their uniques would find a way to get more than intended.

So we have an ad hoc system that can involve a lot of back and forth between the supporter and the designer on our end.

Simplicity and Message

The best uniques tend to be about a single thing, and they communicate just that thing. If you come up with an item idea, it’s worth considering “what one idea am I trying to achieve with this item.”

It is very tempting to throw as much as possible into an item, in which case what it communicates can be easily lost.

Examples of strong single message items include and.

It doesn’t always mean fewer mods to have a single message, for example is a very clear unique and every mod it has supports its theme.

Starting with a single goal can assist greatly in making an item. For example the starting point of is being a gladiator helmet, a melee helmet where you don’t have a chestpiece. Everything about the item supports this goal.

When you present us with what you want from an item, think about what its single goal is, and also let us know what that is.

Playing with power

Our supporters often want powerful items. Part of the point of a unique is to offer some power. This does sometimes mean we get requests that look something like:


 * 100-200 Life
 * 40-100% Elemental Resistance
 * 40-100% Chaos Resistance
 * Unwavering Stance
 * Iron Reflexes
 * +5% Critical Strike Chance per Endurance charge

This is an item that has three of the big power stats and two keystones, and a game changing mod.

For an end game item, which does something cool and useful, we are happy to add some of the power mods people look for on rares, but don’t want it to be more desirable than any given rare.

If an item has a Keystone or a Keystone like effect (and we try not to put Keystones on items), it’s not going to get any other power. A keystone on an item can save a character more than 15 passives and almost always enables new builds. Having power on top of that is too much.

Items that change an existing mechanic are another thing we don’t want too much power on, for a couple of reasons. A special effect usually provides a lot of power on its own, and it can be very hard to assess in advance how much power a game changing mod has. Another element is that the players who love to play with game changing mods don’t need the power to have reason to use the item.

Telling Us What You Want

The most important part of working with us on an item is letting us know what you want out of it.

You don’t have to come up with a list of stats if you don’t want to; You can give us a background story or a specific build you’d like to enable if you want.

You do need to tell us what you want out of the item.

We know you want to get value out of your item. The best way to get that value is to let us know what you want the item to do, or to mean.

If you just give us a huge list of stats, we’ll need to weaken the item because of the stats, and both you and we can become frustrated by the process. If you provide us with stats for your item, provide us with as few as possible. Its gives a clearer signal, and we can add the other stats it needs later.

Don’t feel that the most important thing to provide us with is stats. Often the best items come from an idea or a story, or a single cool mechanic. If you want the item to enable your character, or to honour a friend, or to tell a story, or to impress other players, then tell us that. We can then work on what you want.

Insider Info

Remnant of the night shift:

http://i.imgur.com/ADmPTb9.jpg