Game design: Gear

Who makes all that gear that you just magically find laying about?

It's something that peeves me, like a world that does not fall bacause it's on the back of an elephant, how whole game economies rest on just 'fortuitously' finding all that gear out there (underneath the corpses of pesky monsters).

So what supports that elephant? Another elephant?

On the other hand, I get that this is the heroin of the game - you OSTENSIBLY put in no effort, and ooooh, have this chance of getting something for nothing.

All caps 'ostensibly', because it's not true. But that's another topic, given it's complexity.

So, I'm wondering how to circumnavigate my pet peeve, yet still delive 'OMG, I just found...'?

Never mind what gear system to use. I'm thinking some kind of rock, paper, scissors system where some gear cancels part of another gears bonuses. So for particular opponents you might want to change your gear configuration around.

Leveled up, Leveled Even

On his blog, Tesh is talking about level playing field PVP. It reminded me of my own idea for it, from awhile back, to have seperate 'even' and 'whatever gear you've collect' matches, from each other. And not allow people to constantly play in only one of the types: http://philosophergamer.blogspot.com/2010/04/having-both-collected-gear-and-even.html

Having both collected gear and even gear matches

What if you had PVP battles and you had an allocation of battles you can play with whatever gear you have, and battles you can play in where everyone has exactly the same gear/gear level.

Your allocation would regenerate over time, so if you like playing 'everyones in the same gear' games, you either sit out for awhile once your allocations run out, or try some mixed gear games. Or if your into mixed gear (probably because you have awesome gear) you have to try some even gear games - or sit out while your allocation regens.

That way you get the sort of very equal resources play you find in quake live, but also you can still have gear collecting.