My DM tried a 'mystery box' loot system and I was sure it would flop

I was dead against it at first, thought it would just be random junk. Then last session our rogue pulled a grappling hook that let him swing across a chasm mid combat and actually saved the party. Has anyone else had a house rule they hated turn out awesome?

2 comments

2 Comments

sarahhart1mo ago

Honestly I'm still not sold on mystery boxes because they can easily turn into a junk pile. That grappling hook story sounds like a fun moment but I've seen too many tables where random loot just means nobody gets gear they can actually use. Does your DM at least let you trade or sell the useless stuff?

john4301mo ago

You say "nobody gets gear they can actually use" but honestly that's kind of the point of random loot... Mystery boxes force players to get creative and use what they find instead of just picking the perfect sword or spell off a list. A useless item like a grappling hook becomes a story moment because you had to figure out how to make it work, not because the DM handed you a perfectly balanced tool. Trading or selling is fine, but that takes away the whole "making do" vibe that makes the game interesting to me. If everything is exactly what everyone wants, where's the fun in that...