So you're writing an
RPG. You've already made the
Balsa Wood Armor, the
Steel Armor, the
Gold Armor, and the
Unobtanium Armor. You've made any number of things to hit enemies over the head with, from the
Pointy Stick to the
BFS to the
Frozen Tuna. Your adventurers are fully clothed and armed to the teeth. So...what are you going to fill the rest of those equipment slots with?
Well...anything you want to.
Let's face it, strapping on more and more identical metal bits is
boring, and anyway nobody really knows what a vambrace is
* an arm protector
. So when it comes time to flesh out the equipment in a game, just about anything will do. It doesn't matter what the item is, as long as it adds the right bonuses to stats to keep the game balanced (or
otherwise). This leads to random items giving stat bonuses that make no sense—but which no one seems to
question, because nobody wants to give up their precious items for the sake of mere logic.
There are items that have effects that can vaguely make sense, such as a stylish hat increasing your charisma, and there are explicitly magical items, such as a ring that increases your strength because it's specifically enchanted to do so. This trope is not about those; it is about the ones that,
when you think about it, make you go, "Huh?"
Examples
- Disgaea supplies the page image, introducing the Horse Wiener, which you can in fact steal from the enemy zombie who has it equipped. Equipping the item in question grants 110 Attack, 30 Speed, and 30 Hit — unless you enter it and level it up. Thankfully, the in-game picture is merely a large exclamation point.
- Final Fantasy has a number of these, the most famous of which is the Ribbon, which for some reason makes you immune to status effects.
- The badges in Mario And Luigi Superstar Saga (and sequels) and Paper Mario. Why does a badge increase attack power, stats and make an Infinity Plus One Sword? God knows.
- Shadow Hearts loves these - the more bizarre the item, the better its effects. In all three games, the items that protect you from Instant Death are Leonardo's Bear - a teddy bear that makes a sad noise when you squeeze it. Its origin changes with each game.
- The clothes system in The World Ends With You is built on this trope. Fashion in this game is Serious Business so designer clothes take the place of armor.
- Zelda II: The Adventure of Link has a glove that gives Link the ability to stab rocks.
- It also contains the line, "With boots I could walk on water."
- One of the sidequests in Cave Story parodies this. You're sent to find a curative mushroom. Upon finding the mushroom, it talks to you. After you insist several times that, yes, you really need him, he gives you the Mushroom Badge and sends you on your way. If you try to use it, or just check your inventory, you see the badge doesn't do anything.
- The Tiger Woods games have accessories that improve your stats when equipped. It makes sense for golf clubs and balls, but most of them are something like the Shirt of +2 Putting.
