Magic items

Dermeleon divides magic items into five different categories: 1) Divine artifacts (true artifacts), 2) Artifact-like items, 3) Intelligent items, 4) Unique items and 5) Standard items. The second category includes such items as the Gem of Souls made by the Kartrians, and the first two categories are commonly termed artifacts. Dermeleon's classification is meant as a kind of power scale indicating the magnitude of the item's magic. An artifact like the Diamond Face is in principle a divine artifact, but in terms of power it belongs the third category. In this connection Doyasten's list from 1113 is the most exhaustive listing of items in the fifth category.
The history of magic items can be roughly divided into four periods: That of the elves, the gods, the heroes, and the Kartrians. 1) The age of the elves: When humanity was young, it hardly knew any magic. The little magic that was known was what the elves showed men, and that was mostly spells, impermanent magic. The elves themselves had magic weapon and armor, and used many minor magic items to improve their craft. 2) The age of the gods: Starting around 500 years before the common calendar a large number of artifacts appeared, something that contributed to the fall of the [file:///C:/Users/Jesper/Dropbox/Bandagora/encyc.htm#Tredie Kejserrige Third Empire]. 3) The age of heroes: After about -100 CC artifacts were rare, but less powerful magic items were found in the hoards of defeated monsters. Two explanations have been given. One is that the gods rewarded the heroes for their feats, which meant the heroes would become more famous and in turn glorify the gods. Another explanation is that the treasures were fabricated in the time of the [file:///C:/Users/Jesper/Dropbox/Bandagora/encyc.htm#SecondEmpire Second Empire], but were lost and lay dormant until the revival of hero tradition by Emperor [file:///C:/Users/Jesper/Dropbox/Bandagora/encyc.htm#Sertovian Sertovian]. 4) the age of Kartria: The Kartrians were the first men to create magic items without the direct intervention of the gods. Since 400 CC Kartrian wizards has been taught the basics of magic item creation, but apart from the potions made in the course of their education, the production remained a personal matter. But with the advent of the [file:///C:/Users/Jesper/Dropbox/Bandagora/encyc.htm#Nomadekrigene Nomad Invasions], Iktemar I introduced the mandatory production of permanent items and begun selling these items on a regular basis. The volume of this   sale increased manifold during the Kangrisorn Wars by order of Castanamir I. The Kartrian production has been the single largest source of magic items ever since.