Magic Items
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A magic item is any object that has magical powers inherent in it. These may act on their own or be the tools of the person or being whose hands they fall into. Magic items are commonly found in both folklore and modern fantasy. Their fictional appearance is as old as the Iliad in which Aphrodite's magical girdle is used by Hera as a love charm.
Magic items often act as a plot device to grant magical abilities. They may give magical abilities to a person lacking in them, or enhance the power of a wizard. For instance, in J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit, the magical ring allows Bilbo Baggins to be instrumental in the quest, matching the abilities of the dwarves.
Magic items are often, also, used as plot coupons. he characters in a story must collect an arbitrary number of magical items, and when they have the full set, the magic is sufficient to resolve the plot. In video games, these types of items are usually collected in fetch quests.
Many works of folklore and fantasy include very similar items, that can be grouped into types. These include:
* Magic weapons
o Magic swords
o Sentient weapons
o Magic guns
* Magic rings
* Cloak of invisibility
* Potions
* Rods
* Staves
* Magic carpets
* Seven-league boots
* Fairy ointment
Artifacts
In role-playing games and fantasy literature, an artifact is a magical object with great power. Often, this power is so great that it cannot be duplicated by any known art allowed by the premises of the fantasy world, and often cannot be destroyed by ordinary means. Artifacts often serve as MacGuffins, the central focus of quests to locate, capture, or destroy them. The One Ring of The Lord of the Rings is a typical artifact: it was alarmingly powerful, of ancient and obscure origin, and nearly indestructible.
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