Identify - Making it actually Identify

[Liandria]

Helpfile:

Identify
========
Divination
Range: Inventory
Target: Object
Syntax: cast identify <object>

The spell determines the magic properties of a single magic item, including
how to activate those functions (if appropriate), and how many charges are
left (if any).

(A) 1st Level Bard Spells (B) 1st Level Wizard Spells
(C) Knowledge Domain (D) Magic Domain
(E) Trade Domain

A player brought my cleric some items to identify. She possesses the identify prayer as a domain spell, so it cannot be trained higher.

Seven of the items detected magical, but only 2 of them were explained with the identify spell. The other five had no count of charges, no hint to their purpose, or anything beyond the weight, quality, value, and material of the item that identify normally produces.

Two of the items were rings, flagged magical, have descriptions that hint at a magical nature, but there's no way to tell what they do. Now, putting them on might yield an answer, but putting random magical items on without knowing what they will do is as bad an idea as cutting open a firecracker to see whats inside. Now this is very frustrating to RP as a Mystran, because I have no option but to plead ignorance or speculate what the item might be.

Two were likely parts of something bigger, but they didnt give any clue that they were. And the last was an object that could be activated with a keyword in its description but its ID told nothing of what it activated, nor how many times it would work.

I'd like to suggest that there could be an additional descriptor added onto these miscellaneous magical items that might say "This item's magic seems to require another piece" or "This ring has 4 uses of Ohlo's irresistable dance when activated by jumping up and down" only when Identified.

Edited for Typos and Clarity - Lia

[Nysan]

Yes, very concerning. Considering the component cost of the identify spell, it should give some kind of useful information on magical items, even if it is a simple "this is a piece of a large item" or "this item's enchantment has not be activated yet".

[Aveline]

It has always bothered me when this happens too. I think it is probably an oversight when items are coded. Someone else can correct me if I'm wrong, but I would send instances of this to either the builder's forum, or bugs.. probably in builders.. and the people with the know how can correct these items.

[Kregor]

Two very likely possibilities that can be remedied by builder intervention.

Some of the magic items we have that are command or phrase triggered use object progs, rather than actual hard coded magic, to do their "magic." A long time back, Marty added the identify description field on objects, so that objects that had this type of "magic" could have a description that triggered with identify, to give command words and what the affect would be and such. However, there may be items from older areas that have not received their due yet.

There also could be a matter of an object that HAD a magic apply, that no longer has one, because when we reworked the resistances and saves, many of the old applies went away. Until we've found and updated all the magic items with obscure, obsolete applies, there may be a magic item you come across that says it's "Magic" (because it's flagged to be that way), but has no affect til we can fix it in the area it comes from.

If you can send me a PM with the full long and short descs of the items in question, I will look them up, and if they need fixing by one of these two situations, I will make sure they get fixed in the area file they came from.

[Nysan]

One of my characters has the mentioned items. Unfortunately, I do not have the 5th item anymore, but its easy enough to explain it. I'll put together a log of the other 4's descriptions and PM you when I can get on the game, Kregor.

I'll also put in the log the item with the command word in the description that did not respond to 'indentify'. Command word basically says what it does, but identify should react somehow, I would think.