What could we steal from other fantasy games...

[Taqwus]

Yup.

Compare, say, the Angband games -- which have detailed inventory, but a LOT of attack forms and properties, making inventory selection an interesting problem -- w/ something like MOM (where a hero can simultaneously be immune to practically all magic, near impervious to missile fire, invisible {bugged}, flying, hasted... with a bow that fires phantasmal arrows treating enemy defense at 0.)