Post/Author/DateTime	Post
OctaviusIII 09-10-07, 01:36 AM	I was curious about the comparative prices between scrolls, potions and schemas. Here's what I found: 1 Schema = 8 Potions = 16 Scrolls 1 Wand = 30 Scrolls (quite a steal with 50 charges!) Here's what I'm thinking about schemas, scrolls, wands and eternal wands: Schemas are good for any spell you expect to cast often, but not too often, in your campaign. They're worth about 16 scrolls, so they're only for things that you'd need about 16 times in the campaign. Eternal Wands, which cost around twice as much as schemas, are good for spells you plan to cast more than 29 times in the campaign, although that varies by level. They're also good for those that you want to cast twice per day, rather than just once. Wands are good for spellcasting a lot - they cost less per casting than a scroll - but they are finite. Scrolls are good for anything else you might need on the fly. How often will you need dark way or erase? Probably not much, but in a pinch you might need that magical bridge of force. Oh, and potions are good for those that don't want to do a UMD check. At least, that's what I'm thinking. But I just saw the powers of magic items in our last battle and I'm studying up to buy some next time we go through town. Is this how I should be thinking? Edit: I was entirely wrong. This is what it actually is: The price of eternal wands varies by spell level. 0-1 cost more than a wand, 2-3 cost less. Charting it out per casting gets yields that: Scrolls are cheaper than schemas through the 3rd casting and break even on the 4th. They are cheaper than eternal wands through the 5th casting. (This is for lvl 3 spells). Eternal wands are less expensive for 2 castings per day than 2 schemas on 2-3 level spells, although are more expensive for 0 and 1st level spells. Wands are cheaper than eternal wands or 2 schemas for 0 and 1st level spells cast twice daily more than 32 times but less than 50.
Ozymandias V. 09-11-07, 12:02 PM	Weighing the efficiency of an item is perfectly rational in-character. I mean, the average mage KNOWS how much a scroll costs as opposed to a wand, and KNOWS that the wand has 50 charges. Also, if you see someone use a magic item and think "hey, that's pretty awesome" then the natural reaction is to attempt to obtain some of your own as soon as it's convenient.