Post/Author/DateTime	Post
friedmad 11-14-04, 08:01 PM	The rules for how expensive magic items are to create in the DMG are a bit vague. I have had a request to price out the following magic item: +3 adamantine fine chain of Greater Dispel Magic (20th level) The basic premise of this item is, essentially, if anyone has read the Vlad Taltos series by Steven Brust, this is the item that Vlad whips around which dispels magic when it hits. So basically, the player (rogue/ranger) with 2-weapon fighting, wants to be able to wield this chain in his offhand during combat. This is the first point. I would consider the chain a light weapon. The effect of whipping this chain around would be two-fold - first, dispel any harmful spells cast either directly at him, or create a pocket of dispel in a 5-foot radius around the character for harmful area-of-effect spells that he finds himself in. Secondly, he wants the chain to be able to dispel via touch-attacks in combat against spell effects on opponents (i.e. invisibility, haste, etc). He wants the item to have Greater Dispel Magic cast by a 20th level wizard. So the dispel DC would be d20 + 6 (spell level) + 20 (caster level). 1. How much would such an item cost to create? 2. Which spells would be used in its construction? 3. Would this be considered a light weapon? 4. Would the weapon class be simple, martial or exotic? 5. Would this item be considered a weapon or a wondrous item? I'm leaning towards wondrous item with weapon characteristics. Thank for your help. I tried pricing it out using the rules in the DMG, and I came up with: material cost = 1000gp for the adamantine + 16,000gp for the +3. for the greater dispel = caster's level x spell level x 2000gp (for continuous or infinite-use item) or 17,000gp + 20 x 6 x 2000gp = 257,000gp I think I may not understand the item creation rules, since this price would almost certainly make this item an artifact.
NateNate 11-14-04, 09:12 PM	This item seems very powerful, possibly even artifact or epic. I'll give it a shot, though: Swinging the chain in 'Defense Mode' which causes it to attempt to counter any spell targeting you: Since a caster must ready an action to counterspell, which is what this would be doing, your character should have to take a standard action each round to swing the chain in 'Defense Mode'. In this case, it would only counter spells specifically targeting your character. It may also counter area-effect spells, so long as the spell is centered in your square. In either case, it can only counter one spell per round. Dispelling with a touch: This allows the item to cast the targeted version of Greater Dispel Magic (GDM) at a range of touch. The chain itself is likely a reach weapon but can also be used against adjacent foes, and since its attacks deal no damage it could be considered a light weapon. It does not threaten any squares, and using it should provoke an attack of opportunity just as though you had used a ranged weapon. It is use-activated, which means its effects occur upon using the item. However, it should be restricted to one use per round; it can be swung up to your maximum number of attacks as though it were a weapon, but once a creature is successfully touched, it will not activate its Dispel ability again until the next round. It should also be considered an exotic weapon, therefore imposing a -4 penalty to the attack roll unless the wielder has taken the appropriate exotic weapon proficiency with it. Options: One could make this item intelligent, thereby allowing it activate itself at no loss of the wielder's actions each round. In such a case, the item could still only use Greater Dispel Magic once per round. It would be assumed that 'Defense Mode' is always active, since the chain itself is readying an action each round to counter via GDM any spell targeting the wielder. The chain must be in hand and aware of the spell being cast. Note that this option would increase the cost exponentially. Cost: For the non-intelligent version of the item, I'll use Table 7-33, DMG 285, Use-Activated entry. The item's enchantment is put onto a masterwork 10' chain, and therefore has a +1 enhancement bonus to the attack roll. Spell Level (6) x Caster Level (20) x 2,000gp = 240,000gp, + 30gp (10' chain) + 300gp (masterwork weapon) = 240,330gp If you want to make the item intelligent, just add the cost of that to the above price. Note that an intelligent item has a limited visual range, and if the caster of the spell to be countered is outside of that, the item's wielder would have to be aware of it and communicate that to the chain via a telepathic link. For the record, I would never allow this item into a game I'm DMing unless it had a limited number of uses per day. Edit: I think I missed that part about you wanting to make it from Adamantine. And I, too, would most certainly consider this item to be of artifact power (few caster level 20 items aren't).