Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 Zardnaar Jan 01, 2015 12:04:06	Well with 5E you are no longer able to RAW buy magic items at least not like 3E and 4E, Last night they had some disposable coins and I added in the daughter of on of my old AD&D contacts/fences who sometimes has items like that available.     My DMNPC over the years has been an Elf named Gem. Gem is basically a glorified fence/theif and he has never really been good at combat as such but has usually had very high thief skills and social skills. He usually has a shop above a warehouse and should someone try to rob him he has a elaborate trap system one of which dumps his threats into a giant slide/cheese grater with poisoned blades (paralysis) that dumps you into a pit(falling damage) which activates another trap which dumps you into a pit with more spikes on it (1d6 that hit you 1d6 damage each) coated in a save or die poison (20d6 DC 7 con save 5E half damage on a save).   The idea is don't rob Gem and iff you annoy him he will ruin your social game as opposed to out right killing you. New players who have tried to shake him down or outright threaten him usually have the other PCs start running.     If the PCs need to fence a stoklen item, find an exotic item or poison Gem is your man (Elf). He also has his own mini guild usually full of his half elven children or at least half elves who pretend to be his children. Such relationships are not often made clear. Of course he pays kickbacks to the thieves guild of whatever city he live in some suspect he is the thieves guild. Gem of course refuses to acknowledge or deny such baseless speculation although he tends to avoid Paladins who focus on the law side of things a bit to much for his liking. ALthough trying to seduce such Paladins is often fun for him (our PCs roll for comliness as a side joke).    Anyway I let the PCs buy 2 uncommen magic items a mighty +1 shield and Gauntlets of Ogre power. By level 4 the PCs have 2 +1 shields and the GoOP as their only magic items.  The Gauntlets went to the hill dwarf Druid who can now make mighty 1d8+4 melee attacks, the fighter types already had high stength scores. Other treasure found by level 4 included a set of breastplate armor and a set of lorica segmentia Thyatian armor (treated as breastplate).
#2 Miladoon Jan 01, 2015 13:02:36	+1 goes to Gem +1 goes to Gem's trap system +1 goes to the Druid with 19 STR +2 goes to the DM for playing in the world were there is Thyatian armor.
#3 Zardnaar Jan 01, 2015 13:05:12	Miladoon wrote:
#4 Miladoon Jan 01, 2015 13:09:09	They should be okay in tier 1 and 2.
#5 Noon Jan 01, 2015 19:56:09	Is there a RAW text that actually say you can't buy magic items?
#6 Zardnaar Jan 01, 2015 20:00:17	Noon wrote:
#7 DM_HEEGZ Jan 01, 2015 21:37:02	Noon wrote:
#8 pukunui Jan 01, 2015 21:50:28	DM_HEEGZ wrote:
#9 Maine Jan 01, 2015 23:23:16	I allow my players to try to buy magic items, but it isn't as easy as walking into a shop.  The PCs need to work with their contacts or other intermediaries, who may want a fee or service, to track down specific items.  In large population centers, they will have more success and it will be faster.   This has only come up once so far, and is still in progress.  I hinted that after the players wrap up the Lost Mines of Phandelver that I may send them into an underdark-themed campaign (probably the Night Below campaign).  The group has only 1 non-darkvision PC, so one of the PCs has asked their contact to help get something that will help with darkvision (there are goggles in the book, as an uncommon item).  It's going to cost a favor, in addition to "400-700" gold, if she can get it.
#10 Noon Jan 02, 2015 1:30:54	A text saying you can't normally buy something is not the same as a text that tells you you cannot buy something.
#11 Zardnaar Jan 02, 2015 3:27:02	In my stress test I have a rough idea what to sell the PCs and by when. New game after 15 hours or so of RT the PCs have hit level 5.   3/4 have magic items now.   2 +1 shields Gauntlets ofOgre Power Luckstone    ItemsI do not want to put in. Magical missile weapons (longbows, hand crossbows) Magical great weapons. Periapt of Health    For simple weapons +2 is fine. Magical longswords do not hurt to much either.   The PCs also sold a magic crossbow they found for 750 gp to a shady buyer. The following day an important NPC was assassinated with a crossbow bolt. I'm running the night below adventure just stripping out all of the magic items unless they are key to the story (Ring of Water Elemental commanding) and cutting large treasure piles in half  (4000gp becomes 2000gp).    One of them has rthe criminal background with contacts so they can occasionally get items offered for slae like 500gp for potions of extra healing. RAW a basic potion of invisability is worth 50 000gp IIRC so it is kind of funny. I think you could probably use 3.5 or 4E pricing for more detail but retain 5E you can't buy them as default rules.   Having 50+1 weapons won't matter in 5E in 3.5 you can turn them into a +5 weapon though. You might be able to buy a holy avenger sword (NPC Paladin dies of old age and childless) but thats a biddinfg war type scenario between nation states and/or large religions.
(Reply to #10) AaronOfBarbaria	Noon wrote:
#13 Istbor Jan 02, 2015 8:09:19	That is too bad.  A great weapon fighter or barbarian or paladin is out of luck for a magical sword/axe/maul by which to carve out his destiny because DM doesn't like it.
(Reply to #12) Unca_Laguna	AaronOfBarbaria wrote:
#15 Zardnaar Jan 02, 2015 12:08:22	Istbor wrote:
#16 BRJN Jan 02, 2015 16:29:47	Noon wrote:
#17 Maine Jan 05, 2015 22:48:11	Istbor wrote:
#18 Orethalion Jan 06, 2015 10:59:13	Noon wrote:
#19 Pompadour64 Jan 06, 2015 14:03:00	In the game in which I'm currently playing, my DM stands by the "no purchasing of magic items" suggestion, but is more lenient about trading magic items. We happened upon an Arrow of Giant Slaying in a dungeon, which is really underwhelming for its rarity. So my character was able to find a buyer to trade it to in the black market of the region's capital. He was pretty strict about the items available for trade (only 1 item on the list I gave him of things I was looking for was available), but I was able to trade that one single-use, very rare item for two more useful uncommon items.  We concluded that the suggested value and rarity of magical items is way off when talking about single-use items. The potions of Giant's Strength and the Belts of Giant's Strength are the same rarity and thus the same value, for example.
#20 ChrisCarlson Jan 06, 2015 14:04:42	Pompadour64 wrote:
#21 Zardnaar Jan 06, 2015 14:06:05	One shot items are rated at half price. Should be more like 1/5th or 1/th as a potion of invisability is worth 25k RAW.
#22 ChrisCarlson Jan 06, 2015 14:10:02	25k, huh? RAW, you say? How did you come to that amount?
#23 Zardnaar Jan 06, 2015 14:14:52	ChrisCarlson wrote:
#24 ChrisCarlson Jan 06, 2015 14:19:36	No it doesn't. No magic items have prices listed.   Intentionally, BTW.   Which is why that chart you are using incorrectly is where it is.
#25 Zardnaar Jan 06, 2015 14:25:44	ChrisCarlson wrote:
(Reply to #20) Pompadour64	ChrisCarlson wrote:
#27 Orethalion Jan 06, 2015 15:28:19	Zardnaar wrote:
#28 Zardnaar Jan 06, 2015 15:30:48	Orethalion wrote:
#29 Orethalion Jan 06, 2015 15:31:00	Pompadour64 wrote:
#30 Orethalion Jan 06, 2015 15:32:32	Zardnaar wrote:
#31 Zardnaar Jan 06, 2015 15:38:16	Orethalion wrote:
#32 Orethalion Jan 06, 2015 15:49:15	Zardnaar wrote:
(Reply to #29) Pompadour64	Orethalion wrote:
#34 Shasarak Jan 06, 2015 15:57:50	Orethalion wrote:
#35 Orethalion Jan 06, 2015 16:21:47	Shasarak wrote:
#36 Shasarak Jan 06, 2015 16:27:47	Orethalion wrote:
#37 Orethalion Jan 06, 2015 16:42:35	Shasarak wrote:
#38 Shasarak Jan 06, 2015 16:55:10	Orethalion wrote:
#39 Noon Jan 06, 2015 21:42:54	BRJN wrote:
#40 Noon Jan 06, 2015 22:06:16	Orethalion wrote:
#41 Noon Jan 06, 2015 22:05:36	AaronOfBarbaria wrote:
#42 Caliburn Jan 07, 2015 2:58:14	The very generic guidelines on magical item values and especially those relating to the half price for consumables needs close attention by DMs.   Per RAW, a Potion of Invisibility is worth 25K using the guidelines.   In any gameworld with a hint of logic therefore, spellcasters would all be hugely wealthy simply by hiring out their services on commission. 5000gp a pop for an invisiblity spell cast for you by a caster retainer is a LOT of money, and yet would seem a bargain bucket price for such a service compared to the potion.   If the NPCs do it, then why not PCs? Your spellcaster downtimes are going to be monty haul, making other money making activities, even such as adventuring a poor source of income by comparison.   This will of course break your game economics.   So take it all as a guideline and use some common sense.   FAR more useful than a counterpoint arguement about what RAW says and how it should be strictly interpreted... because, well, it's going to fall over if you use it as written...