Grove Staff
- Thread starter IcyCool
- Start date
palleomortis
First Post
I think there were some equasions in the dmg for things like this, I would give it a look.
IcyCool
First Post
I'm not sure where you are pulling those numbers from.
To clarify, the staff can be used to permanently create a big oak tree once per day.
A Quaal's Feather token costs 400gp, and is one use only.
The prereq for Quaal's Feather token is Major Creation, which is a 5th level spell.
If we look at the chart we see the formula for a use activated item is spell level x caster level x 2000. So we take 5 x 9 x 2000 = 90,000. Now, it's only usable once per day, so we divide by (5/# of uses per day) to get 18,000gp. That's the cost for a use activated item that is usable once per day to cast major creation at 9th caster level. Now is where we enter the confusing world of DM fiat. It casts major creation once per day, but can only make a big oak tree, nothing else. And that tree is permanent, not limited to a duration. So, should this item be discounted? Is the ability to permanently make a large oak tree once per day overpowered?
To clarify, the staff can be used to permanently create a big oak tree once per day.
A Quaal's Feather token costs 400gp, and is one use only.
The prereq for Quaal's Feather token is Major Creation, which is a 5th level spell.
If we look at the chart we see the formula for a use activated item is spell level x caster level x 2000. So we take 5 x 9 x 2000 = 90,000. Now, it's only usable once per day, so we divide by (5/# of uses per day) to get 18,000gp. That's the cost for a use activated item that is usable once per day to cast major creation at 9th caster level. Now is where we enter the confusing world of DM fiat. It casts major creation once per day, but can only make a big oak tree, nothing else. And that tree is permanent, not limited to a duration. So, should this item be discounted? Is the ability to permanently make a large oak tree once per day overpowered?
Hmm... a Lyre of Building costs 13000 gp, so that should be a good upper bound.
How about 400 gp x 100 (unlimited use) / 5 (once per day) = 8000 gp
Or perhaps another method:
A Quaal's Feather Token (tree) costs 400 gp. It is a one-use item, similar to a potion. So we could just price a unlimited use (1/day) Quaal's Feather Token (tree) as:
400 * (2000 / 50) / 5 = 3200 gp ... hmm a bit too cheap, I'd think.
Maybe we could add a arbitary x2 modifier in there. Say it is because instaneous powers work especially well with use-per-day items, therefore it costs more. 6400 gp sounds okay (still cheap, but okay).
... anyways, I would guess that anything between 7500 gp ~ 10000 gp would be in the ballpark. The actual price depends less on balance and more on the question of: "At what level do you want your characters to be able to afford the staff?"
Creation items like this ruin any sense of economy balance for the campaign (unlimited timber, anyone?), but D&D economy is... wierd... anyways. (Remember the Wall of (Scrap) Iron thread?) Powerwise, I do not see any problems with the item.
How about 400 gp x 100 (unlimited use) / 5 (once per day) = 8000 gp
Or perhaps another method:
A Quaal's Feather Token (tree) costs 400 gp. It is a one-use item, similar to a potion. So we could just price a unlimited use (1/day) Quaal's Feather Token (tree) as:
400 * (2000 / 50) / 5 = 3200 gp ... hmm a bit too cheap, I'd think.
Maybe we could add a arbitary x2 modifier in there. Say it is because instaneous powers work especially well with use-per-day items, therefore it costs more. 6400 gp sounds okay (still cheap, but okay).
... anyways, I would guess that anything between 7500 gp ~ 10000 gp would be in the ballpark. The actual price depends less on balance and more on the question of: "At what level do you want your characters to be able to afford the staff?"
Creation items like this ruin any sense of economy balance for the campaign (unlimited timber, anyone?), but D&D economy is... wierd... anyways. (Remember the Wall of (Scrap) Iron thread?) Powerwise, I do not see any problems with the item.
Last edited:
I'm pulling them from the guidelines for making and pricing magic items.IcyCool said:
A "single-use, use-activated" item costs spell level * caster level * 50 gp. Like a potion.
A "use-activated" item costs SL * CL * 2,000 gp. If it's limited in charges per day, you divide that by (5/charges per day). Since this is a 1/day item, you'd divide by 5 and get SL * CL * 400 gp.
So, an item that can be used once per day should cost about 8 (400/50) times as much as one that can be used once, period. A tree token costs 400 gp, so an item that creates a tree once per day should cost eight times as much, or 3,200 gp.
Personally, I see the guidelines as a last resort. The primary method for determining the price of an item is "compare it to items that already exist." This is what I'm doing, using the other pricing guidelines as a guideline to price proportions.
Sigurd
First Post
Why not a seed?
I have some problem with the fluff.
Climbing up and chopping a branch off seems a barbaric thing to do.
Why not have the staff sprout a silver acorn which must be planted in enough earth. A short prayer said over the acorn and voila. The acorn could turn to dust in 7hrs if removed from the staff and not planted. The staff would grow a new acorn in 24 hrs.
You might renew the staff once a year by planting it in a ceremony or something. Might give an edge to the process if you knew the staff was tied to a season as well as the acorn. Maybe the powers that be would not renew the staff if it wasn't used properly - it would be planted and not renew. It might be given to someone else.
S
I have some problem with the fluff.
Climbing up and chopping a branch off seems a barbaric thing to do.
Why not have the staff sprout a silver acorn which must be planted in enough earth. A short prayer said over the acorn and voila. The acorn could turn to dust in 7hrs if removed from the staff and not planted. The staff would grow a new acorn in 24 hrs.
You might renew the staff once a year by planting it in a ceremony or something. Might give an edge to the process if you knew the staff was tied to a season as well as the acorn. Maybe the powers that be would not renew the staff if it wasn't used properly - it would be planted and not renew. It might be given to someone else.
S
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