Broken Magic Item: Infinite Healing?

RangerWickett · Jan 6, 2004

Looking at the DMG, I see that the market price of an infinite-charge, use activated item that can cast cure light wounds at will is a mere 2000gp. So if your party's cleric shells out 1000gp and 40 XP, you'll be able to heal anyone you'd ever want. Sure, it's not fast and won't save you in the middle of combat, but it would be incredibly useful for healing armies.

Do you think this is abusive? Call it the decanter of endless potions of healing.

Liminal Syzygy · Jan 6, 2004

RangerWickett said:
Do you think this is abusive?

Absolutely. Cure Light Wounds wands are already cheap enough as is, and this is something every party would never want to be without... Back up to full HP between each combat as long as you have a couple of minutes.

DM_Matt · Jan 6, 2004

RangerWickett said:
Sum non Wallabus

You're not! Well, cr@p. I guess I'll have to go back to the old "Paul Theory."

Darkness · Jan 6, 2004

1. Moved to Rules.

2. The pricing rules really are just guidelines. If something seems broken, use your best judgment.

3. Yes, this has been discussed 'a few' times since 3e came out.

RangerWickett · Jan 6, 2004

Shows you how often I check the rules forum. Heh.

Darkness · Jan 6, 2004

No worries; I'm sure the regulars are always willing to share their accumulated wisdom.

BTW, the most extreme thing along these lines that I can recall was arcady's suggestion for an item that could cast true resurrection on command, once per round or so.
Sure, it'd still be expensive to create but just think of the effects it would have on a campaign world.

c47 · Jan 6, 2004

Of course rather than spending 20000gp for an ioun stone of regen one could spend that coinage on 10 cure minor wound stones that occupy no space and cure 1 point each each round.

Mmm regen of 6000 an hour or 1 an hour for the same price.

Strangely I don't think I'll follow this particular guideline to far and make one of those rare GM Judgements and charge a bit more?

Rel · Jan 6, 2004

For what it's worth (I suspect relatively little), I allowed an "item of infinite healing" in a one shot game that I ran at the second NC Game Day. It was a "Club of Healing". If you swung it at someone hard enough to do the base damage of the weapon (1d6 per normal club damage), it would heal the person hit as though by a Cure Light Wounds (caster level 1 = 1d8+1). On average, it would heal you slowly if you got beaten long enough. But there was always the chance that you'd be beaten to death if you were unlucky on the damage rolls (or if the wielder accidentally got a crit on you).

I'm not sure if I'd allow such an item in my regular game but it made for unmitigated hilarity on Game Day as some of the party was thrashed back to health after a nasty combat or two. It helped that they were all playing Orc characters.

And it was hell on the undead. Kind of like a "Mace of Disruption, Jr."

dcollins · Jan 6, 2004

Here's what Monte Cook said about this back in 2001 (http://www.montecook.com/arch_dmonly3.html):

The most important thing to remember is, Table 8-40 doesn't determine prices. It suggests them. Don't say, "Wow, these shoes of continual improved invisibility sure are cheap." Do say, "Hmm, these formulas don't work when it comes to spells like improved invisibility." When someone asks me, "Can I really make an item that will cast cure light wounds at will, activated by a command word, for only 900 gp?" I now reply, "Only if your DM isn't paying attention."

There's some stuff in that article that contradicts the written rules (namely regarding caster levels, which he's later recanted), but otherwise it's pretty insightful.

An item that performs infinite healing needs to at least be comparable to a ring of regeneration in terms of function and price (new magic item guideline #1: "match the new item to an item priced in this chapter", DMG ch. 8).

Viktyr Gehrig · Jan 6, 2004

Rel said:
For what it's worth (I suspect relatively little), I allowed an "item of infinite healing" in a one shot game that I ran at the second NC Game Day. It was a "Club of Healing".

Consider this yoinked.