Arcana Evolved has a catch-all metamagic feat called Modify Spell. All casters in that system are spotaneous casters, and Modify lets them increase either the range, the duration, the AoE, remove either the somatic or verbal components, or increase the damage by x1.5 at the cost of two slots instead of 1.
Now, with casters getting a lot more feats I could see removing Modify Spell, since it was designed to be the one metamagic feat that does pretty much everything. But at the same time, I could see making those feats it was designed to replace work the same way-- costing two slots of a spell of that level rather than a higher level slot. That way, having a Stilled Fireball wouldn't be impossible (4th level spell), just expensive (two 3rd level spell slots).
I wasn't suggesting magic items would be overpowering, just it seems like crafting would be a lot more common. (This might just be my group, but we haven't had a pc or cohort crafter in years.) That's not a bad thing, but it is one way it would most likely separate a 6th level group with a level cap from one without one. A 6th level wizard might have one or maybe two fireballs a day, but a Wand of Fireballs is just cash and 320xp. At that point, cash becomes the balancing factor, since a crafter could make 15 3rd level Wands before he was more than 1 feat behind the rest of the party.
Personally, I love disposable magical items, and this seems like another way to expand a group's bag of tricks without having to level. Potions, scrolls, wands are all good times. While the big ticket items like your Frostbrands and Flame Tongues and Holy Avengers are beyond the abilities of pcs of that level to create, I wouldn't have a problem including them as "artifacts of a forgotten age". (Borrowing an idea of Shadowrun where magic goes in cycles and in the past magic might have been so powerful that even commoners would have had abilities and archwizards could have made the stars dance to their will, and there might be items from that age that have survived.) Even though swords like that are really, really expensive, generally they're just another +1 or +2 and and extra d6 or some damage against specific creatures. Its a nice mechanical benefit, but mainly its a bit of flash that separates that character from his contemporaries. Having cool stuff is one of the fun parts of the game.
Characters might find "impossible" items in forgotten tombs or dragon hoards or places like that. And things like a Wand of Stoneskin with 3 charges left, or single use item of Heal become very valuable resources that the party will likely obsess over how to use properly, like when they finally go after that CR 10 black dragon.
Now, with casters getting a lot more feats I could see removing Modify Spell, since it was designed to be the one metamagic feat that does pretty much everything. But at the same time, I could see making those feats it was designed to replace work the same way-- costing two slots of a spell of that level rather than a higher level slot. That way, having a Stilled Fireball wouldn't be impossible (4th level spell), just expensive (two 3rd level spell slots).
I wasn't suggesting magic items would be overpowering, just it seems like crafting would be a lot more common. (This might just be my group, but we haven't had a pc or cohort crafter in years.) That's not a bad thing, but it is one way it would most likely separate a 6th level group with a level cap from one without one. A 6th level wizard might have one or maybe two fireballs a day, but a Wand of Fireballs is just cash and 320xp. At that point, cash becomes the balancing factor, since a crafter could make 15 3rd level Wands before he was more than 1 feat behind the rest of the party.
Personally, I love disposable magical items, and this seems like another way to expand a group's bag of tricks without having to level. Potions, scrolls, wands are all good times. While the big ticket items like your Frostbrands and Flame Tongues and Holy Avengers are beyond the abilities of pcs of that level to create, I wouldn't have a problem including them as "artifacts of a forgotten age". (Borrowing an idea of Shadowrun where magic goes in cycles and in the past magic might have been so powerful that even commoners would have had abilities and archwizards could have made the stars dance to their will, and there might be items from that age that have survived.) Even though swords like that are really, really expensive, generally they're just another +1 or +2 and and extra d6 or some damage against specific creatures. Its a nice mechanical benefit, but mainly its a bit of flash that separates that character from his contemporaries. Having cool stuff is one of the fun parts of the game.
Characters might find "impossible" items in forgotten tombs or dragon hoards or places like that. And things like a Wand of Stoneskin with 3 charges left, or single use item of Heal become very valuable resources that the party will likely obsess over how to use properly, like when they finally go after that CR 10 black dragon.
