3rd ed items in a 4th Ed World? - challenge

[Ginnel]

Okay, there was a thread around which was let me convert your 3rd ed character concept to 4th edition, just wondering how this would work for magic items. I don't think I'll be able to convert everything but I'm willing to give it a go, also I would be more than happy for other people to jump in and try to convert suggestions too, a group exercise if you will.

Below is an example of my take on potions and wands for 4th edition,

Potions - If you benefit from a potion it counts towards a daily item use for the day and it can only replicate powers (probably utility only) from other classes and last an encounter if not otherwise specified, a potion of shield for example would grant the shield ability to the imbider once for that encounter or for 5mins and count as a use of a daily ability,

Wands - Same as potions above but they can be used as many times as you have charges in the wand (like a reusable potion until its charges are gone

One last thing try to make them balanced for 4th edition, and either provide stats for the item required to convert or just a good description

 

[Dinkeldog]

Sliding this over to 4E house rules.

 

[shinobi_guyver]

You could have 3E potions and wands work the same in 4E, where potions grant the effect(s) of a power and wands can cast/use a power until all charges are gone.

For potions, the only change(s) I would make would be to limit them to Utility Encounter Powers only. This way nobody can use some awesome Daily power of high level from a different class just by drinking something.

Wands could be limited to Arcane Encounter powers. And instead of characters having to take a multiclass feat to be able to use it (like it says in the PHB), create a feat yourself that allows a character to use wands. Something like:

Wand Proficiency
Benefit: You gain the ability to use Wands. You do not gain the enhancement bonus of the wand unless your class can use wands as implements.
Special: If you do not belong to a class that has access to powers with the "Arcane" keyword, you can only use wands that are lower than your current level.



Oh... wait... I think I missed your point >.>

The above would be good if you were making your own potions and wands.

Since your talking about converting 3E potions and wands, you'll probably want to find a 4E power that works almost identical to the 3E spell.

As far as potions are concerned, I don't see a problem with leaving them as they are. Just make sure they are "potion-only" and that player's won't want to have them as normal powers.

Same thing could be said for wands. Where you find a similar or identical power, use the description given by the power. For everything else, they could remain as-is and have them be "wand-only."

I didn't see a problem with the spells being dragged over from 3E to 4E.
Look at this:

3E Ray of Enfeeblement
Necromancy
Level: Sor/Wiz 1
Components: V, S
Casting Time: 1 Standard Action
Range: Close (25ft + 5ft/2 levels)
Effect: Ray
Duration: 1 min./level
Saving Throw: None
Spell Resistance: Yes
A coruscating ray springs from your hand. You must succeed on a ranged touch attack to strike a target. The subject takes a penalty to Strength equal to 1d6+1 per 2 caster levels (maximum 1d6+5). The subject's Strength score cannot drop below 1.

4E Ray of Enfeeblement
Encounter <> Arcane, Implement, Necrotic
Standard Action
Ranged 10 (50ft)
Target: One Creature
Attack: Intelligence vs. Fortitude
Hit: 1d10 + INT modifier Necrotic damage, and the target is weakened until the end of your next turn.

There is almost no difference. The biggest change is instead of a Strength penalty, you take necrotic damage. When you "rewrite" the wands and potions for 4E, you should probably make sure they are handled in the same fashion to avoid them overpowering what is already there.

I think that some 3E spells that could have been put into potions or wands have been turned into rituals for 4E, so it may be a good idea to exclude those.

 

[Chaldfont]

I was bummed when I saw the potion list for 4e. So for my new campaign I came up with some of my own. There's an NPC named Salvatore the Saucerer who makes magical sauces. They act like potions. Drink one and it grants use of a power. It counts toward the magic item daily use limit but otherwise works just like the listed power. I used mostly 1st and 2nd level powers--especially cleric powers since the party lacks that class.

In the last session, they used the Pico de Gygax [Guardian of Faith] to summon a friendly spirit to help them. Other sauces available are:

# Bechamel of Blessing [Bless, pg 64]
# Holy Hot Sauce of Healing [Cure Light Wounds, pg 64]
# Transcendental Teriyaki [Sanctuary, pg 64]
# Terrible Teleporting Tabasco [Ethereal Stride, pg 133]
# Shadow Veil [Tartar Sauce of Shadows, pg 133]
# Applesauce of Ambulatory Acceleration [Expeditious Retreat, pg 160]
# Salsa of Shielding [Shield, pg 160]

They are on a quest to find the ingredients for Polymorphic Pesto, but I don't even know what that does yet.