Cloak - Minor Disp. vs. Blur

[Dristram]

I was in the process of creating a magic item called a cloak of blurring or some such. While tallying up the cost, I checked on some other magic cloaks to compare and noticed the cloak of displacement, minor. A regular cloak of displacement gives 50% miss chance as per the spell. The minor displacement cloak gives a 20% miss chance...the same as blur. I don't understand why a minor displacement cloak would be made when one with a blurring effect could be made with the same effect, yet cost a heck of a lot less (12,000gp vs. 25,000gp) and you don't need any material component. Especially not one of such rarity as the skin of a displacer beast!

Is there some difference in effect between the spells displacement and blur that I'm not seeing?

tanx,

 

[Shayuri]

A cloak of minor displacement IS effectively a cloak of blur.

It has the same effect as Blur, in other words.

Bear in mind that the formulas given to determine the price of magic items is really not supposed to be used as an absolute reference. It's a last-resort method of pricing items, should nothing else be available.

Generally, according to DMG and T&B, the first step to pricing is to look for an item that does something similar, or comparable. Use its price as a baseline, and adjust up or down for any differential in power between the two.

If you have an item that's so weird that it really doesn't connect in any way to anything already on the list, at that point you can use the formula to come up with a rough price estimate. At that point you would compare that price to other items with similar prices and decide whether or not your item belongs in that category of power. If not, adjust the price accordingly. If so, cool. Yer done.

This is all assuming you're the GM, of course. If not, then you shouldn't even be doing any of this.

So, in summary, a Cloak of Blur is exactly identical to a Cloak of Minor Displacement...including in price, should the pricing be done according to da rulez.

 

[Cheiromancer]

Well, if someone is displaced, you don't necessarily know it. They look normal- they just aren't quite where they appear to be.

If someone is blurred, however, it is obvious to everyone that this is the case.

 

[fl8m]

I think the reason for the huge cost increase was one of balance, a permanent 25 or 50% miss chance on a 5th level character was a tad to powerful so they jacked up the price and requirements to put it more in line with items of this power level.

and as a thousand people have already said, the formulas presented for magic items are only there to give you a guideline you should still check similar items for a good average price.

 

[Dristram]

Thanks all!

And I am the DM

 

[Caliber]

D'oh! Nevermind.