Epic Magic Item Costs?!?

[Jack Simth]

Realistically speaking villains have no reason NOT to sunder....as they are either expected not to survive that combat, or to get defeated by the PCs and be a recurring villain. There is no ingame reason not to sunder PC weapons.

Well, from the NPC's perspective, they don't usually expect to lose. Sure, from the DM's persepective, they're doomed. From the Players' perspectives, the NPC villian is doomed. From the PCs' perspectives, they hope the NPC villian is doomed. From the NPC villian's perspective, it's the PCs that are doomed (everyone is the hero of their own story, generally, and everyone knows the hero always wins.....), and so the NPC villian, while possibly not expecting another fight today (it is the villian's fortress, after all) and being fine with spell dumping, personally expects to win and collect loot. The deck is of course stacked against the villian... but the villian doesn't know that. Sure, if your PC's have gotten significantly over wealth-by-level guidelines, sunder away. Disjunction at whim. But do bear in mind the villian should probably have about the same attitude towards magic items, money, and wealth that the PC's do.

 

[pawsplay]

What's to stop the villain from killing the party, then using their gear against the new PCs?

 

[Dracorat]

Hrm. Do you also roll up level one characters, fight a Grig (CR1 creature) and complain to the DM that you cannot possibly afford a cold iron weapon with 150 GP starting gold?

If not, I fail to see how it is an issue that you cannot have an Epic weapon by treasure rules until level 25.

Like the grig, it might make the battle slightly harder, but certainly not impossible.

 

[Question]

A grig has 2 hp. CR 21+ monsters tend to have enough hp that their DR matters.

 

[Dracorat]

I do not agree. CR21+ monsters do not require that you can defeat their DR to defeat them. It makes it easier, but not so much that the lack of it is unfair.

But still, there is a double standard here.

 

[Rkhet]

By the time monsters with DR/Epic start to show up, the PCs should have UMD and scrolls of Shapechange handy. This would go right through DR if you pick the right forms.

 

[cignus_pfaccari]

But still, there is a double standard here.

If you couldn't possibly afford to have a cold iron weapon made until 12th level, I'd agree with you.

Brad

 

[Dracorat]

Why 12th? At level 12, grigs are cake.

 

[KarinsDad]

Epic items are broken.......to penetrate DR/Epic you either need massive amounts of +4 bane weapons OR wait until level 25+ for a basic +6 weapon. Ridiculous.

Why?

Why cannot a defense (in this case DR) just have no way to completely overcome it and can only partially be overcome?

DR/Epic 20 means that it stops the first 20 points of damage. Ok, fine. My 20th level Psion does 30 to 70 points of damage (depending) with a successful hit, so he still does 10 to 50 points of damage. He just doesn't do 30 to 70 points of damage.

So? It's not as if the DR is insurmountable.

 

[Sledge]

What would be the point of Epic DR if it was expected to be overcome at all times?