Magic item creation question

[Zander]

Apologies if this has been addressed before but there appears to be a glaring anomaly in the magic item creation rules. The ritual that allows you to enchant an item has as its cost in components the price of the item to be created. If the item costs as much to create as to buy, why not just buy it?

I can imagine circumstances where buying the item isn't possible but making it is. Other than those, the enchant an item ritual seems completely useless for players (DMs would need it to explain how magic items came to be). Barring unusual circumstances, is there a reason why a player would want to enchant an item?

 

[CSK]

For those campaigns where magic item stores don't exist and hence characters can't buy magic items, this allows players to customize their characters with the items they want.

 

[IncompleteUserNa]

The Enchant Magic Item ritual exists primarily so that if the DM says "Magic items are too special to be purchased in shops" the players 1) have a way to obtain magic items that don't show up in loot and 2) have something to do with all the monetary wealth they acquire.

 

[Milambus]

Two things.

1) The values listed are the base value. The price to purchase an item should actually be higher.

Prices shown are the base market price for the items. The actual cost to purchase a magic item depends on supply and demand and might be 10 to 40 percent more than the base market price.

2) There are ways to decrease the cost of rituals. There is a ring in the Adventurer's Vault, Ritualist's Ring, which can reduce the cost by half. There is also an Epic Destiny for Eladrin and Elves that was published in Dragon last month that reduced the costs.

 

[frankthedm]

Apologies if this has been addressed before but there appears to be a glaring anomaly in the magic item creation rules. The ritual that allows you to enchant an item has as its cost in components the price of the item to be created. If the item costs as much to create as to buy, why not just buy it?

It is fully intentional players don't get a "discount" for making items. Just as selling or disenchanting a magic item only nets a paltry 1/5th the value of the item, making an item is not a "deal". Do note the PHB list that if you buy magic items there is a significant upcharge {10%-40% IIRC].

Also do note in 3E making an item cost XP.

 

[Nail]

If the item costs as much to create as to buy, why not just buy it?

That, sir, is entirely and exactly the point.

 

[WalterKovacs]

The Adventurer's Vault added a very useful variation of the enchantment. You can turn a +1 flaming sword into a +2 flaming sword, or a +1 sword into a +1 lightning sword, etc.

This is much cheaper than selling the old item and buying a new one [you pay the difference between the two values].

Ultimately, it's to allow for BOTH the ability to buy items, or create items. Assuming a permissive DM, it allows the player to easily get an item they want when they have the right level and ammount of money, regardless of the environment. One "flaw" in the system is that, you'd need to get the material component ... so unless the DM gives that out instead of cash, you still have to go to town and buy it. [You can get some by disenchanting instead of selling your items, but you still have a lot of gem/cash accumulated that would need to be converted into components.