D&D 2E Price of magic items in AD&D2e

[The_Magician]

I have a friend who has decided to DM AD&D 2nd ed again, but it's been such a long time that neither him, nor I, remember how to find the market prices for magic items. The DMG only lists the XP values. Does anyone remember how to do it?

 

[Deset Gled]

I seem to remember there not being a "market" for magic items in 2nd edition. You found items or you made items, but buying and selling didn't exist.

I never did too much in 2E, though. This might have been a house rule.

 

[Bastoche]

It does not exists.

 

[The_Magician]

Not sure I know what you mean by market, but PCs could buy and sell magic items in my games.

Also, there were some sourcebooks with prices for magic items, like the Encyclopedia Magica books. I also remember there was a site which listed the prices for all core magic items....

 

[(Psi)SeveredHead]

I recall a few 2e items with costs - probably not in the core rules - but the cost was an issue of flavor, not balance.

 

[Vraille Darkfang]

In 2nd ED.

Magic Items were TREASURE. You couldn't just BUY them. If you were high enough level you could MAKE them, but that was a pain to actually do.

Of course, once the party gets a certain amount of treasure they want to sell all those +1 weapons they've got hanging around. But, since you can't BUY items, you can't really SELL them either.

The Forgotten Realms had tid-bits about buying/selling magic items, as it was so magic heavy, surplus magic items actually existed.

In effect, the 2nd ed magic item system wasn't thought out in terms of PC level X should have GP value Y of stuff.

PC Magic Items were a difficult and inexact art in 2nd edition, as opposed to the mathmatic science 3rd edition is.

The best comprimise might be to look up the PC's Wealth total in 3rd edition terms, then when you give them something find a similar 3rd ed item & use that as the price.

 

[Vraille Darkfang]

Not sure I know what you mean by market, but PCs could buy and sell magic items in my games.

Also, there were some sourcebooks with prices for magic items, like the Encyclopedia Magica books. I also remember there was a site which listed the prices for all core magic items....

2nd ed price wasn't the Purchase Price. I think it was the relative value for characters who got XP based off of treasure (the Thief for instance).

 

[dcollins]

I have a friend who has decided to DM AD&D 2nd ed again, but it's been such a long time that neither him, nor I, remember how to find the market prices for magic items. The DMG only lists the XP values. Does anyone remember how to do it?

Apparently 2nd Ed. didn't have prices, but (fundamentally identical) AD&D 1st Ed. did. Either pick up an old copy of the 1st Ed. DMG, or buy a PDF for $6 here: http://www.rpgnow.com/product_info.php?products_id=1034&

Ah, 2nd Ed., just making things difficult as usual.

 

[andargor]

I remember a 1e game where we spent an entire evening negotiating with a character that had a +1 longsword (from a treasure divvy, we used dice to determine who would draw first).

After 5 hours, one character was high bidder, at 1,500 gp.

Magic items were RARE for us in 1e/2e...

Andargor

 

[Patryn of Elvenshae]

I remember a 1e game where we spent an entire evening negotiating with a character that had a +1 longsword (from a treasure divvy, we used dice to determine who would draw first).

After 5 hours, one character was high bidder, at 1,500 gp.

5 hours of 1E debate: 1,500gp

Two minutes of look-up in the 3E rulebook: 2,315gp

Getting on with the killing and the taking of stuff: Priceless