Smashing Ioun Stones

[ARandomGod]

Not rules, guidelines. The DM is under no obligation to provide an item for the "same cost, and without the vulnerability". In fact, he shouldn't.

Of course he's not.
But then again, he's not under any obligation to allow the stones in the first place, or to allow any spell research or magic item research... nor indeed is a GM under any obligation to NOT have a large meteor fall onto the characters heads... (Or, for more fun, a very very small meteor, the speed will still kill.)

But, really, I think that he should.

 

[Darklone]

Btw, are there any rules how to simply SNATCH an ioun stone from an opponent? That's much more interesting than destroying them.

 

[ARandomGod]

Btw, are there any rules how to simply SNATCH an ioun stone from an opponent? That's much more interesting than destroying them.

Actually, there are.
I don't have 'em here, but I remember reading them.

 

[Lonely Tylenol]

Hmm...physics

I don't see how you could possibly manage to smash an ioun stone in the air. Hardness 5 and enough HP to be equivalent to a half-dozen 1st level commoners is nothing to sneeze at. Especially when you're not smashing it against anything.

I would think that rather than destroying the stone, you'd knock it across the room home-run style, using a grenade-like object scatter. How many HP do you think a baseball has? If the baseball was made of stone? How many baseballs do you see explode on impact? Major league batters are presumably the best batters in the world, hitting these balls. With a sword, maybe, but that's only because they're soft. A baseball made of stone would bounce off a stone, and it's more likely to shatter in two than a smaller rock would because of mass/impact distribution.

 

[James McMurray]

That's the way all magic items work - do enough damage and they're destroyed. Ioun stones are a special case only because they're not being worn, so they're a lot easier to hit (worn items in general can't be hit, and held items require a sunder attempt). It's one of their drawbacks (along with making you look ridiculous, with these planetoids orbiting around you).

-The Souljourner

I didn't do a full search, but the footnote at the bottom of the action types table specifically lists worn items as possible targets for attacking. Doing so provokes an AoO.

 

[sledged]

I would think that rather than destroying the stone, you'd knock it across the room home-run style, using a grenade-like object scatter.

If a rule is made to accomodate such a thing there should be a bonus for using a broad-headed waraxe.

 

[Lonely Tylenol]

"Hmm...he's got a pink rhomboid. Caddy, please pass me my seven iron."

 

[Ottergame]

Get a bunch of dull grey stones too and paint them! Make your opponent guess which ones are valuable!

 

[Gort]

Not rules, guidelines. The DM is under no obligation to provide an item for the "same cost, and without the vulnerability". In fact, he shouldn't.

Well, he does. I can deal with that.

 

[dcollins]

But then again, he's not under any obligation to allow the stones in the first place...

Incorrect. There is a big difference -- ioun stones are detailed in the core rules, and the item-crafting descriptions specifically reference those descriptions and things that can be crafted. Nowhere do the rules say the players have the right to design their own items.

One issue is core rules. The other issue is house rules.