Hussar
Legend
Thank you for - perhaps unwittingly - providing a lot of detail on why updating the d20 rules to 5E is far from trivial, and in fact very hard.
Yes, I absolutely agree Sane's approach is far from perfect; to take only a single example, the price structure of magic weapons translate poorly into 5E, where ANY magic weapon is basically all you ever need. The upgrade from +1 to +2 is minor, since no monster resistances differentiates between the two.
So the old "plus squared x1000" formula doesn't cut it in 5E. And that's just the most basic of assumptions, which gives you an idea of exactly how false the claim "just use d20 prices" some people bandy about really is.
In summary: Sane Magic Prices is a badly leaking band-aid, but still better than nothing (which is still better than the train-wreck that is rarity-based pricing).
Sent from my C6603 using EN World mobile app
Actually, I would say that you are very mistaken. The upgrade from +1 to +2 is HUGE in a bounded accuracy system where the PC's almost never gain any bonuses to attack. And, as far as utility goes, a +1 weapon, in a bounded accuracy system, is virtually priceless.
Note, you keep pointing back to 3e. But, 3e PRESUMED that you would have these magic items. The monsters were designed specifically around the idea that you would have a certain level of magic items at a certain character level.
5e doesn't do this. Unlike 3e, a +1 sword in 5e is an actual bonus, not something that's baked right into the math of the game. So, how do you price it?
And I notice you ignored the other points where you are asking for something to support your play style that has never existed in the game in any edition.