Care to help me price this magic book?

[Ion]

So I have this cleric paladin character in the works, who, at the moment, is planning on leaning towards more paladin than cleric. Being the only source of healing in the party, I thought he would be the type to take scribe scroll, and save up some healing for later.

It was then I had an idea for a “prayer book”, essentially, I want a book that will act as reusable components for the scribe scroll feat. So the character can "write prayers" into it at night maybe (still taking the usual time, paying the usual XP, and any extra costs for wacky spells), but not have to pay the raw materials cost.

I'm thinking along the lines of the book should hold a max ten (or so) scrolls scribed into it at a time, and when a spell is cast from it during play, that spot opens up again to have another scroll scribed there.

It takes a feat to use (scribe scroll), and limits the usefulness of the product (you can't sell these scrolls for profit), so I'm thinking the book shouldn't be terribly expensive.

That begs the question though, how much should it cost? (and/or, what other restrictions would you need to add to it to make it affordable on my meager 2nd level starting character gold of 900gp?)

 

[Twowolves]

I'd make the book cost the same as 10 scrolls of Cure Lt Wounds initially, then the cost for ink be equal to whatever the standard scroll gp cost for a particular spell to be put into the book. Avoiding the gp cost for scribing scrolls altogether shouldn't be possible, but modifying their form should certainly be in the realm of possibility.

TwoWolves Howling

 

[Thanee]

Well, going along the lines presented in the magic item creation rules, unlimited "charges" basically corresponds to 100x the price (or 50x when there is a "daily limit", which the 10 scrolls at a time could be seen as, even though it's not exactly the same), so if you were limited to 1st level scrolls with caster level 1st, that would be a market price of 1/2 of 1,250 gp (1/2 since only one half of the material cost is "provided") already (multiplied by the maximum spell level and caster level of the scrolls it can hold).

Bye
Thanee

 

[two]

You could also just have everyone in the party buy their own Wand of Cure Light Wounds.

Tell them that you will heal everyone up after each battle using the wands. In combat curing is the responsibility of the party members; stock up on potions of cure X or Y (barring exceptional circumstance).

This frees the paladin/cleric to not spend all their money on party healing, plus allows the paladin/cleric to do things in combat besides, well, heal.

I've never understood the barbarian in the party continuing to full attack with 7 hit points left and then, of course, he's dropped to -7 as soon as the monster attacks -- and the barbarian's player is aghast when the cleric in the party does something besides run over and heal him.

PC's need to take control of their own healing as much as possible. If you are below 20, drink a potion/cast a spell. If you want healing post-combat, buy a cheap wand of CLW. Make life easier on everyone.

This also, by the way, allows you to just be a Paladin (no cleric levels if not desired). Paladins can still use wands of CLW.

 

[Ion]

Alternatly, what if the book let me spend XP instead of GP (at the going rate of 5 GP per 1 XP)

so the XP cost, instead of being 1/25 base price, would actually be 6/25. (1/5 + 1/25)

how much would that book be worth?

 

[Jack Simth]

There is a precedent for something slightly similar in the SRD:

Caster’s Shield: This +1 light wooden shield has a small leather strip on the back on which a spellcaster can scribe a single spell as on a scroll. A spell so scribed has only half the base raw material cost. Experience point and component costs remain the same. The strip cannot accommodate spells of higher than 3rd level. The strip is reusable.

A random caster ’s shield has a 50% chance of having a single medium scroll spell on it. The spell is divine (01–80 on d%) or arcane (81–100).

A caster’s shield has a 5% arcane spell failure chance.

Moderate abjuration; CL 6th; Craft Magic Arms and Armor, Scribe Scroll, creator must be at least 6th level; Price 3,153 gp (plus the value of the scroll spell if one is currently scribed); Cost 1,653 gp + 120 XP.

A +1 light wooden shield would cost 1,153 gp, so the scroll at half materials cost would run.... 2000 gp. 10 of them would be 20,000 gp, but would halv the materials cost for further scrolls. Bind the leather up into a book, and presto!

 

[Ion]

Ok, what about a different rout.

What if the character goes to a temple, sacrafices X amount of gold, and the book now has that amount of gold ready to make scrolls with. So essentially just changing when the gold is paid, should there be any cost associated with the privliage to do this, or is it just adding a little flavor detail?