Collected treasure at 3rd level

[Li Shenron]

Just a simple question...

We have just hit 3rd level, we're a party of 4 PCs (but very often we have been playing 3 at a time). Since we started, we have collected about 400gp each of us, and found 3 magic items:

+1 Halfspear (2301gp)
+2 Ring of Protection (8000gp)
+1 LM Shield of Arrow Deflection (9170gp)

IIRC from the DMG, if we had only the money they would be much underpowered for a 3rd level party, but counting the magic items value, it's more than expected, am I right? Do you think it is balanced with the party level?

The ring and shield are valuable, do you think we shouldn't have single magic items so expensive yet? Consider that with so little spare money none of us has yet been able to afford the equipment (non-magic) he's been planning to have for his character.

 

[hong]

The items by themselves are useful, but not overpowering. If you want to sell them, you'll only get half market price (assuming you go by the book), so you won't be awash with cash either. Thus either way, things should work out okay.

 

[darkbard]

as reluctant as i am to do so ... i have to agree with hong.

 

[drnuncheon]

found 3 magic items:

+1 Halfspear (2301gp)
+2 Ring of Protection (8000gp)
+1 LM Shield of Arrow Deflection (9170gp)

That treasure list looks familiar...Playing the Freeport modules by any chance?

If you want to sell them, you'll only get half market price (assuming you go by the book), so you won't be awash with cash either.

I've never been convinced that that 'half market price' was meant to apply to magic items. (Shades of Final Fantasy!)

Half price is the basis I use if the PCs say they want to "sell it and sell it now", but if you use the logic "they're selling it to someone who will later sell it for full price", then obviously there's someone out there willing to pay full price - it's just a matter of how much time they want to spend looking for them.

J

 

[hong]

Re: Re: Collected treasure at 3rd level

I've never been convinced that that 'half market price' was meant to apply to magic items. (Shades of Final Fantasy!)

Um... they are. It's even spelled out explicitly in the "Treasure" section of the PHB (p.146).

Half price is the basis I use if the PCs say they want to "sell it and sell it now", but if you use the logic "they're selling it to someone who will later sell it for full price", then obviously there's someone out there willing to pay full price - it's just a matter of how much time they want to spend looking for them.

Ah, but now you are actually going _beyond_ the book in an attempt to bring a degree of plausibility into the game, vis-a-vis market economics. The rules for treasure exist for one reason only, as far as I can tell: to facilitate gameplay. They're there basically to avoid fights between players when it comes to divvying up the loot. For that purpose, they work just fine; although every now and then, you'll find someone coming along who wants to extrapolate from the rules into a fully-blown economic system. These attempts usually crash and burn, although they may spawn 100+ post threads in the process.


Hong "will NOT mention the 7.5 billion chickens in Greyhawk" Ooi

 

[Li Shenron]

Also, the half price rules prevents Item Creation feats users to convert time & xp into money.

 

[Li Shenron]

Re: Re: Collected treasure at 3rd level

That treasure list looks familiar...Playing the Freeport modules by any chance?

 

[RedSwan78]

I, and the people that I game with, think the "half price for sold items" is STUPID when it comes to magical items.

So you mean to tell me that I have to sell this magical Item that I found while exploring for HALF worth to this merchant, just so he can turn around and sell it for full price to the next person? BS, my character will just sit around town then and buy all the magical equipment for HALF price also See how stupid it gets?

We've basically worked out a "bartering" system that works really well.