Help price this weapon enhancement?

[kreynolds]

There's a weapon enhancement in Arms & Armor called Balm that I found pretty interesting. Essentially, it gives fast healing and a limited bonus to Fort saves. Anyways, here's what I'm working on. One is pretty straight forward while the other is a bit more limited...

1) These weapons channel positive energy into the wielder, healing wounds, preventing infection, and fighting off disease. They grant Fast Healing 1 to their wielder so long as the weapon is held. The weapon must be held throughout at least one entire round for the wielder to benefit from the healing, as the healing takes place at the end of your action.

2) These weapons channel positive energy into the wielder, healing wounds, preventing infection, and fighting off disease. They grant Fast Healing 1 to their wielder so long as the weapon is held. However, this healing is only effective against damage sustained while the weapon is held. The weapon must be held throughout at least one entire round for the wielder to benefit from the healing, as the healing takes place at the end of your action.

I was thinking +2 and +1 respectively. What do you guys think? I'm also thinking about adding that the wielder does not need to sleep while the weapon is held (though they still need rest to prepare spells and the like).

EDIT: Clarified how long it has to be held to benefit from the healing.

 

[Nifft]

I don't like building that kind of ability into a weapon -- it's too much to keep track of, as it's ambiguous what happens when a player is drinking a potion, firing a wand, disarmed for part of a round, etc.

The second one sounds even more annoying -- it's an accounting nightmare for players.

-- Nifft

 

[Crothian]

The second might be a little on the liniting side, especially if you get disarmed or have reason top place the weapon aside to like use a bow or cast a spell or something.

I do like the first one, but I'd increase it to +3. I really think fasst healing is powerful. In between battles you can easily pass this weapon around and everyone will be healed. I think it would become a must have in any party.

 

[kreynolds]

it's too much to keep track of

No worse than the Monstrous Regeneration spell (MaoF) or the fast healing spells (MotW).

as it's ambiguous what happens when a player is drinking a potion

If you're holding the weapon in the other hand for the whole round, you get back 1 hit point. (I'll clarify that up there in the description.) It's no different than a creature with fast healing drinking a healing potion, so I don't see what's so complicated about it (except that maybe my wording sucked ).

firing a wand

If you're holding the weapon for the round, you get back one hit point.

disarmed for part of a round,

If you don't hold it throughout the round, it doesn't work. Basically, it's just like a creature's fast healing, only you have to hold something for it to work.

etc.

Such as?

The second one sounds even more annoying -- it's an accounting nightmare for players.

How so? If you're holding the weapon when you get popped, you get healed. If you're not holding the weapon when you get popped, you're not healed, just like the spells mentioned above (such as Regenerate Light Wounds from MotW).

 

[kreynolds]

The second might be a little on the liniting side, especially if you get disarmed or have reason top place the weapon aside to like use a bow or cast a spell or something.

Do you mean it might be too limiting for a +1 market price modifier?

I do like the first one, but I'd increase it to +3. I really think fasst healing is powerful. In between battles you can easily pass this weapon around and everyone will be healed. I think it would become a must have in any party.

It's powerful if you have fast healing 10, but at 1, it's just useful during down time. But, I see this kind of weapon as very useful for being on watch, which is one of the reasons why I wanted to add the "don't need sleep" bit. Look at it like this. You just had a really nasty fight that day and you had to run. You're tired. You're hurt. But you can't leave your party undefended while you sleep. So, being hurt, you hold the weapon in your hand, ever alert, and keep watch throughout the night while it slowly heals you.

With the no sleeping thing, I think I might be ok with a market price of +2, but I should chew on that for a bit first.

Thanks for the input!

 

[cooper3046]

So, being hurt, you hold the weapon in your hand, ever alert, and keep watch throughout the night while it slowly heals you.

Fast Healing 1 is by no means something that "slowly heals you." At 1 point per round, that is 10 points per minute, or 600 hit points healed per hour. Figure a standard 4 hour guard shift at night and you are healing 2,400 hit points of damage. I really don't know any characters that would be considered minor to in down time.

My experience with items of these kinds is that they become nearly godly in power in downtime, allowing clerics to never use healing spells except in combat. I've given out fast healing items before, but I think they come with a real caveat. I'd just make sure the enhancement was well worth the benefit. I'd think +3 at the very _least_, if not more.

 

[Crothian]

Do you mean it might be too limiting for a +1 market price modifier?

No, +1 sounds about right.

It's powerful if you have fast healing 10, but at 1, it's just useful during down time. But, I see this kind of weapon as very useful for being on watch, which is one of the reasons why I wanted to add the "don't need sleep" bit. Look at it like this. You just had a really nasty fight that day and you had to run. You're tired. You're hurt. But you can't leave your party undefended while you sleep. So, being hurt, you hold the weapon in your hand, ever alert, and keep watch throughout the night while it slowly heals you.

With the no sleeping thing, I think I might be ok with a market price of +2, but I should chew on that for a bit first.

My biggest problem with fast healing is after every encounter the party can stop and pass around this fast healing item and all be healed up. Think about that in a dungion crawl. You save on all sorts of healing spells and you get to go into every encounter fully healed.

 

[kreynolds]

Fast Healing 1 is by no means something that "slowly heals you."

Compared to fast healing 10, it is. Maybe I should limit it to so much healing per day, like 50 hit points, but raise the healing to to 2 per round. That might work. At least that way it would still be useful in combat.

 

[Crothian]

Compared to fast healing 10, it is. Maybe I should limit it to so much healing per day, like 50 hit points, but raise the healing to to 2 per round. That might work. At least that way it would still be useful in combat.

That is a very good idea.

 

[kreynolds]

Cool. OK. Here's what I got so far...

Regenerative: These weapons appear as normal but are comfortably warm and soothing to the touch. Occasionally they will have finely etched runes of healing upon their surfaces into intricate designs. These weapons channel positive energy into the wielder, healing wounds, preventing infection, and fighting off disease. They grant Fast Healing 2 to their wielder but they can only heal a total of 50 hit points per day. The weapon must be held in hand for at least one full round to benefit from the curative magic stored within. For each full round it is in hand, the weapon heals 2 points of damage at the end of the wielder’s action. If the weapon is sheathed, dropped, taken, or otherwise leaves the hand during the wielder’s round, the weapon does not heal them.
&nbsp&nbsp&nbspRegenerative weapons can be found in two different levels of enhancement. The lesser enhancement only heals damage sustained while the weapon is held, while the greater enhancement heals all damage, regardless of when it was sustained. Since they channel positive energy, regenerative weapons deal 2 points of damage per round to any undead creature that is holding it.
&nbsp&nbsp&nbspCaster Level: 12th; Prerequisites: Craft Magic Arms and Armor, cure serious wounds, gentle repose; Market Price: +1 bonus (lesser), +2 bonus (greater).