How much should these magic items cost?

[RangerWickett]

Eowhisperer Charm: This magic item, an ornate shawl that fits over the horse’s mane and ears, allows a creature with an Intelligence of 1 or 2 to understand the Common tongue as if it were affected by a speak with animals spell. This item fills the head body slot. An animal wearing this can be handled as a free action or pushed as a move action, and it eventually begins to exhibit signs of an uncanny intelligence.

Fimblewinter Charm: A silvery cord threaded with several rings of sapphire-studded silver rings, when wrapped around the handle of a weapon, this charm can causes the weapon to deal +1d6 cold damage with each strike. However, attacks that deal cold damage deal 1 additional point of damage to the weapon’s wielder.

Hurling Bracers: These items can be activated as a swift action once per day. For one round, the wearer is treated as one size category larger for purposes of lifting capacity, grappling, and what sort of weapons the creature can wield. If being treated as larger would be a detriment for any given effect, it may use its normal size instead. (For instance, a human would not suddenly be unable to use a Medium dagger just because he counts as being Large).

Inquisitor Mask: Inquisitors believe that their masks protect their souls from hostile magic. Male inquisitors favor masks carved to resemble (or actually made from) bear skulls, while female inquisitors prefer ones that look more like heavily-decorated masquerade masks. An inquisitor mask takes up the eyewear item slot.

A creature wearing an inquisitor mask can choose as a free action to have the mask alter his voice to be more menacing and feral, granting a +2 enhancement bonus to Intimidate checks. Additionally, for 3 rounds per day the mask makes its wearer immune to possession, and to attempts to exercise mental control, as with protection from good. This effect functions immediately when needed, and ends when it is no longer needed. The rounds can be spread across the day.



If possible, I'd like both what you think it would cost before Magic Item Compendium came out, and what it should cost post-MIC. Thanks.

 

[MarkB]

Fimblewinter Charm: A silvery cord threaded with several rings of sapphire-studded silver rings, when wrapped around the handle of a weapon, this charm can causes the weapon to deal +1d6 cold damage with each strike. However, attacks that deal cold damage deal 1 additional point of damage to the weapon’s wielder.

The Lesser Crystal of Energy Assault (Cold) from MIC costs 3,000 gp. Making it damage the wielder might knock 500-1,000 gp off that price, so long as the damage is untyped.

If possible, I'd like both what you think it would cost before Magic Item Compendium came out, and what it should cost post-MIC. Thanks.

Should it make a difference? The MIC introduced the Weapon/Armour Crystals concept and made it cheaper to combine secondary functions with the Big Six, but aside from that, has it altered perceptions of item prices that much?

 

[RangerWickett]

I recall people coming up with costs 10 times as high as the listed ones in the MIC on a recent thread. Like, for the item that lets you take extra standard actions, it's only 10k or so I think, but a few people were pricing it like it was worth 200k.

 

[RangerWickett]

Bump for help?

 

[Mistwell]

I recall people coming up with costs 10 times as high as the listed ones in the MIC on a recent thread. Like, for the item that lets you take extra standard actions, it's only 10k or so I think, but a few people were pricing it like it was worth 200k.

The overwhelming majority of items that were way overpriced by people were the "adds an extra action" items. It would seem many people have a fundamental difference with WOTC over the value of a extra move or standard or full action a few times a day.

Almost all of the rest were viewed as relatively close to the MIC price.

 

[Andre]

Eowhisperer Charm:

Sorry, no clue. 500gp? Might be useful in limited situations, but not in any major way (that I can think of). If you put it on an animal you bring along on adventures, the animal will likely be killed in short order (adventuring is pretty hazardous to animal companions). If you try to put it on an animal you meet while adventuring, you're going to have to succeed at an animal handling roll just to get the charm on the creature. The more I think about it, this strikes me a great "roleplaying" item - something that might fit a particular character concept, but has limited combat impact.

Fimblewinter Charm:

2,000 gp. I believe that's higher than the gems from MIC, but I happen to think they're very underpriced. 2K is the price of a basic +1 weapon enhancement, and this could be put on any weapon, so I could see an argument for a higher cost. The drawback is so minor that I'm ignoring it.

Hurling Bracers:

500 gp. I'd also change it to an immediate action, so a character could use it when about to be grappled. Otherwise, given that it's just one round once per day, it's pretty minor. Still, could be a life-saver in rare situations, so a good item to have.

Inquisitor Mask:

1,000 gp. The protection from possession is useful, but limited in duration and activation (the character might be possessed long before he knows to activate the mask). The bonus to intimidate is nice, but requires wearing a rather noticeable mask, which doesn't help the character "blend in".

BTW, I love the flavor and limited usefulness of the items. None are overpowered, yet each can be important in the right situation. I suspect they also fit well with certain character concepts and would, therefore, be valued by those characters above their "objective" worth.

 

[MarkB]

2,000 gp. I believe that's higher than the gems from MIC, but I happen to think they're very underpriced.

As I mentioned previously, the equivalent MIC crystal costs 3,000 gp. The Least version only costs 600 gp, but it also only inflicts 1 point of energy damage.

The Lesser version also has the drawback that it can only be applied to a weapon with at least a +2 enhancement bonus. That drawback could be seen as equivalent to the drawback of RangerWickett's version, so the price could stay the same if one were swapped for the other. However, in a game that allowed weapon crystals it would be unbalancing to allow other items that can be attached to a weapon, so this item would take up the crystal slot on a weapon.

 

[NilesB]

I recall people coming up with costs 10 times as high as the listed ones in the MIC on a recent thread. Like, for the item that lets you take extra standard actions, it's only 10k or so I think, but a few people were pricing it like it was worth 200k.

To be fair that belt is the one seriously underpriced magic item in the book. People on the wizards character Optimization Board were talking about buying them in multiples and switching belts in between encounter.

 

[NilesB]

Eowhisperer Charm: This magic item, an ornate shawl that fits over the horse’s mane and ears, allows a creature with an Intelligence of 1 or 2 to understand the Common tongue as if it were affected by a speak with animals spell. This item fills the head body slot. An animal wearing this can be handled as a free action or pushed as a move action, and it eventually begins to exhibit signs of an uncanny intelligence.

between 700 and 1250 I'd guess. I'd want it to have some additional effect for animal companions though, as they can already be handled as a free action and most PCs with enough of an investment in an animal to want this would have that animal as a companion. Also let the maker chose the language it grants understanding of when they make it and cut or figure out the rules for the uncanny intelligence bit. Cool item.

Fimblewinter Charm: A silvery cord threaded with several rings of sapphire-studded silver rings, when wrapped around the handle of a weapon, this charm can causes the weapon to deal +1d6 cold damage with each strike. However, attacks that deal cold damage deal 1 additional point of damage to the weapon’s wielder.

This is basicly a slotless lesser mind blade gauntlet that works on any weapon. The disavantage is negligible, so how you'd price it would depend on whether you think the gauntlet got a discount for Soulknives being really underpowered as a class. I'll say 10,000gp, twice what a lesser mind blade gauntlet costs because it's slotless (Augment Crystals arent slotless, they just fill a new slot.)
I think you mean Fimbulwinter.

Hurling Bracers: These items can be activated as a swift action once per day. For one round, the wearer is treated as one size category larger for purposes of lifting capacity, grappling, and what sort of weapons the creature can wield. If being treated as larger would be a detriment for any given effect, it may use its normal size instead. (For instance, a human would not suddenly be unable to use a Medium dagger just because he counts as being Large).

300-500 gp.

Inquisitor Mask: Inquisitors believe that their masks protect their souls from hostile magic. Male inquisitors favor masks carved to resemble (or actually made from) bear skulls, while female inquisitors prefer ones that look more like heavily-decorated masquerade masks. An inquisitor mask takes up the eyewear item slot.

A creature wearing an inquisitor mask can choose as a free action to have the mask alter his voice to be more menacing and feral, granting a +2 enhancement bonus to Intimidate checks. Additionally, for 3 rounds per day the mask makes its wearer immune to possession, and to attempts to exercise mental control, as with protection from good. This effect functions immediately when needed, and ends when it is no longer needed. The rounds can be spread across the day.

1,500-2,000 gp. but way less if the skill bonus were competence like every other skill enhancing item.