Magic item: A Lament and help creating a classic

[thorimar]

You know what I miss most about 2nd edition? All the unique flavor of magic items. From spellbooks to amulets to any weapon imaginable, they all belonged to someone and there was such a rich history associated with many of them. Oh, the lost artistry of creating a unique and entertaining magic item. You can't have a system full of those with item creation rules, but I still miss them.

In my last 2nd edition campaign, I had a wizard/psionicist (remember 2nd edition psionics? I miss them too) who carried a Staff of Battle (Dragon Magazine 173). For a paltry 5000 gp you could get a staff with the following abilities:

- +3 quarterstaff that was unable to be cut by any blade
- wielder could strike first in any round it was used in melee
- attracted all missiles (including MM) that passed w/in 10 ft and absorbed them all on contact
- on an attack roll of 20+ it had a good chance to disarm an opponent
- cast the old spell repulsion 1/6 rounds, using 2 charges
- 1/day could make an attack that dealt 2X damage to medium and 3X damage to large creatures, with a chance to knock the target prone and possibly stunned. used 8 charges
- did 1 point of structural damage against nonliving objects

Wow, that did a whole lot of stuff for an entry level staff. I gave "better" staves in later treasure hauls, but he never stopped using this one. He was a ranged blaster, so the melee abilities were not used often (except in his absence from the table). So my challenge goes out to all magic item creation sages. HELP! Tell me how you would build it and fit the mechanics of 3.0/3.5. Please include where enhancements come from if they are unusual, and no suggestion is too strange. Thanks in advance for all your ideas!

 

[Hypersmurf]

Tell me how you would build it and fit the mechanics of 3.0/3.5. Please include where enhancements come from if they are unusual, and no suggestion is too strange.

Well, I can tell you right now you won't be getting it for 5000gp!

But check out the Quarterstaff of Battle in Magic Item Compendium, 12000gp.

+1/+1 Quarterstaff, effective Improved Disarm feat.
3/day: for two rounds, automatically deflects ranged weapons and 2nd level or lower ranged attack spells (note - this won't include Magic Missile, but it will include, say, Scorching Ray).
1/day: Both ends of the staff gain the Speed property for 5 rounds.
1/day: Battlestrike - one attack deals +2d6 damage, Fort save or stunned and prone.

-Hyp.

 

[Jhaelen]

You could also recreate it using the rules for Weapons of Legacy. It also has two or three example staffs.