Magic Item Creation--Identify ability?

[rejo]

One of my players was wondering if magic items could be made to identify (as per the spell) other magic items. After thinking about it, I said one might be made, but with limited uses per day. How would we go about using the item creation rules to make it?
This is the first time I'll have supervised item creation and would love help with this.

 

[Angel Tarragon]

Sure, you can make a wand out of it, just use the DMG wands as a base and design it using the rules presented on page 286.

 

[Staffan]

Using DMG guidelines, we'd first get a base price of CL*SL*1,800 for an unlimited-use per day command word item - that's 1,800 gp. However, I don't think that's really appropriate for an identify item, so I'd make it 720 gp for a 2/day item instead.

However, that's ignoring a biggie: the 100 gp material component cost for identify. Looking at the table in the SRD, you have to shell out for the component 100 times - that's 10,000 gp (I could have sworn it was 100 components, but maybe they changed that from 3.0). So you'd have a market price of 10,720 gp, and a cost to create of 10,360 gp plus 29 XP, and taking one day to create.

I would probably also include a fudge factor of some sort to the base price, on account of the spell having a one-hour casting time, but command word items only taking a standard action to use. Something like a factor of 5 seems right, off-hand, increasing base price to 3,600, market price to 13,600, and cost to create to 11,800 gp + 144 XP (and taking 4 days).

 

[dcollins]

One of my players was wondering if magic items could be made to identify (as per the spell) other magic items. After thinking about it, I said one might be made, but with limited uses per day. How would we go about using the item creation rules to make it?

This is the first time I'll have supervised item creation and would love help with this.

Remember, there are no "rules" for new-item creation, only guidelines. It's only allowed if you invoke the "Variant: New Magic Items" (DMG p. 214), so any such item counts as House Rules.

Personally, I don't allow any new items out of thin air, I require research times and money, just like spell research.

http://superdan.net.home.comcast.net/dndfaq3.html

 

[babomb]

Using DMG guidelines, we'd first get a base price of CL*SL*1,800 for an unlimited-use per day command word item - that's 1,800 gp. However, I don't think that's really appropriate for an identify item, so I'd make it 720 gp for a 2/day item instead.

However, that's ignoring a biggie: the 100 gp material component cost for identify. Looking at the table in the SRD, you have to shell out for the component 100 times - that's 10,000 gp (I could have sworn it was 100 components, but maybe they changed that from 3.0)

For an unlimited use item, it's 100 components. However, for items with a daily limit, it's only 50 components. Thus, the market price is 5,720 gp and cost to create is 5,360 gp.

 

[rejo]

Thanks

Your replies have been a lot of help. They'll come to use during tomorrow's game.
Quick note: my player will be researching for the item and be paying much more due to it. But I'm sure he'll be happy to know it can be done.

 

[Saeviomagy]

Your replies have been a lot of help. They'll come to use during tomorrow's game.
Quick note: my player will be researching for the item and be paying much more due to it. But I'm sure he'll be happy to know it can be done.

What level is he?

If he's got access to 6th level spells, he might want to take a peek at "analyze dweomer". A single casting is 11 identifies, and costs nothing (except for the focus, which is 15 identifies worth).