Magic Item Help - Price??

['o Skoteinos]

Mythandlore, even though the minimum level of the Craft Magic Arms and Armor feat is 5th, you can still cast shield as a first level spell. This would save you 8k, and for most fights, the duration wouldn't run out.

Personally, I think this item is really unbalanced. Why? Because of the precedent that it creates:

Player 1: I create a Armor with use activated Shield spell for 2000 + Armor cost GP

Player 2: DM, you're insane! But hey, I suppose I can craft a sword with use activated True Strike for 2000 + weapon cost GP? I mean, it's in the rules, right?

Player 3: DM, you're losing it! But hell, I'll make a headband with use activated Cure Light Wounds for 2000 + headband cost GP! I mean, it's what the rules have to say about pricing of magical items!

And don't get me started on Protection from Evil / Law / Chaos / Good! For 8k you're immune to dominate and charm effects, except for TN characters! And what about a magic item with use activated Charm Person, Expeditious Retreat, Enlarge, Spider Climb etc. etc. etc.

Any DM allowing use activated items with any level spell, without looking at comparable items and then setting a price is asking for the rules to be abused. I think 100k for the stackable +7 AC / +3 Reflex save / Immunity to Magic Missile (and in FRCS even the AoO negating quality!!!) is justified. And it may even be a real bargain...

The DMG can give a formula to calculate prices, but these items are way to unbalancing to even consider. And the DMG also says something like: "This is not a hard formula, look at other items to calculate the price." I can quote it if you're too laze to look it up yourselves, but I hope that my examples will show the sanity of these words...

 

[Artoomis]

Let's see: +1 because you need a +1 first before adding any other armor enhancement.

+7 MORE for the AC bonus (equal to a +7 additional enhancement bonus, surely)

I'd say the +3 reflex doesn't fit on the regular armor table, so youy'll have to add it in at, say, 3^2 or 9,000, and 1/2 that for it being limited to Reflex only.

So it's +8 on the armor table + the save bonus, or 64,000 + 4,500, or 68,500 - minimum.

 

[UD]

Heres how I would do it:

Use activated magic item: Spell levelx caster level x 2000gp.
Cast as 1st level caster.
Base Price: 1x1x2000 = 2000gp
Usable 5 times per day. Takes a standard action to activate. Lasts 1 minute, as per shield spell cast by a first level caster. The shield spell is active in the direction the shield is been held.

I would up this to ten time to day and make it a +2 enchantment.

On second thoughts that is terribly unbalanced. Eughhh. I would say notch it up to at least a +4 enchantment.