NPC Item crafters and their limits

[Greenfield]

A friend and I were discussing his game, and the PC's constant desire for scrolls, potions, and (when money allowed) custom items or item upgrades.

We began to talk about the abilities of non-adventuring crafters, what they could make, and how they might get the Exp to continue in this trade.

He likes to run a magic-tight game, and actively discourages PCs from taking item crafting feats. Others I know of run games with Wiz-Mart open 24 hours a day.

How much do you limit consumable and custom magic items from NPC sources?

How do you explain/enforce this limit?

To get this started, I vary the availability from town to town, and from one kingdom to the next. Larger/richer cities will have more lax rules about acquiring magic items.

The mechanism I use is the limited Exp available to a non-adventuring sort. He manages to get RP experience only, and that essentially rations his "creative energies".

Then there's the local demand, orders and expectations from others, local nobility and merchants. Why should he place your request for a magic Hat ahead of Lord Baxter's request for new armor?

Anyway, how do you handle it?

 

[lordxaviar]

How much do you limit consumable and custom magic items from NPC sources?

They are tight with them, because of the Exp cost...they arent always available, especially the higher up things... also failure perchentiles by older Wizards who may or may not be senile and are willing to enchant the harder ones.


How do you explain/enforce this limit?
some towns are anti magic, laws against open use of and such,
the EXP value should discourage mass production of these items... as for potions... could confine these to church based alchemical shops. making them very expensive for the non believers.
remember book prices are a base line... every town/economy is going to be different.
just some quick ideas based on years of this type of situation arising.


Then there's the local demand, orders and expectations from others, local nobility and merchants. Why should he place your request for a magic Hat ahead of Lord Baxter's request for new armor?

Love this... one... JUst too busy right now... great...

 

[anest1s]

How much do you limit consumable and custom magic items from NPC sources?

No limit, everything is out there for sale. And if its not, you can hire someone to craft it.

How do you explain/enforce this limit?

I don't really have to explain it. How NPCs get exp. in the first place?

Then there's the local demand, orders and expectations from others, local nobility and merchants. Why should he place your request for a magic Hat ahead of Lord Baxter's request for new armor?

Well, because you pay. And this means he will have to hire someone else to craft it, or not accept the job at all.

The only limit there is, is that magic shops need security for every item they have...which is a great limit on what is available. You can still buy expensive items, but you have to make arrangements.

 

[the Jester]

I'm not big on large numbers of magic items easily available for sale; I have had the pcs buy out all the healing potions in an area for a week or two, and I've seen towns whose entire magic item supply (on the order of a dozen or so potions and a handful of other items) got bought by the pcs.

 

[RUMBLETiGER]

I personally come from the perspective of allowing my PC's to acquire the general magic items they want, and make them work for it, but our games are pretty free-flowing with magical gear.

Then my monsters & NPC's are similarly stocked with magical gear, templates, and other assorted customizability to match, so it stays interesting and my PC's are not over powered for their encounters.

By "Make them work for it", I mean that I do limit thier ability to purchase magical doo-dads based upon the size of the civilization they are currently in, or I make it loot from very tough opponents. It's not uncommon for an assassin guild to be a reoccurring threat, and if you kill the assassin who was decked out with really nifty gear in his professional attempt to kill you, well then, it's now you're really nifty gear!

True custom requests for NPC's to create require wait time, and the adventure rarely allows for the PC do return exactly when the item is done, and so custom orders are usually something they really, really want and are willing to spend chunks of gold on.

 

[Li Shenron]

How much do you limit consumable and custom magic items from NPC sources?

Normally in my campaigns I just tell the players that magic items should be considered not for sale by default, and anything that instead they do find for sale (which isn't too few, really) should be seen as a lucky find.

This is my preference for all magic items except healing potions and similar minor curing consumables (e.g. to restore other afflictions), which I think in a fantasy world would have a much higher demand than anything else, which would motivate crafters to make them more often.

The PC should therefore expect to put their hands mostly on random magic items, either from treasures or from the occasional vendor.

Getting a specific magic item requires either to craft it yourself (my suggestion for mid-high level characters) or finding someone who can craft it for you on demand.

Also, I just default anything beyond the core to non-existant until the PC stumble upon it or decide to craft/invent it themselves.

I never came up however with good rules or charts for the on-demand case tho... usually I take time by suggesting that the PC should find it through some RP, and then I wind up with some roll vs % chance to see if they can find it in the current town/region or not.

How do you explain/enforce this limit?

Demographics.

My campaign settings are typically less populated than average, so a typical town will have some tens of thousands inhabitants, a city of 100.000+ people is a major metropolis by my D&D standards.

So I take a look at the local population, and then I check the item's craft requirements, therefore figuring out (but it's totally made up at this point ) some kind of probability.

You can use some "multiplying 10%" thumb rule for example:

- 10% of the population has class levels
- 10% of the levelled characters are of the needed class (multiply if more classes can do)
- 10% of them have the right item creation feat (skip this step for Wizards and Scribe Scroll)
- 10% of them have the right spell required (apply multiple times)

Eventually, the minimum required class level should also be factored in to decrease the chance, and you can also adjust the resulting % up or down if some of the requirements are in your DM's opinion significantly common or rare.

For example, let's say someone wants to buy "Boots of Striding and Springing", a fairly powerful and relatively inexpensive item. (edit: by this I mean to pick as example an item that's actually quite common in the game given how useful it can be for such a cheap price)

- classed NPCs: fixed 10%
- class required: Wizard or Sorcerer (for both spells) -> 10% + 10% = 20%
- feat required: Craft Wondrous Items -> 10%
- spells required: Expeditious Retreat and Jump -> 10% x 10% = 1%
- minimum level required: 3rd (for the feat) -> make up something, e.g. 90%

In the metropolis, there are 100.000 x 10% x 20% x 10% x 1% x 90% = 1.8 average people who can craft them, so in most metropolis there is at least someone who can craft these for you.

Note that however the above means that in such town there are easily 1000 wizards, which may be too much for many gaming groups.

 

[frankthedm]

Just rule NPC item Crafters won't sell themselves short and won't reduce caster level to cut their profits.

A 4th level potion maker will only brew at 4th level. Thus the Cure light wounds potion heals 1d8+4 HP and costs 200gp, rather than 1d8+1 for 50gp.

A 5th level wand maker will make a cure light wounds wand at 5th caster level, making the cost 3,750 gp.

Asking a crafter to reduce caster level is like asking a high class chef to flip burgers for minimum wage.

 

[anest1s]

Just rule NPC item Crafters won't sell themselves short and won't reduce caster level to cut their profits.

A 4th level potion maker will only brew at 4th level. Thus the Cure light wounds potion heals 1d8+4 HP and costs 200gp, rather than 1d8+1 for 50gp.

A 5th level wand maker will make a cure light wounds wand at 5th caster level, making the cost 3,750 gp.

I don't get it. I mean it takes them the same amount of time (well not the potions). And why wouldn't any sane adventurer buy the cheaper potions? If I have a 200gp potion I can't sell...I am not making any profit, am I?

 

[frankthedm]

And why wouldn't any sane adventurer buy the cheaper potions? If I have a 200gp potion I can't sell...I am not making any profit, am I?

That assumes an open, large and thriving market with enough adventures to support it.

 

[anest1s]

That assumes an open, large and thriving market with enough adventures to support it.

Or other ppl who are using magic items...and that probably is everyone above level 1 in the world. I mean a level 3 fighter is expected to carry 1 clw potion, even if he is NPC. (Well I expect him to )