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PAGING ALL MERCHANTS! How do you protect your wares? (This ain't Baldur's Gate!)
- Thread starter Forrester
- Start date
Advanced Alarm spells
Anyone want to help me come up with 1st through 8th level versions of some buffed-up Alarm spells?
If a lousy 1st level Alarm spell lets you know any time someone of Tiny or greater size comes into a 25' radius, then a 2nd level one probably should be bigger and/or last a day and/or let you know what their size is, a 3rd level one should let you know what race/class they are, and probably act as a "Detect Magic" as well . . . and so on and so forth.
Anyone want to help me come up with 1st through 8th level versions of some buffed-up Alarm spells?
If a lousy 1st level Alarm spell lets you know any time someone of Tiny or greater size comes into a 25' radius, then a 2nd level one probably should be bigger and/or last a day and/or let you know what their size is, a 3rd level one should let you know what race/class they are, and probably act as a "Detect Magic" as well . . . and so on and so forth.
Zhure
First Post
With players approaching the level where magic items are more affordable, here's what I've implemented in my campaign:
- Consumables, primarily potions, are manufactured by the two gnome brothers. They don't label anything and they're confirmed pyromaniacs. Stealing from them would be quasi-suicidal. Only a few locks prevent mundane thieves. Common sense stops everyone else.
- One or two NPCs have some magic items they sell. These tend to be high-level characters who have little to fear from common thugs and lower-level adventurers. Anyone stealing from them will either be killed quickly or -- should they succeed -- no longer have a ready source of magic items. Examples include the 2nd highest level cleric in the campaign area and the other is the highest level warrior-type in the immediate area (excluding monstrous NPCs, of course).
- Practically everything else is commissioned. Cash up front, in advance for full service. The commissioned item will be ready in the appropriate number of days, not before, almost nothing is kept on-hand. This allow me to restrict availablity vis-a-vis things I don't want in the campaign, and increase interaction with the NPCs. Some of them like some of the PCs more than others, some like them less, this all is reflected in the availability of the crafter... "I'm sorry, I'm booked up until next Christmas, let me put you on the waiting list." I can also extort more cash from the PCs... "A rush job? That'll cost you."
In other campaigns I've seen a few magic shops schemes that work well. Most of them rely on high-level spellcasters to thwart theft.
Hope that helps,
Greg
- Consumables, primarily potions, are manufactured by the two gnome brothers. They don't label anything and they're confirmed pyromaniacs. Stealing from them would be quasi-suicidal. Only a few locks prevent mundane thieves. Common sense stops everyone else.
- One or two NPCs have some magic items they sell. These tend to be high-level characters who have little to fear from common thugs and lower-level adventurers. Anyone stealing from them will either be killed quickly or -- should they succeed -- no longer have a ready source of magic items. Examples include the 2nd highest level cleric in the campaign area and the other is the highest level warrior-type in the immediate area (excluding monstrous NPCs, of course).
- Practically everything else is commissioned. Cash up front, in advance for full service. The commissioned item will be ready in the appropriate number of days, not before, almost nothing is kept on-hand. This allow me to restrict availablity vis-a-vis things I don't want in the campaign, and increase interaction with the NPCs. Some of them like some of the PCs more than others, some like them less, this all is reflected in the availability of the crafter... "I'm sorry, I'm booked up until next Christmas, let me put you on the waiting list." I can also extort more cash from the PCs... "A rush job? That'll cost you."
In other campaigns I've seen a few magic shops schemes that work well. Most of them rely on high-level spellcasters to thwart theft.
Hope that helps,
Greg
drnuncheon
Explorer
Forrester said:
Why are you blaming the Sage for that? It's in the rules, not Sage Advice.
Craft Wand requires caster level 5, and a 5th level wizard just happens to get a free wizard feat right then. A 5th level wizard is also capable of casting fireball, so it's indeed theoretically possible that he could make the wand.
J
(and it will forever be a wand of 5d6 fireballs...so when he gets to 6th level, or 7th, his own fireballs will be stronger than the ones from the wand...not to mention that fireballs are weaker than in earlier editions anyway.)
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I'd suggest that the strongest protection for magic shops (and other shops, and residences) is a strong local government, which has sufficient resources to track down, capture, and punish thieves, and the desire to do so.
So the typical result of ripping off the High Magic Shoppe in the Imperial Capital is that the Imperial Police track you down -- and they have access to powerful divinations and high-level trackers.
So the typical result of ripping off the High Magic Shoppe in the Imperial Capital is that the Imperial Police track you down -- and they have access to powerful divinations and high-level trackers.
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