price for creating a staff

[Zorayas]

what exactly is meant by "the level of the caster" when making a staff??? Is it the class level of the character, the lowest level needed to cast the spell, or something else?

 

[nhl_1997]

Caster level is a bit weird for crafting staffs, but I think it refers to the lowest caster level necessary to cast the spells. There are a few conditions though:

1) The caster level must be the same for all spells
2) The minimum caster level is 8

Using the formula stated in the DMG and these guidelines (also stated in the DMG), I've successfully reproduced the Staff of Charming cost, but using the same guidelines, I'm a bit off for a Staff of Abjuration. Additionally, the highest level spell in a Staff of Abjuration is Repulsion (Clr 7, Protection 7, Sor/Wiz 6). Since it's a 6th level sor/wiz spell, I initially thought that the caster level would be 11, but the listed caster level is 13.

I'll post again if I can figure out the exact pricing, but the two conditions I listed above are correct.

 

[dcollins]

what exactly is meant by "the level of the caster" when making a staff??? Is it the class level of the character, the lowest level needed to cast the spell, or something else?

It's just the specific "caster level" of the staff. The actual creator must have a spellcasting level of at least that high to make it. It's not terribly well worded in that particular place.

Remember that staffs aren't like potions/scrolls/wands. Each one is uniquely described (with a caster level in the book), and if someone is inventing their own new one, that falls under "Variant: New Magic Items" (for which the DM needs to assign a caster level).

http://superdan.net.home.comcast.net/dndfaq2.html