Rod of Wonder!

[SimonMoon5]

If you don't change the list for the rod of wonder's effects, then a rod of wonder can provide infinite wealth (eventually). Just have the fellow with the rod stand out in an empty field somewhere and use the rod over and over again.

Each use, there's a 3% chance of gaining (on average) 25 gp worth of gems.

So, if you use it for 8 hours straight, that would be 8*60*10= 4800 uses. Three percent of 4800 is 144. So, after a day, you would expect to have about 25 * 144 gp = 3600 gp.

Not bad for a day's work.

 

[tleilaxu]

Dragon #147 had an article with alternate powers for wands of wonder. It was written by a friend of mine, Richard A. Hunt. Yet another reason to snatch up a copy of the Dragon Magazine CD-ROM Anthology!

Johnathan

yeah that issue is sitting somewhere in my parents' basement

 

[shilsen]

In a very short 2E campaign I ran for a few friends who were total newbies to D&D:

The bard had found a rod of wonder and was totally fascinated with it, flinging grass and butterflies around at enemies every chance he got. Returning battered and bruised from an adventure, the PCs ran into a wagon train being attacked by a group of goblinoids. The others charged into battle, while the bard triggered the rod and summoned...a mouse. Infuriated, he tried again, and promptly shrunk himself to a height of 5 inches. Seeing that his friends were in trouble and refusing to give up, he leapt onto the mouse (now perfectly-sized for him) and charged into battle, still brandishing the (now toothpick-sized) rod. The dice finally turned in his favor and he rolled for a fireball and lightning bolt in successive rounds, and won the day for the heroes.

Then later he tried the rod on a black dragon and it ate him