What's the Deal with Staves?

[darkelfo]

The charges listed are how much the staff consumes. So if one spell cost 2 charges then you have 48 total left out of the staff with any number of combinations. Maybe another reason they cost so much.

Oh, I see. 50 charges total, with each spell using a certain amount. That can be handy for certain seldom-used spells.

 

[ThirdWizard]

If it makes you feel better, a friend of mine made this exact mistake when he was DMing a game.

 

[Patryn of Elvenshae]

Hmmm... that makes a big difference. Still, why would some charges cost more than others? You don't have to keep answering my 3.5 noob questions!

Because it's cheaper.

Basically, think of a staff as taking a couple wands and smashing them together. Then, each wand can pull on the shared number of charges when you attempt to cast the spell out of it.

Because of this, the cheaper wand gets a price discount.

Now, in addition, you can make a particular spell take more than one charge from the shared pool. Doing so gives you an additional price break.

 

[Saeviomagy]

Frankly, most of the published staves in the book are... simply not worth it. They're awful. Too many powers and the wrong powers.

Conversely if you let a player create ANY staff he wants to, then they end up being too good. ie - make a staff as follows: primary power: Fireball, 5 charges. Secondary power: Fireball, 5 charges. Tertiary power: Fireball, 1 charge. Comes out cheaper than a staff with just fireball on it...

Note that the creation rules don't mention requiring more than 2 charges for a power of a staff, but that makes a lot of the given staves impossible to make.

In short: If you don't allow your players to make up staves, then they're crap. If you do allow your players to make up staves, then be sure to supervise closely.

 

[Sithobi1]

You can't do that; the most expensive power(Fireball 1 charge) has to be the primary power(100%). Then the second most expensive must be the secondary(75%). The rest are extra(50%).

 

[Plane Sailing]

The issue, I'm assuming, is that eventually "you'll run out". True enough. So make sure that your wands/staves/etc are:

• filled with a spell or spells that you don't use all the time,

• 
  
  I've got to disagree with you here (in a friendly way, natch!)
  
  My sorceress managed to get hold of a Staff of Fire at around about 7th level. She is now virtually 12th level and burns through the charges like there is no tomorrow. Wall of fire! Wall of fire! Fireball! Wham! Still got a third of the charges left though.
  
  Magic items aren't to be hoarded, they're to be expended!
  
  Cheers

 

[edhel]

Frankly, most of the published staves in the book are... simply not worth it. They're awful. Too many powers and the wrong powers.

As a roleplayer I would say that the staves have nice flavor. What's cooler than to find an ancient wizard's staff with the power over fire magic.

Anyway, giving a staff multiple powers makes you more able to handle different situations without switching items. A useful lower-level or higher charge cost power doesn't cost much to a high level wizard.

 

[Tric]

It's because you can deal 1d6 damage/round with it. And that's so unbalanced, they needed to raise the price by a wide margin.

 

[Nail]

I hadn't realized the original poster thought a Staff of Charming had 3 charges. Now I see his concern!

My sorceress managed to get hold of a Staff of Fire at around about 7th level. She is now virtually 12th level and burns through the charges like there is no tomorrow. Wall of fire! Wall of fire! Fireball! Wham! Still got a third of the charges left though.

And I (respectfully, natch!!) submit that you would not have paid for such a staff. Finding it is different!

And, possibly, your sorceress doesn't use the staff every round of every battle. Do you use it about once an encounter? I'm interested in your experiences. I've used staves *so* infrequently......mostly because the ones found as loot are far from ideal.

Over the last 24 hours or so I've looked over those spells that would be (IMHO) most useful on a staff. Perhaps unsurprisingly, they are essentially cleric spells! Spells that are handy, have a variable caster level, but you aren't liable to use every combat.

Break Enchantment tops that list, IMO. Death Ward, Neutralize Poison, Dispel Evil, and Banishment would also make my list.

 

[calypso15]

Just wanted to share with you guys a staff I created for a 14th level sorcerer. It took all of his starting cash, basically. It was handed down through his family, originally created by his great-grandmother, a silver dragon.

"The Silver Staff

This staff allows use of the following spells:
Shield (0 charges)
Minor Globe of Invulnerability (1 charge)
Repulsion (1 charge)
Contingency (2 charges)
Energy Immunity (2 charges)
Mind Blank (4 charges)

The Silver Staff also confers a +2 Luck bonus to AC and saves.

In addition, the wielder may add charges to the staff under certain circumstances. The night before, during, or after a full moon, the wielder may perform an hour-long ritual to replenish the staff. For each charge to be added, the ritual requires the expenditure of 30 xp, 300 gp worth of moonstone dust, and a few drops of the wielder's blood, which causes 1 point of temporary Constitution damage. The moonstone dust and blood are mixed into a glass of wine, which the wielder drinks. The wielder must then channel into the staff a number of spell levels equal to the number of charges to be added. Any charges that are not added by the end of the hour are lost. The number of charges in the staff may not exceed 50."

I think a staff of abjuration (that's basically what this is) is a great use for a staff. You don't need them very often, but when you do need them, boy will you be glad to expend the charges.

(Note, this isn't a hijack attempt. Just sharing my take on a useful staff )

Calypso