x/day items: reset?

[Herzog]

The AoO reset-thread triggered this question for me:

If I have an item that has x uses per day, when is that use reset?
Is it after 24 hours?

For an item that's usable once per day, that is an easy way to keep track of things.
However, what happens when your item can be used three times per day?
Is each 'charge' recharged after 24 hours? Or are they all recharged 24 hours after the first use?

I couldn't find nor remember any rule reference for this. Anyone here have a clue?

 

[Jack Simth]

The AoO reset-thread triggered this question for me:

If I have an item that has x uses per day, when is that use reset?
Is it after 24 hours?

For an item that's usable once per day, that is an easy way to keep track of things.
However, what happens when your item can be used three times per day?
Is each 'charge' recharged after 24 hours? Or are they all recharged 24 hours after the first use?

I couldn't find nor remember any rule reference for this. Anyone here have a clue?

As a DM? They recharge in the morning at the same time you'd refresh your spells (assuming you're a spellcaster), but I don't think it's clearly defined anywhere.

 

[Runestar]

According to rules compendium, the charges are automatically replenished at dawn each day.

 

[irdeggman]

As a DM? They recharge in the morning at the same time you'd refresh your spells (assuming you're a spellcaster), but I don't think it's clearly defined anywhere.

Except that not all spellcasters work the same way.

And in fact they don't work that way.

Divine casters must pray or meditate for their spells at the same time (or as close as they can) each day - it could be twilight for some, dawn for others.

Arcane must have 8 hrs of rest but only get a "daily" allotment (that is they can only do it once a day - unlike what a lot of people read when 3.0 came out that after 8 hrs of rest (a bunch thought they could get a new set every 8rs or so).

I default that the "day" starts at dawn, exactly when a "day" starts is totally up to the DM - but it needs to be consistent across the board.

 

[FEADIN]

I read something about a similar problem with spell like abilities x/day and the text said that the 24 hours started from the first casting but I don't remember where it was....seems logical to me but more complicated to keep track.......

I've found it:
http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/rg/20041123a

In part 3 from Using magic item:

Uses Per Day: Other items work only a certain number of times each day; for example, most rods fall into this category. The rules don't bother defining a "day" for you, and most of us can figure that out on our own. If it ever becomes important, treat a "day" as any contiguous period of 24 hours. There is no set "recharge" time for a magic item. Instead, the item functions a set number of times in any given period of 24 hours. For example, a rod of enemy detection works three times a day. You cannot activate the rod three times starting at 11 PM one day, then activate it three more times starting 2 hours later (at 1 AM the next day). Instead, you can activate the rod up to three times during any period of 24 consecutive hours. If you activate the rod at 11 PM on a given day, you can activate it only twice more during the following 24 hours. Let's say you activate the rod again at 1 AM the next day and again at 7 AM that same day. You have exhausted your daily limit of activating the rod ability at 7 AM. The earliest you can activate the rod again is 11 PM on the second day, when you can activate the rod only once (because you already have activated the rod twice during the preceding 24 hours). If you don't use the rod at all after 7 AM the second day, the earliest that you will have three activations available again will be 7 AM on the third day.
Once you exhaust an item's daily use limit, the item remains magical, it just won't function for awhile.​