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  1. - Top - End - #1
    Bugbear in the Playground
     
    ElfWarriorGuy

    Join Date
    Sep 2016
    Location
    United States
    Gender
    Male

    Default Magic Item Balance

    Are these magic items well balanced relative to one another? If there's a problem or exploit with any one of them individually, I'd like to know, but I'm mainly interested in them feeling roughly equal. They're starting items for three PCs.

    Arrow of Lir
    Ammunition, Requires Attunement

    A stone-headed arrow, fletched with white goose feathers. You have a +1 bonus to attack and damage rolls with it, and long range does not impose disadvantage on your attack rolls with it.

    While the arrow is within seven leagues (21 miles) of you, you know its exact distance and position from you.

    You can perform a special ritual as part of a short or long rest, at the end of which the arrow appears back in your hand from wherever it is.

    Rune Charm of Frigg
    Wondrous Item, Requires Attunement

    A small protective medallion of spruce. On either side is carved a rune for the name of the goddess Frigg, with variation marks indicating her role as bringer of good and evil fortune respectively.

    The amulet sometimes warns you of danger. When you roll initiative, you gain a +2 bonus to armor class & saving throws. This bonus lasts until the end of your next turn

    You can cast Augury using the medallion, by tossing it into the air and seeing how it lands; when you do so, it has a casting time of 1 action. The usual effects of attempting repeated castings of this spell still apply.

    Damascene Bible
    Wondrous Item, Requires Attunement by a Cleric

    You may use this bible as a holy symbol; to do so, you must hold it in both hands. When you use the bible to cast a Cleric spell of 1st level or higher that deals damage or restores hit points, you may re-roll one damage or healing die rolled as part of the spell; you must use the new roll.

    Additionally, as part of a long rest, you may read a random passage from the bible, drawing inspiration from the words. At the end of the rest, you gain proficiency in a random skill with which you are not already proficient. This benefit lasts until you use this feature again as part of another long rest.
    Last edited by Catullus64; 2021-11-20 at 12:56 PM.
    The desire to appear clever often impedes actually being so.

    What makes the vanity of others offensive is the fact that it wounds our own.

    Quarrels don't last long if the fault is only on one side.

    Nothing is given so generously as advice.

    We hardly ever find anyone of good sense, except those who agree with us.

    -Francois, Duc de La Rochefoucauld

  2. - Top - End - #2
    Ettin in the Playground
     
    Yakk's Avatar

    Join Date
    Nov 2006

    Default Re: Magic Item Balance

    +1 to hit/damage on 1/attack per combat.

    vs

    +2 AC/saves for 1.5 rounds each fight and at-will Augury.

    vs

    2 handed focus for ~+1.5 damage/healing per spell
    1 random skill proficiency

    ---

    The stone is significantly better, the arrow significantly worse.

    ---

    Stone. I like the flipping.

    How about as an action on the first turn of combat, you can flip it and randomly cast either bless or bane? (Replace the +2 bonus). Keep Augury, but restrict to 1/short rest? This action cost makes it worse than the +2 bonus, and the random bane/bless is more in line with the item's theme.

    For the Arrow... add locate object, locate creature and find the path, each once per day by hanging it from a string. Maybe have it deal an extra die of weapon damage. I think that would make it more even with the coin.

    (Augury is a better divination spell than those 3.)

    I dunno about the book. More info on the theology might inspire something.

  3. - Top - End - #3
    Barbarian in the Playground
     
    BlueKnightGuy

    Join Date
    Sep 2016

    Default Re: Magic Item Balance

    The Arrow of Lir gives a small boost to one attack per encounter. Outside of battle, the arrow is a powerful but situational tool: a tracking device. This will be the benchmark I compare the other items against.

    The Rune Charm of Frigg gives a larger bonus for a longer period (one round instead of one attack). I think the bonus should be smaller (for example, a +1), so it matches the small and predictable bonus of the Arrow of Lir. No change to the Augury effect (which is a weak and consistent counterpart to the strong but situational tracking effect)

    The Damascene Bible gives a larger bonus for a longer period (the entire battle), but it precludes you from equiping a shield, which is effectively a -2 penalty to the user's AC. Like using a two-handed weapon instead of a one-handed weapon, this isn't a buff at all! It's just an alternative. And so this item seems weaker than the others. Worse, the -2 AC penalty will hurt more and more as enemies hit harder, make more attacks, and come in bigger groups, but the single reroll will never grow to compensate, meaning that this item gets worse as you level up. This is by far the weakest of the three items. And worst of all, the benefit disappears completely when you aren't spending spell slots, while the penalty remains.

    So there are three issues to fix. First, the fact that the item is not an upgrade, but an ALTERNATIVE to a 1st level character. Second, the fact that the item's benefits fail to scale, while the item's penalties do. Third, the fact that the benefits disappear when spell slots aren't used, while the penalties do not.

    I think the most elegant solution is to replace the benefit with a stronger one that scales and that applies to cantrips. Instead of rerolling one die from spells of 1st level or higher, let the user increase the size of dice by one stage, and let this apply to cantrips. So a typical cleric with 16 AC (scale mail + shield) deals 1d10 (5.5) with Sacred Flame, deals 3d10 (16.5) with Inflict Wounds, and heals 1d8 + 3 (7.5) with Cure Wounds. But this cleric with 14 AC (scale mail) deals 1d12 (6.5) with Sacred Flame, deals 3d12 (19.5) with Inflict Wounds, and heals 1d10 + 3 (8.5) with Cure Wounds.
    Last edited by GalacticAxekick; 2021-11-30 at 05:01 PM.

  4. - Top - End - #4
    Bugbear in the Playground
     
    PaladinGuy

    Join Date
    Feb 2019
    Location
    Iceland
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: Magic Item Balance

    I absolutely love these. The Frigg coin is really nice and flavorful

  5. - Top - End - #5
    Pixie in the Playground
    Join Date
    Dec 2021
    Location
    london
    Gender
    Female

    Default Re: Magic Item Balance

    Quote Originally Posted by Catullus64 View Post
    Are these magic items well balanced relative to one another? If there's a problem or exploit with any one of them individually, I'd like to know, but I'm mainly interested in them feeling roughly equal. They're starting items for three PCs.

    Arrow of Lir
    Ammunition, Requires Attunement

    A stone-headed arrow, fletched with white goose feathers. You have a +1 bonus to attack and damage rolls with it, and long range does not impose disadvantage on your attack rolls with it.

    While the arrow is within seven leagues (21 miles) of you, you know its exact distance and position from you.

    You can perform a special ritual as part of a short or long rest, at the end of which the arrow appears back in your hand from wherever it is.

    Rune Charm of Frigg
    Wondrous Item, Requires Attunement

    A small protective medallion of spruce. On either side is carved a rune for the name of the goddess Frigg, with variation marks indicating her role as bringer of good and evil fortune respectively.

    The amulet sometimes warns you of danger. When you roll initiative, you gain a +2 bonus to armor class & saving throws. This bonus lasts until the end of your next turn

    You can cast Augury using the medallion, by tossing it into the air and seeing how it lands; when you do so, it has a casting time of 1 action. The usual effects of attempting repeated castings of this spell still apply.

    Damascene Bible
    Wondrous Item, Requires Attunement by a Cleric

    You may use this bible as a holy symbol; to do so, you must hold it in both hands. When you use the bible to cast a Cleric spell of 1st level or higher that deals damage or restores hit points, you may re-roll one damage or healing die rolled as part of the spell; you must use the new roll.

    Additionally, as part of a long rest, you may read a random passage from the bible, drawing inspiration from the words. At the end of the rest, you gain proficiency in a random skill with which you are not already proficient. This benefit lasts until you use this feature again as part of another long rest.
    How much are magic items worth? Rarity also determines the base price for a magic item. It's value. Common items are worth 100 gp, uncommon ones are worth 500 gp, rare items are worth 5,000 gp, very rare items are worth 50,000 gp, and legendary items are worth a whopping 500,000 gp. Those prices are totally arbitrary.

  6. - Top - End - #6
    Barbarian in the Playground
     
    BlueKnightGuy

    Join Date
    Sep 2016

    Default Re: Magic Item Balance

    Quote Originally Posted by kirrajack01 View Post
    How much are magic items worth? Rarity also determines the base price for a magic item. It's value. Common items are worth 100 gp, uncommon ones are worth 500 gp, rare items are worth 5,000 gp, very rare items are worth 50,000 gp, and legendary items are worth a whopping 500,000 gp. Those prices are totally arbitrary.
    What does this have to do with Catallus's question?

  7. - Top - End - #7
    Bugbear in the Playground
     
    Daemon

    Join Date
    Oct 2017

    Default Re: Magic Item Balance

    Uncommon
    Uncommon
    Rare, in that order. Otherwise fine.

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