Someone suggested writing up a good item once a month so you would have 12 good entries by the time next year rolled around. Of course, by the time Matt was declared the winner (congrats again :) we only have nine months left to wait. Anyone want to submit a couple for practice and critique?
If you do not want to tip your hand we could stay away from wondrous items--weapons, armor, rings, are fair game, but all the other rules apply. Oh and do not put anything you will actually submit here. This is for practice after all. :)
Someone suggested writing up a good item once a month so you would have 12 good entries by the time next year rolled around. Of course, by the time Matt was declared the winner (congrats again :) we only have nine months left to wait. Anyone want to submit a couple for practice and critique?
I might have a couple. I started working on new ones while I waited for the results on round two. Those and a few monsters. I dunno which ones I'll find time to share. Some haven't been fully written up and the game I'm running gets first priority on my time right now. :)
It's quite possible that no one is listening anymore, but I've just made a quick draft of an idea I was pondering recently.
Aura moderate conjuration; CL 7th
Slot none; Price 33000 gp; Weight 1 lbs.
This small, subtly ornate drum has a drumhead made of the skin of a giant bird and is adorned with delicate feathers. It's inconspicuous appearance belies the fact that it generates a powerful blast of air every time it is struck.
If the drum is beaten as a full round action it creates the equivalent of a severe wind in a 60 ft line.
If the owner is trained in Perform(percussion) he can, as a standard action tune the blasts of air more finely and use them to knock over objects, blow out small fires and perform the bull rush, trip or disarm maneuvers at a range of 30 ft with a CMB of +7.
If the owner is a bard he can as part of the action to maintain his bardic performance spend an extra daily round of performance to surround himself in a vortex of buffeting winds. These winds knock arrows and similar missiles out of their way, such attack made from or against the owner suffer from a 20% miss chance for 1 round.
Requirements , gust of wind,telekinesis,wind wall Cost 16500 gp
I have one major issue with how this item plays out.
I was aiming for cinematic versatility with the theme of this item, but its multiple abilities might have taken it into swiss army knife land. Also all the abilities are only slightly twisted spells, so one might also claim that it's somewhat SIAC.
While I'm not entirely happy how this first draft panned out, getting to the designing and, in my case working with the language is what counts :)
Hey Azmahel,
Here are some thoughts:
Item Name: (and yes, I'm not going to claim to be a naming expert :-) It is ok, but isn't great. Northern doesn't really conjure up the idea of strong wind, maybe cold wind.
Thematics: a drum isn't a wind instrument, it makes a booming noise which makes you think of thunder or sonic effects.
Costing: 33K for those effects is pretty weak, the telekinesis effect is the best effect and it is set at +7 CMB, which won't do much at the level you can afford it. 20% miss chance is ok for low level, but I'd still much rather have a normal bard song in most cases.
I hope I wasn't too harsh. I agree with your thoughts on the item, keep on working and polishing ideas.
EDIT: Also everyone please don't take this as a promise to review every item in this thread :-)
Hi Matt,
thank you for your thoughts.
You are absolutely right, this was a quick draft and it would require a lot of polishing before I would submit it ( Or more likely submit a different item altogether)
With the thematics was was deliberately not going for a wind instrument "of the winds", but had the visuals of a drum that when struck would create literal blasts of air, much like an AirZooka ;)
And you uncovered one issue with the last ability. It was supposed to be in addition to the normal bard song. I should have made that clear.
Thank you again for your insights. This quick draft may not be Superstar, but perhaps it is enough to get this thread started ;)
Oops I forgot to check this thread. My comments are in bold and focus on word count. Most of the others Matt got or you would have on another version. If you changed all 'wind' to 'sonic wall' I think you could pull off the theme a little better. If that is the case you have the option of adding deafness abilities to it. If so be careful to keep it tight or risk going swiss army knife.
Nice job overall. I hope the practice proves worthwhile. :)
It's quite possible that no one is listening anymore, but I've just made a quick draft of an idea I was pondering recently.
Aura moderate conjuration; CL 7th
Slot none; Price 33000 gp; Weight 1 lbs.
This small, subtly ornate drum has a drumhead made of the skin of a giant bird and is adorned with delicate feathers. this conjures the Thunderbird (Matt's suggestion probably) for me not sure why--is the drumhead adorned with feathers or the drum itself?It's inconspicuous appearance belies the fact that it generates a powerful blast of air every time it is struck.
If the drum is beaten as a full round action it creates the equivalent of a severe wind in a 60 ft line. so... and what, it has no game mechanic unless one does (or did I miss something)
With a {delete}If the owner is trained in{/delete}Perform(percussion) check DC X{delete}he can, as a standard action {/delete} will fine tune is that a pun? :)the blasts {delete}of air more finely and use them {/delete}to knock over objects, blow out small fires and perform the bull rush, trip or disarm maneuvers at a range of 30 ft with a CMB of +7.
If the player{delete}owner{/delete} is a bard he can{delete} as part of the action to{/delete} maintain his bardic performance spend an extra daily round of performance to
OK ignore all that : A bard may use the drum tosurround himself in a vortex of buffeting windsas a standard action. These winds knock arrows and similar missiles out of their way, such attacks made from or against the owner suffer {delete}from {/delete}a 20% miss chance for 1 round.
Requirements , gust of wind,telekinesis,wind wall Cost 16500 gpI have one major issue with how this item plays out.
I was aiming for cinematic versatility with the theme of this item, but its multiple abilities might have taken it into swiss army knife land. Also all the abilities are only slightly twisted spells, so one might also claim that it's somewhat SIAC.
While I'm not entirely happy how this first draft panned out, getting to the designing and, in my case working with the language is what counts :)
Also since it is my thread I promise to critique all the objects posted here (up through uhmmm... how about... November of this year :)
The Thread lives! - kind of ....
I already have 2 (thematically similar) items nearly done. as soon as i finish writing them down I will post them here.
And perhaps we'll see some other items too ;)
The Thread lives! - kind of ....
I already have 2 (thematically similar) items nearly done. as soon as i finish writing them down I will post them here.
And perhaps we'll see some other items too ;)
Aye, even if just you and I get feedback A, it will be worth the time. I have two to post, but need to do the math on both of them.
Ok with Paizocon over, here is my APRIL attempt.
Thorn Shirt
Aura moderate conjuration; CL 9
Slot chest; Price 54000; Weight 1 lb.
Description
Complicated vine patterns cover this woolen shirt of rough brown threads. Speaking the command word causes the yarn to twist and sprout into tough vines with long, thorny spines. As they spring to life the vines grow and encase the user creating a roughly humanoid, huge exoskeleton with the user at the center.
This ability, called Thornform, is useable once per day and lasts for 9 rounds.
Creatures caught in or moving through the Thornform’s area take piercing damage equal to 25 minus AC not including dexterity or dodge bonuses (see wall of thorns pg. 367)*. Entering the area does not provoke an attack of opportunity.
While in this form the user’s movement is reduced to 10’. She gains cover from attacks requiring an attack roll (+4 to AC, but no bonus to reflex saves)* from enemies not adjacent to her. She also gains a natural piercing attack of 4d6 at her BAB +2 (for strength bonus of the new size)*. This attack can be made against all creatures in the Thornform area or those within the 15 foot reach of the Thornform. The user may also shape the Thornform to use reach and deliver her own attacks. Doing this removes the area effect damage for one round.
Enemies can attack the vines against the user’s touch armor class. The vines have hardness 5, hp 160. Twenty points of damage clears a five foot section of the Thornform, that remain only until the user’s next action when she can reshape the form.
Due to an affinity with plants, clerics, druids, and rangers with the plant domain or favored enemy: plant, gain a +2 enhancement bonus to AC as if affected with the barkskin spell while in this form.
Construction
Requirements craft wondrous item, wall of thorns; craft weaving; Cost 27000 gp.
CONCERNS:
Too much ‘monster-in-a-box?
Should I include sorcerers with a fey bloodline or barbarians with a plant totem for the affinity bonus?
Two Top 32 items attempted a mech concept (mask of the elemental gaurdian and golem master helm or) so is this not original enough--hence I am posting it here :)
Did I price it right (I 2/3 the actual spell costs because of limits on use). Wall of thorns is the primary spell, but should barkskin be figured into the cost?
i am over by 16 words, but I think that is just bold and italic tags.
*these are rules in the book, is referencing them necessary even if it is just for ease?
BTW I put my comments in bold above--just in case it was not clear.
First thoughts: How big is the thornform? Given different size creatures could wear the item, it isn't clear to me what area the thorns take up. What about grappling the thornformed creature? Probably want to make it clear that the user doesn't take damage from the thorns. Not sure if a shirt is thematically appropriate for a bunch of thorns sprouting from the user (I know that you can't use the armor slot). I do like the concept, because it is a really druidy thing to have spikes that hurt anyone who attacks you.
Contributor, RPG Superstar 2010 Top 8
aka Benchak the Nightstalker
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Yeah, size was my first question as well. It seems like the Thornform is set at Huge size (you mention it being a "huge exoskeleton", and it has 15 ft. reach) What happens when a Huge or larger creature activates the shirt?
I love the imagery though, turning yourself into a giant humanoid wall of thorns is a really cool idea. I'd almost like to see it as a spell, rather than a magic item, but as a shirt I think it's a fun idea.
Thanks all. Do shirts resize like armor? I did not think so which means you have identified a hole I can now watch out for. I thought attacking the vines covered grapple, but again something to watch out for (and capitalize Huge :) . Thanks again, :)
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Contributor, RPG Superstar 2010 Top 8
aka Benchak the Nightstalker
|
Thanks all. Do shirts resize like armor? I did not think so which means you have identified a hole I can now watch out for. I thought attacking the vines covered grapple, but again something to watch out for (and capitalize Huge :) . Thanks again, :)
The PRD says magical clothing and jewelery usually resize, but that some exceptions exist.
(edited, tidied up)
Curaigh:
Further to my previous post, I have just been looking over rules applying to size (and size changes) in the current version of the Pathfinder RPG Reference document, and I am much firmer in my opinion now that it would have been helpful for you to say precisely what you intended the Thorn Shirt to do with regard to size and ability modifiers/AC/AB. There are at least two different ways I could see a GM trying to figure out what the result of a size change is, and neither of them may have matched what you intended to represent.
:-k
I hope that this feedback has been helpful.
Yes it is: tighten up my wording. Tighten up my wording. tighten up my wordcount. :) Thanks!
Aura minor divination; CL 3
Slot neck; Price 800 gp; Weight --
Description
A single stone of jet acts as a lid to this simple silver cylinder. A name inscribed on the silver lies among angels, ravens, or other death symbols. A hollow column filled with a lock of hair, a little soil, or ashes hides inside. Honoring the name of the deceased during daily prayers or devotionals creates a bond allowing the wearer to use one craft or knowledge skill of the deceased. The skill must be chosen during devotions, but can be changed daily from among all those the deceased had. If the wearer has the skill in question, he hears the whispered advice of the deceased and gains a +2 synergy bonus as if aided. If not the whispers guide the wearer and grant the use of the skill as if he had one rank.
A new or emptied Mourner’s Jet can be used by placing some of the remains (ashes, grave-soil, etc. depending on the custom of the deceased) inside and inscribing the deceased’s name as a part the funeral.
Though the vessel takes the neck slot, up to three vessels can be worn if the deceased are related. Related usually means family or a master/apprentice relationship, but your GM may approve others. The bonuses do not stack, but different skills can be chosen from all those people so honored.
Construction
Requirements craft wondrous items; guidance; craft smithing; Cost: 400 gp.
Hey Curaigh,
Some thoughts, again I like the concept. I think you have buried your lead here. It's only in the fourth line that we hear what really makes it as an item for me, the "whispered voice of the deceased".
It's got that whole "run Luke, run!" thing happening. That is cool. The bonus is pretty small, but it is a cheap item, which is fine because low-level PCs need magic items too. That said, the mechanics don't really have the degree of difficulty that the judges are looking for IMO.
Name: Should possibly have the word 'Remembrance' or something like that in it. People would wear this to remember or honor the memory of a loved one.
Formatting: Really check this, it's CL 3rd and so on. You know the judges WILL take off marks for this. You don't want this costing you a spot in the top 32.
Construction: I would have thought speak with dead and/or possibly augury as spells.
Thanks Matt and Charles.
The Guidance spell is low level and gives this small bonus. Yeah speak with dead is more flavorful and probably creepier, but I was looking for a low level spell. I appreciate the points about degree of difficulty, burying my lead, as well others as well. I probably could clarify or explain some of the other stuff... which is something prohibited in the contest :) so I will leave it there. This and this may interest you.
Again Thanks, Thanks, Thanks!
for August:
Aura medium transmutation; CL 7th
Slot feet; Price 10080 gp; Weight 2 lbs.
Description
Salty patina darkens these leather grieves, highlighting images of long flowing foliage, feathered-topped tubes and map-worked leaves that seem to sway in ocean waves. Once per day the grieves can be activated by speaking the command word. This creates a faint salty smell and causes the pictured plants to grow in a forty foot area centered on the grieves. Seeming to sway in ocean waves the magical plants overlay existing terrain features without replacing it and remain for the next four rounds (regardless of the user’s movements). This area has three effects. First, these plants make the area difficult terrain except to the user or creatures of the aquatic subtype. Second, they create recognizable patterns allowing bonuses related to a ranger’s favored terrain. Finally the plants magical nature aid any plant spells (from the plant domain or spells with ‘plant’ in the name or descriptor). Plant spells cast in the area gain +2 to caster level and add +2 to any saving throw DCs. These castings subsume the plants, ending the grieve’s effect.
Despite the name other terrains have their own grieves. The stamping in the leather might be spiky barrels and thorny stalks for a desert; oak and mistletoe leaves for a forest; or ferns and cranberries for marsh environments, etc..
Construction
Requirements craft wondrous items; entangle, hallucinatory terrain; craft leatherworking Cost: 5040 gp.
In the interest of trying to think outside my box I will let the dice decide what spell to attempt a magic item on :)
for the class: 1=Bard, Cleric, Druid, Paladin, Ranger, Sorcerer/Wizard.
with ten being roll twice, for spell level.
with odds being vowel and evens being consonants.
and being the letter (treating x/y/z as the same letter).
which spell alphabetically.
Edit:
though when I re-post I think the dice will change. This is what I rolled.
Only one 8th level druid spell beginning with the consonant F: Finger of Death. Be back in a week or so :)
Nice stuff again Curaigh. I'm personally not in love with the thematics of the item (that's just my personal thing on underwater stuff though), I do like the effects. It's a harsher entangle for everyone but the wearer (and his aquatic buddies).
What I feel doesn't fit is the theme: greaves = water = area of seaweed? While the feet/boot slot thematically equals movement, it doesn't equals block everyone else moving or help make a plant spell work better.
I like the idea of making an area favorable to you and unhelpful to your opponents. The duration is a little short, it could possibly be 7 rounds, at least, given it costs 10K and is based off 4th level spell. I get why you are using hallucinatory terrain as a construction spell, but it then begs the question, are the plants real? Can I see through this with true seeing? Maybe use plant growth instead. If they are real, can I cut/slash/burn/disintegrate them?
The area thing is vague, "forty foot area", I'm guessing that's a radius, but you need to say so. Also how high is it, important in a 3D environment (like underwater).
I also like the ranger favored thing, I think it could be given better than flavor than "recognizable patterns", but that it would be cool to fight a ranger with these. You should probably say something like, "any character with the favored terrain class feature" because there could be a new class or alternate class feature in a future rulebook.
"Grieves" really made my eyes itch, I suspect that would really turn off the judges. Rule for everyone, myself included:
A spellcheck is NOT a proof read.
Final formatting thing: numbers greater than 999 use the thousands commas: 10,050.
Good work mate, keep up the practice. I suspect this would get you close to a place, I'm looking forward to your finger of death item, that has a lot of potential.
Ok, i did finally write down some ideas I had in the last months and weeks. They are in no way refined or spell-checked, and the prices are wild guesses at best. So beware! :D
I have various reasons not considering any of them for the contest, even if I do like some of the ideas and even used them to good effect in my games.
Now I will go and try to make something based on some of the new stuff from the APG. Something fresh and unused.
Aura moderate evocation; CL 7th
Slot neck; Price 15,000 gp; Weight --
This silver necklace is fashioned after the holy symbol of a good or neutral deity.
The Necklace can store one cure spell of 3rd level or lower.
If the user is reduced to 0 or fewer hit points he can as an immediate action cast the stored spell on himself. In addition he gains DR 5/evil for 1 round per level of the stored spell used.
Requirements Craft Wondrous Item, breath of life, imbue with spell ability , Creator must have the good or healing domain; Cost 7,500 gp
Aura moderate evocation; CL 7th
Slot neck; Price 15,000 gp; Weight --
This black steel necklace is fashioned after the (un)holy symbol of a evil or neutral deity.
The Necklace can store one use of the channel negative energy ability (maximum 4d6) .
If the user is reduced to 0 or fewer hit points he can as an immediate action release the stored energy. The user can't apply feats like selective channeling to this ability and always takes full damage from the effect, most likely killing him. In addition the pendant automatically empowers the channel and bestows one negative level on every creature that fails it's saving throw against the released energy for 1 hour.
Requirements Craft Wondrous Item, imbue with spell ability, slay living , Creator must have the evil or destruction domain; Cost 7,500 gp
Aura moderate necromancy; CL 9th
Slot ---; Price 7,000gp; Weight 1lbs
This multifaceted gem reflects light and images like a polished mirror. When activated with a command word it creates a burst of cascading light and two willing creatures within 60 ft exchange bodies as with a mutual magic jar spell. This effect lasts until dispelled or one full week, whichever comes first.
When the effect ends the gem shatters and the souls return to their original bodies if both souls and bodies are within 60ft of the gem. If one of the recipients is missing, both recipients die, just as with the magic jar spell.
Requirements Craft Wondrous Item, magic jar, permanency; Cost 3,500 gp
Aura strong necromancy; CL 13th
Slot ---; Price 16,500gp; Weight 1lbs
This gem works just like a lesser Soulswitch gem, but it is useable once per month
Requirements Craft Wondrous Item, magic jar, permanency; Cost 8,250 gp
Aura strong necromancy; CL 20th
Slot ---; [b]Weight 2lbs
This fist-sized gem is jet black and looks rather innocuous when empty. Belied by its appearance this artifact has the power to permanently store and preserve a soul.
Whenever a living creature dies within 10 ft of an empty gem its soul (and only its soul) is trapped within the gem unless it succeeds on a Will save (DC 25). When a soul is trapped within the gem it takes on an appearance that subtly reflects the trapped creatures personality and essence. The trapped creature can not be resurrected by any means short unless the gem is destroyed or the soul is freed by offering to replace it with another , willing soul with at least as many hit dice as the original “victim”.
The trapped soul however gains the ability to cast extended magic jar( Cl 20 , DC 21) 3/day to possess other living creatures, using the gem as the spells receptacle. Possession in this way is the creatures only mean of communication or interaction with the world.
A Gem of Life's essence can be destroyed by casting a freedom spell on it while on the positive energy plane or by willing it destroyed by a trapped soul of at least 20HD, in which case a trapped soul is utterly destroyed.
Hey Azmahel,
Like the ideas and I can see where you were going with them.
The Pendant of the Divine Savior is a useful item, but something that has been done before, there is something the same in the MIC if I recall. Your wording is good, you should probably be explicit about whether it can retroactively save someone from death, (someone who has 1 hp, 18 Con and is hit for 20 damage, I'm guessing it does given you used breath of life in the construction). You could also include a spell in the construction that hints at the DR 5/evil like righteous might.
Divine Wrath: This is a little different, a suicide item. A couple of things, it should probably be a one shot item. Realistically, the wearer is only going to use it once, the PCs aren't likely to want to use it, and it wastes a lot of that NPC's gold. Also I'd like it to have it so that you can't just put this on a low level mook and have them blow themselves up near the PCs (base the damage and the DC on the wearer's cleric caster level?)
Soulswitch gems: These are an archetypical item and an item type that doesn’t exist already, these have potential, a good choice. After all there are plenty of books, and TV shows episodes where two people switch bodies. Not sure a gem is the way to go with them, something worn on the head (a crown?) could have been more in keeping with the archetype. I like that you explain about the range limitations, but an item that kills me if someone casts dispel magic on me is something so dangerous my characters wouldn’t use it. If you had done something to change that, then it would have been a very cool item. At the end it is still a spell in a can, so I can see why you chose to put it here in the testing thread.
I know you warned us on the proofreading, but just a subtle english thing a lot of people (myself included) miss.
it's is always short for: it is
"The golem wields its sword" is correct.
Nice items, if these are your rejects, I look forward to seeing the item that makes it through your testing process.
Hey Matt
thanks for your thoughts and feedback. I'm really gald you liked my items and concurr with most of your points.
I could elaborate on most of these and other details of my items, but nstead I'm going to do something more productive and give the other items in this thread a look and start building some more.
One thing though: Keep in mind that you only die using the soul gems if you are more than 60ft away from the gem and/or your soulswitch partner when the dispel magic is cast. so for many parties this is less of an issue. It's a risk yu got to take if you want to wander off with your borrowed body, just as with the magic jar spell. (it's still an issue though, and one of the main reasons for not using any item like this)
Not looking at older entries just yet, but I really like Curaigh's greaves and Azmahel's pendants (though I agree with Mr Goodall's points).
The soulswitch gems strike me as being very usable but also very straightforward. I don't think I would keep them were I a judge, but I can certainly think of ways to use them in a game (particularly the artifact version).
Thanks Matt and Nicolas. Welcome Back Azmahel. :)
The sad thing on the "Grieves"--I caught it and STILL put it on the board. *ack* Fortunately these are second drafts at best and other than y'all, I have not had any proofreaders that might normally catch it. That will not be the case for my entry. (To that end I am wondering if any of you would be interested in proofing my entry when it comes down to it. I have my local group but chances are they will miss the same things I do. :)
Now onto my finger of deaths: I actually had two, one that fits the more horror end of things that paizo prefers and an easy step from the necromancy spell. And one that I thought would be directly counter to that. :)
Aura strong necromancy; CL 16th
Slot hands; Price 19,200 gp; Weight 1 lb.
Description
Three fingers of decrepit, blackened flesh are sown together to make this partial glove. The stitches always ooze small, red dots of blood. When worn the digits cover the last three fingers of a hand, leaving the thumb and forefinger to poke through the dead flesh.
The three digits each have a special ability that can be used once per day.
The ring finger’s ability causes it to jerk and twitch when activated. It applies the still spell feat to a necromancy spell cast by the wearer without altering its spell slot.
The little finger’s ability causes a bleeding wound to tear open on the target’s flesh with a successful touch attack. This wound bleeds for 3d6 damage for the next four rounds regardless of any healing that is applied.
The middle finger can pull from its target some of the will to live. Pointing the finger at the target covers them in a magical black ash. This ash prevents the target from receiveing healing of any kind (including spells, skills, regeneration and fast healing) for 1d6 minutes. A successful will save (DC 19) avoids this affect.
Once a digit’s power has been used it crumbles away to little more than scorch marks on the user’s hands. A perception check DC 20 is required to spot the gloves when all three fingers have been used. The digits return to blackened flesh at the beginning of the day.
Construction
Requirements craft wondrous items; finger of death; craft leatherworking Cost: 9600 gp.
Aura strong necromancy; CL 16th
Slot ring; Price 200,000gp; Weight --.
Description
This golden talisman has circles of feathers surrounding a colorful bed of jewels. The gems form the pattern of long-tailed bird: the phoenix. When worn the talisman protects the wearer from death spells as if attempting a counterspell. When the wearer is the target of any necromancy spell, she or he may make a spellcaster check 1d20+16 as if attempting a dispel magic counterspell (DC: 11 + target spell’s level). The talisman always succeeds against a finger of death spell so no check is necessary.
Construction
Requirements craft wondrous items; finger of death;
Cost: 100,000 gp.
Does anyone care to comment on the pricing, I used a little more 'fluff' than the book and wonder if it worked. I am also curious to know if it is possible to have a wondrous item take up the ring slot. The game mechanics do not differentiate, but logic dictates anything that can be worn on the finger is probably a ring. (I just did it for the 'finger' description of the spell.
I remember there being a 'lot' of coin items in year 2, and chalk items in year 1. Does anyone remember the third year common item? That is what I am going for next.
I am also preparing villains, monsters, and areas with a look toward round 2 :)
Hey Curaigh,
Thoughts on your latest items.
I'll start with the Talisman. I like the description for this, short and simple, and gives a clear image of the item. What it does is interesting but a little too specific. How many necromancy spells are there that are cast on a foe? How many of these can also be negated by death ward? A PC would probably rather have an amulet of death ward. Also the counterspell thing begs the question for multiple target necromancy spells (like circle of death), does it counter the entire spell or just the bit affecting the wearer? The cost, wow that is a lot for something so specific. I guess it is the equivalent of 16 x 3 x 2000 gp but I can't see anyone actually buying/crafting it. The cost really makes it a plot device item. Created centuries ago to stop an ancient necromancer, the PCs now need to recover it to stop another rampaging necromancer. However, I don't think the judges would find that this has the 'mojo' for an entry.
The Bleeding Digits. It doesn't grab me as an item, now that is just me, but I hit the Freddy Krueger glove thing and it just lost me. I do actually find each of the effects nicely interesting. The bleeding touch one is cool, I'd try to use another word other than bleeding - bleed is a very specific game term. Also helps people remember your effect. I also like the 'no healing' effect, something that has its uses in the game. You could also say that it turns off regeneration, so that something at -Con or less hit points dies if you use the black ash effect on it. The Still Spell finger is different but kind of breaking one of the unwritten rules of spellcasting. The problem I see with the glove is that it is a swiss army knife item, each of the effects are a little too disparate for the theme. I think you could have made an item with just one of these effects and it would have had the same level of coolness. Just shows that you are getting good ideas.
Hope that helps, keep up the good work.
I remember there being a 'lot' of coin items in year 2, and chalk items in year 1. Does anyone remember the third year common item? That is what I am going for next.
I am also preparing villains, monsters, and areas with a look toward round 2 :)
My bet would be Keg items, preferably Cayden themed. There were quite a few in the feedback thread.
My guess for this coming year would be Summoner/Eidolon themed items or knights banners.
I agree that the finger-glove would have been better had it been more focused. I actually thought you were on to something cool when you first described the Still Spell effect- I thought that the other two fingers were likewise going to be circumstantial spellcasting-boosts which only worked for necromancy. It really lost steam by going the swiss-army-knife-route (even though the second and third effects might have actually been cooler); you could write a whole book of necromancy/death-themed items without retreading any ground, so "necromancy" by itself isn't a solid enough theme for a single item I feel.
The dispel check on the Talisman is fairly trivial (only need a 4 or better, even against level 9 spells). Are you sure you didn't mean 11 + spell level?
Taking a crack at one; this is inspired by Niel's 'combining two spell effects in a unique way' advice in the Spell In A Can thread (incidentally, this ended up remembering no trace of the first spell effect, but it was still good inspiration)
Aura moderate evocation; CL 6th
Slot --; Price 1,200 gp; Weight --
This object consists of six tiny swords attached end-to-end to form a hollow, four-sided pyramid. It can be activated once per day by crushing it with a bare hand (a standard action), at which point it becomes a whirling swarm of silver-red lights and flashes, barely contained in the cage of the wielder's fingers. This destructive energy may be thrust into a foe as a melee touch attack; on a hit the effect is discharged, dealing 6d6 points of force damage.
"Holding" the active blades deals 1d6 points of force damage to you every round (including the round that you activate it), manifesting as countless tiny 'phantom cuts' making their way quickly up your arm until the effect is discharged. You may "drop" the force at any time (an free action), though the dispersal of violent energy still deals 6 points of force damage to everything withing 5 feet, including you. In either case, discharging the effect causes the blades of force to reform into their iron pyramid and clatter to the floor.
Construction
Requirements craft wondrous items; spiritual weapon
Cost: 600 gp.
Based roughly on Shocking Grasp. 1/day is base 400 x 1 x 6 = 2,400 (if this is wrong it's because I'm running on memory). The action-tax, when 'enforced' by the ongoing damage (to keep you from activating it pre-fight), is a significant drawback which I think cuts the price in half.
Great Job Hydro, I think your Item is a perfect example of a SIAC that isn't just a SIAC, but something that is really more in a refreshing and interesting way.
I'm really looking forward to see what your actual submission will be like.
some very quick-and-dirty writeups:
Focusing(Weapon Special ability)
A focusing weapon is specifically crafted to resonate with magical effects that enhance weapons and amplify them.
Whenever a focusing weapon is under an temporary effect that give the weapon additional enhancement bonuses or special abilities (like a flaming weapon spell, A Paladins Divine Bond power, or similar ability)
it's enhancement bonus is 2 better than normal.
In addition the wielder may, when scoring a critical hit with the focusing weapon voluntarily discharge any such effect in oder to deal an extra 2d6 points of force damage per equivalent +1 bonus conferred by the effect with the critical hit
Moderate evocation; Cl 5th ; Craft Magic Arms and Armor; magic weapon, dispel magic ; price: +1 bonus
Arsenal Scabbard
Header
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This electrum-ornamented scabbard can magically hold up to 3 swords of any size and shape at the same time. If there is at least one sword stored in the scabbard, it will always seem as if the scabbard only holds a simple longsword of elegant design. Whenever you draw a weapon from the scabbard you may draw any stored weapon you wish, also once per day you may, as a swift action improve the enhancement bonus of a weapon you are drawing by 1 for one minute, if the drawn weapon already has an enhancement bonus of at least +1 you may instead imbue the weapon with one of the following special abilities for one minute:
flaming, shocking, frost, defending, keen, allying, menacing, merciful.
---
footer
like I said, quick and dirty. I also don't think any of these has enough "mojo" for the contest. they might be decent ideas for a big book of items, but just not Superstar.
I like both of these; the scabbard is something I'd especially like having because I'm one of those weirdos who actually thinks a golfbag full of swords is stylish and fun. Unfortunately, I think you might run afoul of exponential weapon pricing; this thing has to be priced on the assumption that it is turning a single +10 weapon into a +11 weapon, which kind of ruins it.
I would be more inclined to make it roughly duplicate greater magic weapon one or more times per day (conferring a moderate but non-stacking enhancement bonus). Then the optimal use becomes to carry a bunch of little weapons with quirky and varied weapon properties of their own, and I think that's exactly what you want here.
The scabbard is a neat idea, but unfortunately giving a +2 enhancement bonus for +1 might already be too good (this is a condition which some characters can meet fairly reliably; perhaps not for EVERY encounter, but for the important ones). But I do think it has a cool flavor and provides an interesting choice, in a fairly tight package.
Ok, i did finally write down some ideas I had in the last months and weeks. They are in no way refined or spell-checked, and the prices are wild guesses at best. So beware! :D
I have various reasons not considering any of them for the contest, even if I do like some of the ideas and even used them to good effect in my games.
Now I will go and try to make something based on some of the new stuff from the APG. Something fresh and unused.
** spoiler omitted **...
Hey A, I promised a critique and I apologize for the delay. I agree with Matt's suggestions (mostly the SiaC). I would add the description is pretty thin on all of these.
If these were in a pile of items my characters would most likely ignore them (until detect magic is cast). More importantly the description needs to grab the judges attention and it needs to scream out look at me, pick me up, read this item. Though there are many ways to do this (careful not to over do it :), from a writing perspective I would recommend employing at least a second sense.
(I could be wrong though since I am not wearing a title like Matt's (yet.:) )
Taking a crack at one; this is inspired by Niel's 'combining two spell effects in a unique way' advice in the Spell In A Can thread (incidentally, this ended up remembering no trace of the first spell effect, but it was still good inspiration)
** spoiler omitted **
** spoiler omitted **
Hydro, nice job. Since one cannot take two standard actions you are forcing the user of this item to take damage before s/he even gets to use it. Trading 2d6 for 6d6 is not a deal breaker however. I am confused on it discharging if you drop it, but I concede that some payback is a good check. It seems a little cheap for 6d6, but again think the once per day does balance it.
Maybe I am not familiar enough with Golorian, but naming an item after someone has been seen as a negative in the previous contests.I do like the visuals. Six swords make me think of a marilith which always strikes fear into my players. And who has not stepped on a d4 and thought its damage must work inside the game as well? :) I think you have worked appropriate checks into it,your design fu is way better than mine. :)
What two spells were you combining?
Hey Curaigh,
...The problem I see with the glove is that it is a swiss army knife item, each of the effects are a little too disparate for the theme. ...Hope that helps, keep up the good work.
As always thanks Matt. Wow it will be hard to not hit swiss army knife, I thought the three things were closely tied (death). Just goes to show why someone else needs to proof your work. :)
Great Job Hydro, I think your Item is a perfect example of a SIAC that isn't just a SIAC, but something that is really more in a refreshing and interesting way.
I'm really looking forward to see what your actual submission will be like.
Oh, and before I forget, thanks!
Hydro, nice job. Since one cannot take two standard actions you are forcing the user of this item to take damage before s/he even gets to use it. Trading 2d6 for 6d6 is not a deal breaker however. I am confused on it discharging if you drop it, but I concede that some payback is a good check. It seems a little cheap for 6d6, but again think the once per day does balance it.
Maybe I am not familiar enough with Golorian, but naming an item after someone has been seen as a negative in the previous contests.I do like the visuals. Six swords make me think of a marilith which always strikes fear into my players. And who has not stepped on a d4 and thought its damage must work inside the game as well? :) I think you have worked appropriate checks into it,your design fu is way better than mine. :)
What two spells were you combining?
Thanks for the feedback; you're right about the names, and I would never do something like that for the contest proper. Shax is a minor murder/torture demonlord plucked out of the Golarion bigbook, which I resorted to because I otherwise get really stumped on names. However, now that you mention it I think that maraliths make for a way stronger thematic tie-in ("Marilith's Charm" or somesuch), which would also be theoretically legal as a name entry.
Were you confused on the discharge effect in that it was unclear/confusing, or just in that you don't know why I did it?
My main regret reflecting on it now is that it is a permanent item but doesn't have much staying power (the damage might not be worth the hassle at mid/high levels, unlike a weaker but hassle-free item which would make a fine backup weapon). There is the fact that it's a force effect, however, which can make it worth keeping in your back pocket just in case.
The original seed of the item was True Strike + touch spell = Falcon Punch (i.e, two rounds to wind up and make an awesome attack). I suppose you can still see truestrike in the standard action setup, but I wound up cutting the attack roll bonus as clutter (and, really, it's not like touch attacks need the help).
I like both of these; the scabbard is something I'd especially like having because I'm one of those weirdos who actually thinks a golfbag full of swords is stylish and fun. Unfortunately, I think you might run afoul of exponential weapon pricing; this thing has to be priced on the assumption that it is turning a single +10 weapon into a +11 weapon, which kind of ruins it.
...
I also like the scabbard simply for the visuals of drawing a (large) greatsword from a longsword-sized sheath.
Pricing might be an issue here, thats why I hadn't assinged one to the scabbard yet (would be something along the lines of Efficent Quiver + 1/2 scabbard of keen edges)The weapon enhancement was given a +1 bonus, because bane and raging both have similar effects ( +2 on enhancement bonus under certain circumstances + side effect)
@Curaigh
Yeah, my last few writeups where quite lacking in their description, but i wont forget that with my real entries. These were just quick and dirty to get the ideas out of my system, and so they (sadly) didn't get a full write-up. Heck, some of them didn't even get a Spellcheck. :D
Oh, and sorry I didn't jet get around to review some of your items, I need to set some time aside for them.
Were you confused on the discharge effect in that it was unclear/confusing, or just in that you don't know why I did it?
If I were to drop the item EVERYONE around me would 6d6. Why would I target a specific person when I can hit everyone? Also holding it does 1d6 per round. That would be safer than 6d6, at least until round six, but if I combined it with fast healing, it would not be bad, so again why drop it? Does the magic fade away at some point, or could I hold it for as many hit points as I have? If the 1d6 kills me do I lose concentration and then drop it (taking another 6d6). What is required to "hold" it? Do I have to drop anything else, not use somatic components. ready a standard action, concentrate, nothing at all? These are the thoughts my brain started to chase down, hence the confusion. I do not believe you can hit every angle a player will conceive, but for your final something more is required. I think I know WHY you put it in there, (as a balance) and it seems appropriate to do so to me :)
@Curaigh
Oh, and sorry I didn't jet get around to review some of your items, I need to set some time aside for them.
No worries, as you can see I have more of yours to catch up on :)
If I were to drop the item EVERYONE around me would 6d6.
When you drop the item it only deals 6 points of damage.
Hope that helps ;)
The forums ate my post. Argh.
I did just ( and of course only in the reply box) do another quick writeup.
because I don't want to write it all again, I'm giving you the "abridged" version.
it was a +2 hide armor that made you immune to snake poison and 1/day allowed you to transform into 10 venomous snakes as with the swarmskin spell(from the APG) , but instead of turning into swarms you turned into snakes.
maybe I'll come up with another full writeup soon, but for now I just needed to get the idea out of my System, because right now my creative juices really seem to be warming up.
Note: This is also a good lesson for the contest: always, always, always have a backup.
What is required to "hold" it? Do I have to drop anything else, not use somatic components. ready a standard action, concentrate, nothing at all?
It was my intent that this be handled the same as holding a touch spell. The item probably would have been better had I simply said this, though.
What Azmahel said about the damage. :)
What is required to "hold" it? Do I have to drop anything else, not use somatic components. ready a standard action, concentrate, nothing at all?It was my intent that this be handled the same as holding a touch spell. The item probably would have been better had I simply said this, though.
What Azmahel said about the damage. :)
hehe *blush* thus making the rest of the questions moot. :)
Here is the next batch. This was mostly creative exercise to see if I could recreate what the judges said they had seen too many of: the coin divination, chalk drawing, and the trap finding robot (which I thought was a mug to begin with :), so they're even less proofed than normal, though I hope you will still critique the meat of it :).
Aura; minor divination CL 4th
Slot--; Price 2,000 gp; Weight 10 lbs.
Description
A four foot Y-forked stick of roan holds an ancient gold coin. The coin bears the head of a dragon on one side while the other side is stamped with three stars. The two smallest stars lie close together and near the top; the largest lower and alone. When activated the coin begins to spin. One minute later, the coin spins fast enough for the small stars to glitter in the eyes of the dragon. The user then looks through the hoardfinder. When the user faces a treasure hoard of sufficient size the largest star glows as the dragon’s firey breath erupts, illuminating a line up to three miles long. This fire is illusion only and harmlessly passes through trees, rocks, and any other objects except lead.
A hoard can be any collection of coins or gems with a value over 500 gp. It does not recognize other types of treasure or anything the user is currently carrying. It does not require specific knowledge of the treasure nor does it look for a single item. It therefore is not confounded by most anti-scrying magic. The Hoardfinder functions once a day, but the coin spins for ten minutes allowing a survival check (DC 20) to triangulate a location from multiple positions. The Hoardfinder indicates a straight line to the hoard, not necessarily finding the safest, or easiest route.
The line of fire is not subtle and there is a 20% chance of gaining the attention of dragons, tax collectors, adventurers or other treasure-driven creatures when used within one mile of same.
Construction
Requirements craft wondrous items; locate object;
Cost: 1000 gp.
Given the size of hoardfinder it seems likely dragons created them to bring adventurers to their waiting maws.
Aura; minor evocation CL 2nd
Slot--; Price 500 gp; Weight --.
These fat sticks of chalk come in four colors of red, green, blue and white. Pale energy at their center can be seen flickering like dust motes. As a full round action a person may draw flames, bubbles, lightning or icicles (respectively) on a shield or buckler. The next melee or ranged attack to hit the shield (matching the AC or AC -1 of the target) causes the chalk to throw 1d6 energy damage (fire, acid, lightning, or cold; respectively) at the attacker. A character may opt to have attacks made against his touch AC or use a shield bash attack to activate the energy damage. The drawings are only good for one use and each stick comes with 6 applications.
Construction
Requirements craft wondrous items; acid arrow, burning hands, chill touch, or shocking grasp;
Cost: 250 gp.
Yeah I wanted to throw in rainbows or unicorns.
Aura; minor transmutation CL 3rd
Slot--; Price 2,500 gp; Weight 3 lbs.
This cask of simple wood has a cork on top and brass spigot. Even empty the smell of brandy emanates from it. To activate, three magic potions must be poured into the casket (a standard action each). Upon replacing the cork, the casketeer begins to shake and roll. The hoops extend outward and the slats stretch and re-assemble into a medium creature. Vaguely humanoid, it has two wheels for feet, wooden slats for limbs and torso, and a brass-spigot head all held together with glowing liquid.
The casketeer can move at a rate of 40 feet a round as directed by the person replacing the cork. It can carry a torch or other object small object, but cannot attack or defend. Any damage done to the casketeer causes the creature to explode in billowing smoke. It will reassamble into a small cask in 1d4 minutes, but cannot be used again until the next day. If it does not take damage the casketeer will continue to move as directed for a number of rounds equal to the spell levels of the potions used (between 3-9 rounds).
Mixing potions is dangerous. If the potions are not all the same kind, there is a 3% chance per the potion’s spell level that a mishap will happen. A mishap does 1d4 damage per potion’s spell level to everything within five feet of the casketeer. See the use magic device skill for other magical mishaps.
Construction
Requirements craft wondrous items; animate object;
Cost: 12,50 gp.
When used to store magic potions the casketeer becomes a valuable addition to any coward’s arsenal.
It is small enough to be carried on the neck of a medium animal.
some very quick-and-dirty writeups:
Focusing(Weapon Special ability)
** spoiler omitted **I like the concept of something that can make better use of a magical energy. Nice Job. It could be simplified. I would increase caster level or apply metamagic feats of sorts instead, but then it does miss the mojo for superstar :).
Arsenal Scabbard
** spoiler omitted **
Yeah I liked this because I remember Casey Jones, the vigilante. I even see the duct tape in the electrum decorations. Of course I remember when TMNT had tails and spilled blood :) oh and where the h#!! did Immortals hide those swords they always carried? well here of course :) I also like the ability of adding a +1 variable bonus. good idea :)
I only get one swift quickdraw a day? I would make the swift a constant, just because it lets you switch from weapon to weapon as needed. OK I know you are wondering where I got quickdraw in the first place. On 2nd read I see you draw AND as a swift action add "X". This is just to point out how important wording can be. How did you get one minute? IIRC the required spells would be rounds per level so that seemed kind of long, & once per day was kind of slim. maybe combine the two, lasts for rounds, but you can replace and redraw up to 60 rounds combined. On second thought that is probably too long, but rewrites will give you a good balance.
Now if I can add a wicket bat, 9 iron and hockey mask. :)
Here is the next batch. This was mostly creative exercise to see if I could recreate what the judges said they had seen too many of: the coin divination, chalk drawing, and the trap finding robot (which I thought was a mug to begin with :), so they're even less proofed than normal, though I hope you will still critique the meat of it :).
Ok, I will take a quick stab at each of them.
Hoardfinder
At first i didn't get why the stick was in your description. Because after that you only talked abut the coin, but I think i now get that you had one of these Bird/Cage flipcoin toys in mind when writing the item. But it still feels odd.
I somewhat like the visuals you had in mind for this item, but their description is rather clunky and hard to follow.
I absolutely don't like that you included a fixed rule for drawing attention into your item. this attraction is not an intrinsic property of the item (it doesn't magically compel all Dragons that might see the line to investigate) so it should be left in the hands of the GM. a simple note that the use of this item is likely to draw attention would be enough. - I think this might actually be one of the auto- reject advices to come: don't include rules that aren't a direct part of the items effects.
Also if you are using an overused stereotype do something different and innovative with it if you want to make the cut. A Coin that helps you finding treasure isn't new or innovative. A piece of chalk that lets you draw walls of force by the inch is.
Chalk of the Giggling Satyr
Nice idea and nice visuals. I think it would have been better as a Paint item ( to avoid confusion with metal shields) but it works perfectly as a chalk item.
Again some wonkyness in language and effect. (I would have gone with a fire/cold/acid/electricity shield (acid protects from acid attacks, electricity from electricity attacks - grounding out and neutralizing respectivey) effect instead. ust for ease of use and elegance )
You also stepped on a big NO ( autoreject-advice to come):
Don't invent a new Sub-System for your item. In this case a rulessystem for determining if a strike hit the shield.
Potion Casketeer
pretty nic idea for activating the item, but after that its rather bland. just a robot that moves in a straight line and falls appart if hit.
Your language gets really hard to understand at the end, when you explain the mishap rules. And Why do you reference the UMD rules? there is no UMD check in using the item and you presented full mishap rules.
You also had a formating error in your construction line, but thats just a minor nitpick.
to Sum it up:
You have nice ideas and great visuals. But you need to work on delivering these ideas and visuals as well as on cleaning up your mechanics.
But if you take one of your more innovative ideas (like the Seaweed grieves. we need more favored terrain items - a sadly neglected classfeature), equip it with your great visuals (polished up) teamed up with nice, clean and easy to use/remember rules, You will have a real good stab the Top 32.
PS: I hope my rant is easier to understand than I think it is. it's about 4am over here and I should have been sleeping for a long time ;)
Based on Curaigh did I also wanted to try something different. An Item that falls into as many bad item stereotypes as possible without becoming a really bad or gag item.
I think I managed quite a few.
Cookies for everyone who finds all of them.
An early happy halloween for everybody else.
Bracelet of the Five-legged Spider
Aura moderate necromancy and transmutation; CL 7th
Slot wrist; Price 25000 gp (normal) or 30000 (enhanced); Weight ZZ lbs.
This single iron bracelet is stained with flecks of blood and rust and fits tightly around the wearers wrist. The wearer of the bracelet of the Five-legged spider can literally twist the hand on which the bracelet is worn of his wrist, loosing use of the hand and all magic items worn on it. As soon as the hand is detached from the wearers arm it animates and four tiny eyes appear on the hands knuckles.
The wearer may then empathically commune with the hand at a range of one mile and share its senses (sight and hearing) at a range of 300 feet and command it to perform tasks for him. When out of range of telepathic communication the hand may perform any assigned tasks as a creature with an Intelligence score of 5. The hand may either crawl along the ground with a Speed of 15 ft, or levitate at a height of up to 10 ft. with a speed of 15ft. When levitating the Hand sheds a eerie, purple light equivalent to a light spell.
The Hand has 20% of the wearers HP and an AC of 14 + Any bonuses from magic items worn on the hand. When the Hand is dropped to 0 or less HP it merely becomes inanimate.
The hand can has a maximum carrying capacity equal to 25lbs + 5 lbs per point of strength bonus the wearer has. This is also the maximum force the hand can exert.
The wearer can easily reattach the hand as a standard action as long as the bracelet is worn. If the bracelet is removed while the hand is detached it immediately becomes inanimate.
Originally these items where simply called helping hands but someone mentioned that the crawling hand looked like a spider and the new name stuck. Some have even created versions of this item that amplify the spider theme. These enhanced bracelets do not give the detached hand the ability to levitate but instead give it a climb speed of 20 ft and a poisonous bite attack (+7 bite , 1d3-2 dmg plus medium spider venom)
Requirements Craft Wondrous item , mage hand, , spectral hand , levitate (normal only) , poison (enhanced only); Cost 12500 gp(normal or 15000(enhanced)
Hoardfinder
Using percentile chances to abstract the game world's reaction can hardly be an 'auto-reject', since the core rules still do it (although Mage's Disjunction is the only one I can think of off the top of my head). Also note that he says 'if any are around'. All things are subject to DM discretion, and I think the 20% is just intended to give the DM some idea how attention-grabbing the ray is supposed to be.
Even given all that, though, I think it would have been better to emphasize that the 20% is a rough guideline and not a hard property of the item (simply inserting a qualifier in there, like 'roughly' or 'in most cases', or even the old standby "subject to DM discretion", would go a long way towards keeping inexperienced DMs from misreading it).
The coin spinning until the stars appear in the dragon's eyes, then shooting out a ray of magical fire, was a great visual (it's something I'd expect to see in a Disney movie- that's a compliment this time, I promise). Using an optical illusion as a bridge to an actual illusion is really clever; I'm taking notes here.
The mechanics are also a little funny; the fact that you have to look through the hoardfinder "at" a treasure hoard makes sense intuitively, but how does that pan out in the rules? How long does it take me to stand in place and thoroughly search the area around me? Does it help if I spin like a top? Mordenkainen's Pottery Wheel? Players and DMs will talk through these sorts of quirks (and sometimes have a good time doing so), but I might have made it a bit simpler.
I don't know how I feel about the base effect. Three miles is a really long range, and I don't want treasure-dowsing to completely replace treasure-hunting.
Chalk of the Giggling Satyr
"Attacks that hit your shield" has a lot of informal precedence in 3e, though Curaigh didn't really follow that precedence (it's usually "more than your shieldless AC, less than your AC"). I also can't find any rules working this way in the core 3.P rules, so Azmahel might be right here, but I know I've seen it in 3e Monster Manuals and in Malhavoc Press books.
While I love the effect I don't think it's very satyr-ish at all. It has a fun note of whimsy, but still, buffing your shield doesn't scream "satyr" to me. Certainly looks like something a fey knight or gnomish cleric would use, though.
Again, great visuals, and the effect (energy damage when they hit you) is fine this time. If anything I would have said 2d6 or 1d6+X (or 2d6+X); the fun of this item comes from laying a trap and saying "up yours!" to people trying to attack you. But whether or not it'll trigger is very unpredictable, and having it go off right when you want it only to deal 1 measly damage would be a little disappointing (even though it's basically 'free damage').
Potion Casketeer
I love this guy, but for his cost he's virtually useless; an item which casts unseen servant once per day would cost 400 GP IIRC and would be vastly superior (your dude costs 2.5k, plus at least 50 GP per round that he's activated!)
On the other hand, giving PCs some alternative use for "junk" potions/consumables was a really great direction to go in. I think there's a lot of design space there and that something game-enrichingly useful and fun could come of it.
I think you tend to start off on the right foot, with really neat fantasy-objects that are activated in cool ways, but the end functions (what the item is actually used for) aren't always as strong. Looking back at older entries (Thorn Shirt, Seaweed Greaves) you DO have some awesome effects, though sometimes confusing in execution. Maybe you're trying to be more conservative now?
It might help you to do some brainstorming for effects ("what are awesome things that a magic item could do"), but paying special attention to effects that you think you can express concisely, in a way that isn't vague or overly complicated. Note that 'vague' isn't the same as 'open'-ended (what your Caskeer does is open-ended, in that it's open to creative use, but not vague- how it works is perfectly clear [it's just not useful enough for the cost]). Others may disagree, but for what its worth I think your Mourner's Jet- at least in its core effect- is one of the best things you've done. Gives you 1 rank if you aren't trained and aids you if you do, and you can change the skill every day. Beautiful. It's not a huge effect, but it's fairly fresh and simple and very evocative of the item's flavor (this is exactly what I would expect 'whispered advice' to do; it doesn't win the day for you, but it's helpful).
Maybe that last post just caught you on a good day, but I think your item flavor and imagery are about as good as they could be. The actual effect is what you need to work on.