So, I have but one problem with the new Wish.
This problem is the implementation of adding inherent bonuses. Why do you have to reduce a bonus to add to another? This makes no sense at all. I understand it from a balance point of view, but inherent ability score items cost 2,500gp more than a wish spell per inherent bonus. So 2500 gp less means you have to reduce another? Why? I mean, if the person casting the spell has Craft Wondrous Item, they can boost the ability score for nearly half the prce of a wish spell, and still produce far better output.
By the time characters can cast this spell, they deserve to be able to boost their ability scores for 2,500gp less.
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Although I don't totally follow Gnome's arguement, I do share his confusion over the change to ability score bonuses. Why subtract from another ability score? It is a 9th level spell with a costly component, isn't that enough for a net gain of +1 for characters level 16+?
Unless you're a generalist wizard, and then you're only adding +1 to every ability score of your whole party...hmmm.
But aside from that, Wish is usually used in my group's high-level games to boost key stats. When the spellcasters use it to increase their spell-casting stat, it tends to bring their chance of affecting equal CR creatures to 50/50 or less vs. the enemies' lowest saving throw. That is after things like Spell Power prestige classes and +6 enhancement bonus items.
If Wish is now going to penalize PCs, I hope some of the high CR challenges are likewise going to change, with lowered saving throws and SR. Encounters aren't much fun for the magic-users when the DM can roll a 2 or higher to save vs. a PC who has taken every available option to increase his spell DCs. Of course, I understand that not every encounter should be solved by magical blasting, either. What I am saying is that there are a lot of high-level combat encounters that are senselessly difficult because of a high SR or saves. The change to Wish makes these encounters even more deadly, a change I do not like.
Agreement in general.
The magic item comparison of the OP isn't accurate though. First, the books would likely be changed to do the same thing. Second, you can't craft books at half price, because the price includes money for the components.
So in 3.5 you can actually craft them for about 1/10th the price (since most of the cost is from the xp), but still pay lots of xp. In Pathfinder you pay that tiny amount + 25K/boost for the material component of the wish.
Yeah, wish should be able to increase ability scores, not just shuffle them around.
On the other hand, a pure GP cost doesn't strike me as enough of a sacrifice for an inherent bonus to an ability score (I never allowed purchase of the tomes), and it's best if the balance falls on the character receiving the bonus, not the caster.
It strikes me as a case where XP costs should be reintroduced — for the character getting the inherent bonus. Sort of the wish allowing the character to apply his experience directly to improving his attributes instead of increasing his level.
Probably, at the same time, move the ability score tomes to "minor artifact" status, so characters aren't making them.
The reason is that at 9th level, the 3.X party Wizard can give everyone a +5 to every stat by summoning efreet.
This fix just means that at the levels when wishes start popping up, Pathfinder people are going to be glad that Charisma is a dump stat for almost everyone.
I honestly don't care if everyone gets themselves a +5 inherent bonus to all stats. I do care if people get a +5 bonus to their prime stats or worse, move 5 points from their dump stats to their prime stats. The first one just upshifts the numbers, balance isn't altered because everyone is moving the DCs and Bonuses together. The second and third though push characters farther apart. Attacks get bigger and defenses stay the same or even shrink. This means that the game becomes less of a game and more of a Rocket Launcher Tag scenario, where the guy who wins initiative just wins outright.
Two thumbs down.
-Frank
Personally, the decreasing of one makes no sense money-wise and roleplaying-wise. "Well, I wasn't as ugly before, but I am now because I'm smarter."
I mean, everyone but bards, clerics, paladins and sorecerers will probably just dump cha anyways. And out of those, most will dump int or wis, depending on whether wis is for casting and whether they need skills. So it's kinda pointless.
Count me into the "dislike" category. If you spend the gold to cast wish, it seems like it should be a benefit, not a shifting of existing ability scores. If you want to say that it becomes increasingly expensive to raise an ability score, I'm okay with that, but not with nerfing another stat just to max out a "useful" one.
In fact, this seems to run a bit counter to the idea of getting rid of XP costs. XP costs are onerous, but permanent ability score loss isn't? I'm not sure I follow that logic.
And, while this is a bit more of a minor concern, some existing NPCs in the Realms are noted as having an ability score of X due to wish, and if this is the case, either I have to assume they used to have all 18s in every other stat and nerfed themselves to get more intelligence, or "handwave" their stats and assume it "just works out this way."
The real question is-
can you craft an item using a spell like ability, assuming you also have the spell on your spell list?
=)