I'm curious if anyone knows how the Sparkwake Starknife (from the APG) is priced. It's price is given as 21,324 gp, which seems very specific. The magic item guidelines give:
- +2 bonus = 8,000 gp
- Level 3 spell, CL 8, once per day, secondary ability = 3 * 8 * 400 * 1.5 = 14,400 gp
- Masterwork starknife = 324 gp
- Total: 22,724 gp
(Also, it doesn't match the command word price, which would be 21,284 gp.)
I wouldn't bother asking if it wasn't so close, as I know the usual response is "Eh, it felt right." I'm just curious where the extra 1,400 went.
The problem in the first example is you are using continuous pricing instead of command pricing (a common problem). The second command pricing with rounding is probably correct.
Command pricing: 3*8*1800/(5/1) = 8640
Multiply by 1.5: 12,960
Add that to the rest and you get: 21284.
Now, lets round the 12,960 to 13000 (because the developers often like round numbers for magic elements) and see what we get:
13000+8000+324 = 21,324gp
Viola!
- Gauss
I suppose I can see that, but why round half way through? Anyway, it's a bit moot. That weapon isn't a command word item. It's use activated (which is the same price as continuous).
I think they are using the 1/day as command activation since throwing it would probably be a standard action (would have been nice if they had specified it).
It is my understanding that Use Activated are basically for things that do not require an action or would be part of an otherwise normal action.
In any case why rounding 'halfway through'? They rounded off the magic component. The base equipment price is not rounded.
- Gauss
I guess rounding before adding the equipment price makes the cost simpler.
I wonder if there are any other cases where they used the command word price for a non-command-word-but-still-standard-action effect?
Also, I never did figure out whether use activated took a standard action. I always figured the price break for command word was because you couldn't use it when silenced or gagged and your opponent could guess what was about to happen much more easily.
An example of use activated is provided in the CRB: Lantern of Revealing. It is not continuous but as long as it is in use (has oil and is burning) it illuminates invisible things. No actions (beyond lighting it or refilling it) are required.
- Gauss
Well, lighting it is a standard action though (I think).
But you are using it for 6 hours. As long as it is in use it is active.
- Gauss
So would you price anything that was "as a standard action" at the command word price?
And could a use-activated ability on a weapon be used as part of a full attack (assuming the use was something that made sense)?
As I said earlier...this is a major grey area. To solve it we would have to go back to 3.5 and do some research into what WoTC considered use activated vs command activated. At the moment I do not have the time (and perhaps not even the inclination) to do that research. But, maybe I will later.
In the interim yes, I would price the sparkwave starknife as a command activation item. It appears to me this is what they did.
- Gauss
Thanks for the input. I'll have to consider how to apply this to my own items.