| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
(in re: your comments about "Breakaway Sword of Beguiling")
All sound comments, thanks! At one point in the short drafting period, the Breakaway Sword actually was a +1 sword that, on command, did as described.
I liked the "stage prop" flavor too much and that ended up making my choices mechanically unsound, gamewise. Ah, live and learn!
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Thanks again to all the reviewers! I know (from past experience) that at some point you just wish you were done already, so I want to reiterate how much we all appreciate your persistence.
RPG Superstar 2012 Top 32
,
Champion Voter Season 6, Champion Voter Season 7, Champion Voter Season 8, Champion Voter Season 9
|
These were just my thoughts during voting:
Ghostspike Longspear - Unwieldy name. Good description. Didn't like the autodetect incorporeal. Mechanics need a little work. Pricing incorrect.
Dimensional Skewer
Aura strong conjuration; CL 13th
Slot none; Price 30,305 gp; Weight 9 lbs.
Description
The shadowy, twisted haft of this +3 longspear subtly ripples the surrounding air. Whenever the wielder strikes a target with the skewer, she can choose to warp space so that the target’s body becomes the point of origin for her subsequent attacks. A creature that succeeds at a Will save (DC 20) negates the effect and is immune to this ability for 24 hours.Instead of inflicting a normal wound, this ability creates a three-inch wide shimmering black vortex on the target’s flesh. A similar vortex engulfs the tip of the skewer. Thereafter, whenever the wielder thrusts with the haft of the skewer, the tip emerges from the vortex on the target. The wielder threatens all squares within 5 feet of the target, excluding the target’s space. She can attack any creature in this threatened area with the skewer, provided she has line of sight to the creature. She cannot attack creatures in the normal reach of the skewer while the vortex persists.
The wielder can dismiss the vortex at any time. It persists for a maximum of one minute.
Construction
Requirements Craft Magic Arms and Armor, teleport object, twisted space; Cost 15,305 gp
The first time I saw this I was put off, but after a longer look I kind of dug the creativity behind it. I thought the idea to stab a critter then move away from it so you can use it to poke at is friends kind of interesting. So I love the creative thinking behind this one, however I was concerned about how it played out during the initiative round and started to think this one had some potential for abuse or at least confusion among the players. So nice idea, but I wish it had been better clarified in the write up.
Page 9 items!
COILING POISON STAFF: Does this staff rattle if I shake it? No really, this is really important. I'm not sure I could use a snake bone staff that doesn't give a satisfying rattle when I shake it at my foes.
* The appearance is entertaining and appropriate to Ydersius, which is cool. It's also easy to edit that out for a general item publication, which is also a good consideration.
* Clerics (even with the scalykind domain) don't get accelerate poison, but it's thankfully a small part of the staff creation and price.
* The spells cost either 52,333gp or 54,000gp (depending on how you spin it), and then it gives immunity to poison, see periapt of proof against poison which costs 27,000gp.
* The on-hit spend charge for pernicious poison should cost something akin to another 2nd level spell on the staff: At least another 4,000gp.
* Total price should then be around 85,000gp.
* The item abilities are well thought through and represent more aspects of the snake than just their poison, which is good, though very underpriced. Snake-staffs aren't exactly novel, but I like this one much more than most :)
ROD OF GRAVITY:Time to be serious.
* Kudos on making a rod that is… a rod. And not a mace.
* Appearance makes me think of Avatar: The Last Airbender. Probably not what you were after, but unfortunately that mental image is lodged immovably in my skull now.
* It has some basic utility; jump further, carry more, take less falling damage, plus a 1/day gravity sphere with perks.
* What caster level is the gravity sphere? Is it CL13? Also, is the duration of the effect the same as the spell, or until the rod is removed?
* Seems very expensive for what it does. The passive abilities could be priced akin to continuous ant haul, jump and featherfall for well under 10,00gp. The 1/day gravity well could be priced at 18,000gp (depending on the CL), with a bit extra for the extras. All told, I think the price is a tad high.
* That said, if the intent is an indefinite duration gravity sphere while the rod is embedded, the price is a bit more appropriate. It would also allow for some very entertaining interior design, if disgustingly expensive.
* To be honest… the gravity theme didn't actually grab me, I must admit :(
RING OF DEIFIC CASTER: I might be missing something, but this reads like a 1/day CL10 spiritual ally (16,000gp) with some staff-like properties (using wearer's stats), and a small passive spell penetration buff (the remaining 6,000gp). Abilities and usage don't seem to gel with the favor-of-the-gods theme; It's of most use to arcane casters who rely on overcoming SR more, and can't cast spiritual ally on their own.
Page 10 items!
SPELLDRINKER: Short & sweet name. Nifty concept, but in my opinion, grotesquely overpowered.
Greater spellcrash is an 8th level spell, and is capped at targeting 7th level slots. The ability of this weapon is to not only be a spell-on-crit effect (complete with 8th level spell DC)), but to possess no such cap. An the ability to cast this spell 2/day would cost around 96,000gp.
* The item also does not explain what happens if it absorbs multiple spells in a single round. Given the price tag this item will be seen around 12th level and above, so iterative attacks and haste will be happening.
* After eating a spell slot, it then deals additional damage the following round, scaling with spell level. Given the critical threat range it is possibly to maintain this bonus for an entire combat against anything that possesses spellcasting (e.g. a dragon).
* Lastly, a magus wielding this weapon has their primary resource (arcane pool) replenished, which then can become damage, AC, spells or a range of other abilities. At that level a magus would have around 10-12 arcane pool points per day, and this weapon can easily double or triple that.
* Don't get me wrong, I love the appearance and visuals, the synergy is clearly well thought through… I just think the effects are far too powerful, and would suggest that the spell-eating effect be limited to a couple of uses per day at most.
GLACIAL CRUSHER: Kudos for it not being an earth breaker. Formatting issues aside, it's a fairly straightforward weapon, whose special ability is an extra d6 cold damage per round, or -2 penalty to saves vs cold. It's a neat item that could probably use a bit more oomph in the unique feature department (my item had the same issue).
QUILL OF THE PEACOCK SPIRIT: You should reference the source of the Totem Spear. Also, as this isn't a monk weapon (as far as I know), why include the ki option? There's only 11,025gp of weapon, and the remaining 47,825gp is for an ability that resembles a ki/music powered staff with two spells; horn of pursuit and gust of wind, which seems excessively expensive for not much gain. Would have been better doing this concept as a bard staff that functioned as a spear.
HEAVEN'S TETHER: The special ability to ignore the downsides of levitate is interesting and works well with reverse gravity, but will be largely redundant due to the price tag making fly readily available, and very expensive. That said, does it follow the rules for staves of using the higher caster level, or only the wielders? Why include feather fall and glide? The theme of flying without relying on ye old fly is fun, but there's too many redundant/minimal-use abilities that push the price well over what the item is worth.
UP CHUCK: Gag-worthy name (terrible pun intended).
* Mechanics are clunky. Do we stop and calculate the height fallen using ballistics? What angle did fire it at? Do we use the Falling Objects rules?
* Honestly, the 3/day "Rocks Fall, You Die" ability really doesn't excite me. Especially as it's basically a 3/day ranged touch attack to deal 8d6 damage (if Falling Objects rules are used), which then disables the normal +2 bonus on the weapon for 35,000gp. For half that I could get 3/day CL7 scorching ray, keep my +2 staff sling and not have to argue physics with the GM.
RING OF INSIGHT: It's a neat idea that reminds me a lot of the Divination school ability from the 5th edition Wizard (which was also a cool ability). It's application is a bit messy and requires adjudication on what exactly constitutes a direct threat to the wearer, and will typically wind up as 1d10 AC against a single attack, but for the cost it's not bad. A clause that someone can only benefit from a single such roll on any given day to avoid any high level stockpiling exploits would be handy.
GLITTERBANE: This is really, really niche, though mostly believable.
* It also stacks with enlarge person for medium sized creatures eating the -2 to use it for a 15ft reach double weapon. It is otherwise extremely niche (gnomes vs giants) even if they are a 'racial enemy' (noting that emulating a race is a UMD DC25).
* Lastly: The name and glitterdust scream "Garl Glittergold" (Forgotten Realms) to me at least, as otherwise they have no connection to a Gnomes vs Giants weapon or Golarion so far as I know.
HARLEQUIN'S HURLBAT: Congrats on the Alternate, and huge props for throwing your item into the CMI ring anyway :D
* The second thing I noticed (after "What is a hurlbat?") was the Perform (juggle) check; It doesn't exist. There are nine categories of the Perform skill (Act, Comedy, Dance, Keyboard, Oratory, Percussion, Sing, String and Wind), and for the bard class this is very important as they directly impact their other skills via the Versatile Performance (Ex) class feature. This essentially means that either Juggling should come under an existing Perform skill (I would recommend Dance, personally, though Act is plausible), or it is a raw Cha check and a DC15 is very hard to hit reliably =/
* Creating lesser copies of itself to throw and mirror image is a good way of getting the spectacle, and the noncombat application of this item is gorgeous, though it really should have a maximum duration for sanity's sake.
* In combat the item is awkward to use; It requires a full round action to make an attack with the daze-bat, the mirror image ends when you make the third, and the daze is contingent on both a successful attack and a failed save. I can't help but feel that a simpler approach would be: 3/day mirror image where the wielder and her copies appear to be juggling countless hurlbats between each other, with the option to end the effect early to trigger a save-or-be-dazed-for-3-rounds as a swift action after a successful ranged attack with the item (rather than creating physical copies). IMO at least :)
* A number of questions do come up: How many hands does it take to maintain the effect? What happens if the wielder is grappled, stunned, tripped, bull rushed, swallowed whole? Does the juggling require a concentration check in bad weather or when damaged?
* The hurlbat is a fun name, and harlequin's hurlbat rolls off the tongue really well, but a club is both a traditional juggling implement, a simple weapon all bards are proficient with and possesses the same range increment and damage. Possibly not as stylish, but a long easier to wrangle and wouldn't require granting a martial proficiency with the item, which would drop the price tag.
* All told: Very creative and novel idea, but needs some work on ironing out the mechanics.
* P.S. I'm neither a judge nor pretending to be, so all this is just my thoughts on your item; mostly I'm just trying to give feedback in enough detail to be (hopefully) useful :)
KNIFE OF THE CONSUMATE CHEF: Not the kind of thing I think the contest was after.
* Sadly, while these items should probably exist in a universe where people will pay tens of thousands of gold for the magical equivalent of steroids (manual of gainful exercise, they don't, because this is a game (mostly) about heroes saving the world, rather than more domestic drama.
* Also, while very thematic, the SAK of abilities aren't really weapon abilities.
* Lastly; Due to the skill rank tied abilities, this is form of the "Build a Character For Item" scenario, which I disapprove of wholeheartedly.
SCALE OF THE FINAL KING: Adaptive energy resistance is useful, but not the most creative of concepts for a special power (in my opinion, anyway). Description implies it can do force resistance, which normally isn't a thing. The detonate function looks like it would mostly be used when not needing energy resist for a free 1/day 10d8 damage by getting a friend to hit the wielder with a low level spell (e.g. magic missile). Interesting concept, but something I think would be passed over in favor of using resist energy spells.
Phantom Guardian’s Ring
Aura moderate evocation; CL 7th
Slot ring; Price 12,000 gp; Weight —Description
Speaking the command word for this ring causes your words to form into a ghostly projection of yourself. The projection is Medium-sized (regardless of your current size) and occupies one empty square within 30 ft., standing on the ground in that space.The projection can make one attack of opportunity per round. It threatens squares around it and deals damage as if it were wielding a masterwork longsword. It uses your base attack bonus and ability scores to determine attack and damage rolls, but does not actually possess those attributes: it is not alive and is little more than a projection of your spirit. It cannot be damaged or struck by attacks, cannot speak, and remains stationary other than to make attacks of opportunity against creatures that pass. It uses your senses: if you can sense something, so can the projection.
The projection does not block line of sight or effect. A creature can move into or through the projection’s space without penalty and without making an overrun attempt, though the projection will make an attack of opportunity if it is able.
A projection can benefit from flanking and can flank an opponent with you or your allies.
If you wield an enchanted melee weapon, the projection’s longsword is instead a weapon of the same type (i.e.: a longspear, light mace, or greatsword), and the projection’s weapon shares your weapon’s enhancement bonus. If you wield an enchanted shield, the projection may make a number of attacks of opportunity each round equal to the shield’s enchantment bonus.
The projection remains for one minute before fading.
A phantom guardian’s ring functions three times each day.
Construction
Requirements Forge Ring, spiritual ally; Cost 6,000 gp
This is another one that I liked the idea of more than the execution. I totally could see a ring that let you create a duplicate of yourself and then use it to help in the fight. I guess what concerned me the most was creatures could move through it, but it could make AoO's. It could effect others but not be effected. I think i would have liked it better if it created a more tangible clone rather than a phantom and perhaps have it function as if it had the same team work feats as the wearer of the ring.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Mummer’s Slapstick
Aura faint illusion and enchantment; CL 5th
Slot none; Price 24,350 gp; Weight 3 lbs.Description
This +1 club is spattered with brightly-colored paints and encrusted with gems made of paste. It was created by a fool who used it to thrash her foes in the fighting pits while keeping the audience in stitches.Once per day, as a standard action, the wielder can brandish the club and make it appear to be something hilarious, such as a giant carrot, pink flamingo, or anything else imaginable. Any intelligent creature within 30 feet who witnesses this sight gag must make a Will save (DC 13) or burst into a fit of irrepressible laughter for 1 round. Laughing creatures can only take a move action but can defend themselves normally.
Each round after using this ability, the wielder can spend a standard action to attack a laughing creature. On a hit, as a free action, the wielder can make a Perform (comedy) check to extend the laughter of all creatures watching for another round. The DC of this check is equal to 10 + the target’s Hit Dice + the target’s Wisdom modifier. The DC increases by +5 with each additional check.
The creature hit stops laughing and must make a Fortitude save (DC 13) or become dazed for 1 round. A lump rises on the dazed creature’s head as illusory birds flutter around it.
Construction
Requirements Craft Magic Arms and Armor, daze monster, disguise self, hideous laughter, creator must have 5 ranks in Perform (comedy) skill; Cost 12,175 gp
So I liked that you took a risk with this one, but I think it didn't pay off with the voters. I didn't vote for it because it was just too cartoony. I like the idea of an item a jester could use to cause a laughing effect against opponents but this felt way to modern day clown and not fantasy court jester enough. If you had let go of the coyote/road runner descriptions and the mentioning of modern pink flamingos and focused on the effects that taunting and beguiling has on others this might have been a lot better.
So if you specifically want me to critique your item, say so here and I'll try to get to it. But remember, the judges' comments are key: those were the guys deciding who enters the contest past the open call, so they are the most important people to understand.
Steven: I know you're busy, but whenever you have some time, I'd like any feedback you can offer on the Staff of entwined elements.
Page 11 (one day, I will catch up with the current page. One day)
ROD OF DIVINE EMPOWERMENT: If I read this correctly, it's three pearl of power III only with drawbacks? NB: If it is instead intended as: 3/day recover any spell AND whenever someone tries to heal you, you can forgo the healing to get a spell back of a level equal to the number of dice of the spell… then that would be both crazy and crazily underpriced, so I'm going to assume that is not what is meant for my sanity and run away.
ARCANAVORE: A polearm! They exist! Unfortunately the CL15 dispel magic on hit is crazy; A single casting of that on an item would carry a price tag of 18,000gp, so unlimited uses of that coupled with the ability to be boosted to a +10 bonus is not something I want to even try to estimate a price for. The concept is interesting, but the mechanics are very overpowered.
IMPENETRABLE PELT: The concept of armor that can switch between AC and DR is intriguing but the item itself looks to be very underpriced for what it does, even with the AC tradeoff. DR and fast healing/regen are among the most expensive abilities going (DR 5/magic is a +3 armor property, ring of regeneration is 90,000gp etc), so an item with both is something I'd expect to see in the six digits.
BROTHER'S GUARD: Hate to say it, but there's a feat that does this shtick: Saving Shield (APG). This item is more complex, but the rough theme is the same; Defend adjacent allies with shield. The deity restriction on the last ability makes the item harder to work with outside of Golarion, and I don't think actually adds anything. Probably underpriced as a +1 bonus.
MOLTEN BELCHER: Leering isn't the best term, given it is often synonymous with lascivious, and that gives a whooooole different spin the item. Thematically, the fire giant theme coupled with needing fire damage to heat it up so it can use its powers is quite fun (though having said power be burning hands is a little uninspired =/). Unfortunately, the item is horribly exploitable as a free CL5 burning hands every encounter for a low, low price: Step 1) Get torch; Step 2) hold against shield for 2.5 minutes; Step 3) Belch! Your GM may argue you need to actually get a less convenient source of fire damage (like, a fire), but either way the results are the same; Lots of free burning.
Page 12 (getting closer!)
SERPENT'S TONGUE: A poison dagger that works!
- Nitpicking: A mithral dagger should only weigh 1/2 lb, not 1 lb, and forged items don't use molds.
- That said, I really like the item; using mithral makes sense when dealing with toxic and/or corrosive substances, the ability to deliver 4 doses of poison at once to up the DC in accordance with the poison rules is clever, and the subtle use of transmute potion to poison is insidious and brilliant.
- Unfortunately, though this item fills the dagger-that-poisons-them shtick really, really well, it is a well established shtick and as such doesn't earn as much innovation cred.
- Still one of my favorites though.
RING OF THE MEDIC: Kudos for trying to keep the Heal skill relevant. The choice of DCs is odd, given things like Nauseated can be suppressed by a 1st level spell, and both Blinded and Deafened are removed by the same 3rd level spell, remove blindness/deafness. A high level cleric with maxed out Heal might pick this up as a convenient way of removing annoying conditions and free up some spell slots. I'll just come out and say it though: I found it kinda boring =(.
MANTICORE FIST: The item doesn't say, but I assume the spikes are intended to count as thrown weapons and thus apply the user's strength bonus? If so, this becomes a superior version of a +1 throwing returning adamantine spiked gauntlet with a piercing burning hands like AoE option and is seriously underpriced. If not, it's merely very underpriced. Turning melee weapons into ranged weapons is an extremely costly affair, I'm afraid.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
I may be a little late to the party but here it goes.
Staff of the Imperials
Aura Strong Transmutation ; CL 11
Slot none; Price 60,000; Weight 5 lbs.This ivory quarterstaff is inlaid with carvings of four pristine imperial eastern dragons. An onyx underworld dragon , an azurite sea dragon, an opal sky dragon, and a jade forest dragon coil up the length of the staff locked in an ancient, almost forgotten battle from before the time of man.
The Staff of the Imperials acts as a +2/+2 quarter staff. Additionally, if the user has a ki pool they may activate any of the listed abilities if they meet the prerequisites to do so. Activating an ability is a standard action and causes the corresponding carving to shed light equal to a torch for the duration of the ability.
Magma staff- The underworld dragon carving spews magma from its mouth coating the ends of the staff the weapon counts as if it had the flaming enchantment on both ends. This ability functions as long as the user has at least 1 ki point in their ki pool.
Water Breathing- By spending 1 point from his ki pool, the sea dragon carving grants the user water breathing as per the spell with a duration of 1 hour per character level.
Flight- By spending 2 points from his ki pool, the carving grants the user fly as per the spell with a duration of 1 minute per character level.
Petrification- By spending 3 points from his ki pool, the forest dragon carving bestows it's awesome ability to turn an opponent to stone. This ability functions as a flesh to stone spell with a save DC = 16 + user's wisdom modifier.
Construction Requirements Craft Staff, Craft Magic Arms and Armor, Dragon's Breath, Water Breathing, Fly, Flesh To Stone Cost 30,000
Woody, I said this elsewhere, but now that you've come forward, it bears repeating: this was my favorite item that I saw during voting. It has some small issues, but I really thought this was a beautifully designed item and demonstrated real finesse on your part in well executing what could have been an otherwise lackluster weapon.
Most of my complaints are with formatting (don't put spaces after semicolons; caster levels are denoted with numeric suffixes "-st", "-nd", and "-th"; it should be +2/+2 quarterstaff [italicized and as one word]; ki is always italicized; don't capitalize spell names, spell schools, aura strengths, or the name of the magic item, but always italicize both; names of ability scores [like Wisdom] are always capitalized), but there were some other issues that might have gotten in your way as well.
Since it runs purely off ki and had no meaningful interaction with spell slots, this weapon would likely have fared better as just a magic weapon and not a magic staff-staff (that is, you could have left Craft Staff out of the item creation requirements, in my mind). Also, weapons are wielded, not used, so their bearers are wielders, not users. Instead of character level, the caster level for the spell effects could instead be something like "with caster level equal to the number of levels the wielder possesses in classes that grant ki pools" or some such. These are all relatively minor complaints and could be easily fixed (heck, this post addresses most of the formatting issues and this has taken me less than seven minutes).
I loved this item more than any other during the voting period and I was really sad that it didn't make the Top 32. Tighten up the writing a bit, keep a close eye on the details, bring the same level of mojo again next year, and I'm sure you'll do great moving forward. Thanks for designing an item that may show up in one of my home games!
Also, thank you to everyone who reviewed my item! As always, I'm touched by the level of sportsmanship, selflessness, and honesty that this competition engenders.
Well played. EVERYONE.
Marathon Voter Season 8, Marathon Voter Season 9
|
I say that, because I thought in terms of mojo and clever design, I thought nets were the biggest winners in the contest this year. Specifically, the living copperthread net, the covenskein net, and, maybe favorite item of the year, widow's web.
So my review for all three of those nets is: you were all three in my top 15 or so, and the themes you chose were really cool. Every one of them had mechanical flaws that kept them out of the top 32. living copperthread net has that +10 bonus to grapple checks without an explanation, instead of just using the normal statistics for CMB.
The lesson for all three designers of these items is to pay extra close attention to detail.
First off, thanks for the love ^.^ <3 I thought all the other nets were giving mine a run for its money; especially the Widon's Web, which seemed to appear on quite a few peoples' personal top 32 lists.
It seems I may have over-thought the "Don't reiterate existing rules text" rule. The +10 inherent bonus to grapple checks is added to the base CMB of a Medium animated object (CMB +5). The reason it is an inherent bonus is because the net "Learns" its target on the initial strike. This is something I probably should have added to the text. Do correct me if I'm wrong.
Also, the +2 to its slam attacks makes it {Melee slam +7 (1d6+5)}, I feel I probably should have added this to the text as well.
I wrote the rules text for the net feeling that when people purchase and use the Living Copperthread Net, that they would have Beastiary 1 at the ready. In retrospect, putting a brief description of the net's stats in the rules text may have worked better.
Any thoughts?
SPANWHAMMER: The name, it hurts my brain.
- The weirdness of a throwing returning earth breaker (two words) cannot be understated. Yes it deals 2d6 damage, but it's a full round action to throw, has a range increment of 10ft and as a ranged attack uses Dex to attack and ranged feats (e.g. Deadly Aim, not Power Attack). Theoretically it's more versatile, but if you have a full round action free to throw it a max of 50ft, you have a full round action free to walk up and hit them. The sheer impracticality of the item is hard to overlook, at least for me.
- The special abilities listed are: Magic Arms & Armor bane and greater dispel magic at will to counterspell with*. Yes, the first successful counterspell disables the throwing and returning, but the description doesn't actually require you to have those properties active: You can still throw it at without throwing and per the description, it will still come back afterwards even without returning. Not your intent, but that is how it reads.
- On that note: You can't actually ready an action to throw it, as it requires a full round action to throw. So either the item overrules this, or that function doesn't work.
- A lot of the issues would have been fixed by making this item a warhammer, rather than an earth breaker.
- Generally it's better to actually list a caster level for abilities that resemble spells, rather than base them on HD, as this gets silly in the hands of creatures with racial HD, and the spell has a minimum of CL11.
- The pricing also feels significantly off to me. Treating the extra damage on sunder as a bane equivalent, the item would be +4 (32,340gp) with (per the intent) a 1/day greater dispel magic (normally 26,400gp, but allowing a 50% discount for counterspell only would still be 13,200gp) for a total of around 45,450gp or so.
- Good tie in with Golarion, though it does make it a little more challenging to use in other settings.
BLOOD MAGIC DAGGER: Whoa. This is… not something that should be let near a player group. The only thing that might hold it in check is annoying the cleric too much, but the Leadership feat plugs that hole. Having played the hell out of Dragon Age, I can appreciate the style statement and theme, but mechanically this just gives too much too easily, and the primary cost is paid by the healers, rather than the caster.
STORMCROW TOMAHAWK: A frequent misconception with the returning property is that it lets you full-attack at range (the eberron module Eyes of the Lich Queen based an entire encounter of this, but then, that was the least of its atrocities): It doesn't, it returns to you just before your next turn, and it is a +1 bonus. To full attack with magic thrown weapons, you need as many returning weapons as you have attacks. This means that the stormcrow tomahawk's ability to let you do what returning does not, but for less, makes it substantially underpriced. Otherwise; I like the description and visuals, but the weapon really needed some unique abilities, in my opinion.
TORMENTOR: Putting aside the chainsaw. The item has too many unanswered questions to be usable: Is the shaken effect every round? There seems to be no save-gives-temporary-immunity clause, is this correct? If the answer to both of these is 'yes', does the GM have the patience to roll that many saves each round, every round, every combat, or will they crack and TPK the party? How long can it be active for (no listed duration)? Why have a limit on activations if each one can last indefinitely? Given this item has a continuous 4th level spell effect, I would question the price tag.
STAFF OF THE IMPERIALS: You lost me, personally, at 'ki staff'. That aside, the item has some issues.
- First off, it states that a user with a ki pool can activate the listed abilities if they meet the prerequisites to do so, but none of the abilities list a specific prerequisite.
- If this were a staff, it would list a series of spells and the charges required to activate. It does not, and the abilities are essentially unique to this item and not spells (or monks wouldn't be able to use them, as written) and fueled only by ki. Thus, it is not a staff.
- By its price tag, it should be acquired around the 12th level mark, whereby most monks should have a ki pool of 8 to 12.
- Accepting that it is a monk weapon with spell like abilities and not a staff, let's look at pricing: Each end is +2 and flaming, putting the weapon cost at 36,600gp. For ease (given I can't find any published examples that do spells for ki), let's price the spells as if it were a staff; 40,700gp, putting the price around 77,300gp plus any additional cost for granting monks spells (at a guess, around 10,000gp or so).
- While I'm not a fan of ki-staff items, I appreciate others are. I think you just tried to push the concept too far with this item, and turned it into something else.
ROD OF BRILLIANT STEPS: Everything about the description says "Boots" to me, particularly as all of the powers relate to movement, which is not something rods tend to do. Also; constant lily pad stride alone would be setting you back over 50,000gp (comparing with similar items), so with everything else added, this item should be quite a bit more pricey.
RING OF THE CHAMPION: Who is Nyle?
- Would be easier to read if the separate abilities were on separate lines.
- Constant bless. May as well just refer to the spell and save word count.
- Second ability is largely Cavalier only, and is basically just more attack and damage on top of an existing damage boost, making both very niche, and problematic as some cavalier order abilities are already giving the same bonuses (e.g. Order of the Sword). I'd call it 3/day heroism in terms of pricing.
- Third ability is a 1/day moment of greatness, with a lesser geas to not run away. Harsh for a 1st level spell.
- Pricing it all up; Roughly 2500gp for constant bless, 18,000gp for 3/day heroism and 400gp for 1/day moment of greatness = 20,900gp. Given that the geas is attached to the lowest cost component, I don't think it really warrants a discount.
- I appreciate the desire to make a Cavalier themed item, but the decision to focus on morale bonuses to attack made the item both one-note, and also difficult to use considering the Cavalier often already has these things.
GHOSTSPIKE LONGSPEAR: Um. Incorporeal creatures are immune to critical hits and precision based damage, per the Incorporeal Subtype, Bestiary 1 page 312. Unfortunately that means your special ability can't work. If it had another means of activating, it would actually be a fairly cool idea, if not particularly spectacular.
And I've caught up at last! I just want to throw out another huge thanks to everyone for putting their items up for scrutiny, and to everyone reviewing said items for the (rather large) amount of time, effort and thought put into doing so.
Star Voter Season 8
|
And now to Page 7!
COUNTER SHIELD: Automatic hits are a very bad choice and subject to extreme abuse; "Can't hit the bad guy? Hit me then, and I'll redirect to auto-hit him! AC? Concealment? Mirror image? Irrelevant!". Also, does the target need to be a creature? Can I instead redirect to a nearby rock to simply negate three attacks per day? The mechanics need a rewrite.
Thank you for your feedback. Interestingly enough, the last line of my item description states: "The enemy attacking you can not be the target of this redirected attack."
I wonder, is my wording so unclear? Or do people think they know what the item does and skip over the last line? (So no "Can't hit the bad guy? Hit me then, and I'll redirect to auto-hit him!" as you put it.)In an earlier version of the item I actually defined that the redirected attack needed to hit a creature, but I felt that that would spark a discussion. Then again, the ground can be a target so good point.
I had ment this to be an item you could use to potentially save yourself. But by defining the redirected attack to be within the attackers reach, you most often then not would have to redirect it toward an ally, creating a nice dilemma. Do I take that crit myself? Or do I doom my companion.
These were just my thoughts during voting:
[snip]
The Pen of Mirado - History = down-check. Way underpriced. Poor formating. Price/cost incorrect.[/snip]
Thanks for the review, Thomas. Can you give me a little feedback on why the history was a down-check?
Here's mine, warts and all...Yes, I neglected to use the bold tags when I posted, so I'll do the same now ;)
[snip][/snip]
*Pretty jokey
*3.5ism (we don't have bardic knowledge as a skill)
*wondrous item
*auto-crits can inflict some pretty major status effects.
*IP violation, since Mirado pencils.
Thanks for the review, Mark. Can you tell me more about why this was considered "Pretty jokey"? That's very confusing to me; it was never a joke item to me, and I don't quite see how it could be considered one.
I also don't understand the critique about "Bardic Knowledge"; what am I missing here?
Bardic Knowledge (Ex): A bard adds half his class level (minimum 1) on all Knowledge skill checks and may make all Knowledge skill checks untrained.
By "major status effects" do you mean 'dead foes'? Or something else?
Finally, I'd like to state that I used a Mirado Black Warrior pencil to write up the Pen of Mirado, and it was, in part, my inspiration. But I also googled "mirado" and found out that it is a word in Spanish that means "careful", so I thought I was OK on the IP point. Anyone with further information on that, I'd appreciate hearing.
Thanks again and look forward to see what you say on these!
Phil
The Pen of MiradoGood: It has great flavor.
Bad: It references Bardic Knowledge as a check, which doesn't exist in Pathfinder; they changed how that class feature works for bards. Speaking as someone who has played with a medieval stylus, I find it hard to believe that it could ever be used to deal slashing or bludgeoning damage, even if you poked them with the blunt end.
Overall: I think some research into Pathfinder RPG's class mechanics for bards would have been useful before submitting it :)
Thanks for the critique, Blitterbug! I'm glad you think it has "great flavor"; so do I! But I'm missing something with the Bardic Knowledge issue; its clearly a Bard ability in the PRD. I actually did look up Bards as I designed, so I thought I was OK with what I had. As for the various types of damage, I considered that to be part of the magic; the idea is that if you make that check that gives you knowledge about your opponent, you could damage them in the worst way. So, even if they had DR 5/bludgeoning, for instance, you could bypass it - as long as you succeeded on that check. That's an ability I would have liked to have kept, even if I designed it as a rapier or dagger instead of a pen; its fairly integral to the concept, for me.
Bardic Knowledge is a bonus to knowledge skills, it's no longer its own check as it was in 3.x.
Page 6:
The Pen of Mirado:
This is a Wondrous Item masquerading as a weapon. It transforms from a weak weapon into an over-kill greatsword for damage for bards. If you have to create your own damage stats and crit ranges, you’ve gone too far down the invention road. Stick to actual weapons and modify.
Thanks for the review, Feros. Yes, unfortunately it was a Wondrous Item; I'd been out of game design for about ten years, and jumped back in with the contest - my first rodeo, and it shows. I didn't do enough research on the contest before submitting. Question for you: If I had submitted the Pen as the Penknife - which were used to sharpen quills, or pens, back in the day - would you consider that to be an "actual weapon"? Thanks!
RPG Superstar 2015 Top 32, RPG Superstar 2012 Top 32
,
Marathon Voter Season 6, Dedicated Voter Season 7, Dedicated Voter Season 8
aka Jiggy
|
But I'm missing something with the Bardic Knowledge issue; its clearly a Bard ability in the PRD.
Bards do have a class feature called "Bardic Knowledge", but there's no such thing as a Bardic Knowledge check. All Bardic Knowledge does is give a bonus to the same Knowledge skills that everyone has access to (and allows checks to be made untrained).
Thanks for the review, Feros. Yes, unfortunately it was a Wondrous Item; I'd been out of game design for about ten years, and jumped back in with the contest - my first rodeo, and it shows. I didn't do enough research on the contest before submitting. Question for you: If I had submitted the Pen as the Penknife - which were used to sharpen quills, or pens, back in the day - would you consider that to be an "actual weapon"? Thanks!Page 6:
The Pen of Mirado:
This is a Wondrous Item masquerading as a weapon. It transforms from a weak weapon into an over-kill greatsword for damage for bards. If you have to create your own damage stats and crit ranges, you’ve gone too far down the invention road. Stick to actual weapons and modify.
If you gave it dagger stats and then had it enhance upwards in damage? Absolutely. But some of the imagery currently tied to the quill (which wasn't bad) would be lost. Tricky approach.
Brief hiatus from reviewing aside (to run my Pathfinder game): Page 6!
PEN OF MIRADO: "Pen mightier than sword" item. With a lot of warts.
* This item really, really needs to have a basic weapon type, e.g. a tiny sized dagger. Otherwise it's a wondrous item with weapon properties.
* Wait. It is a wondrous item with weapon properties. It even requires Craft Wondrous Item…. I guess you missed the memo by Mark about "Do not submit a wondrous item, including those in disguise".
* Bardic Knowledge check? Pathfinder CRB was published over 5 years ago now, and the Bard class mechanics are freely available on the SRD. Sorry, but using mechanics from a different game is grounds for automatic disqualification (refer bullet point #4 from the "Disqualification" section of the Round 1 rules).
Even assuming this was a legitimate contest entry
* It's mechanically cumbersome and decidedly over the top; Automatic critical hit (not threat), with a x3 multiplier on a 19-20? Ignoring all DR and fortification? And counts as all S/B/P?
* There is a limit of 5 attacks per opponent, but most characters won't need more than five auto-crits on a single target.
* It's a single attack as a full-round action, but bards (who are the only person who could use it) have rogue BAB so aren't missing too much from this. And it auto-crits.
* Bards aren't proficient in greatswords. Making it questionable whether the "strike as greatsword" would incur non-proficiency penalties.
* If this were a rapier that transformed into a stylus or quill, with a bunch of weapon powers related to writing, ink, or literature, that was actually compatible with Pathfinder? That would have been much, much better. Maybe next time.
Thanks for the review, Raynulf; very detailed. I'm glad you knew where I was coming from, at least; others may or may not have gotten that, and didn't say so. Just want to point out that I also had Craft Magic Arms and Armor in the Requirements; I was hoping that would mitigate the Craft Wondrous Item, but maybe not. Perhaps it would have been better as a penknife, which was used to sharpen quills (pens). And I see that I've gotten some feedback on my question about Bardic Knowledge, and see where I went astray on that. Yes, it was a legitimate contest entry; at least in the sense that I never intended it to be a joke item, nor to be disqualified - though I am beginning to suspect that at some point I was. I realized when I submitted that I was skating on thin ice; and I'd say it broke beneath me! Just also want to point out that you had to make those five Knowledge checks to get five auto-crit, greatsword, x3 damage, strikes; no successful check, you're doing 1d2+1, plus your massive Strength as a bard! Just sayin'.
Thanks again,
Phil
80) The Pen of Mirado:
An item I did not see during voting, interesting. Okay well, first of all, this seems like an artifact with the way it is written, backstory and all. Plus it tries to introduce a completely new weapon into the game, which is something even an artifact would struggle to pull off. It's also ridiculously powerful in the hands of a bard of high enough level. Huge wham of an attack once per round with no limit on how many times it can be made per day? The price is so low that you could craft this after a couple of levels and then breeze through the next few levels. Not a fan. That being said, I like the visuals and I applaud your creativity. A stylus could make for an interesting magic item, but weapon is not one of them. Do keep on designing, because you clearly have ideas, but make sure that your items follow format. They are there to minimize confusion and a good designer knows how to use them. Rather like someone who draws needs to know anatomy.
Thanks for the review, Jaragil! Wow! An artifact! I never! Kidding aside, I thought that the two sentences of history that I wrote were needed in some way, but maybe not. Certainly I never intended to create an artifact. I'd like to point out, too, that there is a limit per day, at least per opponent; five successful attacks. Also, you can have no more than five attempts per opponent. In hindsight, yes, I agree the price is too low. And thank you for the kind words and encouragement!
Phil
But I'm missing something with the Bardic Knowledge issue; its clearly a Bard ability in the PRD.Bards do have a class feature called "Bardic Knowledge", but there's no such thing as a Bardic Knowledge check. All Bardic Knowledge does is give a bonus to the same Knowledge skills that everyone has access to (and allows checks to be made untrained).
Thanks, Jacob, and you too, Petty, for the replies. So the thing to have done was to specify a Knowledge check of some sort - which I admittedly couldn't think of one category that would be appropriate - and then just let the Bard's Bardic Knowledge kick in when he rolls. I think I get it.
If you gave it dagger stats and then had it enhance upwards in damage? Absolutely. But some of the imagery currently tied to the quill (which wasn't bad) would be lost. Tricky approach.
Thanks, Feros. I agree it was tricky, and that imagery would be lost. If I had realized that, yes, it really is a Wondrous Item and would be seen as such, I might have created/submitted something very different.
Phil
|
RPG Superstar 2012 Top 32
,
Champion Voter Season 6, Champion Voter Season 7, Champion Voter Season 8, Champion Voter Season 9
|
Thanks for the review, Thomas. Can you give me a little feedback on why the history was a down-check?These were just my thoughts during voting:
The Pen of Mirado - History = down-check. Way underpriced. Poor formating. Price/cost incorrect.
Besides the fact I feel only artifacts should have history in their description? First, you specifically name an individual who is not part of the Golarion Campaign Setting. Second, I can care less about the history of an item and more about it's description and mechanics. While you didn't go overboard on the history, I just don't care for it to be in an item.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
...Second, I can care less about....
*couldn't* care less
Besides the fact I feel only artifacts should have history in their description? First, you specifically name an individual who is not part of the Golarion Campaign Setting. Second, I can care less about the history of an item and more about it's description and mechanics. While you didn't go overboard on the history, I just don't care for it to be in an item.Thanks for the review, Thomas. Can you give me a little feedback on why the history was a down-check?These were just my thoughts during voting:
The Pen of Mirado - History = down-check. Way underpriced. Poor formating. Price/cost incorrect.
OK; that's fair. Thanks.
|
Star Voter Season 8, Star Voter Season 9
|
Page 9 items!
Listen, I appreciate that you are taking the time to comment on my item and all, but your review could only be seen as abusive, and not at all constructive.
I'm the first one to call myself out on it; mine was a very bad item. Despite that, the point of this thread is not to lambaste someone for trying. I very pointedly do not appreciate that sort of treatment.
|
RPG Superstar 2015 Top 32, RPG Superstar 2012 Top 32
,
Marathon Voter Season 6, Dedicated Voter Season 7, Dedicated Voter Season 8
aka Jiggy
|
OK; that's fair. Thanks.Besides the fact I feel only artifacts should have history in their description? First, you specifically name an individual who is not part of the Golarion Campaign Setting. Second, I can care less about the history of an item and more about it's description and mechanics. While you didn't go overboard on the history, I just don't care for it to be in an item.Thanks for the review, Thomas. Can you give me a little feedback on why the history was a down-check?These were just my thoughts during voting:
The Pen of Mirado - History = down-check. Way underpriced. Poor formating. Price/cost incorrect.
Yeah, the issue with backstory on magic items is that magic items (in Pathfinder) are not unique things. That's why there are construction requirements: anyone who meets those prereqs can make as many identical copies of the item as they can afford. Any PC who decides to pick up crafting feats can produce your item, and every large metropolis in Golarion has a better-than-even chance of having one already sitting on the shelf when the PCs arrive.
When you state instead that this is a one-of-a-kind item connected to a specific person, it implies (correctly or not) that you don't fully grok the role and nature of magic items within this particular ruleset. Don't feel bad; Pathfinder's setup for magic items is pretty weird, really. But whatever your ideas about magic items might be (I've got some opinions of my own!), if you're designing for Pathfinder, you've got to be able to compartmentalize your own versions of how things should work and recalibrate to "default" Pathfinder.
And in default Pathfinder, your item was probably made by either a PC or by several professional item crafters around the world (possibly both).
Hope that clears up that issue; lots of people stumble on it, so you'll be ahead of the game next year if you absorb that. :)
Page 9 items!
Listen, I appreciate that you are taking the time to comment on my item and all, but your review could only be seen as abusive, and not at all constructive.
I'm the first one to call myself out on it; mine was a very bad item. Despite that, the point of this thread is not to lambaste someone for trying. I very pointedly do not appreciate that sort of treatment.
Although some reviews are quite terse and harsh, the thing we all need to do is to try to learn from them.
Taking my own feedback, my description was called "turgid" - i.e "overdone and bombastic". Ouch.
Yeah, that hurts, but stepping back, what am I being told?
I am being told that I am taking the description and visuals too far, I swung like a pendulum from not enough to too much.
To work in any entertainment industry, you have reviewers who will like your work despite its flaws and you will have reviewers on the opposite end of the spectrum. In the real world, past the friendly competition, you will encounter reviews of submissions that will make you question your abilities, so you need to take it on the chin, get back on the bicycle and try again.
Try taking a look at the feedback that upset you - was it because it targeted areas that you thought weren't so bad as the areas you knew were not so good? What is it trying to tell you as a designer?
I know taking criticism is hard, especially if you think it is not constructive, but the thing is... it is still criticism from which you (and all of us reading it and your item) can learn from.
I don't think it was directed at you, the reviewers in here try to target the item design only.
|
Star Voter Season 8, Star Voter Season 9
|
Although some reviews are quite terse and harsh, the thing we all need to do is to try to learn from them.Taking my own feedback, my description was called "turgid" - i.e "overdone and bombastic". Ouch.
Yeah, that hurts, but stepping back, what am I being told?
I am being told that I am taking the description and visuals too far, I swung like a pendulum from not enough to too much.
To work in any entertainment industry, you have reviewers who will like your work despite its flaws and you will have reviewers on the opposite end of the spectrum. In the real world, past the friendly competition, you will encounter reviews of submissions that will make you question your abilities, so you need to take it on the chin, get back on the bicycle and try again.
Try taking a look at the feedback that upset you - was it because it targeted areas that you thought weren't so bad as the areas you knew were not so good? What is it trying to tell you as a designer?
I know taking criticism is hard, especially if you think it is not constructive, but the thing is... it is still criticism from which you (and all of us reading it and your item) can learn from.
I don't think it was directed at you, the reviewers in here try to target the item design only.
I appreciate that you are trying to put a good face on it. I'm open to constructive criticism. I've been told so in a professional context.
Sarcasm is not constructive, and I'm not likely* to take design advice into account when it's served with barbs. Only the last sentence or bullet point was actually addressing anything constructively, but the rest was certifiably acerbic, and I don't have to stand for it. If nothing else, I think it only benefits my dignity to respond as such.
Edit- Ok, so the game industry isn't great on the ego, but the point is that people are sticking their necks out on the line on this thread, and if nothing else, I have heard since before joining this community that it was less offensive than most. Designing games opens people up for some really painful commentary (I've seen lead designers called "paste eaters" and "mouth breathers" directly).
That having been said, even with an objective lens, I can't glean anything out of that specific criticism that helps me. I've seen pointed and offensive reviews that are useful, and this does not fall into that category.
OK; that's fair. Thanks.Besides the fact I feel only artifacts should have history in their description? First, you specifically name an individual who is not part of the Golarion Campaign Setting. Second, I can care less about the history of an item and more about it's description and mechanics. While you didn't go overboard on the history, I just don't care for it to be in an item.Thanks for the review, Thomas. Can you give me a little feedback on why the history was a down-check?These were just my thoughts during voting:
The Pen of Mirado - History = down-check. Way underpriced. Poor formating. Price/cost incorrect.
Yeah, the issue with backstory on magic items is that magic items (in Pathfinder) are not unique things. That's why there are construction requirements: anyone who meets those prereqs can make as many identical copies of the item as they can afford. Any PC who decides to pick up crafting feats can produce your item, and every large metropolis in Golarion has a better-than-even chance of having one already sitting on the shelf when the PCs arrive.
When you state instead that this is a one-of-a-kind item connected to a specific person, it implies (correctly or not) that you don't fully grok the role and nature of magic items within this particular ruleset. Don't feel bad; Pathfinder's setup for magic items is pretty weird, really. But whatever your ideas about magic items might be (I've got some opinions of my own!), if you're designing for Pathfinder, you've got to be able to compartmentalize your own versions of how things should work and recalibrate to "default" Pathfinder.
And in default Pathfinder, your item was probably made by either a PC or by several professional item crafters around the world (possibly both)
Hope that clears up that issue; lots of people stumble on it, so you'll be ahead of the game next year if you absorb that. :)
Thanks, Jacob; great stuff. That really helps a lot.
Question, then: How are artifacts or unique magic items dealt with in Pathfinder?
Thanks,
Phil
Riftcarver Bow
Aura Moderate Evocation and Transmutation; CL 8th
Slot None; Price 35,375 gp; Weight 2 lbs.
Description
This +1 adaptive composite shortbow is roughly hewn from multiple large pieces of dark rock, but feels as though it is the same weight and balance as one made out of wood. Its bowstring is thickly woven from giant’s hair. This bow was originally crafted by dwarven druids to topple their giant foes.When an arrow is pulled back in this bow, the rock limbs give out a low groan and easily stretch backwards, and the user can feel small tremors building in the projectile. As a standard action, the wielder of a riftcarver bow can choose to make a ranged trip attempt against a single target using any arrow. The user can make up to 5 successful trips per day (failed trip attempts do not count against this number). Alternatively, 3 times per day the wielder can use the ground breaker barbarian rage power (APG 76) (DC 14 Reflex) by attacking a square with the riftcarver bow. This ability creates roughly carved chasms in the ground, with protruding vicious spikes of stone, causing 2d6 piercing damage to any who fall on the difficult terrain (DC 14 Reflex for half damage).
Construction
Requirements Craft Magic Arms and Armor, Stone Call, Greater Thunderstomp; Cost 17,500 gp** spoiler omitted **
So this one has some clarity issues and could have been a lot better mechanical. However I really did like the concept behind it. I did vote it up a few times for that creativity but I figured with the confusion on how it works, specifically the 5 uses of one power or 3 uses of another, I would not pass the judges approval. For a first year entry I think you have shown some spark and hope you are able to refine the mechanics next year.
Found it!
Rerouting shield
Aura moderate conjuration; CL 10th
Slot Shield; Price 41,970 gp; Weight 15 lbs
Description
This polished +2 heavy steel shield is perfectly round and has golden runes engraved ont its rim. When the wearer of the shield is aware that he is the target of an attacl, the shield can become a one-way portal that redirects the attack to another target. Activating this ability is an immediate action that must be used before the attack role is made. The new target of the attack must e within 30 ft. of the wearer and in line of sight. The AC of the new target is used to see if the attack hits. This ability can be used three times per day.Alternatively, once a day, the shield's wearer can make a bull rush manoeuvre against one creature to force it to enter a one-way portal. When this ability is used the wearer of the shield gets a +4 bonus to his CMB. If the manoeuvre is successful the creature reappears up to 30 ft. of its initial position in any direction that is within line of sight of the wearer. The creature cannot reappear in solid objects and if no free space is available the attempt automatically fails. When using this ability the wearer of the shield cannot move with his target. A creature can decide not to resist the bull rush.
Construction
Requirements Craft Magic Arms and Armor, dimension door; Cost 21,070 gp
This one is another one where I liked the idea behind it but unfortunately the mechanics failed to live up to the concept. Again the "alternatively" makes it confusing do I get this power instead of the other, If I have already used the first power is this power then unusable? For what its worth I liked the second power best, and would probably have like the item more if that was the only power the shield had.
|
RPG Superstar 2015 Top 32, RPG Superstar 2012 Top 32
,
Marathon Voter Season 6, Dedicated Voter Season 7, Dedicated Voter Season 8
aka Jiggy
|
Thanks, Jacob; great stuff. That really helps a lot.
Question, then: How are artifacts or unique magic items dealt with in Pathfinder?
Thanks,
Phil
Artifacts are extremely powerful. Rather than merely another form of magical equipment, they are the sorts of legendary relics that whole campaigns can be based on. Each could be the center of a whole set of adventures—a quest to recover it, a fight against an opponent wielding it, a mission to cause its destruction, and so on.
Unlike normal magic items, artifacts are not easily destroyed. Instead of construction information, each artifact includes one possible means by which it might be destroyed.
Artifacts can never be purchased, nor are they found as part of a random treasure hoard. When placing an artifact in your game, be sure to consider its impact and role. Remember that artifacts are fickle objects, and if they become too much of a nuisance, they can easily disappear or become lost once again.
Is it unique, unable to be recreated by "modern" spellcasters? Then it's an artifact. In a sense, Pathfinder's artifacts are what a lot of people intuitively assume magic items in general are supposed to be (except they're usually really powerful).
Hope that helps!
Rod of Illusory Casting
Aura none (see below); CL 5th
Slot none; Price 5,000 gp; Weight 3 lbs.Description
This thin ebony wood rod is tipped with a shaft of white cedar. It allows the wielder to make illusions seem real, and spells that create tangible effects seem illusory. Three times per day, as part of casting a spell, the rod cloaks your verbal, somatic and material components in illusions that mask the spell being cast. Focus and divine focus components are not affected by cloaking a spell. When casting an illusion, pick any non-illusion spell on your spell list. When casting an non-illusion spell, pick any illusion spell on your spell list. Successful Spellcraft attempts to identify the spell you’re casting instead reveal the chosen spell. Cloaking a spell without a type of component can create false words, gestures, etc. Similarly, cloaking a spell as one that lacks a type of component will hide components under illusions.
The cloaked spell also responds to divination magic as if it had the aura of the chosen spell. For example, casting mislead and cloaking it as false life will respond to detect magic or arcane sight as a necromancy spell. The actual effects of the spell cast do not change, so casting a fireball spell cloaked as an invisibility spell will still produce a globe of fire, etc. The rod itself radiates no magic of any sort.Construction
Requirements Craft Rod, magic aura, major image, misdirection; Cost 2,500 gp
This was an interesting one for me. I liked the idea behind its concept, but I didn't feel it was a magic item. Every time I read it I kept thinking this feels more like a metamagic Feat that allows a caster to disguise the type of spell they are casting. I voted for it several times but It was not in my top picks.
Thanks, Jacob; great stuff. That really helps a lot.
Question, then: How are artifacts or unique magic items dealt with in Pathfinder?
Thanks,
Phil
Artifacts are extremely powerful. Rather than merely another form of magical equipment, they are the sorts of legendary relics that whole campaigns can be based on. Each could be the center of a whole set of adventures—a quest to recover it, a fight against an opponent wielding it, a mission to cause its destruction, and so on.
Unlike normal magic items, artifacts are not easily destroyed. Instead of construction information, each artifact includes one possible means by which it might be destroyed.
Artifacts can never be purchased, nor are they found as part of a random treasure hoard. When placing an artifact in your game, be sure to consider its impact and role. Remember that artifacts are fickle objects, and if they become too much of a nuisance, they can easily disappear or become lost once again.
Is it unique, unable to be recreated by "modern" spellcasters? Then it's an artifact. In a sense, Pathfinder's artifacts are what a lot of people intuitively assume magic items in general are supposed to be (except they're usually really powerful).
Hope that helps!
Yup, thanks. (Of course, look in the PRD! Duh, Phil!) But it seems to leave no middle ground for a class of magic items that might be unique, but not artifact-level in power, no?
|
RPG Superstar 2015 Top 32, RPG Superstar 2012 Top 32
,
Marathon Voter Season 6, Dedicated Voter Season 7, Dedicated Voter Season 8
aka Jiggy
|
But it seems to leave no middle ground for a class of magic items that might be unique, but not artifact-level in power, no?
Correct; categorically, magic items are inherently non-unique. Something like that would have to be campaign-specific, so either a homebrew or something written specifically for a particular Adventure Path/Module. But that's the exception, not the rule. If you're being told to "design a magic item", you're designing the mass-market type. If you're told to "design a unique magic item connected to Dudeguy the Awesome, appropriate for PCs in such-and-such a part of thus-and-so module", then that's something else altogether.
Wanna guess which one RPG Superstar is? ;)
|
Marathon Voter Season 8, Marathon Voter Season 9
|
Grr..Page 9 items!
If it's any consolation, I found your Knife of the Consummate Chef to be treading on the good side of risky. It's a fun idea that could use a little TLC.
I would merge the first two paragraphs and skim out some of the sentences:
This +2 Adamantine dagger was first crafted by a brilliant but ailing chef. It is designed to test and impart the skills of its creator to his pupil. While the knife is meant to supplement and hone cooking skills.
You keep a bit of that flavor without overcrowding the weapon with bits that are not so weapon-y. We save that part for paragraph 2. Let's take the GM-discretionary stuffs out, and merge that last sentence into paragraph 2 (Bolded):
In the hands of a wielder with at least one rank in Craft (cooking), Profession (Chef), or Profession (cook), the knife's enhancement bonus increases to +3 and grants a +5 competency bonus to any of those skills. While wielded in hand, it bestows additional benefits based on the number of ranks the creature has in the listed skill. All of these effects stack.
1-3 ranks: Wielder gains Resist Fire 5.
4-6 ranks: Wielder can spend a swift action to become under the effects of haste for up to ten rounds per day. These rounds need not be consecutive.
7-9 ranks: Wielder gains DR/5 Bludgeoning.
10+ ranks: Wielder can cast Heroes' Feast once per week.
Then it's just about readjusting the price, and state that the crafter must have 10 ranks in Profession (Chef) SPECIFICALLY, because it's the Knife of the Consummate Chef.
And that's my critique/constructive criticism. I can appreciate that you took a fun risk. And I'm sorry it fell flat to some people.
|
Star Voter Season 8, Star Voter Season 9
|
If it's any consolation, I found your Knife of the Consummate Chef to be treading on the good side of risky. It's a fun idea that could use a little TLC.
I would merge the first two paragraphs and skim out some of the sentences:
This +2 Adamantine dagger was first crafted by a brilliant but ailing chef. It is designed to test and impart the skills of its creator to his pupil. While the knife is meant to supplement and hone cooking skills.
You keep a bit of that flavor without overcrowding the weapon with bits that are not so weapon-y. We save that part for paragraph 2. Let's take the GM-discretionary stuffs out, and merge that last sentence into paragraph 2 (Bolded):
In the hands of a wielder with at least one rank in Craft (cooking), Profession (Chef), or Profession (cook), the knife's enhancement bonus increases to +3 and grants a +5 competency bonus to any of those skills. While wielded in hand, it bestows additional benefits based on the number of ranks the creature has in the listed skill. All of these effects stack.
1-3 ranks: Wielder gains Resist Fire 5.
4-6 ranks: Wielder can spend a swift action to become under the effects of haste for up to ten rounds per day. These rounds need not be consecutive.
7-9 ranks: Wielder gains DR/5 Bludgeoning.
10+ ranks: Wielder can cast Heroes' Feast once per week.Then it's just about readjusting the price, and state that the crafter must have 10 ranks in Profession (Chef) SPECIFICALLY, because it's the Knife of the Consummate Chef.
And that's my critique/constructive criticism. I can appreciate that you took a fun risk. And I'm sorry it fell flat to some people.
Thank you for that input. I may have to rethink the item from the ground up at any rate, but I like what you've said about what it's got going for it. I have designs on improving the concept, if not the item itself. Hopefully that will come to some fruition.
Page 9 items!
Listen, I appreciate that you are taking the time to comment on my item and all, but your review could only be seen as abusive, and not at all constructive.
I'm the first one to call myself out on it; mine was a very bad item. Despite that, the point of this thread is not to lambaste someone for trying. I very pointedly do not appreciate that sort of treatment.
In defense of Raynulf, I looked back at his comments, and I really don't think they were meant to be abusive, or even acerbic. Things can come across differently to different people when posed online. I think with his examples he was just trying to say that domestic-themed items, while certainly practical, are not necessarily the best submissions for attention-grabbing weapons in this Superstar contest. (Although, check out the Harvestweal for an example of how it could work!)
For what it's worth, I thought your concept was quite creative, Lorathorn, but the mechanics somewhat clunky. The knife's abilities would be rather complicated to keep track of. I, personally, like the idea of an adventuring chef using his knife as a weapon!
And, Raynulf, if you ever do make the Crib of Sleep or the Maternity Robe, consider me the first in line to purchase them! :)
-Lady Firedove, sleep-deprived mommy of a newborn
|
Star Voter Season 8, Star Voter Season 9
|
In defense of Raynulf, I looked back at his comments, and I really don't think they were meant to be abusive, or even ascerbic. Things can come across differently to different people when posed online. I think with his examples he was just trying to say that domestic-themed items, while certainly practical, are not necessarily the best submissions for attention-grabbing weapons in this Superstar contest. (Although, check out the Harvestweal for an example of how it could work!)For what it's worth, I thought your concept was quite creative, Lorathorn, but the mechanics somewhat clunky. The knife's abilities would be rather complicated to keep track of. I, personally, like the idea of an adventuring chef using his knife as a weapon.
And, Raynulf, if you ever do make the Crib of Sleep or the Maternity Robe, consider me the first in line to purchase them! :)
-Lady Firedove, sleep-deprived mommy of a newborn
Duly noted. I appreciate your input on both matters. I'll say nothing further on the former.
I'm still stuck on how I want to improve my concept, if for no other reason than as a writing exercise. I'm convinced that a future superstar entry ought not be so narrow, as has been advised. Still though, I do wonder what I can do differently...
A big part of this contest was considering what would be appealing for me locally, at my gaming table, vs. what would be appealing to the global community.
I could be excited about getting a chef's knife that wants me to have cooking ranks in a game if it tied in to my concept, but most of the time? It'll probably get sold, hopefully to a rich chef.
Superstar items have a wider appeal, generally.
RPG Superstar 2008 Top 32, 2011 Top 16
,
Star Voter Season 6, Star Voter Season 7, Star Voter Season 8, Star Voter Season 9
aka JoelF847
|
Rod of Illusory Casting
Aura none (see below); CL 5th
Slot none; Price 5,000 gp; Weight 3 lbs.Description
This thin ebony wood rod is tipped with a shaft of white cedar. It allows the wielder to make illusions seem real, and spells that create tangible effects seem illusory. Three times per day, as part of casting a spell, the rod cloaks your verbal, somatic and material components in illusions that mask the spell being cast. Focus and divine focus components are not affected by cloaking a spell. When casting an illusion, pick any non-illusion spell on your spell list. When casting an non-illusion spell, pick any illusion spell on your spell list. Successful Spellcraft attempts to identify the spell you’re casting instead reveal the chosen spell. Cloaking a spell without a type of component can create false words, gestures, etc. Similarly, cloaking a spell as one that lacks a type of component will hide components under illusions.
The cloaked spell also responds to divination magic as if it had the aura of the chosen spell. For example, casting mislead and cloaking it as false life will respond to detect magic or arcane sight as a necromancy spell. The actual effects of the spell cast do not change, so casting a fireball spell cloaked as an invisibility spell will still produce a globe of fire, etc. The rod itself radiates no magic of any sort.Construction
Requirements Craft Rod, magic aura, major image, misdirection; Cost 2,500 gpThis was an interesting one for me. I liked the idea behind its concept, but I didn't feel it was a magic item. Every time I read it I kept thinking this feels more like a metamagic Feat that allows a caster to disguise the type of spell they are casting. I voted for it several times but It was not in my top picks.
Andrew, thanks for the kind words. I have to admit, I've never gotten the issue people sometimes have with "I like XX, but it really feels like it should be a Spell, Feat, magic item, etc." There's lots of spells that become magic item versions, magic items that have an effect not duplicated by a spell or feat, until someone writes a spell or feat version of them, etc. To me it's a chicken and egg thing - any given game effect has to be somewhere first, and over time is likely to show up in other formats that make sense.