Cost of Magical Items (particularly potions and scrolls)
by Anarion_Elendilitl;dr
I want potions/scrolls to be cheaper in our campaign so that the PCs can actually buy and use them rather than sell/hoard them.
Store prices (if available)
Potions: 200gp x (Spell level)**2
Scrolls: 100gp x (Spell level)**2
So my players' characters are starting to get their hands into more serious money, but there is a bit of a gap between normal equipment (less than 100gp, generally) and magical equipment (1000+ gp).
While GAZ 3 has rules for magical items (repeated in RC), the rules for perishable magical items (potions and scrolls) are quite draconian: only a -20% discount on the initial enchantment cost? Not that a mage could even make a potion of healing, since they do not have a healing spell in their repertoire, and you'd need a cleric instead (RC p. 250).
There is also a chance of failure. Assuming a 9th level cleric with WIS 16 who has done the 1st level enchantment before, the chance is 50-3 = 47%, or so close to 1-in-2 that it doesn't matter. But this does mean that on average, the mage will need double the amount of money and time to be successful, something that a mage who is selling these items would be painfully aware of. And since they likely want to get some profit, too, call it double the price again (as per RC p. 250). So in the end, we get an initial enchantment cost of 4000 gp per spell level, or a price of a 1st level single-use potion of about 3520 gp. Which... is a lot.
So, all that preamble brings me to two points:
1. The price of the perishable magical items ought to be lower, so that the players will actually use the potions/scrolls that their characters have, and don't just sell a potion that they find at low levels and be swimming in money.
2. The way to do that would be to tweak the perishable items cost, as well as the success rate of the enchanting mages, when it is something that they have done before. This prevents those 'extra insurance' costs.
3. At the same time, I would be happy to keep more powerful magic items difficult to enchant, rare and expensive.
What I was thinking was something akin to this:
Enchantment Cost: 1000gp x (Spell level)**2 x (charges multiplier) x (limitations)
Charges multiplier: x (# of charges)/10, but see below
- Rechargeable: counts as 10 charges + how many charges it has.
- Permanent: counts as 100 charges, so x10. (GM veto/malicious compliance if you try to get cute and make a permanent wand of fireballs / rocket launcher...)
Limitations: Here I am thinking like 'usable only by Class', so Mage/Cleric Scrolls might get x0.5, since unlike potions, only the specific class can use them.
So, a potion of healing (1d6+1 hp, so first spell level) with a single dose in the bottle would cost: 1000gp x (1 x 1) x 0.1 x 1 (anyone can drink) = 100gp to enchant.
Assuming that the chance of successfully brewing the potion would be darn near certain, we'd just add x2 multiplier for profit and end with a store price of about 200gp per healing potion. This would be something a low-level adventurer might have as a backup to use if they are at low HP, or to revive an ally (particularly the group's healer).
Also, I think I would set the time to just: (Enchantment Cost / 100gp) days.
This prevents those 1-use potions from becoming a huge timesink.
Using the above rules, a Wand of Fireballs (20 charges, usable only by Elf/Mage) would cost 9000gp to make.
As for the success roll, off the top of my head, something like:
Success of Enchantment = (2 x level + int/wis) x 3 - 4 x (Spell level)**2
Halve the chance if this is the first time.
This would give a 9th level WIS 16 cleric a chance of (2 x 9 +16) x 3 - 3 x (1 x 1) = 34 x 3 - 3 = 102 - 4 = 98% chance of success in fixing a minor healing potion, if he has done it before, or 49% chance if this is the first time.
Whereas trying to do a 4th level cure serious wounds healing potion would give him a chance of 102 - 4 * 16 = 38%.
(I ought to mention that we house-ruled that the healing spells were 1d6+1 per spell level, so this particular potion, if successful, would heal 4d6+4.)
What do you think?