3.5 so my dm told me to not get attached to our parties magic items..

[ryeookin]

That's like asking a fat kid to not like pie. Ain't gonna happen.. thus here I am asking advice on how to protect my/our items.

Background info:
Our group is collectively level 10 playing a campaign called "the night below" converted to 3.5 (don't share spoilers if you know any plz!!). Now our dm doesn't metagame.. but I know its only a matter of time before smart enemies will do what ever they can to kill us.. such as casting disintegrate, dispel, and eventually disjunction on our stuff (See quote "our dm said don't get too attached to our magic items").:smalleek:

The only thing I thought of so far that could help some.. is getting blue shine (mic) for our armor and the similar enchantment for our weapons (to protect from acid and rust). Also enchanting our armor/weapons with calling (mic) could help.. Maybe if I could get my mythral breastplate hidden under a shirt it couldn't be targeted?

While that is a start I feel its the equivalent of closing a few windows on the sinking titanic.

What would you recommend?? Remember its the season of caring.. so please think of the poor little magic items and help save some today. Thank you.:smallsmile:

[Glimbur]

Disjunction allows a will save. Buff your will save. It won't save everything, but hopefully you can dishearten your DM with the sheer number of saves you have to make.

Dispel is temporary. Don't fret about it.

Disintegrate is not usually used to sunder, it takes feats to do that (for whatever reason).

[Caliphbubba]

other than giving the DM the big middle finger and take Vow of Poverty....

hmm well I'm actually sure about this, but maybe you can try to get your items crafted at a higher caster level than normal to help protect from dispel/disjunction effects.

[Baveboi]

Level 10? You could always make the party wizard take Craft Contingency Spell and buff you guys with anti-sundering spells to the infinite. But that's my strategy...

You can always keep the real good and important stuff away, in an Ethereal Chest for an example, or back in home with a Calling/Teleportation spell ready to get to them.

[Codenpeg]

There are some weapon and armor crystals that will help protect your stuff. They'll be cheaper than tossing enchants on them at least.
They can be found in the MIC which you seem to have access to.

[Last Laugh]

There is a feat in Complete Scoundrel called Miser's Envy which gives your items +5 to saves, you can also spend a luck reroll to force a foe to reroll a sunder attempt. Not great, but makes your items last longer.

[ryeookin]

@Last Laugh: I'll check that out thanks. :)

@Codenpeg: Our DM does not allow weapon crystals (and bans enchantments that are overpowered.. such as no soulfire armor *sadface*.

[grimbold]

magical barriers around all magical items only passable by you?
you could homebrew something

[tbarrie]

magical barriers around all magical items only passable by you?
you could homebrew something

Attempting to thwart your DM by homebrewing something strikes me as unlikely to succeed.

[gbprime]

Look, bottom line... if the DM is going to do something so that your stuff is taken or broken, there's a million ways (s)he could do it. You'd be better off preparing yourself for the eventuality of not having stuff.


Avoid weapon focus builds, legacy items, and bound items

Avoid any build or class feature that relies on toys. (If you're a Divine Metamagic build that need 3 nightsticks to keep you buffed up, you're doomed. So don't build a character like this for this campaign.)

Utilize common weapons rather than exotic ones. (A longsword is easy to come by, a double scimitar... not so much.)

Eschew Materials

Learn spells like Summon Instrument and Fabricate

Get spellbook tattoos

[Chess435]

Take Vow of Poverty! Now you don't have to worry about any of this stuff!

[Aotrs Commander]

As someone who has also done a conversion of Night Below to 3.5, I think I know what he's talking about. I won't spoil anything, except to say I suspect he's speaking from the module, not from any personal sense of kit-murdering vindictiveness (of course, I could well be wrong...!)

While it certainly wouldn't hurt to take some of the precautions mentioned in the thread (and I'm not going to say which ones!), I wouldn't invest your entire build in it, though, put it that way.

[Grelna the Blue]

Well, for small stuff you're worried about losing there's always Belkar's solution (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0261.html).

The same gambit, or nearly, has apparently also worked for all the 'Lotus' characters in Knights of the Dinner Table. Just make sure to carry plenty of prune juice...

[Stegyre]

What gbprime said.

In a battle between the party and the GM, who do you think is going to win? :smallamused:

Your better strategy is to keep your magic items minor (so they are less likely to be a target and more easily replaced if they are targeted), and to avoid item-dependent builds.

You might also negotiate a tacit compromise, such as a homebrew feat that guarantees a player to protect one specified item -- against theft, disjunction, disintegration, you-name-it. You pay a feat tax and there's only so much goodness you can stack onto a single item, but it gives you something.

[Fax Celestis]

Take Vow of Poverty! Now you don't have to worry about any of this stuff!

...or play a meldshaper class and enjoy the same lack of worry without any of the suck.

[ryeookin]

As someone who has also done a conversion of Night Below to 3.5, I think I know what he's talking about. I won't spoil anything, except to say I suspect he's speaking from the module, not from any personal sense of kit-murdering vindictiveness (of course, I could well be wrong...!)

While it certainly wouldn't hurt to take some of the precautions mentioned in the thread (and I'm not going to say which ones!), I wouldn't invest your entire build in it, though, put it that way.

Oh its the module I'm sure. I don't believe he is just being a douche.. however he does so enjoy making us squirm (what dm isn't a bit of a sadist I ask you?).

Now I don't want any spoilers but could you answer this for me, is this part that threatens our magic items existence.. is it just a localized part in the adventure or does this become a continual running theme in the adventure?



On a side note the feat in complete scoundrel is called miser's fortune and I'm considering it.

[Emmerask]

As many have said, if the dm wants to steal/destroy/take away your items he will succeed ^^
I would suggest playing something that does not need many magic items/stuff in general :smallsmile:

For a fighter type psychic warrior with call weapon and armor powers.

For a caster, how about a psion or wilder? ^^

[ryeookin]

As many have said, if the dm wants to steal/destroy/take away your items he will succeed ^^
I would suggest playing something that does not need many magic items/stuff in general :smallsmile:

For a fighter type psychic warrior with call weapon and armor powers.

For a caster, how about a psion or wilder? ^^

I don't think you all understand.. we aren't making characters at 10 level, we already HAVE characters made and I don't plan to change characters (I'm rather attached to my duskblade btw).

Also I know he can do what ever he likes.. he is the dm after all. However as I've mentioned above he is not a douch, nor does he metagame.. so the threat to our items is likely mostly due to the adventure we are playing.

Thus I'm not trying to thwart my dm.. I'm trying to plug potential holes that could lead to loosing magic items that is likely caused by the adventure we are playing. I'm basically trying to be as proactive as I can in an effort to minimize our magic item loss.

[gbprime]

My favorite trick for stashing stuff is Nystul's Magic Aura on a Glove of Storing. They can't tell it's magical, so they don't bother looting it, and you can store almost anything in the glove. Spare weapon, bag of holding, leomund's secret chest focus, etc.

Nystul's Magic Aura is great for your stuff in general, particularly any magic item that doesn't look masterwork.

[holywhippet]

Keep anything you are not currently using in a bag of holding. While it can be targeted, the contents cannot as long as they are inside.

Also, if these disjunction spells will be coming from enemy spellcasters, stay close to them. The spell targets a 40 foot burst which means it will affect their allies and them if cast too close.

[The Glyphstone]

Keep anything you are not currently using in a bag of holding. While it can be targeted, the contents cannot as long as they are inside.

Also, if these disjunction spells will be coming from enemy spellcasters, stay close to them. The spell targets a 40 foot burst which means it will affect their allies and them if cast too close.

That'd only work if the party can surround the caster - otherwise they can just target the center of the burst 35ft. away from them.

[true_shinken]

Keep anything you are not currently using in a bag of holding. While it can be targeted, the contents cannot as long as they are inside.
You are also just a single standard action and DC 20 skill check short of losing your stuff.

[Ormur]

Maybe your DM is hinting not that you'll be the target of sunders and disjunctions but that you'll be captured and stripped of your belongings. Protecting the items isn't going to help against that. Just pointing out that not getting caught might also have to feature into you plans, or casting summons on the items.

[gbprime]

Maybe your DM is hinting not that you'll be the target of sunders and disjunctions but that you'll be captured and stripped of your belongings. Protecting the items isn't going to help against that.

Hence the Glove of Storing that seems non-magical. Unless they strip you nekkid when they throw you in the cell or slave pit, this works to save your backup gear.

[Flickerdart]

There's a psionic power in hyperconscious that allows you to store items inside your dreams. Manifest the power (UMD a power stone or something), hide some backup toys and get a tattoo of it for when you need to get them back.

3rd party, though.

[Dingle]

everyone seems to be focussed on disjunction, but an effective rogue could probably just steal it, the capturing thing seems possible too.

if it's converted from some other system, exact spells mightn't be used.

[GoodbyeSoberDay]

Vow of Poverty party filled with Druids and Binders and other characters that function well without WBL might throw your DM through a loop. That way your party *really* doesn't get attached to magic items.

(Yes, I know VOP is generally not that great, but it's quite good if you expect all your gear to be DM-fiated away.)

[Callista]

You probably shouldn't be attached to your magic items...

Your DM is likely hinting that you will lose your items at some point, or go into a dead magic area.

[Dimers]

For protection against mundane sundering, try the special material called "aurorum", from the Book of Exalted Deeds. It can be used for weapons, armor and shields. An aurorum item can put itself back together (probably including all enchantments, depending on how your DM interprets the phrase "restores the item to its previous state") in a single round, and costs a flat 4000 gp regardless of how else the item is enchanted.

[Ernir]

Sounds like the time to make an AMFbuild. Check out Runescarred Berserker! :smallbiggrin:

Or, yeah, just Meldshapers.

Artificers might, ironically enough, work too. They are completely reliant on their stuff, of course, but they have some very aggressive ways to actually get new stuff if they need to.

Unless they strip you nekkid when they throw you in the cell or slave pit, this works to save your backup gear.
Yeah, this would be the problem Ormur is having at the moment...

:smallredface:

[Curmudgeon]

This strategem works as low as level 8, for the right type of character.

Be a Cleric with the Kobold (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/we/20060420a) or Time domains, and Magic or Protection domains. The first two grant Contingency, and the second two grant Antimagic Field at level 6.
Buff your caster level to 16 or more. (An Ankh of Ascension and a Karma bead from a Strand of Player Beads each give +4 to your caster level.)
Get a Candle of Invocation of your alignment. This will let you boost your CL by another +2, and also allow you to prepare spells as if your (boosted) caster level were your normal Cleric level. Prepare Antimagic Field as your level 6 domain spell, and Contingency as your level 7 domain spell.
Cast Contingency, so that it will trigger Antimagic Field if you're subject to Mordenkainen's Disjunction.
The Mordenkainen's Disjunction will only have a 1% chance per caster level of destroying the Antimagic Field, so that's about an 80% guarantee of all your items surviving.

[Zanticor]

I'm quite familiar with the night below and the only thing I can tell you without spoilers is that fighters without an insane will save should try and stay as item light as possible. Because remember one thing: the harder you can hit something, the faster your buddies go down when things go south. With this adventure your strengths will be used against you so I wouldn't invest in protecting your gear. Protect your mind (and brain) first.

[FelixG]

1) Choose your magic items
2) Pay the money to make custom versions that are slotless, and as small as possible
3) Put them somewhere no sunderer in their right mind would look :smalleek:
4) ???
5) Profit!

[Callista]

I'm quite familiar with the night below and the only thing I can tell you without spoilers is that fighters without an insane will save should try and stay as item light as possible. Because remember one thing: the harder you can hit something, the faster your buddies go down when things go south. With this adventure your strengths will be used against you so I wouldn't invest in protecting your gear. Protect your mind (and brain) first.Uh... dude, that's a spoiler. Just FYI.