Are DMG and PHB items in the MIC?

[Ozreth]

Can the MIC completely replace the PHB and DMG for item purchasing? Or does it leave out the stuff from the core books?

In fact, does it compile all of the items from every book published before it?

[Lonely Tylenol]

They don't explicitly re-publish the items, but they do appear as part of the price guide and item level guide (with original source pages) at the back of the book.

[Flickerdart]

It definitely doesn't republish items from all other books. Most of what it has is new stuff.

[HunterOfJello]

The MiC does not have all the item listings that are in the DMG. However, the items in the MiC are far more balanced than those in the DMG. You could run a campaign where the items in the MiC are common in the towns and cities where the items in the DMG are rare and not purchasable. I've been tempted to do this in my games since the players often go right after the more unbalanced items that are set at lower costs. (i.e. +5 Resistance Cloak for 25k gold)



There are also items in the DMG that are just completely broken. Items like the Thought Bottle are just best banned altogether or used as artifact items that are one of a kind.

[SaintRidley]

There are also items in the DMG that are just completely broken. Items like the Thought Bottle are just best banned altogether or used as artifact items that are one of a kind.

That one's Complete Arcane, not DMG.

[ericgrau]

It does list the DMG items in the back with DMG page numbers but it doesn't have their descriptions. So it's still handy for selecting items from both books.

[DeAnno]

(i.e. +5 Resistance Cloak for 25k gold).

Resistance is... poorly priced, but the MiC does it too (Vest of Resistance pg 147). Houseruling it to 2,000*(bonus)^2 is not out of the question and probably more indicative of the actual value.

[tiercel]

Heck, not only is the vest of resistance priced the same as the cloak, but having the extra option is better: even if you don't think the torso slot has fewer attractive magic item choices, having two different ways to get your resistance item means that if you find something good in one slot, you can just get a resistance item for the other.

Without the vest, your cloak slot is pretty much gone, dedicated to your saving throws, leaving paladins as well as bards, sorcerers, and any other caster who cares about Cha as a casting stat in a conundrum without customizing their Cha-booster onto a nonstandard slot.

There are some Core items that are pretty messed up, of course. But it is almost facetious to say "Core is more brokenated than anything non-Core, ever" and then cite as supporting examples one which is non-Core and another which is reproduced/expanded in non-Core. I mean, fine, call out the abusability of the candle of invocation and the necklace of prayer beads' karma bead, but keep in mind that there are also thought bottles and nightsticks.

[Eldariel]

Heck, not only is the vest of resistance priced the same as the cloak, but having the extra option is better: even if you don't think the torso slot has fewer attractive magic item choices, having two different ways to get your resistance item means that if you find something good in one slot, you can just get a resistance item for the other.

Eh. MIC has the "stat to any item of slot for no extra price"-list under which Resistance falls so that's a non-issue anyways.

[Darrin]

It definitely doesn't republish items from all other books. Most of what it has is new stuff.

Eh... not quite. I haven't done an exact count, but it looks like about 75% of the items in the MIC were printed somewhere else first, usually from more obscure or campaign-specific 3.0 sourcebooks.

In some cases, the abilities/effects were changed significantly, particularly with an emphasis on limiting the uses per day or adding charges per day. In other cases, the description was copied verbatim. But you get the feeling that the designers had some kind of serious hissy-fit over "continuous" or "unlimited use" effects.

[Glimbur]

Eh. MIC has the "stat to any item of slot for no extra price"-list under which Resistance falls so that's a non-issue anyways.

It does become a problem if you ever find random loot though. Your cloak of +4 Cha and +3 to saves is nice, but what is a sorc to do if a +6 cloak of cha comes up? Sure, you can enchant it further, but that takes down time.

[Keld Denar]

There are other ways to induce opportunity cost than screwing players on slot restrictions. All players need Resistance. The MIC is one of the best books in 3.5 printed because it pretty much eliminates that scarsity while filling it with fun, active and decently balanced items.