Spell Items, What's the Difference?

[unseenmage]

A resetting trap, a staff, a wand, a scroll. Some of these require you to cast the spell, others do not. Which are which?

I remember that some of the above items recreate the same spell over and over, with all the decisions that were made for the original spell, CL, target, range, etc. all being replicated. Is this wrong?

I'm looking to make a Resetting Trap of Minor Servitor (SS) and I do not know if it will continually make the same Construct or if it will need a constant infusion of new matter to animate. Answered.
That in mind, can I make it so the CL is only 1 thereby making 1 cu. ft. 1HD Minor Servitor? Answered.

[Forrestfire]

A staff, a wand, and a scroll are all spell-trigger items. Staves and wands are spell-trigger items, and scrolls are spell-completion items. For the first two, you need to either have them on your spell list or make a use magic device check to cast from them. Scrolls also require you to be high enough level to cast them on your own, or you risk a mishap.

Scrolls and wands have a CL chosen at the time of the creation of the item, which is factored into the cost. Staves also have a predetermined CL, but the wielder of the staff may use their own caster level if it's higher than the staff's.

Staves, wands, and scrolls all require no components to activate the spell, because they were all paid when the item was made.


Self-resetting traps are similar in that they cast a spell, but they aren't activated like a spell trigger item. They have their activation condition to cast the spell, then it repeats every time it's triggered. Self-resetting traps do not require the material components of the spell, as their costs include them (as 100 times the cost of the material component for one casting (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/traps.htm#designingATrap)).

[Psyren]

The main difference is that staves let you use the CL and ability scores of the wielder if they are better than those baked into the item. All the rest have their stats fixed upon creation.

While I do believe Spell Traps have their effect set upon creation (for example, a fireball trap will fireball the same area if triggered multiple times), you can use complex triggers to track the location of the victims, or even alter the trap's effect depending on observable qualities of the party.

[Forrestfire]

You can't make an item with a lower caster level than the minimum needed to cast the spell.

So a self-resetting trap of Minor Servitor would cost:

[500gp (base cost) * 5 (spell level) * 9 (caster level)] + [500 (base cost) * 250gp (exp cost)] = 147,500gp

[40 (base cost) * 5 (spell level) * 9 (caster level)] = 1,800 exp

However, because the item to be animated is not a component of the spell, but the target, you'd need something to actually animate. However, you could add another spell to the trap, like true creation, to make your object to be animated, adding:

[500gp (base cost) * 8 (spell level) * 15 (caster level)] + [500 (base cost) * x (exp cost)] = the gp cost, where x is whatever the cost of the item you're creating and animating, with a minimum of 1 (and an extra 5120 exp for crafting the item).

So yeah, it'll cost a good amount.

[Chronos]

Nitpick: Wands and staves are spell trigger items, but scrolls are spell completion items. They interact differently with a few rules.

[Forrestfire]

Ah right. My bad :smallredface:

[unseenmage]

So a self-resetting trap of Minor Servitor would cost:

[500gp (base cost) * 5 (spell level) * 9 (caster level)] + [500 (base cost) * 250gp (exp cost)] = 147,500gp

[40 (base cost) * 5 (spell level) * 9 (caster level)] = 1,800 exp

Thank you for your specificity and patience. This is still 2 numbers, a gp cost and an xp cost. How do we determine the Market Price of this trap?

[Forrestfire]

The cost of creating a magic item equals one-half the sale cost of the item.


So the market price of this trap would be 295,000, which would qualify it as an epic item, thankfully because the epic items rules say


Use the guidelines for nonepic magic items to determine the market price of an epic magic item, with one addition: If the item gives a bonus beyond the limit allowed in for normal, nonepic magic items, multiply the portion of the market price derived from that characteristic by 10. Some epic characteristics, such as caster level, don’t trigger this multiplier

... the item isn't multiplied.

In any case, you're looking at 295k for an item that animates anything up to 16 cubic feet that is put in front of it.

[unseenmage]

So the market price of this trap would be 295,000, which would qualify it as an epic item, thankfully because the epic items rules say



... the item isn't multiplied.

In any case, you're looking at 295k for an item that animates anything up to 16 cubic feet that is put in front of it.

Hmm. Thanks again. Your help will not go to waste. If I can figure out a non-epic priced alternative I will be Epic soon enough and I will definitely build some of these.

[Forrestfire]

If you want to be cheesy, you could always wish for it (it'd cost 8600 exp) :smalltongue:

[unseenmage]

If you want to be cheesy, you could always wish for it (it'd cost 8600 exp) :smalltongue:

In our game slightly less cheesey. I'd have to research a custom spell for that exact variant of wish.

hich would be 9,000gp, 9 weeks, and a Spellcraft DC 19. Too bad I only have 3 weeks to hand. Even with the 1/2 research time item it'd take me 4 weeks. Hmmm.

[Forrestfire]

Wait, you aren't allowed to use the safe versions of wish? Darn :smallfrown:

There's always plane shifting to a fast time plane and doing the research there.

[unseenmage]

Wait, you aren't allowed to use the safe versions of wish? Darn :smallfrown:

There's always plane shifting to a fast time plane and doing the research there.

No dice. No RAW fast-time trait planes in Faerun cosmology (that I know of) and I already promised the DM I wouldn't bore a hole into Eberron just to bore a hole into Dal Quor. :smallfrown:

However, we've been discussing allowing hirelings to help with research. Many hands make light work style.