Warlock's Scepter vs. Gloves of Eldritch Admixture: Price? [Archive]

Kafana

2014-07-19, 03:30 AM

So the gloves cost 2.5k and have the following benefit: 3 charges/day, bonus energy damage with eldritch blasts (2d6/1, 3d6/2, 4d6/3)
The warlock's scepter costs 8.5k (rounded) and does the following: +1 light mace, 5 charges/day, bonus damage with eldritch blasts (1d6/1, 2d6/3, 4d6/5) and gives a +1 to the attack roll if it has charges.

Now, I understand that a +1 mace costs around 2.5k, but is the rest of the bonus really 6k? If it is, are the gloves really 2.5k?

The thing is, I understand that 5 charges per day is really a lot more versatile than 3, but in my mind you'd always keep 1 charge in, so that you can get the +1 AR bonus, so really you have 4 charges. This means that you'll do at most 4d6 damage, and you'll do 6d6 with the gloves (albeit no bonus on the AR). As far as I can see (and I could be wrong) once you remove the +1 mace part, the scepter and the gloves are the same thing, only one focuses more on versatility, while the other on damage.

Sure, the gloves add energy damage, but since you get to choose the type this can be an advantage (if you're fighting someone vulnerable to a certain element).

That being said, should the mace or the gloves get a price change?

Biffoniacus_Furiou

2014-07-19, 04:04 AM

Let's break down the price of each of them, first taking a few things into consideration:

DMG p288, sidebar: Behind The Curtain: Body Slot Affinities. Considering the number of glove items in MIC which somehow improve spells or spell-like attacks or add energy damage to attacks (MIC p248-249 for reference), we'll consider this slot appropriate for this type of effect.

DMG p285, Table 7-33: Estimating Magic Item Gold Piece Values, under the Special category we have No Space Limitation (4), which refers to DMG p214, Magic Items On The Body. "Basically, an item that does not take up one of the spaces on a body costs double." A held item does not occupy a body slot. You could get a dozen held items and rubber-band them all together and hold them all at once in one hand if you wanted to, because none of them occupy an item slot.

Gloves of Eldritch Admixture are 2,500 gp for a wondrous item, with a default caster level of 3rd, and three daily charges.
Prerequisites are Craft Wondrous Item, Melf's Acid Arrow (2nd) or Vitriolic Blast, Scorching Ray (2nd) or Brimstone Blast, and Ray of Ice (2nd) or Hellrime Blast.

Warlock's Scepter is 8,305 gp for a +1 Light Mace, with a default caster level of 10th, that gives +1 to hit with EB and five daily chargers.
Prerequisites are Craft Magic Arms/Armor, Craft Rod, and Bestow Curse (4th or 3rd).

Gloves: We have a list of 2nd level spells (2) at a caster level of 3rd (x3) usable 3/day (divide by 5/3). That leaves us with a price of (2x3xGP)/(5/3)=2500, where GP = 250.

Scepter: We have a +1 Light Mace (2,305 gp), leaving 6,000 gp for the other effects. It's a 4th or 3rd level spell (4 or 3) at a caster level of 10th (x10) usable 5/day (would divide by 5/5 but that just divides it by 1, no change), for no item slot (x2). That leaves us with a price of (4 or 3)x10x2xGP=6000, where GP = 75 (4th) or 100 (3rd). If we don't include the doubling for no item spot, it's 150 (4th) or 200 (3rd). In either case, it's actually cheaper than the gloves since it's multiplied by a smaller base gp value, though when comparing the actual effects it doesn't look like that much of a difference.

If all things were equal except the fact that the scepter doesn't take a slot and is usable 5/day, we could use the gloves' spell level of 2nd, caster level of 3rd, and 250 base gp since the effect is nearly identical. This would give us a price of 2x3x250gp, x2, and dividing by 5/5 does nothing so it ends up at 3,000 gp. It's 500 gp more expensive than the gloves, but the scepter also adds +1 to your attack rolls with EB. This is still half as much as the 6,000 gp price on the same effect attached to the scepter.

However, that 250 gp basis is extremely low compared to most other permanent magic items. A 500 gp basis would be fair, which would put the scepter's price at exactly what's printed. In conclusion, you should accept that the gloves are heavily discounted, and the scepter is priced fairly for its effect. The scepter may look expensive by comparison, but that's only because the gloves are priced too low.