Best Mundane Items! (Fun with Call Item)

[Lhurgyof]

I was trying to ponder the best ways of using the "Call Item" psionic power, which fetches mundane items.

Call Item
Psychoportation (Teleportation)
Level: Psion/wilder 1, psychic warrior 1
Display: Material
Manifesting Time: 1 standard action
Range: 0 ft.
Effect: 1 item; see text
Duration: 10 min./level; see text (D)
Saving Throw: None
Power Resistance: No
Power Points: 1

You call a piece of nonmagical equipment worth 10 gp or less "from thin air" into your waiting hand. (Actually, it is a real item hailing from some other random location in space and time.) You don't have to see or know of the item to call it -- in fact, you can't ever call a specific item. You just specify the kind (silk rope, basket, torch, or some other item). This power cannot call weapons, armor, psionic items, masterwork items, living creatures, or valuable treasures (see Table 7-8 in the Player's Handbook for typical items called by this power). The item is made of ordinary materials appropriate for its kind. Using called items as spell components causes the spell to fail. If you relinquish your grip on the item you called for 2 or more consecutive rounds, it automatically returns to wherever it originally came from. Items gained by call item are distinctive due to their astral glimmer.

Augment: If you spend 2 additional power points, you can call an item worth 100 gp or less. If you spend 4 additional power points, you can call an item worth 1,000 gp or less.

Things that immediately come to mind are acid, healing salve, ladders, etc. Hell, I even summoned a door with it.

What are some other good, useful items to call?

[Darrin]

Aboleth Mucus and Chaos Flasks spring to mind.

[ericgrau]

I don't see a weight limit so it seems like a good way to deal with the strength you dumped. Get a hammer, rope, etc. Only thing is you can't use it effectively for firewood, tents and so forth because you have to hold the item and due to limited duration.

The potential 1,000 gp limit makes me think it's time to look up one of those non-magical item guides. Typically those guides are used with a bag of holding, but this spell can serve the same purpose while expanding the gear you might access to the entire list all at once. Or at least everything within the spells' restrictions.

Another completely different way to abuse it would be to find some rare yet mundane, non-treasure/weapon/armor/MW item worth up to 1,000 gp. Say the spyglass for example. Call it, smash it, repeat until they're all gone, or most of them are gone. Now let's say beforehand you set up a kingdom's entire ship fleet with an alternate method of seeing far away. Suddenly that kingdom has an advantage. The "and time" part of its source makes this tactic a bit more complicated though.

[Vizzerdrix]

Shapesand. Always go for shapesand.

[ericgrau]

Why would you use your ability to get any item to get an item that lets you get any item?

Except to get weapons and armor I suppose.

[Necroticplague]

Why would you use your ability to get any item to get an item that lets you get any item?


Because Shapesand and Chaos Flasks have different limitations from Call Item. Off the top of my head, Chaos Flasks can give you Diminuitive creatures, which Call Item can't.

[dspeyer]

A lot depends on how specific you can get. Classes of items that there are probably more than one of:

* A key to the lock on this door
* A signet ring for the royal house
* A spellbook containing wish (for my wizard friend to copy, then study at leisure)
* A monthly accounting log from the evil empire's espionage department

[Âmesang]

• A clean pair of underwear
• A cup of Earl Grey tea
• A 39½ ft. pole

[Lhurgyof]

A lot depends on how specific you can get. Classes of items that there are probably more than one of:

* A key to the lock on this door
* A signet ring for the royal house
* A spellbook containing wish (for my wizard friend to copy, then study at leisure)
* A monthly accounting log from the evil empire's espionage department

Unfortunately, I don't think you can get very specific: "You don't have to see or know of the item to call it -- in fact, you can't ever call a specific item... The item is made of ordinary materials appropriate for its kind"

The spell book idea is awesome though. I'm sure eventually you could find one with nifty spells in it.

So far I used it to get an acid flask when a caster used mirror image, a door to protect against a chain lightning spell in a hallway, and healing salve to help stabilize dying people and get them up. This seems like the most useful level 1 PsyWar power in the game.

[Tvtyrant]

There is an incredible abuse here in the form of Myconid potions. Myconids can make mundane potions from a list, which gives you access to magical healing and other goodies.

bull's strength, cure light wounds, cure moderate wounds, cure serious wounds, delay poison, endurance, endure elements, greater magic fang, invisibility to animals, lesser restoration, magic fang, negative energy protection, neutralize poison, protection from elements, remove blindness/deafness, remove disease, remove paralysis, resist elements

That is a lot of spells for one psionic power.

[Lhurgyof]

There is an incredible abuse here in the form of Myconid potions. Myconids can make mundane potions from a list, which gives you access to magical healing and other goodies.

bull's strength, cure light wounds, cure moderate wounds, cure serious wounds, delay poison, endurance, endure elements, greater magic fang, invisibility to animals, lesser restoration, magic fang, negative energy protection, neutralize poison, protection from elements, remove blindness/deafness, remove disease, remove paralysis, resist elements

That is a lot of spells for one psionic power.

Myconids are in MM2, right? That seems extremely cheesy though, lol.

[ben-zayb]

Aren't relics nonmagical?

[Vogie]

A bag of flour of course

[sleepyphoenixx]

Aren't relics nonmagical?

Relics are magic items. They're just cheaper than normal but require that you worship a specific god and sacrifice a feat or a spell slot to get their full powers.

[Silva Stormrage]

Relics are magic items. They're just cheaper than normal but require that you worship a specific god and sacrifice a feat or a spell slot to get their full powers.

I think he means the weird BoED relics. The ones that a while back ago someone was arguing worked with VoP or something like that.

I do like the mundane potion idea though thats clever.


Do corpses have a cost anywhere? It would be amusing to say call up the corpse of some monster, resurrect it, then claim that it isn't the same item (It is a creature now) so it doesn't disappear once the duration ends or when you drop it. Don't think that would fly in most games though.

Another more usable suggestion, psionics don't have any verbal or somatic components and it only ends after 12 seconds. Call in some gasses, not sure how much 1000 gp of carbon monoxide is but it would be interested to call that around you (Make sure you are immune obviously).

[Tvtyrant]

I think he means the weird BoED relics. The ones that a while back ago someone was arguing worked with VoP or something like that.

I do like the mundane potion idea though thats clever.


Do corpses have a cost anywhere? It would be amusing to say call up the corpse of some monster, resurrect it, then claim that it isn't the same item (It is a creature now) so it doesn't disappear once the duration ends or when you drop it. Don't think that would fly in most games though.

Another more usable suggestion, psionics don't have any verbal or somatic components and it only ends after 12 seconds. Call in some gasses, not sure how much 1000 gp of carbon monoxide is but it would be interested to call that around you (Make sure you are immune obviously).

Speaking of horrible chemicals, Aboleth Slime has no save and is hilariously awful.

[Darrin]

There is an incredible abuse here in the form of Myconid potions.

I don't see any indication in the description that these are non-magical. In fact, the presence of a caster level and the save involving the spell level suggests to me that they are magical effects that the myconid creates with a Supernatural (and thus magical) ability.


Speaking of horrible chemicals, Aboleth Slime has no save and is hilariously awful.

Aboleth Mucus has a save, it's a Fort DC 19. There's also Aboleth Oil listed in the A&EG as a poison, also Fort DC 19, but triggers full-on transformation as a secondary effect.

I know there's a different entry for Aboleth Slime somewhere else, but I can't recall which book.

[Tvtyrant]

I don't see any indication in the description that these are non-magical. In fact, the presence of a caster level and the save involving the spell level suggests to me that they are magical effects that the myconid creates with a Supernatural (and thus magical) ability.



Aboleth Mucus has a save, it's a Fort DC 19. There's also Aboleth Oil listed in the A&EG as a poison, also Fort DC 19, but triggers full-on transformation as a secondary effect.

I know there's a different entry for Aboleth Slime somewhere else, but I can't recall which book.

I could have sworn... oh well, don't rely on memory for obscure creature abilities I guess.

Savage species I think.

[Rubik]

Riverine is a material in its own right, but anything solid can be made out of it. At 350 gp/lb, you'd think it would be too expensive to use for Call Item, but since it's indestructible no matter how delicate it looks, you can skimp on volume and mass and still have a functional item. Riverine twine, for instance, can be used in place of the heaviest of dutiest chain or rope and still function perfectly.

What other indestructible riverine items work well with Call Item?

As for "regular materials of its kind," I regularly purchase riverine twine.

[ben-zayb]

Riverine is a material in its own right, but anything solid can be made out of it. At 350 gp/lb, you'd think it would be too expensive to use for Call Item, but since it's indestructible no matter how delicate it looks, you can skimp on volume and mass and still have a functional item. Riverine twine, for instance, can be used in place of the heaviest of dutiest chain or rope and still function perfectly.

What other indestructible riverine items work well with Call Item?

Is Riverine made of nonmagical force?

[Troacctid]

Riverine is partially composed of magical force, so it shouldn't be callable.

[Rubik]

Oddly enough, you can have nonmagical riverine. It takes a Device item, from Ravenloft: Legacy of the Blood, but it IS doable.

[Troacctid]

You still wouldn't be able to call it, because you can't call masterwork items either, and the substance is considered masterwork.

[Fizban]

Riverine: The Dumbest Material Ever Printed.

Depending on what counts as an "item" and what sort of oversized alchemicals your DM allows, this could be good even for raw damage. Some DMs allow simply throwing a bigger jug of acid, and 1,000gp is 100d6 worth of acid. Races of the Dragon has a 1,000gp Ditherbomb that deals 1d6*1d8, roughly worth the 5pp in raw damage, though not ease of use. Or whatever bombs exist. I have a consolidated list of all alchemical and superior items that I keep around anyway which would likely make the DM think twice.

What book is this power from anyway? I don't see it on SRD or Complete Psionic.

[Tvtyrant]

Riverine: The Dumbest Material Ever Printed.

Depending on what counts as an "item" and what sort of oversized alchemicals your DM allows, this could be good even for raw damage. Some DMs allow simply throwing a bigger jug of acid, and 1,000gp is 100d6 worth of acid. Races of the Dragon has a 1,000gp Ditherbomb that deals 1d6*1d8, roughly worth the 5pp in raw damage, though not ease of use. Or whatever bombs exist. I have a consolidated list of all alchemical and superior items that I keep around anyway which would likely make the DM think twice.

What book is this power from anyway? I don't see it on SRD or Complete Psionic.

It was one of the webpage ones. The same one woth call armor.