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The Glyphstone
2008-10-27, 11:09 PM
This deserves its own threat, to not clutter the main Effigy thread.

Concept:
A Halfling, Gnome, or other Small-sized Artificer, since a Tiny race would soak too much LA. As an Artificier 8/Effigy Master 5, he is capable of crafting an 18HD effigy at ECL13. He dumps his entire fortune into this effigy - specifically, a Roc (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/roc.htm).

With the total wealth of an ECL13 character (ignore Artificer WBL obliteration cheese), how close can he get to his resulting goal:

A magical jet fighter.

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Here's the math I've done so far. As it stands, it's well beyond what an ECl13 character can afford - the WBL is copyrighted, but it is a six-digit number composed of two 1's and four 0's. Assume a permissive DM allowing 2 flaws, all books, and Dragon magazine, but nothing that will give the character more than his allotted WBL - he can do whatever he wants to be capable of making more stuff with the money he has, item crafting reduction feats and such.



So, 43K for the main effigy.

A continuous Cloud Wings costs 12,000 GP, or 6,000 GP and 480 XP. A continuous Greater Wings of Air costs 112,000 GP or 56,000GP and 4,480 XP.

That's a bit pricy, but since we're just having fun anyways, we can cut both of those by 30% if we make them only function for Constructs, and build them directly into the effigy. That cuts the Cloud Wings down to 4,000 GP and 320 XP, and the Wings down to 33,600 GP and 2,688 XP.
2x Command-word activated items of Orb of Fire at CL10th will cost 72,000 each, 144,000 total, or 72,000 GP and 5760 XP to make.
Two command-word activated items of Energy Substituted Acidball at CL10th will cost 54,000 apiece, 108,000 total, or 54,000 GP and 4,320 XP to make.
One command-word activated item of Magic Missile at CL9th will cost 16,200 GP, or 8,100 GP and 641 XP to create.
This is really freaking expensive so far, so let’s work on trimming it down.

Sstoopidtallkid
2008-10-28, 01:16 AM
Tippy, we need you.

Beyond that, I think it's wrong to ignore the Artificer WBL breakers. at the least, he can be crafting the Eternal Wands you mentioned in the other thread for half-price.

ThrustVectoring
2008-10-28, 01:54 AM
you could probably get the cost of the orb of fire/energy substituted acidball down if you took them as one-off "missiles" and "bombs". You might want additional copies of the magic missile "machinegun" since it looks to not be that expensive.

it might be better to try to match the roc up to an AC-130 gunship
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SlzEFOz5mNo

InaVegt
2008-10-28, 03:00 AM
You should get the 25% off creation cost feat from Eberron. That should push the current cost down to 161,025 gp.

Adumbration
2008-10-28, 03:21 AM
If you want a higher level version, you could craft an effigy of a Behemoth Eagle, (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/epic/monsters/behemoth.htm#behemothEagle) a colossal bird. You'd have to be level 16, but it's still pre-epic, and it's bigger.

Sstoopidtallkid
2008-10-28, 03:34 AM
you could probably get the cost of the orb of fire/energy substituted acidball down if you took them as one-off "missiles" and "bombs". You might want additional copies of the magic missile "machinegun" since it looks to not be that expensive.Most people(myself included) hate disposable wealth. It feels like each use is a temporary boost for a permanent loss. Going with Eternal Wands means they'll be usable forever.

@OP: Maybe drop one of each of the types of weapons. It's too expensive, and doesn't add much. I'd also suggest swapping some of the Balls for Lightnings, just for the multiple options. As a practical objection, a Gargantuan effigy is probably too large for effective use by adventurers. Even at those levels, a lot of time is spent enclosed.

The Glyphstone
2008-10-28, 08:14 AM
@OP: Maybe drop one of each of the types of weapons. It's too expensive, and doesn't add much. I'd also suggest swapping some of the Balls for Lightnings, just for the multiple options. As a practical objection, a Gargantuan effigy is probably too large for effective use by adventurers. Even at those levels, a lot of time is spent enclosed.


Obviously. But this isn't in any way practical to begin with, as he will have no possessions whatsoever that aren't tied into his ROC. It's just to be awesome.:smallbiggrin:

And for the Artificer WBL breaks, I was referring to the various loops where you take an item, craft it for a massive discount from feats/craft reserves, then either sell it for more than you paid, and have effectively infinite wealth. This isn't a fun thought exercise if you don't have a spending cap...

What sort of ad-hoc price modifier could we wrangle out of our TheoryDM for having these wondrous weapons permanently embedded in our ROC?