Best "Very Rare" gish item?

[Menji]

The "best" selection will depend a lot on your party comp and on what you want from the item. You're also maxed on attunement slots (barring GM houserules) so you shouldn't just compare the benefits of each item, but also what you're losing in terms of a dropped item, for the items that require attunement. You're either losing 2d6 fire damage per attack from the scimitar, a summon from the staff, or AC/saves from the cloak.

Illusionist's Bracers would probably be your biggest damage upgrade, potentially doubling your round-to-round DPR since you don't seem to otherwise have Extra Attack.

The benefits of the Tome of Clear Thought are probably mostly outweighed by the Amulet of the Devout for your Wizard spells. +3 to spell attacks and saves is real juicy, and the bonus Channel Divinity is icing on the cake.

The Peregrine Mask is probably better than the Carpet of Flying unless you really need the transport capability for some reason, and even then I would probably recommend turning to a Bag of Holding/Tenser's Floating Disk. At-will flight is really good for moving around the battlefield, especially when you can blast away as a wizard.

Everything Daern's Instant Fortress can do (AoE, barriers) is replicable with the Staff of Power. You can do some fun stuff with a Ring of Spell-Storing, but mostly I think you'd get more mileage out of the Staff there too. This is your option if you want lots and lots of utility, and the other passive bonuses are great too. IMO, the Staff is your best OVERALL option, but as mentioned previously, it really depends on what you want to get out of this magic item.

Yup, good analysis.

My extra attack at the moment is just offhand attack with the dragontooth dagger (sometimes combined with Haste and/or Pyrotechnics), which is really just occasionally used vs boss types in pursuit of smite-crits. Not perfect because I have to stay on top of drawing/stowing weapons or I won't even get reaction/bonus casting 50% of the time. So yeah that's the thinking behind the bracers.

Staff of the Python is more just nice to have than needed, wouldn't mind un-attuning it. Really only used to restrain in support of more crit fishing.

Also wouldn't mind un-attuning the cloak...but yeah, the tradeoff has to be taken into account. What's kinda nice about the Staff is that it mitigates any/all of these. It gives an extra +1d6 force for a charge, offsetting the 2d6 for fire. Tops the AC/saves from cloak. I'd lose advantage from the Giant Constrictor Snake, but with the + to spell attacks and extra slots from not having to prep blasts, I'd be using Summon Fey more (4th level upcast, tricksy version), thereby gaining advantage from the 5' darkness effect combo with my blindfighting. So that's kinda a wash.

Really, the only real beef I have with the staff is that it's not finesse and I am. The +2 helps and I can make it my Hex weapon for additional +1, but it's still hitting less. I could just hold it while attacking with the Flame Tongue for the benefits (again, like Gandalf), but the stow/draw technique works even less...because I'm losing the benefits if I stow/draw it, and I lose my bonus action if I do it with the Flame Tongue (due to having to activate the flames with it). I'll probably go with it anyway and just ride out the conflict until I get Warcaster.

The ring addresses the frequent need to fly *while* having up Haste/Spirit Shroud/concentration stuff. Just requires familiar bat or owl (or a trusted party member, which is an issue in character) to do it, which is a vulnerability. So many possibilities, though.

Gahhhh...good problem to have, I know. So spoiled, heh. Thanks for the feedback.