The Worth of a SLA

[Clementx]

So in an effort to develop a more interesting reward alternative, I have been considering offering my players the chance to gain SLAs from an outsider patron. The idea is to make everyone a warlock-lite, since it is more fun to make that dark pact yourself than to inherit it.

So this raises a question- how much is the average SLA really worth? I've been doing lots of math from diabolical pacts and feats and spell-slot percentages and such, and nothing really comes up right. Or should I just price them as command word abilities (with all the normal caveats about those from magic-item pricing) that are attached to your skeleton? While you can't lose/disarm them, they can still be revoked by the patron.

Thoughts?

[Thinker]

You could re-flavor the grafts from various supplements to get a similar effect.

[Quietus]

So in an effort to develop a more interesting reward alternative, I have been considering offering my players the chance to gain SLAs from an outsider patron. The idea is to make everyone a warlock-lite, since it is more fun to make that dark pact yourself than to inherit it.

So this raises a question- how much is the average SLA really worth? I've been doing lots of math from diabolical pacts and feats and spell-slot percentages and such, and nothing really comes up right. Or should I just price them as command word abilities (with all the normal caveats about those from magic-item pricing) that are attached to your skeleton? While you can't lose/disarm them, they can still be revoked by the patron.

Thoughts?

I believe that SLA's are usually a +1 LA, depending - or more, if you get SLA's of over 1st spell level. That said, what I would do is look at how useful these abilities are. If, say, they were level 9 and you gave them Divine Power 3/day, I'd chew back a bit of experience - not a full level's worth, as they do still need to spend the action to do it. Maybe 1/2 of what they'd need in order to gain their next level, so 4,500 XP in this case. That number would change based on how often they could use it, how frequently that spell would be handy to have, and things like that. I'd actually charge a higher XP cost for, let's say, at-will greater invisibility, than I would for that Divine Power.

If, on the other hand, that same level 9 PC gets something like Feather Fall or Mage Armor 3/day, I wouldn't take anything from them. The costs would be incurred entirely through roleplay, being indebted to an outsider.

[CASTLEMIKE]

Tyrants of the 9 Hells has those Faustian pact rules on pages 23 - 25.

[Skjaldbakka]

I belive he is trying to assign a GP value, so as to calculate the SLAs into the WBL. I'd go with spell trigger costs, with the appropriate X/day modifier.

[bugsysservant]

Actually, I believe the DMG has a guide for creating custom items. There is some number (I think its 1.5) that you multiply the price of an item by if it isn't on a body slot. Check the section on custom items for info.

[martyboy74]

Here's the table. The stuff you want is going to be in the spell trigger and special sections.

[Clementx]

Spell Trigger- did I mention that not everyone is a caster, therefore the price break for a disposable item that requires a class spell list might not be appropriate for a permanent SLA?

And Faustian pacts have figures for bonus XP, feats, GP, spell slots, and ability increases, but not SLAs. Nevermind that these pacts don't come with the downside of eternal damnation and the inability to be raised. Hence my question.

So those are out. I hadn't considered XP as a cost. Using the classical 5gp = 1XP relation, I could convert one to the other...as soon as we decide how much either should be.