Gear (5A)
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Rules for equipment and gear, magical or not.
Item Price Limits by Level
The cost of items that PCs can buy or craft are rather arbitrarily limited by level. This is a balance and ease-of-play issue, not a simulation. Rather than using the very rough price guidelines and levels of the DMG, this table is to be used. This gives the lowest level at which a character can purchase items of the listed price. This is also the highest value item a character can craft. A character is somehow able to find an item of this cost or lower on the market. At the GMs discretion, more expensive items might be available.
Level This is the level of the character and restricts what items the character can make - you can buy or craft anything up to the price listed for your level. This is also a limit on what items you can purchase. It reflects that your prestige gives you access to new markets. This is somewhat artificial, but an easy way to maintain game balance.
Consumables This is the maximum cost of each consumable item you can make or buy. Items like wands, that have charges and a small chance to fail when overused, are not considered consumables. This number is inflated so that it is possible to pack more omph into a single-use item. Watch out for overspending in this category, which can make a character powerful at lower levels and then poor at higher levels.
Permanent This is the cost limit for all items that are not consumables.
Resale Prices All items that are in a condition to sell at all can be sold at half purchase price.
Level | Consumables | Permanent |
1 | 30 | 160 |
2 | 50 | 250 |
3 | 80 | 400 |
4 | 120 | 600 |
5 | 200 | 1,000 |
6 | 320 | 1,600 |
7 | 500 | 2,500 |
8 | 800 | 4,000 |
9 | 1,200 | 6,000 |
10 | 2,000 | 10,000 |
11 | 3,200 | 16,000 |
12 | 5,000 | 25,000 |
13 | 8,000 | 40,000 |
14 | 10,000 | 60,000 |
15 | 20,000 | 100,000 |
16 | 32,000 | 160,000 |
17 | 50,000 | 250,000 |
18 | 80,000 | 400,000 |
19 | 100,000 | 600,000 |
20 | 200,000 | 1,000,000 |
Item Prices and Levels
We will be using the values for magic items given in 5A Magic Item Prices. For items not on this list, the GM will set the prices.
Crafting
These rules apply to any crafting project, magical or mundane, except those that are a class feature.
Prerequisites
In order to perform a crafting project, you must fulfill some requirements.
- The item must have a cost permitted at your level by the Maximum Price By Level table.
- You must have the right tools and possibly access to a workshop for certain items.
- If the item is to cast spells, each such spell must be cast once day of work on the item. Ignore any costly components of spells cast in item creation, those are a part of the item creation cost.
- The GM may require special materials, such as gems, adamantine, or mithral. You can use the value of any such components to offset the cost of the crafting project.
- Other possible materials include monster parts, such as the heart of a dragon or the horn of a unicorn, as negotiated with the GM. Creatures with legendary or lair actions are more likely to provide components this way. Such components can serve as adventure hooks and also reduce the cost of the project. The value of such a component is that of a consumable item of the monster's level. Gathering components might require proficiencies and/or die rolls or an entire adventure.
Crafting Speed
You have to calculate a Crafting Speed used to measure the progress of your crafting projects. Your Crafting Speed will be different for different projects, depending on your level, proficiencies, and ability scores. In cooperation with the GM, select one tool proficiency and one ability score that will govern the project. See table Crafting Ability for which ability score is relevant for a particular project. GMs are encouraged to be liberal in the selection of ability score and tool proficiencies, the table gives the ideal ability score, but fairly flimsy argument about a different ability score is acceptable. Add the relevant ability score modifier and tool proficiency modifier. Multiply this with your level and them multiply the result by five, the result is your crafting speed measured in gp per day.
Ability | Approach | Items |
Strength | Power | Melee weapons (non-finesse), heavy armor, rigid objects |
Dexterity | Finesse | Melee weapons (finesse), medium armor, flexible objects |
Constitution | Infusion | Light armor, alchemy, potions, leather, toxins |
Intelligence | Reason | Firebrands, scrolls, wands, clockwork |
Wisdom | Intuition | Wooden objects, plants, crystals, healing |
Charisma | Acclaim | Clothes, banners, finery, accessories |
Each day spent crafting, you must use an amount of raw material at least equal to your Crafting Speed (you can spend more), and your progress in the crafting process is the sum of your Crafting Speed and the amount of gold spent. You must also pay living expenses for this period. When your progress matches the cost of the item it is finished.
Assistants
You can have assistants that help you by contributing their Crafting Speed to the project, but having more creatures participate incurs additional risks. Assistants need not fulfill any prerequisites and add their Crafting Speed to your effective Crafting Speed. Expect to have to pay each assistant 20% of their Crafting Speed each day. This includes room, board, taxes, and fees (the assistant then pays half this amount in taxes and guild fees) but not security arrangements. An assistant generally has an ability score modifier equal to their Proficency Bonus. Finding willing workers is a separate task. Contacts, guild memberships, and other social perks offer great advantage here.
Upgrading Items
An existing magic item can be upgraded as long as the finished item is approved by the GM and includes all the item's current abilities. The cost of the upgrade is the difference in cost between the old and new item.
External Links
- Typical Wealth by Level by tankschmidt
- Generous Wealth by Level by CapnZapp