Explosive gem spell

[Chris Rice]

I agree with Lars on this; just because the Wizards Guild can make Magic Items for the stated costs, doesn't mean that they will. Or that they will sell them to you if they do so.

Others have also made good points:

* If the PCs can buy magic items at these costs, so can their enemies.

* if the PCs want these items they should make them for themselves.

It would be interesting to see a TFT game where the RAW on magic item creation were taken to their logical conclusion. I don't think I'd enjoy playing it but it would be amusing to watch.

[hcobb]

Can the party's ST 6 DX 12 IQ 14 MA 12 Elf Witch hire seven apprentices for a day? ("It's a staff sling, so of course I can cast Staff on it!")

[Andrew Hackard]

Originally Posted by hcobb

Can the party's ST 6 DX 12 IQ 14 MA 12 Elf Witch hire seven apprentices for a day?

I don't know, Henry; does the GM allow it to happen? "You can't find any young people of the appropriate age who seem interested. One older woman mentions that the next town over is having a fertility festival, 'and you know how young people love fertility,' she cackles."

[JLV]

On occasion, I've been known to require additional *special* ingredients for certain magical items that seem to be unbalancing the game a bit -- something that makes it far harder or more expensive to make the item in question. That usually helps if you've got someone who has sat down and calculated some way to "break" the game by building a cheesy "explosive gem factory" or something. Plus, you can always introduce plot issues -- thugs trying to hijack the week's production, "industrial" accidents, city fathers raising taxes on a highly lucrative (and potentially very dangerous) industrial project underway within city limits... You get the picture. ;-)

[Bestial Warlust]

As a GM the factory is easy to stop I just wouldn't have that. I'll see how it goes in game I just started running TFT and noticed that particular spell.

[Anaraxes]

Never actually had a problem with it in real life. There aren't a lot of 40 ST wizards running around, so you do need the seven apprentices. The 1d-2d version isn't particularly menacing. No one's concerned that PCs can buy scores of 2d crossbow bolts during their downtime. (And those have better range modifiers...)

[hcobb]

Originally Posted by Anaraxes

Never actually had a problem with it in real life. There aren't a lot of 40 ST wizards running around, so you do need the seven apprentices.

Mana level 40 isn't actually very easy. A ST 8 DX 12 IQ 20 Mana 40 wizard is already 16300 XP, not counting the extra spells. Using XP/Gold exchange rate to buy a powerstone instead would only save 4k XP.

Like Brand, Explosive Gem does need a nerf, so apply Rule of Five mechanics: The required gem is worth $50 for 1d, doubling in value for each additional die of damage. As the spell description states "a gem worth at least $50" GMs are free to apply this fix as a reasonable interpretation of the printed rules.

[Anaraxes]

Originally Posted by hcobb

Mana level 40 isn't actually very easy.

That's a problem with the Mana staff, not Explosive Gem :)

[warhorse11h]

The spell description RAW states that the gem can be made to go off if disturbed or only if thrown as the maker wishes. It also says that the maker of the explosive gem can handle it safely.

To me, this wording implies that the gem is dangerous, if not fatal, for anyone else to handle, or else inert in the hands of another, so no buying them from a third party, unless you want to have the name "Lefty" or just like to carry gems around.

I think a GM could also argue that putting the gem into a sling or attaching it to an arrow would count as not being handled by the wizard and therefore, either very dangerous to handle or else inert. The same could be claimed for a pouch of them, they're in the pouch, you are not handling them. Very prove to accidental detonation.

[JLV]

Originally Posted by warhorse11h

The spell description RAW states that the gem can be made to go off if disturbed or only if thrown as the maker wishes. It also says that the maker of the explosive gem can handle it safely.

To me, this wording implies that the gem is dangerous, if not fatal, for anyone else to handle, or else inert in the hands of another, so no buying them from a third party, unless you want to have the name "Lefty" or just like to carry gems around.

I think a GM could also argue that putting the gem into a sling or attaching it to an arrow would count as not being handled by the wizard and therefore, either very dangerous to handle or else inert. The same could be claimed for a pouch of them, they're in the pouch, you are not handling them. Very prove to accidental detonation.

You've used a lot of grenades, haven't you? ;-) (Narrator's Voice: I know you have!)