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Post by clark on Mar 5, 2016 15:20:34 GMT
Hi everyone! I'm running a oneshot in which there is a chance to find a magic sword. The party is five level 6 characters. I wanted to avoid the standard (boring) + 1 weapon. So I found the image below and came up with this concept. I'm new to homebrewing magic items, so I'd love critique. Because it's a oneshot, I'm not concerned about being too strong for game balance, but I don't want it to be so strong that the character who gets to use it consistently outshines the rest of the party. EDIT: We're playing 5e. Don't know why I didn't mention that. It's probably an important detail 
Wraithblade:This strange blade seems to shimmer, subtle ripples cascading along the steel. A thin, wispy vapor seems to curl around its edges. Once the wielder delivers the final blow to a creature, they become attuned. When you deliver the killing blow to a creature with this sword, the Wraithblade traps the spirit within its blades. This process charges the sword. Only one charge can be stored at any given time. After you make a melee attack but before the DM tells you if it hits, you can expel the spirit, altering the very steel of the Wraithblade into a vaporous shadow, allowing you to ignore 2d6 points of the target creature's AC as your blade phases through shields and armor. If the strike lands, the creature receives psychic damage equal to the amount of AC ignored in addition to the regular weapon damage as the blade rematerializes within the creature's body.
Since you have to last-hit to charge the sword, I'm not sure how often this ability will get triggered. This was an intentional nerf, but I wonder if it's too much. Would love to hear your feedback and wisdom from experience how to handle this.  |
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Post by Deleted on Mar 5, 2016 19:15:47 GMT
Since it's for a one-shot, whether the weapon is under- or overpowered should be measured against the goodies other PCs might acquire. Also, what class is the intended user, and what is the basic weapon stat block (e.g. longsword, rapier, shortsword)? The last-hit mechanic will happen a lot more often with a rogue using a shortsword than a war domain cleric using a longsword.
Even without consideration to those factors, I think this weapon will be fine as it is. If you're really worried about the last-hit not occurring enough, maybe the charge fills after doing a set amount of damage as well (say every 30 HP).
Some food for thought... what will you do if the players have "too much fun" and strongly desire to turn the one-shot into a full length campaign?
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Post by clark on Mar 5, 2016 19:32:49 GMT
A bladesinger is the class of the intended recipient, but there's also a champion - fighter sword and board who may vie for it. The base weapon stat block will be rapier.
I already run a full-length campaign with all these players in the same world. This oneshot is a way for them all to take a break from their mains, experiment with a different class, and give me a chance to flesh out another part of the game world. This oneshot is going to reveal some new things about the main campaigns BBEG. If they fall in love with their characters, we may have two teams running loose in the world periodically.
However, I don't really have any loot for the rest of the group to find that could be used in the oneshot itself. That may be an issue.
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Post by donosaur on Mar 7, 2016 1:56:11 GMT
Isn't ignoring 2d6 of the target's AC the same as adding 2d6 to the attack roll, and then adding that same bonus to the damage? Also I feel like 2d6 is a very hefty attack bonus, even if it's used infrequently. You could counterbalance it and make it a little more dangerous by saying if they expel the spirit but still miss, they take the psychic damage that was intended for the target.
You could have the spirit-attack feature trigger a saving throw, I'm not sure which ability though, and on a failed save the target takes that extra 2d6 psychic and the spirit is expended, and on a successful save maybe it backfires and damages the wielder half of 2d6 instead?
Either way, it sounds like a cursed weapon to me. Flavor-wise, I would have it take on sentient weapon features as long as there's a spirit trapped in it, psychically communicating to the wielder and coaxing them into risky behavior in the hopes of being released. You could make it strictly RP, or have the curse affect them mechanically somehow.
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Post by Vulash on Mar 7, 2016 20:33:31 GMT
Isn't ignoring 2d6 of the target's AC the same as adding 2d6 to the attack roll, and then adding that same bonus to the damage? Also I feel like 2d6 is a very hefty attack bonus, even if it's used infrequently. You could counterbalance it and make it a little more dangerous by saying if they expel the spirit but still miss, they take the psychic damage that was intended for the target. You could have the spirit-attack feature trigger a saving throw, I'm not sure which ability though, and on a failed save the target takes that extra 2d6 psychic and the spirit is expended, and on a successful save maybe it backfires and damages the wielder half of 2d6 instead? Either way, it sounds like a cursed weapon to me. Flavor-wise, I would have it take on sentient weapon features as long as there's a spirit trapped in it, psychically communicating to the wielder and coaxing them into risky behavior in the hopes of being released. You could make it strictly RP, or have the curse affect them mechanically somehow. While it's the same as adding that to the attack roll, I like the way he has written it because it matches the flavor of what the item is doing. While 2d6 is hefty, I don't have a big problem with it for a one-shot and limited use item. Giving someone advantage is the equivalent of a +5 I believe, and 2d6 should average at +7. True Strike used to give you +20 to a hit (does it still?) Alternately, you could simply ignore non-magical armor for the purposes of AC when you trigger it (and still keep it +2d6 to damage) - I know 5e did away with that concept, but it's not difficult. This might balance out a little tighter, but allow things like Shield spell to still stop it. I like the flavor a lot, I would just be wary about having only one cool item like this in the one-shot. If that is the case the other players may feel left out, even if it isn't really overpowered. One restriction I would add would be that you can't fill the charge with the same attack that you use the wraith power. In other words, if your attack that does the extra 2d6 damage kills the creature, it doesn't recharge on the same attack. |
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Post by joatmoniac on Mar 7, 2016 22:17:10 GMT
I really like the item, and because it is contingent on the recharge I think that it wouldn't be too overpowered. If you factor in the ideas already here I think it would get dangerously close to balanced. Then again what is balance when it comes to magic items? I mean short of completely broken it's just making sure you don't give it out too early, or one player has too many. I love the flavor of the blade passing through the typical means of armor when adding the 2d6, or even that the mist reaches out and grabs at the target and draws the blade in from a miss to a hit. Given that the real ability is a hit that is more guaranteed, but not assured, and adds some extra damage it is both flavorful, but not over the top. I would also agree with the general consensus that if this is the only item I would ensure that the other players have ways to shine just as bright. That need not be an item of their own, but could take the place with a situation only their skills can get them out of, or rather a situation that is made much easier with their particular set of skills. All around a great item, and some great feedback. Can't wait to hear how this turns out!
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Post by clark on Mar 8, 2016 0:47:16 GMT
We started the oneshot, but my party took their sweet time and we had to make it a two parter. They found the sword, but they haven't attuned yet. I will let you know how it turns out! Donosaur - I like the idea of hearing voices from the spirit trapped in the blade. It might be challenging for me to keep it up, but I like the idea of each time you collect a spirit, that's the voice you hear. When you expel the spirit, you have some peace and quiet. Unless you trap another one. Based on suggestions, I've also added one more item that I think is pretty cool, though maybe overpowered  . I'll add that here too: Shield of Rakaar: This ornate shield is light and sturdy with a distinct aura of magic around it. Once struck, this shield learns and adapts to the blow, altering its internal composition in order to better protect its bearer. This process grants resistance against that specific damage type. If the strike has multiple damage types, one is chosen at random. This property can be used once per long rest, and is triggered by whatever strikes it first. This resistance does not stack with other resistances. Being able to pick your own resistance is really, really strong, but only if you know what's coming. And in this one-shot, they won't know what's coming and they won't really have an opportunity to long rest, so I think it'll be okay. |
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Post by Vulash on Mar 8, 2016 16:42:07 GMT
I love the flavor of that too. If you have more cool flavored weapons rattling around up there feel free to share!  - even if you don't want to have to stat them out, they're good ideas. One thought - what if instead of resistance it made attacks of that type attack at disadvantage (or gave advantage on the save - depending on the attack). I'm not mentioning that from a balance standpoint so much as flavor - I think of resistance as once you've already been hit, and a shield would help more to keep from getting hit in the first place. It's not quite as cool as resistance though |
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Post by clark on Mar 9, 2016 15:24:11 GMT
I think disadvantage makes more logical sense in several cases, but then it makes things tricky if you're dealing with attacks with multiple damage types. If you have acclimated your shield against fire damage and an enemy swings a greatsword with additional fire damage, I wouldn't think the entire attack would be penalized. You could always make a ruling that if there are multiple damage types then the feature gets ignored, but I like items to behave consistently, prefering clarity and simplicity even if the logic is kinda funky.
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Post by dmxtrordinari on Mar 16, 2016 4:34:33 GMT
It's a cool concept. I think having it recharge only after killing a creature makes sense. Less useful against big hefty enemies but much more useful against mobs where you have a higher likelihood and last-hitting. Your wording really threw me for a loop but after rereading a few times I figured out where you were going with it.
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Post by dm_mainprize on Mar 22, 2016 14:04:31 GMT
This idea is fun, i'm stealing it.
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. 
- even if you don't want to have to stat them out, they're good ideas.
