Can you help me break down the Bracers of Murder?

[Amechra]

Can you help me break down the Bracers of Murder?


Drow of the Underdark page 98.

+2 to Attack and Damage vs. Flatfooted Opponents.
+2 to the DC of Death Attack
Infinite Rerolls of SA Damage Dice as long as you roll ones.

Base cost: 8000 gp

I would like to know what the pricing for the unlimited rerolls would be, so I could throw it onto a pair of Deathstrike Bracers.

(Base cost 5000 gp; using item alteration rules from the SRD (I'll swap to MiC rules when I get my copy back) to give it unlimited uses of SA anything: 10000 gp.)

[The_Mad_Linguist]

Eh, just combine the whole things via the MIC rules.

[X-Codes]

I'd break it down as such:

+2 vs. Flat Footed: 4k
+2 DC on Death Attack: 2k
Reroll SA Damage: 2k

The latter two abilities are almost exactly like the minor number-boost feats Deadly Precision (may have it mixed up with another feat) and Ability Focus [Death Attack], which are typically granted by items at the tune of 2k a pop.  +2 attack and damage usually costs 8k on a sword, but the restriction is pretty steep so an ad-hoc 50% discount works there.

Frankly, I'd ditch the whole idea and just go with +2 vs. Flat Footed for 4k if you can.  If you come across a beefy Undead or Construct, then just shoot it with an Undead/Construct slaying arrow/bolt.

[Maat_Mons]

The DMG says that an items that functions 3 times per day typically costs 3/5 as much as an item that functions an unlimited number of times per day.  I'm not sure where you're getting 10,000 gp. 

Any chance of getting bracers of the hunter (Secrets of Xen'drik 145) worked in too? 

[Amechra]

I was planning to get them thrown on too.

When I checked the SRD, it said they were 1/2 of the the cost of unlimited, so in essence, it would be closer to the following:

5000/3=8333 gp+1/2 8000=12333 gp.

Throwing on Bracers of the Hunter would cost either 8500+.5(8333+8000)=16666 gp, or 12333+4250=16583 gp, depending on the order you apply them...

Thanks guys, you've been a help.

[Maat_Mons]

An item with 50 charges that don't renew themselves (e.g. a wand) is half the cost of an unlimited use item.  Perhaps that was the source of confusion. 

My understanding is that an item that combines bracers of the hunter, unlimited use deathstrike bracers, and bracers of murder would cost 8,500 + 1.5 (5,000 *5/3) + 1.5 * 8,000 = 33,000 gp. 

[The_Mad_Linguist]

Anyway, let's look at this by the numbers
You're effectively changing SA dice from (1-2-3-4-5-6) to (2-3-4-5-6); the average value is now 4 points of damage per die rather than 3.5 points of damage.  That works out to a difference of about 1 point of damage/4 character levels on each sneak attack.  Let's say that's about equivalent to adding 3 points of damage/attack.  A crystal of energy assault adds d6 of typed damage to each attack.  That's a little worse since it's weapon specific and resistible, but is counterbalanced by not needing special conditions to activate, and it deals more damage on average.

I'd say the effects are about even, so 3k seems the right neighborhood.  It'd probably be more sensible to make it a weapon crystal, actually.