I'm checking out the rules in Xanathar's Guide for crafting spell scrolls, and I'm finding them a bit...unrealistic, even for the standards of a fantasy game.
Looking at the cost to make higher level spell scrolls...it costs more to make than you can possibly earn by selling it, by a long shot. Every other magic item in the game, using the included rules, can all be sold at a profit. Why are scrolls the exception?
It's far cheaper, and likely faster, to simply buy such a scroll than to make one. The DM has to approve you buying it, but if they don't want you buying one, there's a good chance they don't want you to make one either.
Since you can only sell it at a loss, and you can buy them cheaper and faster than crafting them, why would anyone ever craft one?
The answer is, really, they wouldn't. A 9th level spell scroll takes about a year (if you get weekends) and a quarter of a 20th level adventurer's average lifetime earnings to craft. And, if they CAN craft it, that means they can just simply cast it, at least once a day, every day! If it is so important that you'd be willing to make such a huge investment, you are probably also willing to simply memorize that spell every day and keep it ready, just in case.
Maybe you need someone else to cast the spell who can't cast it themselves. A rogue (thief), or a lower level spellcaster. In both cases, it's a risk because it isn't guaranteed. And they'd have to, for whatever reason, not use it. And the need for it would be great, but not immediate, giving you 250 days to craft it. Such a circumstance as this probably only comes once an age.
Maybe someone extremely eccentric or insane might craft one that they keep around just in case--but that would be exceedingly rare.
Basically, it all boils down to this--logically, because you can't make a profit off of them (using the given rules), and because they consume such a significant portion of your resources to craft, you would never just "find" them, either for sale or in a hoard. They'd be rarer than ancient dragons. OR, if you can find them, they would need to be profitable to make, because that's the only way folks would make substantially more of them than are consumed.
To make this make sense, you either need them to be removed from treasure tables and as an option to buy; sold at greater value to make them profitable to craft; or better still make them drastically cheaper to craft so folks would realistically craft them for an emergency.
I mean, seriously. A potion of giant size costs 50,000 gp and 125 days to make, can benefit from others helping to speed up the crafting process, doesn't require attunement, can be used by anyone, and I'd argue is at least as valuable as any 9th level spell except Wish (at least in combat).
Personally, the entire crafting system needs an overhaul. Xanthar's is a band-aid that helps in some areas, but does nothing in others. The game has evolved dramatically over the Editions, while the concept of Crafting has remained largely unchanged.
Howdy!
I'm checking out the rules in Xanathar's Guide for crafting spell scrolls, and I'm finding them a bit...unrealistic, even for the standards of a fantasy game.
Looking at the cost to make higher level spell scrolls...it costs more to make than you can possibly earn by selling it, by a long shot. Every other magic item in the game, using the included rules, can all be sold at a profit. Why are scrolls the exception?
It's far cheaper, and likely faster, to simply buy such a scroll than to make one. The DM has to approve you buying it, but if they don't want you buying one, there's a good chance they don't want you to make one either.
Since you can only sell it at a loss, and you can buy them cheaper and faster than crafting them, why would anyone ever craft one?
The answer is, really, they wouldn't. A 9th level spell scroll takes about a year (if you get weekends) and a quarter of a 20th level adventurer's average lifetime earnings to craft. And, if they CAN craft it, that means they can just simply cast it, at least once a day, every day! If it is so important that you'd be willing to make such a huge investment, you are probably also willing to simply memorize that spell every day and keep it ready, just in case.
Maybe you need someone else to cast the spell who can't cast it themselves. A rogue (thief), or a lower level spellcaster. In both cases, it's a risk because it isn't guaranteed. And they'd have to, for whatever reason, not use it. And the need for it would be great, but not immediate, giving you 250 days to craft it. Such a circumstance as this probably only comes once an age.
Maybe someone extremely eccentric or insane might craft one that they keep around just in case--but that would be exceedingly rare.
Basically, it all boils down to this--logically, because you can't make a profit off of them (using the given rules), and because they consume such a significant portion of your resources to craft, you would never just "find" them, either for sale or in a hoard. They'd be rarer than ancient dragons. OR, if you can find them, they would need to be profitable to make, because that's the only way folks would make substantially more of them than are consumed.
To make this make sense, you either need them to be removed from treasure tables and as an option to buy; sold at greater value to make them profitable to craft; or better still make them drastically cheaper to craft so folks would realistically craft them for an emergency.
I mean, seriously. A potion of giant size costs 50,000 gp and 125 days to make, can benefit from others helping to speed up the crafting process, doesn't require attunement, can be used by anyone, and I'd argue is at least as valuable as any 9th level spell except Wish (at least in combat).
Personally, the entire crafting system needs an overhaul. Xanthar's is a band-aid that helps in some areas, but does nothing in others. The game has evolved dramatically over the Editions, while the concept of Crafting has remained largely unchanged.
The scribing spell scrolls chart improves costs for low level spells, but definitely seems overly expensive past level 7.
Of course, I would not really allow the buying and selling of legendary magic items so easily anyway.