In this post, I will discuss how to minimize gp cost for magic item creation in 3.5.
You'll want to take these feats:
- Extraordinary artisan (-25% gp) [ECS]
- Bind elemental (this will be used in a minute) [ECS]
- Magical Artisan (Bind elemental) (-25% gp and xp when using chosen item creation feat) [FRCS]
Because Bind elemental requires you to be 9th level, this build only works for higher-level campaigns. Bind elemental gives you access to binding elementals into items during item creation using the Planar Binding spell. In Magic of Eberron, binding bigger elementals gives you gp discounts to item creation. The gp cost is reduced by 5% per size category of the elemental above medium.
Unfortunately the best elemental you can get straight out of any of the Monster manuals of 12 HD or lower (the limit of planar binding) is large. We can do better than just a 5% discount though. In Manual of the Planes, there is a creature template called Elemental creature. There's such a template for each of the 4 elements. Now let's slap that template onto either a baleen whale or gargantuan monstrous centipede (both of which are 12 HD which is within planar binding's limit, and are gargantuan elementals). Woo hoo! Whopping 15% discount!
As long as your Cha score is decent, you should have no trouble controlling these elementals during the item creation ritual either since whales and centipedes both have poor Cha scores.
So we have a 25% discount from Extraordinary artisan, 25% from Magical artisan, and 15% from our elemental whale/centipede.
Stacking these together allows you to craft magic items at 47.8125% their normal crafting gp cost. Wow! That's less than 25% the market price! Just enough to resell items you create at just over 100% profit!
