Rods	-	Staves	-	Wands
-	-	Use of  Rods, Staves, and Wands	-	-
Explanations and  Descriptions of Magic Items	-	Magic Items	-	DMG

Rods are about 3’ long and as thick as your thumb.
<weight : 6>
<see below : add weight of case?>

Staves are about 5’ or 6‘ long and as thick as a young sapling, i.e. about an inch and a half at the
base, tapering to an inch at the tip, although they can be of nearly equal
diameter throughout, knurled, etc.
<weight : 10>

Wands are <1.5> long and slender.
<weight : 0, but see below>
    <bone or ivory case : 6>
    <box : x>
    <leather case : 3>

Rods and wands will usually be found in cases or similar storage places.
Staves stand sturdily alone.
In neither case is concealment precluded, of course.

Unless noted to the contrary, these items will have the following number
of charges each time the item is used, there is an expenditure of 1 charge
(the user will not necessarily be aware of the number of charges in an
item):
 
 

rods	50 charges minus 0 to9 (d10-1)
staves	25 charges minus 0 to5 (d6-1)
wands	100 charge minus 0 to 19(d20-1)

Most of these items can be recharged by spell users of sufficiently high
level. This is discussed elsewhere under the heading FABRICATION OF
MAGIC ITEMS. Note that a rod, staff or wand completely drained will become
forever useless, crumbling to powder as its last charge is expended.

Use of Rods, Staves, and Wands:

Any device of this nature which discharges some form of magic over a
distance (that is, the device does not require touch or contact with the
obiect or creature to be affected) must generally have a command word
spoken in order to cause the device to function. Thus, a wand of lightning,
for example, might require the utterance of the key word ”blitzen” in
order to discharge, or it might have a key phrase to cause it to function,
such as ”Watt and ampere, volt and ohm” (possibly even extending to:
” . . . let this discharge find its home!”). A wand of polymorphing, or
other similar device performing a like function, would require a key word
and the new form to be made by the power: “Xot’s the word, be a bird!”
or some such. Magical silence will most certainly prevent such devices
from functioning.

(See also USE OF MAGIC ITEMS, COMMAND WORDS.)

^
Staves:

Unless inapplicable or otherwise specified, staves function at the 8th level
of magic-use, i.e. their spell discharge is that of an 8th level of experience
magic-user with respect to range, duration, area of effect.

The magic functions of a staff generally require only 2 segments to discharge,
but the device must then build up power again, and this requires 8
segments.

Damage is nominally 8d6 with respect to fireballs, lightning bolts, etc.

Wands perform at 6th level of experience with respect to the damage they cause, range, duration, area of effect, etc. unless otherwise stated.

At your option 1 % of all wands are trapped to backfire.