With the introduction of rituals in the 4th Edition of Dungeons & Dragons, it has (in my opinion) taken away a lot of the fun from spellcasters, especially when it come to creating, or improving magic items. Characters are forced to take run of the mill items; where every other character has one or can acquire one at their whims.
The players do have the options though of transferring previously acquired item properties and powers into a similar magic item of a higher level. For example the party finds a +3 magic platemail suit of armour. The player to get this item could, with the use of this ritual, transfer the existing properties and powers of thier current +2 suit of leather armour into the +2 suit of plate armour, provided that the armour they are transfering the properties to is not of higher level.
Now, if I take a look at this, items characters tend to find tend to be of higher level than their previous magic items. The ritual seems redudant to me in that one would want to improve their magic item, and not to keep the same level they already had. Sure, increasing armour class with plate from leather is always a good idea, but to lose the power of one item such as a ring would be inconsequential; you would just ask the DM for something magical from your wish list.
Who wants to spend all their hard earned money on paying for a ritual that gives the party no advantage regarding magic items. It is a very steep price to pay (no more than you wishlist items), and you cannot even create items higher than your level. This is awful! Most items you get while you are adventuring are higher level than you are anyway. Even if you would like an item of lower level, it is still not worth it because by the time you get to town, all the adventuring you did should be able to pay for any item you want.
The only advantage I see in these rituals is if you are holed up and desperately need some specific magic item, or a magic item that could help your party, then this is the ritual to cast.
What I now propose is to create a ritual that will satisfy the needs of the party. This ritual will allow the party to add a little customization to their characters weapons, armour, or implements. This will give the Wizards a little more of a chance to have fun with their characters. The ritual is flexible to use, allows for customization of weapons and you can come up with anything you like, or just go with an item that you currently crave to have. The advantage in this is that you get the item at a cheaper price, but if you fail your skill check, you can lose some of your gold. Makes it a little more fun
Without any further delay, I introduce you to Merlin's Magic Item Enchantment Ritual.
Enjoy the ritual!!