For whatever reason after my group dealt with the Earth Elemental they became rapidly interested in the Red Metal Pedestal. When the dwarf couldn't identify the metal and the rogue made an Appraise check that was way overvalued they were sure they had something important. They lunged the 200 lb. pedestal all the way back to town. First stop was Allustan. Allustan offered to experiment with the pedestal and let the group know what he could discover. They refused. (this is because when they asked about the glyphs in the WC it took three game sessions before Allustan finally revealed any information to the PC's) The PC's were not about to wait who knows how long. Second stop Tidwoad's. They don't trust the gnome, but he has money and they wanted to see what he would offer. So I had Tidwoad offer the listed 300 gp. The PC's assumed he was low-balling them and that it must be worth a ton of money or better yet contain some "magical" properties. So they approached Manlin Osgood the blacksmith and whated to know if he could make something with the metal (armor or shileds).
Now for my questions.
(1) What should I let the metal be.
(2) Should the metal be worked into armor.
(3) Should it contain any magically properties.
I was thinking maybe the metal should be either related to the Wind Dukes or maybe it was related to Ogremoch. Either one could be fun. Mostly I'm looking for suggestion and ideas.
Also from another thread someone mentioned letting their PC roll a second time for hp's if they didn't like the first roll. I used this idea, but if they wanted to reroll it would cost 5% of the overall experience. So far my group has liked the idea. (one player went from a die roll of 3 to a 6 for 51 xp)
Or maybe it's just unusual metal that is worth only 300 gp. Sometimes the PCs ARE wrong. :)
Or yes, you can forge armour out of it, but because of the density any suit made from it has double the normal weight and armour penalties.
I actually had the same thing go on in my campaign. The standing looter characters were trying to figure out how they could carry the red metal pedestal out of the Cairn. I decided ahead of time that it was going to be the "magical" metal from the old boxed set RED STEEL. My more experienced players liked it because it was a nod towards an old boxed set and the newer players were terrified because the monk's player was going on ab0ut how it was radioactive and did terrible things to you if you remained in contact with Red Steel and such. It was amusing. Needless to say, it remains in our game world right where it was ... untouched.
Now for my questions.
(1) What should I let the metal be.
(2) Should the metal be worked into armor.
(3) Should it contain any magically properties.
I like it when my players get hyped up on something worthless. :-)
I think that Aiirrwalk is right: sometimes the PCs are wrong and that's the end of it.
If you reward them by making this metal something more than it should be just because it struck their fancy, you could end up having to do it in other occasions. Just let it be average colored metal that they can sell for scrap (the 300 gp are ok) and that's the end of it. That way they will learn that not all hunches are worth following.
--
Regarding the HD rolls I have adopted the following home rule:
For level 2 and 3, the rolls are "secured" in that they always get at least half of the max they could get, whatever they roll.
Example? If the cleric rolls a 7, he gets 7 hp. If he rolls a 2 or a 3, he gets 4 hp (half 8). That way, the Fighter would get at least "5" and the Wizard "2". It makes the lower levels a bit more bearable.
After that, they get what they roll. No complains allowed.
Bocklin
Chief Creative Officer, Publisher
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A rare and oft-absent addendum to original manuscripts of the Sunnis Canticle, an account of the ancient history of the Inner Planes, lists thirty-seven "extinct metals" said to have been created and lost during the conflict between Law and Chaos that characterized the Age before Ages. The description of one such metal, a sturdy crimson material known as kaskan, roughly matches the characteristics of the pedestal, but of course it is impossible to tell. The Canticle suggests that it can be hammered into plates suitable for armor or even weaponcraft. Calculate the associated costs as normal for a completely new item, but the finished item retains the 300-gp value of the metal and would be worth immeasurably more to anyone able to prove the metal's provenance. The metal pedestal includes enough metal to craft four melee weapons, two medium "steel" shields, one tower shield, or one suit of armor.
The archmage Manzorian immediately becomes curious about kaskan items and asks to test their properties in his laboratory. After confirming the metal's origins, he offers to purchase the items for four times their normal cost.
--Erik Mona
Wow! Erik Mona is a very nice DM.
I want to play in his group (who would not want!?)
:-)
Bocklin
Also, going back to another post on this subject (and with Eric's advice there) the metal could well be kheferu (from Sandstorm), which is a red ore that can be forged into weapons capable of overcoming the damage reduction of creatures with the earth subtype, regardless of said DR's derivation. This would certainly explain it's use as a resting place for a quiescent earth elemental (as a note, in my campaign the party has forfeited their "rights" to the WC in favor of the Free City Adventurers, and to rub some salt into that wound, Auric will soon be swaggering around town with a shiny new red warsword...)
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Possible properties:
- It weighs twice as much as regular iron - causing issues when applied to armor (double regular armor check penalty and -1 to possible dex bonuses) DC 15 Armorsmithing check to work this out.
- it's true advantage is in it's ability to accept enchantment. Magic put upon the metal (be it weapon, shield, wand, rod, staff or armor)is easier to do - the metal takes the magic more naturally . All xp costs for an item made out of the metal are halved (although the cost of the item remains the same).
This would seem a nice enough bonus without being too over the top (I think). In terms of the party, it takes a little of the pressure off of the party item creator - making them more inclined to help out other party members with good itmes. However, it may significantly increase it's value to casters when this property is realized - particularly high level ones. It would not be difficult to see this possibly increasing the value of the pedestal ten to fifty fold.
Best Regards
Herremann the Wise
Heh, I had the same problem. I made up a metal called "Gehenna Mithral"(+2, double crit. dam.). It must be "Hell forged" ie. it must be taken to the Plane of Gehenna and forged in "Hell" fire. The Paladin in my group wanted to make a long sword out of it, sooo, I had Eligos summon a major demon to take it to Gehenna and have it forged. Unfortunatly for the Paladin he saw part of the exchange (a virgin for the metal to be forged). He is now in prayers... (but still hoping to get his sword)
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I hadn't seen this thread before, but as I was reading through it, had the same thought that White Lion expressed. Eric, your write-up is really interesting, though. (Call it one of the successes of this Adventure Path that what you and others have written have piqued the interest of this Eberron devotee in the World of Greyhawk!) Other fine suggestions here, too.
One of my hopes is that I'll be able to incorporate elements from all of the many sourcebooks on my gaming shelf in some small, unobtrusive way like this while we're playing through the "Age of Worms".
Here's hoping there are some more water-based hazards so I can dig into some things from "Stormwrack", too.
Also from another thread someone mentioned letting their PC roll a second time for hp's if they didn't like the first roll.
I know, I know, it's off topic, but I had to give my 2 cents on this house-rule. Here's how I handled the low-hit-point hurdle.
Whenever a PC (or important NPC, like a cohort) is rolling for hit points, any roll that is one-third of the die's maximum (or less, rounding down) is rerolled. Thus, wizards reroll 1s, clerics reroll on 2 or less, and barbarians reroll 4s and under. No one's complained about this in any of the games I've used it in.
Wow! Erik Mona is a very nice DM.
Erik isn't just a nice DM...he's the Editor in Chief od the Magazine the AP is printed in. Perhaps this description made it to the Editor's Circular File.
Strangely colored metals that were of unusual or unexplainable origin were all the rage in 2nd Ed. You couldn't read an adventure without a description of some door made out of glowing magenta metal or statue constructed from weird green metal. The kheferu idea sounds cool for the pedestal, though it could also be red metal from the Red Steel setting (like Guth said), whatever that metal was called. On second thoughts, maybe that would be a bad idea.
I made of a material I called Primordial Iron. It was formed in the early days of the multiverse when the planes themselves were forming.
It can be worked into steel and acts just like steel in every way except for its interesting color.
It is very rare and most blacksmiths don't even know what it is and most actually get rid of it thinking it is of inferior qulity. Other wise it is just used for ornamentation.
However when the object is enchanted it can gain the following properties:
1. It may increase the chance that the weapon becomes a weapon of legacy.
2. The object gains bloodglow. If it is used to physically kill an living creature, the weapon will shed a deep red light for an hour. Equivalent to the light of a candle.
3. Viewed under darkvision only, it will appear red with everything else still in black and white. This is independant of item number 2.
Pretty much I have a half-orc pit fighter who claimed it as his and is having it made into an Orc double axe, a pair of orc shot puts and possibly ornimentation of a chain shirt. Only the double axe will be magically enhanced at this time.
The double axe is also going to become a weapon of legacy.
jason
(If you want the full write up that I did on it, let me know.)