Has anyone ever used a system to make better that masterwork items? This seems like a great thing to use in a low magic game.
Dragonlance has a class, The Master, that allows someone to make +5 masterwork weapons or armor with the armor check penalty lowed by 5.
Ex. masterwork sword but +5 to hit instead of +1.
Ex. masterwork full plate with a acp of -1.
I like the above idea does anyone have a more in-depth system (I don’t care if it’s in a book or house ruled)?
Just some ideas off the top of my head.
Serrated: plus to damage or maybe armor damaging?
Razor Edge: plus to damage for bladed weapons
Dense: plus to damage for blunt weapons
Intimidating: plus on intimidation checks
Glorious: plus on bluff or a rep bonus?
Toxic: some type of poisoned metal?
Balanced: pluses to hit?
Crit. Modifiers
Range increases
Dwarvencraft?
Dragoncraft?
Elvencraft?
Gnomish…?
Any ideas guys and gals? I’m not fond of magical Christmas trees so I thought this would be cool. Also this could make crafting a more popular option, not to mention resource gathering.
This all came up in my group because of a half-red dragon blacksmith NPC that I want to put in my game. The PC will seek him out this fabled blacksmith then prove/convince him why he should make something for them. He uses his breath weapon and extra strength to make better weapons. He hates everyone and just wants to be left alone.
Fizz
The penultimate issue of Dragon Magazine had many such things and while I know that there have been elven/dwarven craft item-types made before I do not know the exact sources.
The Wheel of Time RPG had a masterpiece concept. It was just a +2 instead of a +1. The settings magic weapons couldnt be above +3 and were really rare, so it made sense at least. That might help you.
The penultimate issue of Dragon Magazine had many such things and while I know that there have been elven/dwarven craft item-types made before I do not know the exact sources.
Thanks I had forgotten about that. I just looked it over, and it had alot of what I listed but most of those were either increasing the hardness or hitpoints or decreasing weight. I'm looking for all that plus more. Also I'd like to either find or make things beyond, "my weapons harder to break." Dwarvencraft is along the same lines thery're just harder to break.
Fizz
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Monte's Arcana Unearthed / Evolved has 'Dire' weapons that do +2 damage but require some sort of Exotic Weapon proficiency to use. They are assumed to have all sorts of barbs and serrated edges and the like.
He's got some other versions, made of various substances (crystalline) or by ancient cultures (Devanian), but Dire is the one that is just pure crafted stuff that you can throw into a campaign.
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There's a concept I've been playing with for masterwork gear, allowing any non-magical, masterwork item to become modular.
Every weapon can be refitted or modified to function slightly different than the standard version, but there are tradeoffs. Each of these requires time spent "remaking" the weapon. A weaponsmith has to take it and alter it.
For instance, a player with a Masterwork Longsword might want an additional +1 to hit. If that player has the sword refitted with a guardless hilt, then the total bonus to attack is now +2(still no bonus to damage). However, the tradeoff is that its more difficult to parry/block without a guard, so the player also takes a -1 penalty to their armor class as long as he wields that weapon.
Perhaps he has a Kukri that he wants to get a bigger critical multiplier on. He can have the blade remade with barbs or spikes along it. The trade off with the increased critical multiplyer is that the threat range is cut in half.
Maybe the player has a Shortsword that he wants to increase the damage range. He could have the edges made so that it saws against the enemy. The downside is that its a little more awkward to fight with, and takes a -1 Penalty to attack.
One change could be the type that's only applicable to weapons that only certain types of damage. Such as modifying a Rapier to have a triple-edged blade, so that any time a critical is threatened, it applies a 1 HP bleed on the target for 1d4 rounds. Unlike the Critical itself, the bleed is already done on the threat. The trade off here could be a reduction in damage range.
There's lots of things like that I'm thinking about, but I'm still trying to figure it all out, trying to find a way that it would be balanced.
Perhaps it might work better if it was just Augment Crystals, but I prefer the idea of non-magical effects and modifications.
Monte's Arcana Unearthed / Evolved has 'Dire' weapons that do +2 damage but require some sort of Exotic Weapon proficiency to use. They are assumed to have all sorts of barbs and serrated edges and the like.
He's got some other versions, made of various substances (crystalline) or by ancient cultures (Devanian), but Dire is the one that is just pure crafted stuff that you can throw into a campaign.
Dire weapons require two feats actually to get +2 to damage. Crystalline applies to DR. Devanian is reworked mithril.
I think an enhanced system would be cool. It should probably replace and not add onto magical properties for the most part.
Malhavoc Press's Book of Hollowed Might II has some brilliant rules on crafting masterwork/masterpiece items, not only as bonuses to hit, but for special qualities (bonus to Cha, maybe to sunder...I can't recall right now). Still, I recommend checking it our.
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Has anyone ever used a system to make better that masterwork items? This seems like a great thing to use in a low magic game.
although I haven't seen anything about elvencraft/dwarvencraft items the Black Company book by green ronin has a section about levels of masterwork (i.e. masterwork weapon with magic item like abilites such as keen and the like)i highly recommend it.
I think that +1 for Masterwork is sufficient for mechanics.
I think it makes sense for items beyond +1 to magic - or at least of exceptional materials.
That said, I also think that many weapons should also have an art value to them.
I came to this due to several visits to the metropolitan art museum - the weapons on dispaly there are not (to the best of my knowledge) magical, but there is quality of work, an investment in terms of time and materials that goes FAR BEYOND any enhancement to the weapon or armors combat quality.
The trick is to figure out how to work this into a game:
The art value could act as a badge of office
As a sign of rank
As a passport
As a price of entry guards, attendents could deny or allow entry based on a presumed art value to items
Such items could be keys - either because a guardian recognizes them or because of mechanical characteristics
Or you could do more story specific things
The painting on the inside of a shield is a clue to a treasure (ala the DaVinci Code - or National Treasure)
The inscription on a blade is a command word for a hidden property of the weapon (thhis begins to incorparate the art with the enhancement)
The art is part of the enhancement, lots of opportunity there
My two coppers
I have put together two personal documents containing most everything I've come across for materials and templates that can be added to items:
Item Templates:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1w-tDcgWpZoJ0aoMSSty5T_Rcz9IX-YwuWYARtR1 5aS4/edit?usp=sharing
Special Materials:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1fhBrGqsu2egqr3kcZ7zJJjyLpu0aoffPgGfrHtx zFKE/edit?usp=sharing
I've tried to put where I've found the varying materials an templates, but not everything is labeled. There are some homebrew things that I've added, so beware of that, though those are thoroughly labeled.
Mine is pretty minor, but we use an advancement over masterwork weapons called superior. They give a non-magical +1 to hit AND damage.