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The Adventure Paths seem to have artifacts in them quite often. When the party got one of them in the campaing I'm running, the wizard rolled to identify the item and got a 41 on his check which was enough to identify the item per my interpretation of the rules using Detect Magic and Spellcraft.
However, one of the DMs in the group said that the abilities of an artifact can't be determined that way. The Detect Magic spell doesn't say this. Analyze Dweomor says specifically it won't work on artifacts. Legend Lore only gives you legendary information about an item and doesn't specifically say that it will tell you the abilities of an artifact.
The artifact rules don't specifically say how the abilities of an artifact are determined nor how the ways to destroy the artifact are discovered.
So my big question, is how does a person determine what the abilities of an artifact are? And how does a person determine how to destroy an artifact?
i always thought that an artifact turning up was a BIG deal in the campaign. as such items are surrounded by myth and legend and are inveriably ancient i'd say that the players can determine fragments of the items powers with Know: arcana, Know: history, Know: religeon, and then string the fragments into workable theory of how the item works.
this means that several characters can get involved in the process and feel that they're contributing.
to be taken with a grain of salt, as i've never had a character so much as hear about an artifact, let alone lay hands on one. however, that's how i'd run it if i ever had one in my campaign.
There are no special rules, so unless otherwise stated that works, at least by RAW. Now using knowledge checks might also work.
RAW only requires a spellcraft check to let you know how an item works, and an artifact is a magic item.
There are no special rules, so unless otherwise stated that works, at least by RAW. Now using knowledge checks might also work.
RAW only requires a spellcraft check to let you know how an item works, and an artifact is a magic item.
Thanks for the feedback. While playing I didn't want to argue but in researching after we played I couldn't find anything. I was leaning to your interpretation.
The key is most artifacts are CL 20 to 30 so it takes a 35 to 45 spellcraft check to succeed at identifying unless you use the identify spell.
If you didn't go with that interpretation, the only thing that would determine for sure what an artifact does would be trial and error which with an artifact could prove dangerous at times.
Anyway, thanks for the input. I'm still interested in other opinions and thoughts on the topic.
By RAW, this seems to work just fine. OTOH, artifacts are items from legends and tales. Even minor artifacts are things no one knows how to make anymore. So just letting some low level mage break out a detect magic and then say "oh, it's the Axe of the Dwarvish Lords" seems rather pedestrian. In previous editions, you needed things like legend lore to get the job done. Personally, I'd give them a clue when they get an overwhelming aura of magic from detect magic but make them do research to figure out exactly what they got, at least for major artifacts. I'd probably let them go ahead and make the high Spellcraft check for a minor artifact.
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From a storytelling point of view I would ask for some knowledge checks. Artifacts are special after all.
Ha! Funny that is just came up, as I just wrote something we'll be announcing soon that covers just this topic in detail. In short, there's no hard and fast rules for this, and giving away all of an artifact's mystery with a single die roll seems terribly underwhelming. Generally, I'd go with wraithstrike's method, but I'm also a big fan of PCs spending some time in ancient libraries or seeking out knowledgeable sages to find the answers to such mysteries. Spending a week in a nation's biggest library and then making an appropriate Knowledge check with a DC equal to 15 + the artifact's caster level, plus maybe some DM fiat style adjustments depending on how rare it is, would be my tactic. Or, to really drive it into the story, let them know that only Old Hecuba knows the item's mysteries and they'll have to seek her out if they want to learn her secrets.
At the end of the day, artifacts exist as a way to allow GMs and PCs to totally break the rules so they can tell the stories they want. Thus, a lot about them - including this - are left purposefully vague. It's more fun that way.
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Thus, a lot about them - including this - are left purposefully vague. It's more fun that way.
Not for the rules lawyers they aren't. :-D