How do you do treasure in your game? That'd be the biggest concern really.(magic item treadmill and WBL) There was a way to level up a family heirloom by sacrificing gold and objects at an alter, but that was sort of silly. Another way is to add to your weapon with expenses like an enchant or training or bangle or adamantine coating or whatever to emulate its growth and you spending time and effort on it. Another is just to have a natural growth over levels to keep you were you should be and just skimp out on some of your gold.
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I'm assuming that you are concerned with balancing this particular PC and the other party members.
If that's the case then look at what the suggested wealth for this PC is for his level, subtract other items that he has, and then have the sword be the difference.
For example (simplistic): the PC is 4th level so (8,000 gp). Say his armor and other stuff is worth 6,000 gp so his sword should be worth 2,000 or the equivalent of a +1 sword.
Now he's suddenly 6th level (16,000 gp) and has armor and other stuff worth 8,000 gp leaving another 8,000 gp for the sword so an equivalent +2 weapon.
If you need roleplaying reasons for the sword to grow in power then either do the sacrifice 'value' thing or maybe the PC releases/discovers a hidden/latent power in the sword due to his actions/deeds.
Hope this helps. I do this all the time in my games as I hate 'throw away' magic items and it also helps to personalize items.
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Get hold of a copy of "weapons of legacy" it's a 3.5 book it has a complete set of rules for having weapons that grow with the characters i use it a lot
Ps there are a few cops on ebay selling for about $20
Kobold Press's New Paths Compendium had some models for weapons that scale by the weilder's level. I'm doing that in addition to crystal slots that grant abilities based on enhancement bonuses from two other third party products.
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if all else fail, the bladebound magus is definitely something you should compare to.
Consider that the blade bound magus falls behind in weapon enhancement compared to a normal magus's weapon though. Ending with a +5 is pretty pitiful. Arcane pool makes a few changes too.
OP, where are you in the AP?
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if all else fail, the bladebound magus is definitely something you should compare to.Consider that the blade bound magus falls behind in weapon enhancement compared to a normal magus's weapon though. Ending with a +5 is pretty pitiful. Arcane pool makes a few changes too.
That's why I said compare to, not base after. The bladebound magus is balanced around his ability to enhance his weapon further. Perhaps you should follow the magus progression +half his arcane pool bonus. It was just a suggestion.
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The Genius Guides Relics of the Godlings I & II have rules for magic items that progress from level 1 to 20 with several different options for implementing them.
I just made it so that the weapon in question could be improved as per Arcane Bond. Then the player decides how he wants his weapon to grow.
prototype00
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A weapon in Legacy of Fire does this.
It's +1 at 1st to 4th, +2 equivalent from 5th to 7th, +3 equivalent at 8th to 9th, +4 equivalent at 10th to 11th, +5 equivalent at 12th plus.
Having it go up a few more steps (at, say, 15th and 18th, or 14th, 16th, 18th, and 20th if you want to be generous) seems reasonable. The specific weapon properties should vary by the nature of the weapon in question, obviously.
It worked okay in the Legacy of Fire game I ran. It's better than the Magus's Black Blade...but the Black Blade is a bit of a different situation, due to both arcane pool and not being found treasure, meaning you get it on top of an adventure's treasure. Something like this is presumably part of the adventure's treasure and thus a bit easier to compensate for.
Am i talking to myself weapons of legacy has exactly what you need
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I bought weapons of legacy and only remember this much.
-The prestige class was interesting in that for something like giving up one level of your -other class abilities, you got all the weapon of legacy stuff. All the other levels that progressed your weapon, also progress everthing you had before.
-The weapon mechanics were very expensive in what they cost the PC. Taking away stuff like BAB, saves, HP. Basically, you passed up the chance to level up yourself, or part of your level up bonus, saves this level, HP another level, BAB later to level up the weapon instead. I guess that can be fair and balenced, which is so important to so many people, but it is not nessecarily more powerful than leveling up normally with any none legacy weapon. Funny thing I see now while analysing it is that I like it should be close to balenced now, while I saw the trade off in the past as not being a net more powerful and thus dismissed it in my search for always becoming a more powerful PC. I also was going to cause the OP of wanting a free power up with no cost, but paying for the sword power via gold or character abilities like Lagacy weapons is what seems the right, fair, just and a balenced way of doing things.
Another road you may want to take are the augment crystals of the 3.5 Magic Item Compendium(SOOO Much Better Than The lame ultimate equipment). Each augment crystal has three levels of power. The first, inexpensive one can be used on a masterwork weapon. He second slightly expensive one could be used on a +1 weapon. The third, expensive level upgrade could be used only be used on a weapon with a minimum enhancement bonus of +3 att/dam(not +1 att/dam, shock, keen, specifically a minimum +3 to attack/damage).
Each weapon can only fit one augment crystal but maybe the GM would let you bend that rule in search of a solution for your character story of paralel growth with the weapon. Something like allowing 2 or 3 slots like in the Dragon Age videogame for the items that can customize and empower weapons. That would be much cheaper than just using the enhancement of the weapon itself though. I would frown upon that for trying to get away with too much power for too cheap of a price. Maybe consider the second augment crystal to cost 1.5 times normal value and the 3rd at twice normal value to try and keep things fair and respectable in an effort to keep things balenced.
You also might want to look into getting your scabbard enchanted and saying it is considered part of the weapon.
Anyway you do it, please do not just look for a free power up. Pay for it in one way or another. If your GM/group does not have a problem with you having a free power up(maybe because attacking with a weapon tends to lag so far behind spell casting) don't brag about the PC later saying how it was so powerful. Anyone can be powerful when you get a free power up beyond what your class/wealth gives you.
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Am i talking to myself weapons of legacy has exactly what you need
Weapons of Legacy and really any of the above suggestions are not going to appeal to every play style. I have wanted items that advanced with my PCs in a number of campaigns I first tried Legendary Weapons (originally from a series of PDFs by The Game Mechanics but reprinted in Unearthed Arcana) but my players weren't interested in the required scion classes. Similarly when I experimented with Weapons of Legacy the players still weren't invested.
Relics of the Godlings on the other hand have a couple of options for the GM to choose from as to how to implement these powerful items into a campaign...the easiest method IMO and the one I prefer is to reduce the available treasure and the pdf indicates just how much.
Full disclosure: I liked the Relics system so much I have already written three new relics for Rogue Genius Games under the banner of Relic Files.
I'm not saying that Legacy and legendary weapons were bad...I'd use them as a player in heartbeat but my players were not interested. It wasn't until I had the Relics rules that I had buy in at my table. At your table Weapons of Legacy may work and Relics may not.
There are a couple of really simple ways to do this.
A) Have the weapon planned out ahead of time. At 3rd level it's +1, at 5th level it's +1 flaming, 7th level +2 flaming burst, and so on. Adjust treasure at these levels to account for the add-on.
or
B) Let the player choose the upgrades and give him a value at whatever levels you want him to have it (adjusting treasure during the game to account for his add ons). Frex, at 5th level, you tell the player, 'you can add one +1 or 2000gp modifier'. Coincidentally, their last adventure was technically 2000gp short.
Either way, these work best when all the players know about it ahead of time. That way you can keep the player with the growing item from double dipping in treasure.
I'm running an D&D 3.5E adventure path where the part gets an artifact sword that gains power as the one it is bonded to grows in level and changes into whatever sort of weapon the bonded wielder wills it to. As written, it got +5 in enhancement by level 20 and got some special properties related to its original fluff/flavor. But...I changed that fluff considerably and the very appearance of the weapon itself (was: a weapon made out of finely crafted wood that's stronger than steel; became: weapon w/ finely crafted wooden frame that produces a blade of pure light energy....a light saber, heh) and wanted to make it more powerful b/c it seemed a bit underwhelming, so I sped up the enhancement progression slightly (still goes to +5, just earlier) and gave it a bunch of special properties worth a total of +5 and a 6th that was like a 12000 gp flat cost.
Here is the original version, and my upgraded version, if you want. Has some spoilers for War of the Burning Sky.
Cut from the First Tree of Innenotdar, the Living Blade was once bonded to the heroine Anyariel. When the heroes retrieve it, it bonds to whoever pulls the blade from Indomitability’s body. The power of the weapon grows with its wielder, and some of the abilities below may be exchanged for ones of equal power that better reflect the nature or experiences of the sword’s wielder.
Whenever the wielder gains a level, he has the option of transforming the weapon’s shape. When the heroes first encounter it in adventure two, it is in the form of a greatsword, but it can be turned into almost any type of weapon. The Living Blade cannot be transformed into a weapons with complex moving parts like a repeating crossbow, or a weapon with multiple segments, like a flail, net, or spiked chain. It can, however, be transformed into many other weapons, such as a dagger, a crossbow, a whip, a Bohemian ear-spoon, or a composite longbow. If it is turned into a composite bow, the wielder can choose any Strength bonus.
Once the Living Blade’s form is chosen, it remains in that form until the wielder gains another level, when he can transform it again. In any form, it appears as though it is roughly carved from wood.
Regardless of the form or enhancement bonus of the Living Blade, it has hardness 15 and 60 hp, and it takes no damage from fire. If the weapon is destroyed, the wielder it is bonded to gains a negative level that persists for one year. This negative level never causes actual level loss. If the wielder chooses the form of a double weapon, determine its powers as if the wielder were 4 levels below his actual level.
••Level 3 or less: The weapon is masterwork.
••Level 4–5: The weapon gains a +1 enhancement bonus.
••Level 6–7: If the weapon would be dealt fire damage, it gains the flaming enhancement for one minute (10 rounds), dealing an extra 1d6 points of fire damage with each hit.
••Level 8–9: The weapon’s enhancement bonus changes to +2.
••Level 10–11: As a standard action, the wielder can call for the weapon. It teleports into his grasp, though often with a dramatic flourish, such as by appearing in a burst of flame overhead and plunging its blade into the ground at his feet. The weapon can teleport from any distance, but not across planes.
••Level 12–13: The weapon’s enhancement bonus changes to +3, and it gains the ghost touch weapon enhancement.
••Level 14–15: Whenever the weapon scores a critical hit, the creature struck takes damage equal to how much it dealt to the wielder in the past round as it feels a surge of agony reflected upon it. A Will save (DC 17 + wielder’s Charisma modifier) negates this damage.
••Level 16–17: The weapon’s enhancement bonus changes to +4, and it gains the flaming burst enhancement. This replaces the level 6–7 ability.
••Level 18–19: The wielder can cast limited wish once per month. The wielder may also cast wish once. When he does, he dies one minute later.
••Level 20 or higher: The weapon’s enhancement bonus changes to +5.
Because the Living Blade is an artifact, it has no specific market value, but as treasure it is roughly equivalent in effective character wealth to a magic weapon with a total enhancement bonus equal to half the wielder’s level. So when wielded by a 17th-level character, the Living Blade has worth equivalent to a +8 weapon, or 128,000 gp.
Strong evocation and transmutation, CL equal to wielder’s level or wielder’s level –4 (see above).
...below his actual level. (all the intro stuff is the same)
Appearing significantly over-sized for the wielder in whatever form it may take, the low density of the finely crafted wood frame and utter weightlessness of the photonic energy blade that makes up much of its dimensions more than compensate for this. The weapon, in fact, is by far the most well-balanced and effortless to swing and thrust with that Zayed has ever wielded.
When de-activated, the Living Blade's frame shuts tight. Activating it causes the front frame to split apart and shift down towards the handle forming a hand guard, as the blade of light bursts from it, illuminating as a sunrod would. It is a free action to activate or deactivate the Living Blade. Either mode features a small circular portion that fills with light when activated and is empty space when off. It has no apparent function...
••Level 1: Masterwork and Sizing (auto-sizes to match the wielder)
••Level 2: +1 enhancement
••Level 5: Brash property
••Level 6: +2 enhancement
••Level 8: Warning property
••Level 10: +3 enhancement
••Level 11: Lesser Transmuting property
••Level 14: +4 enhancement and Morphing property
••Level 17: Living Blade Buster
••Level 18: +5 enhancement
••Level 20: Transmuting property (full version)
•Brash: +3 rounds rage; fear immune while raging
•Morphing: Standard to change into any other weapon of same type (2H, 1H, or light)
•Transmuting: After hitting foe w/ DR, start of next turn weapon ignores that DR for 10 rounds or until you hit another type of DR.
•Lesser Transmuting: Activates as Transmuting, but only lasts 1 round and then wielder must hit again on a round it is not active to re-activate (so, assuming at least one hit per round, the rounds it ignores the target's DR would alternate).
•Warning: While held, you gain +5 insight to Initiative
•Living Blade Buster: Standard action; Expends highest level strike maneuver currently readied, can't be used if no strikes are readied. Once used, it cannot be used again for 5 rounds. The Living Blade surges with power and the blade briefly extends to 60 ft long in just enough time to make a single 90-degree swing with it. This counts as an area attack and the attack roll becomes a Reflex (half) save DC against the damage. Depending on how swung, it could be a 60 ft 2D conic fan shape when slashed horizontally, or be like a 60 ft line effect from Zayed that also hits directly above him and any in the arc on the way down, etc... Damage dealt is doubled against nonliving creatures. Power Attack can be used, it effectively lowers the save DC for more damage. Equivalent to a +1 bonus.
(included brief summaries of the properties from Magic Item Compendium; "Lesser Transmuting" I made up to split up that (normally +2) property into two pieces; Living Blade Buster is a special attack I made up that is powered by a strike maneuver from Tome of Battle)