Crafting rules

Breon      House Rules      Crafting rules

When creating items in this campaign, we will use alternate crafting for mundane items, stacked with magic item creation, and my own homebrew talismanic crafting.

Alternate crafting

Complexity	Time Unit	DC
Very Simple	1 Day	5
Simple	2 Days	10
Normal	4 Days	15
Advanced	1 week	20
Complex	2 weeks	25
Intricate	4 Weeks	30
Very Intricate	8 Weeks	35

Masterwork items are increased in complexity by one step. Large or unusual versions of an item such as barding are also crafted at one higher complexity. These two complexity increases stack.
Steps:

1. Determine the complexity of the item to be made. As always, the DM’s input here may be decisive.
   
2. Pay one-third of the item’s cost, including masterwork and unusual materials increases, in order to acquire necessary raw materials.
   
3. Make a Craft check. If successful, the item is completed in the item’s time unit.

The units of time for this process assume an 8 hr work day. If a character is able to work for longer than 8hrs in a day without becoming fatigued (i.e. via the Rural Culture trait Early to Bed, Early to Rise) then the time is reduced accordingly

Working with Special Materials

Items made from special materials are always masterwork, increasing their complexity by one step, and having their time unit increased by an additional 50%. In addition, special materials further increase the DC of the item by a specific amount given in the table.

Material	DC Modifier
Adamantine	+6
Darkwood	+2
Dragonhide	+4
Mandraga wood	+2 / +6*
Mithral	+4
Alchemical Silver	+2

Thus, the masterwork adamantine longsword faces a DC 26 Craft check and takes 11 days (1.5 weeks rounded up). Adding all the various complexity increases together can be a bit. An example would be mithrail chain barding for your horse. Chain mail would be a normal complexity (DC 15, 4 days). Making it as barding increases this to an advanced check (DC 20, 1 week). Masterwork increases the complexity to complex (2 weeks, DC 25) and increases the DC by another +4 and increases the time by another 50% (3 weeks, DC 29)

Using Tools (or Not…)

All crafts require artisan’s tools to give the best chance of success. If improvised tools are used, the check is made with a -2 penalty. On the other hand, masterwork artisan’s tools provide a +2 circumstance bonus on the check. Most forms of crafting cannot be performed if even improvised tools are unavailable

Failing a Check

What happens if the Craft check fails? Well, that depends on how badly it failed. When confronted with a failed Craft check, there are up to three possible bad effects:

• If the Craft check fails, the item is not completed. Work for another time unit and try again.
• If the Craft check fails by 5 or more, half of the raw materials are ruined. Pay half the raw materials cost to replace the ruined materials. Work for another time unit and try again.
• If the Craft check fails by 10 or more and you are using Craft (alchemy), your laboratory explodes. Pay to replace it as well as the ruined raw materials (as number 2 above). Also make a reflex save with a DC = to the craft DC of the alchemical concoction or suffer a number of d6’s of an appropriate damage type equal to the original DC divided by 3 (round up)

Complexities explained
Very Simple (DC 5)

• Alchemical Items: Casting plaster.
• Mundane Items: Very simple items such as wooden spoons, other carved one-piece items.
• Weapons: Manufactured clubs, quarterstaffs, slings.

Simple (DC 10)

• Alchemical Items: Light detector.
• Armor: Light armor (except chain shirts), wooden shields.
• Mundane Items: Typical household items such as iron pots.
• Vehicles: Cart, raft.
• Weapons: Simple weapons (except crossbows).

Normal (DC 15)

• Alchemical Items: Acid; alchemical cement; alchemical grease; armor ointment; bladeguard; buoyant balloon; chill cream; glowing ink; invisible ink, simple; keros oil; liquid blade; marker dye; soothe syrup; water purification sponge.
• Armor: Chain shirts, Medium armor, steel shields.
• Mundane Items: Most adventuring gear.
• Vehicles: Chariot, light; chariot, medium; chariot, heavy; rowboat; sleigh; wagon, light; wagon, medium; wagon, heavy.
• Weapons: Martial weapons and crossbows.

Advanced (DC 20)

• Alchemical Items: Alchemical glue; alchemical solvent; alchemist’s fire; alchemist’s kindness; alkali flask; blackfire clay; candlerod; flash powder; foaming powder; ghast retch flask; impact foam; invisible ink, average; invisible ink, good; meditation tea; paper candle firework; scent cloak; shard gel; smoke pellet; smokestick; star candle firework; tindertwig; vermin repellent; weapon blanch, cold iron; weapon blanch, silver; wismuth salix.
• Armor: Heavy armor (except full plate).
• Mundane Items: Jewelry, kits, locks, complicated adventuring gear.
• Traps: All traps CR 1–5.
• Vehicles: Carriage, glider, keelboat, longship.
• Weapons: Early firearm ammunition, early one-handed firearms, early two-handed firearms, exotic weapons.

Complex (DC 25)

• Alchemical Items: Alchemical glue accelerant; antiplague; antitoxin; bloodblock; bottled lightning; burst jar; defoliant; embalming fluid; fire ward gel; frost ward gel; fuse grenade; invisible ink, superior; itching powder; liquid ice; mending paste; pellet grenade; skyrocket firework; smelling salts; sneezing powder; starfountain firework; sunrod; tanglefoot bag; thunderstone; twitch tonic; weapon blanch, adamantine.
• Armor: full plate
• Mundane Items: Clocks, other intricate items.
• Traps: All traps CR 6–10.
• Vehicles: Galley, sailing ship, warship.
• Weapons: Advanced firearm ammunition, advanced firearms, nonalchemical and nonfirearm siege weapons.

Intricate (DC 30)

• Alchemical Items: Banshee ballerina firework, flame fountain firework, rusting powder, soul stimulant, tangleburn bag, troll oil.
• Traps: All traps CR 11–15.
• Vehicles: Airship.
• Weapons: Alchemical siege engines, siege firearms.

Extremely Intricate (DC 35)

• Traps: All traps CR 16+.
• Vehicles: Alchemical dragon, steam giant.

Magical item crafting Magic items are created by adding magical properties to otherwise mundane items. To be created into a magical item, it must be of masterwork quality and not broken. As part of the process of creating an item, the crafter may elect to also make the item magical. Whether the item is created during the process at the end of the required time of working on the item, the crafter must make a single skill check (usually Spellcraft, but sometimes another skill) to finish the item. If an item type has multiple possible skills, you choose which skill to make the check with. The DC to imbue an item with magical properties is 5 + the caster level for the item. Failing this check means that the item does not function and the materials and time are wasted. Failing this check by 5 or more results in a cursed item. Note that all items have prerequisites in their descriptions. These prerequisites must be met for the item to be created. Most of the time, they take the form of spells that must be known by the item’s creator (although access through another magic item or spellcaster is allowed). The DC to create a magic item increases by 5 for each prerequisite the caster does not meet. The only exception to this is the requisite item creation feat, which is mandatory. In addition, you cannot create potions, spell-trigger, or spell-completion magic items without meeting its prerequisites. While item creation costs are handled in detail below, note that normally the two primary factors are the caster level of the creator and the level of the spell or spells put into the item. A creator can create an item at a lower caster level than her own, but never lower than the minimum level needed to cast the needed spell. Using metamagic feats, a caster can place spells in items at a highDer level than normal. See the Game master to determine the cost of materials necessary for applying magical properties to an item whether from scratch or to an existing item. In addition, some items cast or replicate spells with costly material components. For these items, the market price equals the base price plus an extra price for the spell component costs. The cost to create these items is the magic supplies cost plus the costs for the components. Descriptions of these items include an entry that gives the total cost of creating the item. The creator also needs a fairly quiet, comfortable, and well-lit place in which to work. Any place suitable for preparing spells is suitable for making items. Creating an item requires 8 hours of work per 1,000 gp in the item’s base price (or fraction thereof), with a minimum of at least 8 hours. Potions and scrolls are an exception to this rule; they can take as little as 2 hours to create (if their base price is 250 gp or less). Scrolls and potions whose base price is more than 250 gp, but less than 1,000 gp, take 8 hours to create, just like any other magic item. The character must spend the gold at the beginning of the construction process. Regardless of the time needed for construction, a caster can create no more than one magic item per day. This process can be accelerated to 4 hours of work per 1,000 gp in the item’s base price (or fraction thereof) by increasing the DC to create the item by 5. The caster can work for up to 8 hours each day. He cannot rush the process by working longer each day, but the days need not be consecutive, and the caster can use the rest of his time as he sees fit. If the caster is out adventuring, he can devote 4 hours each day to item creation, although he nets only 2 hours’ worth of work. This time is not spent in one continuous period, but rather during lunch, morning preparation, and during watches at night. If time is dedicated to creation, it must be spent in uninterrupted 4-hour blocks. This work is generally done in a controlled environment, where distractions are at a minimum, such as a laboratory or shrine. Work that is performed in a distracting or dangerous environment nets only half the amount of progress (just as with the adventuring caster). A character can work on only one item at a time. If a character starts work on a new item, all materials used on the under-construction item are wasted. Talismanic Crafting When crafting magic items, the normal procedure is to acquire an ubiquitous pile of raw materials with an applied gold cost and smelt them down into an item with no concern for what went into it. Talismanic crafting makes magic item creation more dynamic, rewarding, and exciting. In addition, it will bring some additional game mechanics to the world that will make existing magic items more memorable. Magical items will acquire unique attributes from special materials making not just the enchantments on a weapon important, but also what it’s made from. For mundane items, alternate materials can be used in place of material cost. Those items will have a crafting cost which will reduce the cost to craft. For magical items, special materials can be used in place of any portion of the cost up to the crafting cost. Any such items or materials will have an equivalent crafting cost. Materials used this way in magic items can produce synergistic qualities with magical abilities placed on the item and can produce other unseen benefits.

Using talismanic components is a fun way to provide more story flavor and local color to a campaign. They make magic items feel more unique and less mass-produced. a + 1 flaming longsword is no longer an unremarkable magic item if giving a weapon a +1 enhancement bonus requires a sprinkle of dust from a dead star, and if crafting a flaming weapon requires a fragment of a fire elemental‘s spirit. That gives the weapon a sense of history and opens the door to many questions about who originally created the sword, where the creator got the materials for it, and who it was crafted for. Interactions with merchants and traders likewise take on a new flavor if caravans full of goods from distant lands carry a small selection of these obscure crafting components.
Using Components You spend talismanic components exactly like gp for the purpose of crafting magic items, and they’re destroyed as part of the item’s creation or incorporated into the item. Once used, they’re expended and can’t be used again. Talismanic components don’t change the crafting time, DC, or any other aspects of creating a magic item; they are just a substitute for the gp cost to craft it.
Example: Dragon heartblood is a talismanic component useful for all magic items. Patrick’s wizard wants to create a wand of burning hands , which has a price of 750 gp. Crafting the wand requires him to spend 375 gp on magic supplies. The wizard has a vial of dragon heartblood worth 300 gp. He decides to use all 300 gp worth of his heartblood to craft the wand, and uses his actual gold to cover the remaining cost of crafting the wand.
Most components are only usable for crafting certain magic items, but some are usable for any kind of magic item. a component’s description lists what kind of items it can be used for. Using an inappropriate component in crafting an item normally has no effect, but the GM might allow a desperate crafter to use an inappropriate component at a higher crafting DC, increasing the risk of failure or creating a cursed item.
Requiring Components The GM might decide that some or all magic item creation requires talismanic components. These components could be available for purchase in civilized areas, or could be acquired only by hunting specific creatures or searching in remote locations. Some components might be illegal in some cities or countries and found only on the black market there. In this way, the GM can set different controls on item creation and create adventure opportunities for crafting-oriented PCs. For example, if crafting an anarchic weapon requires the blood of a powerful demon, you can try to acquire some demon blood in town, arousing suspicion as to why you need such a foul substance, or you can travel to a location where demons are known to dwell and try to kill one—or maybe even bargain—for its blood.
Components as Commodities These components are trade goods just like gems, wheat, spices, or cloth. Under normal circumstances, you can acquire these materials at the listed cost or sell what you find in a treasure hoard at the listed cost. For example, 500 gp worth of dragon heartblood costs 500 gp in a city, and if you take a flask of dragon heartblood worth 500 gp as your share of treasure, you can sell it in town for 500 gp. If there is a surplus or shortage of a particular component, the price could go up or down, or merchants might be more inclined to bargain over the price to try to get a better deal.
Components as Treasure If the GM uses these rules for talismanic components, killing monsters shouldn’t suddenly result in more treasure because you can loot suitable parts for components, in the same way that just because wyvern poison costs 3,000 gp doesn’t mean that 3,000 gp worth of sellable poison can be obtained from every wyvern. The value of a talismanic component from a monster should be subtracted from the monster’s total treasure award for the encounter, or later encounters should award a reduced amount of treasure to make up for the value of the talismanic component.
Acquiring a talismanic component from a monster or natural feature might not be easy or automatic. Plucking a rare herb without damaging its magical properties might require a Profession (herbalist) check. Harvesting an intact glowing crystal from a mithral vein might require a Knowledge (geology) check. Distilling heartblood from a dragon’s corpse might require a Craft (alchemy) check. Gaining a tear of happiness from a lillend might require a Diplomacy or Perform check. The GM can use these kinds of skill checks to reward you for putting ranks in noncombat skills, and use similar checks for you to recognize that an object has value as a talismanic component.
Talismanic components might be viable for only a limited time, or spoil under certain circumstances. For example, dragon heartblood loses its power if it’s exposed to air for more than a few minutes, necessitating transporting it in sealed vials (and limiting how much can be taken from a slain dragon). Vampire ichor spoils instantly in sunlight or on holy ground. These kinds of limitations also provide additional plot hooks for quests involving the acquisition and retrieval of talismanic components.
Adamantine Ore: Adamantine ore can be used for metal armor, metal weapons, and items that manipulate or create earth or metal.
Arcane Residue: A strange substance sometimes salvaged from destroyed magic items, often in crystalline or powder form; used for any kind of magic item.
Astral Essence: Scraped from creatures that are located deep within the Astral Plane; used for plane-traveling, teleportation, and time-manipulating items.
Demon Blood: Taken from powerful demons (though weak demons might have minute quantities used for chaotic, evil, demon–summoning, electricity-resistance, and good- or lawful-repelling items.
Devil Blood: Taken from powerful devils (though weak devils may have minute quantities used for lawful, evil, devil-summoning, and fire-resistance items.
Dire Animal Brain: Used in animal-influencing and physical enhancement items.
Doppelganger Ichor: Doppelganger blood can be used for disguise and polymorph items.
Dragon Bone: Flawless, smooth dragon bones are suitable for rods, staves, wands, and dragon-controlling items. Dragon bones can also be used for items with abilities or energy types appropriate to the dragon’s breath weapon (copper dragons for slow , red dragons for fire, and so on).
Dragon Heartblood: The freshest blood from the dragon’s heart; used for any kind of magic item.
Elemental Spirit: Taken from the remains of powerful elementals; used for items appropriate to the source’s element or associated energy type.
Ethereal Essence: Dusted from creatures located deep within the Ethereal Plane; used for plane-traveling and dream items.
Giant Squid Ink: Giant Squid ink can be used in scrolls and water items.
Hand of a Murderer: Must be taken shortly after the murderer’s demise; used for death, evil, and undead-creating items, as well as items that specifically involve a preserved hand (such as a hand of glory).
Heart of the Mountain: Mined from places deep underground or the Plane of Earth; used for metal armor, metal weapons, and items that manipulate or create earth or stone.
Holy/Unholy Symbols: Used for items that are appropriate to the religion associated with that symbol, items used to oppose enemies of that religion, or items especially suited for divine spellcasters of that religion (such as a phylactery of faithfulness or a phylactery of positive channeling).
Mithral Crystal: a rare crystallized form of mithral ore; used for defensive, light, and lycanthrope-repelling items.
Naga Brain: Naga brain can be used in some metamagic and poison items.
Rare Herbs: a broad category with individual uses depending on the nature of the particular herb. Nox mushrooms are used for shadow items, bloodvine for bleeding and healing items, wolfsbane for lycanthrope-repelling items, and so on.
Stardust: Collected from long-dead stars, meteorites, and strange beasts native to the dark void; used for cold, darkness, light, and shadow items.
Troll Blood: Troll blood is often used in healing and regenerative items.
Unicorn Horn: Unicorn horn (when intact) can be used for healing and poison-resisting wands and staves, or powdered for evil-repelling, healing, and teleportation items.
Vampire Dust/Ichor: Dust taken from a destroyed vampire, or ichor from an active one; can be used for blood, life-draining, mind-controlling, and necromantic items.
Virgin’s Blood: Typically acquired in quantities of a pint or more; used in blood, fiend-summoning, and purity items.
Wyvern Poison: Wyvern Poison can be used in corruption and poison items.