Crafting Mundane and Magical Items

These rules cover the creation of both mundane and magical items. The Crafting skill is at the root of the skill tree, and advanced skills, called prestige skills, modify the outcome.

Crafting

Crafting allows someone to build and create tools and wondrous objects of usefulness and value. More than anything else it is a test of endurance, making it a Constitution-based skill.

Examples of what you can craft with this skill:

• Exceptional sword
• Fine jewelry
• A precision saw
• An uncanny statue
• Opulent house
• Longboat vessel
• An impressive sleigh
• A structurally impressive bridge

It covers anything being manufactured through related knowledge and hard physical work. Nothing enchanted nor magical can be created using this skill, see prestige skills for skills that can confer magical properties.

Having this skill opens up the possibility to create the truly exceptional items- objects of great value that stand out in the market. The blacksmith class (described in this book) starts with proficiency in this skill.

The level of quality is measured in QR (quality rating).

Crafting is a 5 step process that requires tools (see below).

Crafting

1. Step 1: Item Choice
2. Step 2: Design
3. Step 3: Materials
4. Step 4: Time
5. Step 5: Result

Crafting Attributes

QR	Armor Attributes
0	Base AC 10
1	Ornate: +10 gp value 5 Damage Reduction 1
5	+1 AC
4	+1 AC (Stealth disadvantage)
3	+1 AC (Stealth disadvantage; max Dexterity +2 to AC)
2	+1 AC (Stealth disadvantage; 0 Dexterity to AC; minimum Strength 15)
5	Resistance to (pick 1) bludgeoning, piercing or slashing

QR	Shield Attributes
Mandatory: requires 1 hand
1	Ornate: +10 gp value
4	+1 AC (requires hand)
2	As a reaction action, apply damage reduction 1
6	Spikes (1d4 piercing damage, treat as a light weapon as well)

QR	Melee Weapon Attributes
0	Pick 1: bludgeoning, slashing or piercing (4 QR when stacking)
0	Large weapon requiring “two-handed”
1	Ornate: +10 gp value 6 1d12 damage (12 QR when stacking)
5	1d10 damage (10 QR when stacking)
4	1d8 damage (8 QR when stacking)
3	1d6 damage (6 QR when stacking)
2	1d4 damage (4 QR when stacking)
1	Light 1 Finesse or Versatile 2 Versatile: add +1d4 when using 2-handed 3 Reach +5’ (6 QR when stacking)
3	Keen: critical hit on 1 lower number (ex: 19-20 becomes 18-20)

QR	Structure Attributes
1	100 cubic feet of livable space
2	Remove a social condition with a short rest
4	Production facility, growing food*
5	Factory producing crafting materials*
6	Treat a short rest as a long rest within *employed laborers must be paid working wages

QR	Ranged Weapon Attributes
Mandatory: Piercing damage type
1	Damage changes to slashing or bludgeoning 0 Thrown (base range 5/20)
1	Ammunition (base range 10/40)
2	Range bonus +5/+20
1	Ornate: +10 gp value
6	1d12 damage (12 QR when stacking)
5	1d10 damage (10 QR when stacking)
4	1d8 damage (8 QR when stacking)
3	1d6 damage (6 QR when stacking)
2	1d4 damage (4 QR when stacking)
1	Light 3 Keen: critical hit on 1 lower number (ex: 19-20 becomes 18-20)
6	If weapon is piercing, it ignores damage reduction

QR	Clothing Attributes
1	+1 gp value
2	+10 gp value
3	+100 gp value
2	+1 Social Defense saving throw (or +1 to DC)
3	Remove a social condition with a short rest

QR	Tool Attributes
5	Grant advantage on a certain skill check
3	+1 bonus to a skill check (QR cumulatively doubles when stacking, 3, 6, 12, etc)

QR	Vehicle Attributes
1	Space for +1 traveler
1	Speed +10 mph/+10 knots
1	Grant the crew partial cover from attacks
2	Grant the crew full cover from attacks
2	Aquatic
6	Burrowing 10 Flight

QR	Jewelry/Art Attributes
1	+10 gp value
2	+100 gp value
4	+1,000 gp value
8	+10,000 gp value
2	+1 Social Attack_DC
3	Remove a social condition with a short rest

Step 1: Item Choice

The first step of the crafting process is determining the type of item to be crafted (armor, shield, melee weapon, ranged weapon, clothing, structure, tool, vehicle, or jewelry).

Step 2: Design

The QR potential of the item is determined by rolling crafting dice. Crafting dice are d4 and you get a number of them equal to your Constitution modifier + your proficiency bonus if you have proficiency in this skill.

Example: Brokk has a Constitution modifier of +3 and has proficiency in the Crafting skill, a bonus of +3 since he’s level 8. He rolls 6d4 and gets a total of 16, designing the item at QR 16.

QR points are spent to add attributes to the item. See the table for possible options. Unless stated otherwise, attributes may be stacked by paying the QR cost multiple times. Some attribute QR costs may increase when they are chosen more than once. In those cases the first instance of the attribute has the regular QR cost and then future selections use the modified QR cost.

Example: Brokk decides to make a suit of armor worth 16 QR. He starts with base 10 AC for 0 QR (free). He has a Dexterity of 14 so he’d like to make use of it, and decides to make armor that will allow for it- he chooses 3 QR for a +1 AC that allows up to a maximum of +2 Dexterity added to AC. He stacks that attribute 5 times, making the armor AC 15 allowing for +2 Dexterity modifier.

The last point of QR he assigns the ornate attribute, raising the finished armors value +10gp.

Step 3: Materials

The crafting activity necessitates some up front investment and materials, the nature of which is determined by the type of crafting done. A blacksmith will need a forge as well as metal ore. A tanner will need leather, racks, oils and tools. Similarly, a carpenter would need a mill, tools and wood. The game abstracts these details and simply calls them “crafting tools” and “crafting materials” (see below).

While crafting, the item will require 1 crafting material per QR squared.

Example: A QR 9 item would require 81 crafting materials (9²).

Step 4: Time

Crafting is a downtime activity that requires 1 day per QR of the item. Having multiple people working together can shorten the time (see “Crafting Assistance” below)

Step 5: Result

After the item has been designed, the materials and time are spent, the character must make a crafting skill check to determine if the item was a success. A resulting skill check roll that meets or exceeds the QR total means success, otherwise the item was a failure.

On a natural 20 roll, only half the materials are consumed by the item. On a roll of a natural 1 the item becomes cursed.

Tools

Basic crafting tools cost 50 gp, but using the Crafting skill, someone can craft a better set of tools which will grant bonuses during the crafting process.

Instead of tools, a “forge beast” may be used instead.

Several creatures (such as the Nisser) can become a companion that helps with the crafting, essentially replacing the need for crafting tools. This will allow a Blacksmith to travel and go on adventures, rather than being bound to a forge. Materials will still be required.

Materials

Crafting materials may be found during an adventure.

Perhaps monster lairs have some materials of use. The GM should modify some treasure tables to include crafting materials as possible treasure. The GM should also allow someone to cannibalize existing gear into materials (i.e.. melt a sword to obtain iron, cut apart leather armor to make leather strips, etc…). As a rule of thumb, a recycled item produces 1d4 crafting materials.

The player character may also go procure some during downtime, obtaining 1 crafting material per hour spent. This can be iron ingots, wood boards, bolts of cloth, a stone boulder, etc… For the sake of simplicity, these items are all lumped into a player character’s inventory line item called “crafting materials”.

Crafting materials cost approximately 1 gp per unit.

This will vary based on location, market health and resource scarcity.

Market Value

As a general rule of thumb, an item will have a market value three-times the cost of production. This means shops will buy the items at twice the cost of production, and will resell them at three-times the cost of production.

Appraisal You may roll a Craft skill check to identify the mundane and magical properties of an item. The DC is the Quality Rating (QR) of the item. A mundane item without a QR rating is considered to have a QR of 4. A magical item without a QR rating is considered to have a QR of 8.

Crafting Assistance

Multiple players characters with crafting skills can work together in order to create something more wondrous.

The final product is something far greater than simply the sum of its parts.

To be able to help in the crafting process, every member must have proficiency in the skills contributing to the effort. The character who has the most crafting dice will lead the effort and be known as the “head craftsman”.

Their initial crafting dice pool will dictate how much help they can have.

Anyone helping them will add their proficiency bonus to the number of crafting dice to be rolled. The assisting crafting dice may never exceed the head craftsman’s initial dice.

Example: Brokk is the head craftsman and has a Constitution modifier of +3 and has proficiency in the Crafting skill, having a bonus of +3 since he’s level 8. He will roll 6d4 for his crafting dice. His brothers Sindri, Regin and Gloim are level 7 with +3 proficiency bonuses in crafting.

Even though they have 9 dice combined, they can only add 6 more dice to Brokk’s crafting dice pool since that was his maximum.

Every assistant will reduce the crafting time by 1 day.

Item AC & HP

A crafted item has an AC of 5 +QR and an amount of hit-points equal to QR x 10.

An item that has been reduced to 0 HP is considered broken and is in need of repair. While it is broken, the item cannot be used. One hour of work and a successful craft skill check versus the item’s QR will repair the item.