TooManySecrets
2009-07-03, 09:14 PM
Alrighty then, I'm working on a campaign setting where the players are sentient constructs. Now, to facilitate this, I made a number of houserules. I'd like to see what the community at large thinks about them: are they too complicated, are they easily exploitable, etc. Oh, and this is for D&D 3.5.
Below, in spoiler tags, is a brief description of the campaign setting. Skip it if you don't want to read it.
The world of Viyr [the second part is pronounced like "year", though shorter] has always been steeped in magic, but the human body was never able to fully direct it. Having such a powerful force flow through the body was debilitating. The ultimate fate of mages, wizards, witches, cultists, and other delvers of arcane lore was a slow death as the mind and body failed.
Magic was not to be trusted.
But then a wonderful thing was discovered. With the correct material and rituals, certain items could become vessels for the power of magic at almost no risk. Overnight, an industry was born. What had once only been in the purview of those ambitious (and arrogant) enough to risk their life, was now a valid profession. Schools and guilds formed, shops were set up, laws were made, and magic was brought to the common people.
It was not a smooth transition, however. A skilled artificer could create an arcane device which could do the job of 100 laborers. The poor grew poorer, while the richest welcomed the new bounty. On a world which had only known occasional conflict, wars and revolts broke out almost everywhere. The development of golems (animate devices given life by a mixture of spirits bound to a thinaun [CW 136] heart) only intensified the common man's fear of being replaced.
In the end, after many bloody conflicts, laws were put in place to regulate the use of devices and golems, including forbidding the development and research of intelligent, autonomous golems.
Great cities were formed, fostered by newer and more powerful arcane devices. With much farmland now being useless (since food could easily be produced by magic [Create Food and Water]), the land was given back to the wilderness and to those who refused to come to the cities.
_/ _/ _/ _/ _/
Here we go (and I apologize for the haphazard ordering).
Craft Skill
Made it explicit what the craft skills are (with some example items):
Craft (Alchemy): alchemy, potions
Craft (Blacksmithing): metal armor and weapons, horseshoes
Craft (Gemcutting): gems, power crystals, sustaining crystals
Craft (Jewelery): rings, amulets
Craft (Leatherworking): leather
Craft (Stoneworking): statues, walls, mauls
Craft (Trapmaking): traps
Craft (Weaving): robes, vestments, cloth
Craft (Woodworking): bows, wooden shields, other wooden items
[Pretty simple. Blacksmithing is pretty general, which means that it might be too powerful, but I also can't think of a good fluff reason why it should be split.]
Lower Caster Level
If a character meets the prerequisites for making an item, then they can create it at a lower caster level than normal. The minimum caster level is the level of the spell.
For example, a 15th level character could create a continuous item of haste at a caster level of 3. Price, opposed caster level for dispel, all that stuff would be treated as if the caster level was 3.
Power Crystals and Sustaining Crystals
Various types of crystals are the main component of magic items. They are able to store and gather energy. They are broken down into two main types: Power Crystals and Sustaining Crystals.
Sustaining Crystals are able to sustain a number of levels of enchantments (see below) equal to their rating. So, a Rating 6 Sustaining Crystals would allow 6 levels of enchantments on it (perhaps a continuous haste and arcane sight, or shield, alter self, blur, and deathwatch, or some other combination). Price of Sustaining Crystals are to be determined, but it's probably going to be relatively expensive.
Power Crystals provide power to command-word activated items. Essentially, think of them as power points for items. A Power Crystal's rating determines how many power points it has and how quickly it regenerates them. However, command-word activated items use the user's attributes and feats to determine the save DC and effect (though not the caster level).
Enchantments
Enchantments are slotless, continual items. They don't pay an additional price for being slotless, but they a) need to have a Sustaining Crystal and are bound to that crystal and b) they are treated as a spell effect for the purposes of determining whether they are affected by dispel magic.
If the Sustaining Crystal is destroyed, then the enchantment is also destroyed. However, enchantments can be "passed" to another Sustaining Crystal as a Full-Round action.
Enhancement Bonus
Weapons and Armor do not use effective enhancement bonus (they only use the actual enhancement bonus). Which means that if you want a sword which deals fire damage, you make it have a use-activated orb of fire or similar spell. It is also important to note that an enhancement bonus is not a requirement to having a magic ability.
Use-Activated Items
Use-Activated items are more expensive than given in the SRD, costing Caster Level*Spell Level*8,000gp. If put on a weapon, then whoever is hit by the weapon is targeted by the spell.
XP Cost for Crafting
Quite simply, there isn't one. Instead, it requires a certain amount of power points (as described under Power Crystals) to make. A certain variant of Power Crystals called Fabrication Crystals have a very large capacity, but a very small regeneration rate and it is these crystals which are used in the fabrication of magic devices. While one can technically use a Power Crystal in order to make a magic item, even the simplest magic item has a power point requirement far higher than the capacity of everything but the most expensive Power Crystal.
Additional Crafting Options
If you make the appropriate crafting check, you can reduce the cost of creating a magic item. I don't know by how much right now, but it will be a nontrivial amount. You could also speed up creation time, reduce how many power points it takes to make, and other such things.
You can add a penalty to reduce the price. Basically, the reduction in price is half of what the bonus is. So a -4 penalty to AC would provide a reduction of price of 16,000gp. Negative continual spells might also provide a reduction in price, though this is far more subjective and would have to be approved by me.
The basic command-word casting item has a "recharge" time before it can be used again. It starts at 1d4+1 rounds of recharge, but this can be reduced all the way to nothing for an increase in cost (going from 1d4+1 to 1d4 to 1d3 to 1d2 to 1 to immediate). Cost to be determined.
_/ _/ _/ _/ _/
Certain things to note about the consequences of putting such rules in:
~Use-Activated items become extremely common amongst players
~Lots of continual spells
~Lots of crafted items
~Instead of XP and gold being a limiting factor to item creation, it's now only gold
All of these are intentional effects that I want for the campaign setting.
Also, it is completely safe to say that, one way or the other, each player is going to have the ability to make magic items. That don't have to develop the ability, but everybody has the capacity to (that way, people don't feel left out on the "cool item" bonanza).
I also expect that, given enough time and money, that the players will be fully able to punch out a god. I'm counting on it.
Below, in spoiler tags, is a brief description of the campaign setting. Skip it if you don't want to read it.
The world of Viyr [the second part is pronounced like "year", though shorter] has always been steeped in magic, but the human body was never able to fully direct it. Having such a powerful force flow through the body was debilitating. The ultimate fate of mages, wizards, witches, cultists, and other delvers of arcane lore was a slow death as the mind and body failed.
Magic was not to be trusted.
But then a wonderful thing was discovered. With the correct material and rituals, certain items could become vessels for the power of magic at almost no risk. Overnight, an industry was born. What had once only been in the purview of those ambitious (and arrogant) enough to risk their life, was now a valid profession. Schools and guilds formed, shops were set up, laws were made, and magic was brought to the common people.
It was not a smooth transition, however. A skilled artificer could create an arcane device which could do the job of 100 laborers. The poor grew poorer, while the richest welcomed the new bounty. On a world which had only known occasional conflict, wars and revolts broke out almost everywhere. The development of golems (animate devices given life by a mixture of spirits bound to a thinaun [CW 136] heart) only intensified the common man's fear of being replaced.
In the end, after many bloody conflicts, laws were put in place to regulate the use of devices and golems, including forbidding the development and research of intelligent, autonomous golems.
Great cities were formed, fostered by newer and more powerful arcane devices. With much farmland now being useless (since food could easily be produced by magic [Create Food and Water]), the land was given back to the wilderness and to those who refused to come to the cities.
_/ _/ _/ _/ _/
Here we go (and I apologize for the haphazard ordering).
Craft Skill
Made it explicit what the craft skills are (with some example items):
Craft (Alchemy): alchemy, potions
Craft (Blacksmithing): metal armor and weapons, horseshoes
Craft (Gemcutting): gems, power crystals, sustaining crystals
Craft (Jewelery): rings, amulets
Craft (Leatherworking): leather
Craft (Stoneworking): statues, walls, mauls
Craft (Trapmaking): traps
Craft (Weaving): robes, vestments, cloth
Craft (Woodworking): bows, wooden shields, other wooden items
[Pretty simple. Blacksmithing is pretty general, which means that it might be too powerful, but I also can't think of a good fluff reason why it should be split.]
Lower Caster Level
If a character meets the prerequisites for making an item, then they can create it at a lower caster level than normal. The minimum caster level is the level of the spell.
For example, a 15th level character could create a continuous item of haste at a caster level of 3. Price, opposed caster level for dispel, all that stuff would be treated as if the caster level was 3.
Power Crystals and Sustaining Crystals
Various types of crystals are the main component of magic items. They are able to store and gather energy. They are broken down into two main types: Power Crystals and Sustaining Crystals.
Sustaining Crystals are able to sustain a number of levels of enchantments (see below) equal to their rating. So, a Rating 6 Sustaining Crystals would allow 6 levels of enchantments on it (perhaps a continuous haste and arcane sight, or shield, alter self, blur, and deathwatch, or some other combination). Price of Sustaining Crystals are to be determined, but it's probably going to be relatively expensive.
Power Crystals provide power to command-word activated items. Essentially, think of them as power points for items. A Power Crystal's rating determines how many power points it has and how quickly it regenerates them. However, command-word activated items use the user's attributes and feats to determine the save DC and effect (though not the caster level).
Enchantments
Enchantments are slotless, continual items. They don't pay an additional price for being slotless, but they a) need to have a Sustaining Crystal and are bound to that crystal and b) they are treated as a spell effect for the purposes of determining whether they are affected by dispel magic.
If the Sustaining Crystal is destroyed, then the enchantment is also destroyed. However, enchantments can be "passed" to another Sustaining Crystal as a Full-Round action.
Enhancement Bonus
Weapons and Armor do not use effective enhancement bonus (they only use the actual enhancement bonus). Which means that if you want a sword which deals fire damage, you make it have a use-activated orb of fire or similar spell. It is also important to note that an enhancement bonus is not a requirement to having a magic ability.
Use-Activated Items
Use-Activated items are more expensive than given in the SRD, costing Caster Level*Spell Level*8,000gp. If put on a weapon, then whoever is hit by the weapon is targeted by the spell.
XP Cost for Crafting
Quite simply, there isn't one. Instead, it requires a certain amount of power points (as described under Power Crystals) to make. A certain variant of Power Crystals called Fabrication Crystals have a very large capacity, but a very small regeneration rate and it is these crystals which are used in the fabrication of magic devices. While one can technically use a Power Crystal in order to make a magic item, even the simplest magic item has a power point requirement far higher than the capacity of everything but the most expensive Power Crystal.
Additional Crafting Options
If you make the appropriate crafting check, you can reduce the cost of creating a magic item. I don't know by how much right now, but it will be a nontrivial amount. You could also speed up creation time, reduce how many power points it takes to make, and other such things.
You can add a penalty to reduce the price. Basically, the reduction in price is half of what the bonus is. So a -4 penalty to AC would provide a reduction of price of 16,000gp. Negative continual spells might also provide a reduction in price, though this is far more subjective and would have to be approved by me.
The basic command-word casting item has a "recharge" time before it can be used again. It starts at 1d4+1 rounds of recharge, but this can be reduced all the way to nothing for an increase in cost (going from 1d4+1 to 1d4 to 1d3 to 1d2 to 1 to immediate). Cost to be determined.
_/ _/ _/ _/ _/
Certain things to note about the consequences of putting such rules in:
~Use-Activated items become extremely common amongst players
~Lots of continual spells
~Lots of crafted items
~Instead of XP and gold being a limiting factor to item creation, it's now only gold
All of these are intentional effects that I want for the campaign setting.
Also, it is completely safe to say that, one way or the other, each player is going to have the ability to make magic items. That don't have to develop the ability, but everybody has the capacity to (that way, people don't feel left out on the "cool item" bonanza).
I also expect that, given enough time and money, that the players will be fully able to punch out a god. I'm counting on it.