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Jodah
2012-05-07, 02:09 PM
So, an idea struck me recently as I was looking for class dips to take. I went to oriental adventures to check on their samurai (for I mistakenly thought it granted weapon focus for the daisho at first level). While there I noticed that it grants the ability ancestral daisho, which works a little like ancestral relic, which works a little like item familiar - but they are all different in marked ways.

The daisho reads as follows:
Ancestral Daisho: All samurai begin play with a katana and a wakizashi—two masterwork weapons. These are weapons that belonged to the samurai’s ancestors, and protecting the weapons is an important point of honor for the samurai. As a samurai acquires treasure through adventuring, he has the option of awakening the supernatural abilities latent in the weapons. This option allows a samurai who prefers to use his ancestral blade to wield a magic weapon, while a samurai who wields a tetsubo against Shadowlands fiends can use his treasure to acquire new jade or magic weapons.

At any time, a samurai may retreat to a temple or shrine and spend time in prayer in order to awaken the ancestral spirits in his katana or wakizashi. (Most samurai improve their katanas and not their wakizashis.) This requires a sacrifice of valuable items worth the amount shown on Table 2–2: Ancestral Daisho. This sacrifice does not have to be gold—the character can sacrifice magic items or other goods worth the required amount, rather than selling his goods (at half value) to pay for the sacrifice. The samurai must meet the minimum character level (including any prestige class levels) shown on the table, and he must spend one day per 1,000 gp sacrificed in the shrine or
temple. During this time, he must spend at least 8 hours each day kneeling before his ancestors and his weapons, not stopping to eat or rest. Many samurai request the assistance of a shugenja in this process, but a shugenja is not required.

The values shown on Table 2–2 are the total value of sacrifice required to bring a single weapon to the listed weapon bonus. If a samurai already has a +3 katana, he can raise it to a +4 katana by sacrificing 14,000 gp and spending two weeks in prayer. If the same samurai wanted to bring his masterwork wakizashi to a +1 wakizashi, he would have to sacrifice 2,000 gp.

Before a samurai’s ancestral sword becomes a +1 weapon, it is an ordinary masterwork weapon in every way. Its latent supernatural powers do not cause it to be considered a magic weapon until those powers are awakened.
A samurai who loses his ancestral swords is dishonored until he can recover them. He cannot enhance any other weapon in this way.

Note: In some campaigns, a samurai might begin play with a different ancestral weapon, such as a tulwar (scimitar) or a jian (longsword).

And this is the table referred to
{table="head"]Weapon Bonus|Total Sacrifice Required|Minimum Character Level
+1|2000|4
+2|8000|7
+3|18000|9
+4|32000|11
+5|50000|13
+6|72000|14
+7|98000|15
+8|128000|16
+9|162000|17
+10|200000|18[/table]
And then the standard note that it cat go above +10

The relic reads as follows:
Choose an item you own. The item must be of masterwork quality, and it must be an item that once belonged to a member of your family. Alternatively, the item may have belonged to another person to whom you are somehow connected, such as another member of your religious order.

At any time, you may retreat to a consecrated or hallowed location and spend time in prayer in order to awaken the spirits in your ancestral relic. This requires a sacrifice of valuable items worth the difference between the market price of the magic item your relic will become and the market price of your current relic. This sacrifice does not have to be gold—you can sacrifice magic items or other goods worth the required amount, rather than selling your goods (at half value) to pay for the sacrifice. You must spend 1 day per 1,000 gp value you sacrifice. During this time, you must spend at least 8 hours each day in prayer or meditation, not stopping to eat or rest.

For example, a 4th-level paladin has a masterwork bastard sword she inherited from her grandfather. She makes sacrifices worth 2,000 gp and spends two days in prayer and fasting in the temple of Heironeous. When she emerges, her devotion has awakened the magic inherent in the blade, making it a +1 bastard sword. When she reaches 7th level, she once again retreats to the temple for 6 days, sacrificing items worth an additional 6,000 gp to make her weapon a +2 bastard sword (market price 8,000 gp). When she reaches 11th level, she can make it a +2 holy bastard sword by making sacrifices worth 24,000 gp (the difference between 32,000 and 8,000 gp) and spending 24 days in prayer.

A character’s level dictates the maximum value of his or her ancestral relic, as shown in Table 4–2.

No character may have more than one ancestral relic.

And the table referred to:
{table="head"]Character Level|Maximum Relic Value
3|1350
4|2700
5|4500
6|6500
7|9500
8|13500
9|18000
10|24500
11|33000
12|44000
13|55000
14|75000
15|100000
16|130000
17|170000
18|220000
19|290000
20|380000[/table]


And then Item Familiar (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/magic/itemFamiliars.htm) (because I don't want to transfer all that)

So my question to the play ground is this an all of these work together? Do the only count the price they have added to the item, or the total price? If they do, should I even bother to attempt this or is it too impractical/dumb? I look forward to hearing your thoughts.

Adamantrue
2012-05-07, 05:07 PM
It doesn't make sense for Ancestral Daisho to work with Ancestral Relic, but I don't see any reason Item Familiar couldn't be applied to either one (and I've done it myself).

Siosilvar
2012-05-07, 05:16 PM
The two Ancestral abilities look like they work the exact same to me, excepting that the Relic is limited by total value and Daisho is limited by plus (the two cost tables work out to the same though); it'd be redundant to have both. Item Familiar doesn't work off of cost, so it should be fine to add to either, though you'll probably need to work out cost for the added special abilities so that it plays nice with one of the other two.

Actually, I don't see anything in reading the Ancestral Daisho that prevents you from adding static-cost bonuses, so I think it's a bit better than Ancestral Relic.

Adamantrue
2012-05-07, 05:32 PM
though you'll probably need to work out cost for the added special abilities so that it plays nice with one of the other two. Don't those Special Abilities work outside the costs of Ancestral Daisho/Relic, and therefore don't need to be calculated? I was under the impression you could get the equivalent of a +13 Weapon by 20th level.
This ability contributes to the overall enhancement bonus of the item and its value but does not cost the master of the familiar any gold pieces or time.

Siosilvar
2012-05-08, 08:06 PM
Don't those Special Abilities work outside the costs of Ancestral Daisho/Relic, and therefore don't need to be calculated? I was under the impression you could get the equivalent of a +13 Weapon by 20th level.

Ancestral Relic goes off of market value, which would be the total cost of the item. Ancestral Daisho looks like it only cares about plus-equivalent abilities, so you'd be fine as long as you avoided adding any extra of those.

It might not cost anything, but that exact quote you provided says that it adds to the market value and plus-equivalents and the two Ancestral abilities don't care where the plusses or value comes from.