Fabrication, how much can you make?

[deathwolf669]

So looking at the fabricate spell and it got me thinking how many items can I make? It says products in the description but then says can fabricate a large or smaller object.

So guessing I can only make one thing and if it's armour it fits in a 5' cube?

[Hrugner]

Just include sprues.
https://i.imgur.com/9x9vOQ3m.jpg

[deathwolf669]

Just include sprues.
https://i.imgur.com/9x9vOQ3m.jpg

You sir are a genius!

[LeonBH]

A bag of ball bearings is an item listed in the PHB and yet it includes multiple discrete components.

[JackPhoenix]

A bag of ball bearings is an item listed in the PHB and yet it includes multiple discrete components.

But it's pretty much up to the GM if it's considered single OBJECT for the Fabricate's purpose.

[LeonBH]

But it's pretty much up to the GM if it's considered single OBJECT for the Fabricate's purpose.

The Fabricate spell can fabricate a bridge.


You convert raw materials into products of the same material. For example, you can fabricate a wooden bridge from a clump of trees, a rope from a patch of hemp, and clothes from flax or wool.

I think a bag of ball bearings is within its reach.

[JackPhoenix]

The Fabricate spell can fabricate a bridge.

I think a bag of ball bearings is within its reach.

Bridge is single object. Bag of ball bearings is a multitude of discrete objects in a single container. The PHB even helpfully notes it's 1000 objects in a common container. From the same sentence, clothes would be better example, as it's not clear if its a whole outfit, or a single article of clothing.

Ultimately, it's up to the GM where to draw the line. It's less of a problem with Fabricate, where you need to have raw material, and more with spells and abilities like Creation, where you create the object from nothing. If bag of ball bearings counts as single object, does a crate full of vials of poison/flasks of acid count too?

[SharkForce]

requiring the players to put everything on sprues seems ridiculous to me, and the great majority of objects (*especially* the ones made of multiple substances that are explicitly mentioned in certain spells) are composed of multiple smaller objects anyways. if you can create/craft a suit of armour that likely includes padding and half a dozen or more separate pieces (each of which is probably made of several pieces) in different layers, i'm not going to require you to put a pair of swords on a sprue just because there are two of them.

[Mjolnirbear]

Bridge is single object. Bag of ball bearings is a multitude of discrete objects in a single container. The PHB even helpfully notes it's 1000 objects in a common container. From the same sentence, clothes would be better example, as it's not clear if its a whole outfit, or a single article of clothing.

Ultimately, it's up to the GM where to draw the line. It's less of a problem with Fabricate, where you need to have raw material, and more with spells and abilities like Creation, where you create the object from nothing. If bag of ball bearings counts as single object, does a crate full of vials of poison/flasks of acid count too?

To be more specific, a bridge more sophisticated than a plank is a composite item of many parts fastened together for a purpose; to facilitate travel over difficult terrain. Armor is the same; straps and padding and rivets and metal, fastened together for a purpose. They are only 'one item' by virtue of being stuck together.

Unless you are an engineer, a bag of ball bearings has but one real use; to discourage pursuit. It differs from armor or a bridge only by virtue of the lack of fastening, which is *required* for it to function. Other multi-part items include bows (the string is separate); the grip of a sword (wrapped leather); a bag of flour (countless grains of ground medium); saddles, bridles and other tack (padding and straps are removable, adjustable, and replaceable); a gaming set...

I could go on. I could argue on a similar vein about them being 'one item' by virtue of having a single entry in the PHB. And if these arguments failed to sway you, I'd simply Fabricate a bag of ball bearings encased in a block of ice, which is logically speaking fastened together like a bridge or armor and thus now 'one item'.

Or, as someone else suggested, use a sprue.

Why enable and encourage nit-picking arguments? Let's keep it simple for peace of mind and peace of DM. Ignore the number of separate pieces needed to make the item, and ignore the method (or lack thereof) of fastening: assume if it has a single, unified function, it is 'one item'.