Is there a way around downtime?

[RoboEmperor]

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[zfs]

Only solution I thought of is to get the party to abandon the quest and get a new quest after I build my monster.

Diplomance the BBEG into taking a two week vacation to another plane.

[Jack_Simth]

Lets say you're level 6, you just got craft construct, and you're ready to build your mechanical monster. But you're in the middle of a campaign with a time crunch and is expected to end around level 8.

You can't take a break for 2 weeks to create your mechanical monster because of the time crunch, and you're not gonna wait 2 entire levels (which is 2 months of real life game time) to get the schtick you've been waiting for online, so what do you do?

Any ideas? The character in question has exceptional artisan.

Only solution I thought of is to get the party to abandon the quest and get a new quest after I build my monster.

Extradimensional sitorage and a Ring of Sustenance. Crafting takes 8 hours a day, there's 24 per day, and you won't generally spend 14 adventuring.

[GrayDeath]

The above will work.

If you have contact to a higher Level Wizard, ask him to hang out on his faster moving Demi Plane every night for a few days, that will help as well.

Other than that, I dont think there are any non TO Cheese solutions for being presseed for time...

[Deophaun]

Convince your DM to use the Craft Points alternate rule (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/buildingCharacters/craftPoints.htm) in UA?

[Uncle Pine]

Have a dedicated wright (ECS) craft it for you.

Alternatively, buy a pair of planeshift scrolls (2250 or 4550 gp depending on whether you need the divine or arcane version) and take an extremely quick trip to the Far Realm: you'll be back within a round with your golem crafted and/or insane. You might want to consider buying a ring of moment of perfect mind to avoid that last part.

[liquidformat]

ya the go to answer here is dedicated wright in a portable hole. I believe there is also a spell that creates an unseen servant to craft for you that can also work but I am afb so don't remember that one. Granted that supposes you have wbl to make your dedicated wright and portable hole...

[Troacctid]

Craft during the night, while the rest of your party is sleeping. Ring of Sustenance should do the trick.

[DwarvenWarCorgi]

ya the go to answer here is dedicated wright in a portable hole. I believe there is also a spell that creates an unseen servant to craft for you that can also work but I am afb so don't remember that one. Granted that supposes you have wbl to make your dedicated wright and portable hole...

Unseen Crafter from Races of Eberron

Best part of unseen crafter is it's a level 1 or 2 spell that lasts 1 day per caster level so for one spell per day you can have x crafters at any given time where x is your level, combine with portable hole and Forge of Sustenance from Races of Stone and you get 3 craft checks per 24 hrs.

[liquidformat]

Unseen Crafter from Races of Eberron

Best part of unseen crafter is it's a level 1 or 2 spell that lasts 1 day per caster level so for one spell per day you can have x crafters at any given time where x is your level, combine with portable hole and Forge of Sustenance from Races of Stone and you get 3 craft checks per 24 hrs.

yep that is it! Even better Unseen Crafter is already on the artificer level 2 infusions list so you don't have to jump through hoops like having to umd scrolls or something.

[Uncle Pine]

Unseen Crafter from Races of Eberron

Best part of unseen crafter is it's a level 1 or 2 spell that lasts 1 day per caster level so for one spell per day you can have x crafters at any given time where x is your level, combine with portable hole and Forge of Sustenance from Races of Stone and you get 3 craft checks per 24 hrs.


yep that is it! Even better Unseen Crafter is already on the artificer level 2 infusions list so you don't have to jump through hoops like having to umd scrolls or something.

Do note that unlike a dedicated wright an unseen crafter can only be used for mundane crafting, not to create magic items (or golems, like in this case).

[tyckspoon]

the problem I have of crafting during the night and adventuring during the day is that the campaign with the time crunch will be finished by the time I finish crafting.

Shop access is achieved by Create Lantern Archon

If you're trying to find a way around having to deal with crafting time at all, I'm pretty sure that's restricted to Wishing stuff into existence and alternate-time-flow planar shenanigans. You're not really supposed to do major crafting on a timescale of days (one of the mostly unstated assumptions behind the game is that you'll have a reasonably long period of not doing active adventuring fairly frequently - if not during an adventure, then in stretches between active sprints or when you take a week out of trying to clear a large dungeon/adventure scene to go back to town, restock, and adjust your equipment and have the town sages check out the weird stuff you recovered last trip.)

[Troacctid]

the problem I have of crafting during the night and adventuring during the day is that the campaign with the time crunch will be finished by the time I finish crafting.

Shop access is achieved by Create Lantern Archon
Craft cheaper constructs? 🤷

[MaxiDuRaritry]

If you really want a construct now, find a way to purchase a rod of construct control (A&EG, 68,850 gp), then hunt down the kind of golem you're after. The rod is vastly cheaper than most any golem.

Or you could buff up your Cha, take a level in cleric (or a PrC that grants a domain and its attendant ability) and the warforged domain so you can rebuke/bolster constructs. Rebuke an animated object to put it under your control. Use a scroll of polymorph any object of a high CL on the animated object to turn it into whatever construct you want. Voila.

[liquidformat]

I guess I could try to find something cheaper than effigies.

I typically try and get dedicated wright and a portable hole as soon as possible and from there a few iron defenders, then an effigy or maybe the crossbow homunculus. Also MMIV has Cloakwork Mender which can be pretty incredible stealth assassins.

[Bohandas]

Find a demiplane where time moves faster compared to the material

[ericgrau]

Extradimensional sitorage and a Ring of Sustenance. Crafting takes 8 hours a day, there's 24 per day, and you won't generally spend 14 adventuring.

Craft during the night, while the rest of your party is sleeping. Ring of Sustenance should do the trick.

The caster works for 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.
Stupid union rules.

An NPC buddy could help. Short of getting leadership allowed it may be hard to find one though. It won't get you the item you want any faster, but you might get 2 items going at once.

Depending on what the BBEG's plans are, you might figure out how to delay them somehow to buy your party more time not only for your crafting but also for preparation in general. Heck, clear out the innocents, bla, bla, bla, etc. It's a legitimate plot tactic.

[unseenmage]

You could ask your GM for a couple of Scrolls of Greater Teleport or Greater Plane Shift so that you can commission most of a Construct's creation and then teleport/planeshift in for the final act of creation making you the resultant construct's creator.

[Bohandas]

Stupid union rules.

If it were higher than level 6 to the point where you might have long range teleportation (and/or spelljamming) available I'd say to go to a planet where the day only lasts 8 hours

[DwarvenWarCorgi]

Stupid union rules.

How do you DMs out there feel about using something like "Forge of Sustenance" in the crafting of magic items? Does the description of the forge override the only 8hrs a day in the craft magic arms and armor rules?

[Troacctid]

Stupid union rules.
Crafting during the night isn't to speed up crafting by working more than 8 hours, it's to eliminate the need for downtime by allowing you to craft on adventuring days.

[Bohandas]

Crafting during the night isn't to speed up crafting by working more than 8 hours, it's to eliminate the need for downtime by allowing you to craft on adventuring days.

No. Wait. Brainwave. Crafting during the night does allow you to work more than eight hours. The rules as written state "He cannot rush the process by working longer each day".

[Bohandas]

You can recoup time by continually moving east so you don;t have to wait the full 24 hours for the start of the next day

[MaxiDuRaritry]

Planar bind a genie, use its (Su) wishes for a rod of construct control, followed by the construct you want, followed by some other ludicrously expensive item you want? A psychoactive skin of proteus, ML 100 to discourage dispelling, perhaps? The PSoP is one of the best items in the game.

[Ashtagon]

Maybe use a wish for it?

[ericgrau]

Crafting during the night isn't to speed up crafting by working more than 8 hours, it's to eliminate the need for downtime by allowing you to craft on adventuring days.
As a crafter you are probably a spellcaster and still need 8 hours of rest to prepare your spells. Even if you aren't sleeping the whole time. I don't think crafting counts as rest. Heward's Fortifying Bedroll (Complete Mage, 3,000 gp) does actually get around this, but you can only use it once per 48 hours. Even if you have two bedrolls.

You also need a portable hole or some such to bring your workshop around:


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.
The rules go on to describe additional requirements for each category. Most require a heat source and a few tools similar to what you use to work on the mundane item. Plus expensive materials for each particular item, which you would likely need to pick up in a town.

So 8 hours rest to prepare spells, 1 hour to prepare them, 8 hours crafting, and only 7 hours left. Unless you're holed up in a dungeon, at least part of your crafting time will probably be devoted to traveling. So you'll need a way for the party to carry you in a way that is quiet, calm and comfortable. Perhaps a portable hole and bottle of air, but that's expensive. That or a Heward's Fortifying Bedroll to craft every other night. Hmm... or convince the party to only travel for 6 hours a day: 7 hours minus 1 hour to set up and tear down camp. Possibly 5 hours to allow for a random night encounter. Hmm... maybe 10 hours of travel on fortifying bedroll days and 5 hours on other days. A cure light wounds per hour can keep the party going the extra couple hours without consequence.


How do you DMs out there feel about using something like "Forge of Sustenance" in the crafting of magic items? Does the description of the forge override the only 8hrs a day in the craft magic arms and armor rules?
This forge appears to be intended for mundane crafting. Since it lacks rules for crafting magic items, I don't think it provides any benefit for them short of a house rule.

[MaxiDuRaritry]

A ring of sustenance lets you prep spells after sleeping for 2 hours, since it grants all the physical and mental benefits of 8 hours of sleep in 2 hours (which includes the ability to prep spells afterwards). So feel free to use that extra 6 hours to craft, if you like. Of course, combining that with a dedicated wright in a portable hole or enveloping pit is much more time-efficient than either process on its own. Doesn't get you your magic items any faster, but you waste a lot less time both resting and crafting each day, meaning you can adventure while doing so just fine.

[ericgrau]

@^



Sustenance

This ring continually provides its wearer with life-sustaining nourishment. The ring also refreshes the body and mind, so that its wearer needs only sleep 2 hours per day to gain the benefit of 8 hours of sleep. The ring must be worn for a full week before it begins to work. If it is removed, the owner must wear it for another week to reattune it to himself.


Rest

To prepare her daily spells, a wizard must first sleep for 8 hours. The wizard does not have to slumber for every minute of the time, but she must refrain from movement, combat, spellcasting, skill use, conversation, or any other fairly demanding physical or mental task during the rest period. If her rest is interrupted, each interruption adds 1 hour to the total amount of time she has to rest in order to clear her mind, and she must have at least 1 hour of uninterrupted rest immediately prior to preparing her spells. If the character does not need to sleep for some reason, she still must have 8 hours of restful calm before preparing any spells.
Eh... possibly. I Googled and found some debates: http://www.giantitp.com/forums/archive/index.php/t-36467.html

"An elf meditates in a deep trance for 4 hours a day. An elf resting in this fashion gains the same benefit that a human does from 8 hours of sleep." But even though he gets the "benefit that a human does from 8 hours of sleep", he still need 8 hours of rest to prepare spells.

Heward's Fortifying Bedroll explicitly gets around this, though only every other night.

[MaxiDuRaritry]

8 hours of restful calm are one benefit of 8 hours of sleep, so that part is already covered by the ring.

[ericgrau]

8 hours of restful calm are one benefit of 8 hours of sleep, so that part is already covered by the ring.
Yeah, elves too, and that doesn't work for elves. This is an exception.

Besides the part where the exception to that is covered in the rules, the FAQ specifically says the ring of sustenance won't work. Say what you will about "RAW", but besides just being just your interpretation, when it's fuzzy at best, when the rules probably say "no", and when the game's designers definitely say "no", I'm gonna say 99% chance the answer is "no", the ring doesn't work.

[MaxiDuRaritry]

Yeah, elves too, and that doesn't work for elves. This is an exception.

Besides the part where the exception to that is covered in the rules, the FAQ specifically says the ring of sustenance won't work. Say what you will about "RAW", but besides just being just your interpretation, when it's fuzzy at best, when the rules probably say "no", and when the game's designers definitely say "no", I'm gonna say 99% chance the answer is "no", the ring doesn't work.Except elves explicitly require 8 hours of restful calm even if they have 4 hours of meditation.

The ring explicitly grants all the physical and mental benefits of 8 hours of sleep in 2 hours. Explicitly. With no exceptions made. As mentioned, one of the benefits of 8 hours of sleep is also 8 hours of restful calm.

Are you denying that you don't get 8 hours of restful calm during 8 hours of sleep? Does a caster have to sleep for 8 hours AND get another 8 hours of restful calm in order to prep spells? Because that's not how it works.

[Troacctid]

Divine casters don't need to rest to prepare spells. Neither do warlocks or binders. Heck, effigies are one of the best constructs a player can craft, and they don't require any spells at all, which means a monk can craft them just as easily as any full caster can! 8 hours of rest is only a problem if you're an arcane caster, which OP never specified they were. I stand by my previous posts.

[Troacctid]

Quick off-topic question, can you get a warlock to get craft construct by level 6?
Sure. Just find a way to boost your CL by 2 so that you can take Craft Wondrous Item at 1 and Craft Magic Arms and Armor at 3. Or use the Rite of Rebirth (or Rite of Spellscale Assumption) trick to push your 1st level feat back to 5th level. A dip in a class that gives a non-specified bonus feat, such as human paragon or marshal, would also do it.

[Jack_Simth]

@^



Eh... possibly. I Googled and found some debates: http://www.giantitp.com/forums/archive/index.php/t-36467.html

"An elf meditates in a deep trance for 4 hours a day. An elf resting in this fashion gains the same benefit that a human does from 8 hours of sleep." But even though he gets the "benefit that a human does from 8 hours of sleep", he still need 8 hours of rest to prepare spells.

Doesn't matter. You're unlikely to be adventuring for even 8 hours in a day, and could usually get by without the ring at all. It's just there to make it easier to hand-waive when the DM says "So... what about sleeping, eating, and so on? You've got to be spending time setting up and taking down camp..."

[skunk3]

I'd go with something like a Heward's Fortifying Bedroll. It is a magical bedroll that gives you a full night's rest in only 1 hour. 3,000 GP from Complete Mage IIRC. Take a quick nap and craft all night. (Or day, whatever.)

[Powerdork]

Has anyone else ever worked themselves to frustration? I know exactly the reason there's a cap of 8 hours in a day (days are 24 hours, remember) for magic item crafting, because I engage in actual crafting for my job. You spend long enough doing something exacting and complicated and tedious, and eventually you start making mistakes that are costly and time-consuming to fix (such that it's not rewarding to even try). Magical rest would only help you with chemical imbalances at most, not your mindset. Only time will clear your mind and let you come at it from a fresh angle.