Feelin' Crafty.

[EndgamerAzari]

I just started a new character I really like: a gestalt wizard/rogue Whisper Gnome. I'm hoping to eventually have her make items for the party (maybe even open her own shop), but as of right now, she's level two. But soon those item creation feats will be rolling in, and that's where I hit a problem.

With said feats, do you use an associated Craft skill to create the item in question? For example, would I use Craft (weapons) in conjunction with Craft Magical Arms and Armor (using my ranks in the former) to make a +1 longsword, or does the feat itself act as a new skill? If not the latter, then how does Craft Wondrous Item work?

Confused and Contemplative,

EA.

[Jasdoif]

Long story short: the item creation feats allow you to enchant base materials/items, you don't need a Craft skill unless you're going to make the base item yourself.

I could be wrong on these specifics, but I think only weapons/armor/constructs strictly require something that's produced with a Craft skill; you're assumed to be able to just come up with the necessary materials for the other item types.

[EndgamerAzari]

Thank you, Sir/Madam.

However, you said:

you don't need a Craft skill unless you're going to make the base item yourself.

What if you ARE making the item yourself? In the case of weapons, potions, and whatnot, I don't see a problem, with Craft (weapons) and (alchemy), the skills my W. gnome specializes in, but what about Wondrous Items? To make, say, a cloak of resistance, do you need Craft (clothing)?

[Saph]

What if you ARE making the item yourself? In the case of weapons, potions, and whatnot, I don't see a problem, with Craft (weapons) and (alchemy), the skills my W. gnome specializes in, but what about Wondrous Items? To make, say, a cloak of resistance, do you need Craft (clothing)?

Yes, in theory.

However, in practice, if you're in a place where you have the resources to craft wondrous items, you're in a place where you can just buy the clothes from a tailor. In fact, the price of the cloak is assumed to be part of the 500 gold you pay to make that cloak of resistance +1.

The DMG doesn't specify rules for making the nonmagical part of an item yourself, but I assume that it would cut the price by the same amount that you'd save by making a nonmagical item over buying it in a shop. Which in the case of clothing is pretty negligible, so it's probably not worth keeping track of.

- Saph

[Jasdoif]

What if you ARE making the item yourself? In the case of weapons, potions, and whatnot, I don't see a problem, with Craft (weapons) and (alchemy), the skills my W. gnome specializes in, but what about Wondrous Items? To make, say, a cloak of resistance, do you need Craft (clothing)?

Well, that's what the other half of my post was supposed to address Guess I need to explain better.

The gold cost given for a magic item doesn't normally involve a craft check of any sort. You don't need Craft (alchemy) to make a potion, you simply need the Brew Potion feat, some raw materials that aren't specified, and enough XP. One day later, bam, potion's done! You're simply assumed to have the ability to buy whatever you need, and the feat (and spell, in this case) is sufficient to make the effect "stick". I believe it's the same when you make a wand, ring, wondrous item, etc.; you don't need a craft check, just need the right feat and spend some gold/XP for raw materials, and the appropriate amount of time later your stuff's just done.

Magic armor, magic weapons and (at least most) constructs are exceptions. You have to start with masterwork armor or weapons before you can begin making them magic; if you're making them from scratch you need to produce them as normal with the appropriate Craft skill. Constructs usually have a section on construction in their monster entries, specifying what kind of checks you need to make the body and at what DC. Usually this is a choice of one or two craft categories, but not always; for example a flesh golem's body can be made via either Craft (leatherworking) or Heal checks, and the DC is 13 in either case.

[Isomenes]

What if you ARE making the item yourself? In the case of weapons, potions, and whatnot, I don't see a problem, with Craft (weapons) and (alchemy), the skills my W. gnome specializes in, but what about Wondrous Items? To make, say, a cloak of resistance, do you need Craft (clothing)?

Well, certainly a textiles skill of some sort. I imagine you could get away with a more general skill like leatherworking if you wanted to make a leather cloak of resistance, and you could also use it for other leatherwork items (boots, bracers, hats, gloves, etc.).

[EndgamerAzari]

Ah, si, si... I get it now. So essentially there's no way to outright fail making one of these items, unless expressed in the description, am I right? But conversely, you can't expedite the process like you can mundane items.

[Jasdoif]

Ah, si, si... I get it now. So essentially there's no way to outright fail making one of these items, unless expressed in the description, am I right? But conversely, you can't expedite the process like you can mundane items.

That's correct.

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.

A character can work on only one item at a time. If a character starts work on a new item, all materials used and XP spent on the under-construction item are wasted.

[Arbitrarity]

If you're a wizard, you could probably take 10 and make the DC on a cloak anyways :P.

[JellyPooga]

Arguably, if you wanted to incorporate your Craft skills into making Wondrous Items or Potions, you could reduce the base cost of the Magic Item by a certain amount, based on your Craft check (e.g. Making a Cloak of Resistance, you normally have to spend X amount of gold, which includes buying a fancy cloak to enchant. If you make the cloak yourself, you have to spend Y gold to make it - Craft check too - but the base cost of the Magic Item is reduced by Z.

Thus your total base cost is X+Y-Z, where Y > Z.

Quite how much Z is, is going to be almost entirely DM fiat though, based on what it is you're making and how good you are at crafting said item...