Masterwork Mithril, Armor check penalty?

[Roland Delacroix]

Just a quick rules question. According to DMG page 243 mithril armor is crafted taking as long as it takes to make masterwork armor. It makes armor one catergory lighter, gives a max Dex bonus +2 and the Armor check penalty is decreased by 3. My question is what happens if you make Masterwork Mithril armor? Takes 3 times as long or 4 times? Is the Armor check penalty reduced by 4?

I would have searched for this as a past topic but it seems that function has been disabled. Thanks

 

[Wolf72]

ambigous at best ...

have been the official responses ...

but, here's what I finally settled with: Items made out of special materials are MW already ... so there is no such thing as a MW adamantium axe ... it already is.

Mithril and adamantium do not benefit in any way from MW ... so the armor for both does not gain another -1 ACP ... and weapons do not have a +1 MW enhancement bonus ... (mithril weapons are lighter though ... woo ... hoo ...)

... this does not go for all special materials though!

Leaf and Darkwood armor seem to benefit from MW abilities (Darkwood weapons too) ...

I know that Jade and obisidian weapons DO benefit from them as well.

FerroPlasm: no benefit from MW ...

recap (because I'm babbling) ... Mithral/adamantium/ferroplasm are already considered MW, but they do not gain the standard MW benefits though. (they can be enchanted ...)

other special materials usually do 'stack' with the MW ability ... Jade from OA is normally -2 attk -2 dmg, because of MW it is -1 attk and -2 dmg ...

either/or ... that's the way I've house ruled imc.

[edit: creation times, just use the 150gp MW component instead of the price modifier for the item ... otherwise it's gonna take mucho-long time before anyone ever finishes a suit of Heavy Armor]

 

[Xarlen]

Does this mean that a Mithril Chain Shirt has no spellcasting failuire?

 

[melkoriii]

IIRC Mithril armor are considerd master work. So you can enchant.

 

[CRGreathouse]

Does this mean that a Mithril Chain Shirt has no spellcasting failuire?

No. A mithral shirt has a 10% arcane failure chance.

 

[coyote6]

For extra confusion, quoting from Sage Advice, Dragon #293 (p. 106), "The reduction [in armor check penalty] for mithral and for masterwork stacks." So, apparently, you can have MW mithral armor & weapons.

I thought they didn't, but okey-dokey. I wonder if mithral or other "special materials" armor & weapons have to also be masterwork to be enchanted.

 

[Wolf72]

argh!!!!

For extra confusion, quoting from Sage Advice, Dragon #293 (p. 106), "The reduction [in armor check penalty] for mithral and for masterwork stacks." So, apparently, you can have MW mithral armor & weapons.

I thought they didn't, but okey-dokey. I wonder if mithral or other "special materials" armor & weapons have to also be masterwork to be enchanted.

not v you coyote ... just argh in general ...

1. I think that mithral/adamantium (any special materials) are always considered MW ... at least in regards to enhancement (or is it enchantment?) ... (hold sec let me grab my DMG ... more argh)

2. okay adamantium (in the DMG) armor has the MW price included ... mithral does not (that makes NO sense, see point 4) ... The darkwood shield even includes MW pricing ...

3. the adamantium weapons include MW price ...

4. both mithral and adamantine (oops I've been writing -ium) have the same exact text saying that MW quality DOES NOT affect the enhancement bonus of weapons or the armor check penalty of armor [so how could they stack???]

options:
a. there are normal and MW versions of these ... this means that only the MW versions can be enhanced (I like this one ... give out semi-powerful stuff that can't be upgraded)

b. they are MW but do not get any MW qualities except for being able to be enhanced (wow that just sounds like really bad english)

c. the MW enhancement does not stack ... so adamantine armor would get the -1 ACP ... and mithral weapons would get the +1 attk. Adamantine weapons and mithral armor would not get any other benefits (besides enhancement)

d. (the secret answer): [insert house rule here]

*********

ps: I think the prices based on weight, darkwood and mithral, are based off of the orignial weight ... so a 15lb weapon would be priced on that weight not the 7.5 after the weight reduction

pps: If you use the idea that mithral is MW (and enhanceable), don't forget to add in an additional 150gp.

could someone paraphrase this and send it to the Sage? (hopefully better worded than what I have here)

 

[CRGreathouse]

For mithral and adamantine, the answer is c. You don't even need to spend 150 or 300 gp to make the armor or weapon masterwork.

 

[Wolf72]

For mithral and adamantine, the answer is c. You don't even need to spend 150 or 300 gp to make the armor or weapon masterwork.

that's the impression I was under, but then ... in the DMG the prices include a MW component (for Adamantine items and the DarkWood Shield).

and Dragon 293 p106 (as Coyote6) pointed out seems to contradict that ...

(but either way I use 'c' too)

 

[CRGreathouse]

Dragon magazine was wrong. The DMG is in need of errata to its errata.