freeWeemsy
First Post
Since the existing crafting system has left me somewhat wanting, I decided to make my own version of a 5e crafting system.
I am looking for feedback on ways I can improve the system from either a feature stand-point, or a simplicity stand point. My goal is to to avoid a lot of messy tables that need to be constantly updated.
The text from the system is copied below:
System Overview
At a basic level crafting any item has 5 requirements.
Now let's break it down some more.
Requirement 1: The Lead Artisan
As stated above crafting an item requires one artisan with proficiency in the crafting tool associated with the item. The artisan also needs to meet the minimum level requirement to craft the item. This person serves as the lead artisan on the project who contributes to building the item, and enables apprentice artisans to contribute. This means that as long as you have a lead, members of the party who are not proficient in the tool required, or do not meet the minimum player level are still able contribute to the crafting process.
The only requirement to craft mundane items(items in Chapter 5 of The Player's Handbook) is tool proficiency. Mundane items have no level restriction.
Magic items on the other hand require the lead artisan to fulfill a level requirement for the rarity of the item being created. A table detailing this information can be found in the Dungeon Master's Guide on page 129, but for your convenience I have also placed the table below:
Item Rarity - Minimum Player Level
Requirement 2: Crafting Materials
For mundane items the crafting materials can be acquired anywhere that adventuring gear can be purchased. The standard price of materials is 50% of the value of the final item. Discounts to material costs can be obtained by making deals with local guilds and suppliers. These discounts are assessed at the DM's discretion.
Magical effects are added to items by imbuing gemstones with magical essence. The gemstones required and method of imbuing are determined by the crafting recipe. The spells required in the imbuing process are also determined by the crafting instructions, which is ultimately designed by the DM.
On top of gemstones there may be special materials required. For example an Adamantium Breastplate may require the player to acquire a set amount of adamantium. The overall cost and/or difficultly of acquiring said items is determined by the DM.
Any additional products required beyond the gemstone must be crafted at full cost. The final combined cost of a magical item is set by the DM, but should be a product of the item's rarity.
The item rarity table can be found in the Dungeon Master's Guide on page 129, but for your convenience I have also placed the table below:
Item Rarity - Minimum Creation Cost
Common - 100 GP
Uncommon - 500 GP
Rare - 5,000 GP
Very Rare - 50,000 GP
Legendary - 500,000 GP
Detailed examples of the cost structure can be found in Requirement 4: Instructions.
Requirement 3: Means of Production
At a basic level the means of production for any crafting process are the crafting tools(with or without proficiency), and a crafting location. Most crafting projects do not require a location, however all types of crafting can benefit from the use of a crafting location. Crafting locations confer a standard bonus detailed by the table below, however at the DM's discretion players can find, construct, or otherwise utilize superior crafting locations that confer a greater bonus.
Artisan's Tools - Crafting Location - Location Required - Location Bonus
Requirement 4: Instructions
For mundane items the instructions requirement is already met by having a lead artisan proficient in the tool required to construct the item.
For magical items the instructions typically come in the form of a written recipe. Recipes are typically given out as quest rewards, or found over the course of exploration. An NPC with knowledge of the item could also serve as the lead artisan on the project, enabling you to build the item.
EXAMPLE: Crafting a Doss Lute
This example is for demonstration only. Ultimately it is up to the DM to determine how to fulfill this requirement.
Requirement 5: Labor
One crafting session lasts 8 hours. At the end of 8 hours the progress in GP of the item(s) being crafted advances by each artisan's individual crafting progression plus the location bonus.
The base crafting rate for mundane items is 5 GP. The base crafting rate for imbuing magical items is 25 GP.
Artisans that are proficient in the artisan's tools roll a proficiency dice at the end of a crafting session and multiply the result by 5 to determine how much extra progress in GP is added. The proficiency dice table used can be found on page 263 of the Dungeons Master Guide. For your convenience it can also be found below:
Level - Proficiency Die
When crafting magic items, magic users participating in the imbuing process do not need to have proficiency in the artisan's tools. However, if they are proficient in the tools they are able to add their proficiency roll multiplied by 5 to the imbuing process at the end of an 8 hour session.
An apprentice participating in the crafting process who is not proficient in the tools required can eventually gain proficiency. Once an apprentice has contributed 500 GP worth of crafting contributions using a single set of artisan's tools over their career, they gain proficiency in those tools. An apprentice only gains proficiency progress when assisting in the crafting of mundane items. Progress contributed by imbuing does not count towards proficiency skill progression. The location bonus also does not contribute to an artisan's skill progression.
Over time as an artisan hones their skills they can eventually become an expert at their craft. Once the artisan has contributed 10,000 GP worth of progress using a single set of tools, they eventually gain expertise in those tools. Expertise allows the artisan to roll an additional proficiency die when using said tools. All individual crafting progress requiring that tool counts towards the 10,000 GP total, including imbuing magical items. The location bonus does not contribute to an artisan's skill progression.
As an example if four artisans were building a plate mail and there was one expert artisan, one proficient artisan, and two apprentices; the daily GP progress formula would be as follows:
[5 + 2d4 * 5](Expert Artisan) + [5+1d4 * 5](Proficient Artisan) + 5(Apprentice Artisan) + 5(Apprentice Artisan) +10(Location Bonus) = 20 + 3d4 * 5(37.5 Average) + 10 = ~67.5 GP/day
There is currently no defined limitation as to how many artisans can contribute to a single project, however it is at the DM's discretion to decide if the number of artisans on a project is reasonable.
I am looking for feedback on ways I can improve the system from either a feature stand-point, or a simplicity stand point. My goal is to to avoid a lot of messy tables that need to be constantly updated.
The text from the system is copied below:
System Overview
At a basic level crafting any item has 5 requirements.
- A Lead Artisan - one artisan who is proficient with the crafting tool required to craft the item, and meets the minimum level requirements to craft the item. This section has some minor differences from the original rules.
- Crafting Materials - The materials the instructions call for, mundane or otherwise. Mundane items should cost roughly 50% of the items market value, and magic items should be 100%. This section is basically the same as the original rules, but I have added some clarification on what the artisans are spending their money on during the crafting process for magical items.
- Means of Production - Some crafting processes only require the crafting kit, but others sometimes require a special building like a forge. Magical items can also require special conditions for the item to be made. This section is similar to the original rules, but I added some structure to the mechanics around crafting locations.
- Instructions - Either memorized instructions or a written blueprint/recipe detailing the materials and the process. This section is nearly identical to the original rules.
- Labor - Once all four of the previous conditions are satisfied, the crafting process can begin. The artisans work in 8 hour increments to contribute progress measured in GP. This section is heavily modified from the original rules.
Now let's break it down some more.
Requirement 1: The Lead Artisan
As stated above crafting an item requires one artisan with proficiency in the crafting tool associated with the item. The artisan also needs to meet the minimum level requirement to craft the item. This person serves as the lead artisan on the project who contributes to building the item, and enables apprentice artisans to contribute. This means that as long as you have a lead, members of the party who are not proficient in the tool required, or do not meet the minimum player level are still able contribute to the crafting process.
The only requirement to craft mundane items(items in Chapter 5 of The Player's Handbook) is tool proficiency. Mundane items have no level restriction.
Magic items on the other hand require the lead artisan to fulfill a level requirement for the rarity of the item being created. A table detailing this information can be found in the Dungeon Master's Guide on page 129, but for your convenience I have also placed the table below:
Item Rarity - Minimum Player Level
- Common - 3rd
- Uncommon - 3rd
- Rare - 6th
- Very Rare - 11th
- Legendary - 17th
Requirement 2: Crafting Materials
For mundane items the crafting materials can be acquired anywhere that adventuring gear can be purchased. The standard price of materials is 50% of the value of the final item. Discounts to material costs can be obtained by making deals with local guilds and suppliers. These discounts are assessed at the DM's discretion.
Magical effects are added to items by imbuing gemstones with magical essence. The gemstones required and method of imbuing are determined by the crafting recipe. The spells required in the imbuing process are also determined by the crafting instructions, which is ultimately designed by the DM.
On top of gemstones there may be special materials required. For example an Adamantium Breastplate may require the player to acquire a set amount of adamantium. The overall cost and/or difficultly of acquiring said items is determined by the DM.
Any additional products required beyond the gemstone must be crafted at full cost. The final combined cost of a magical item is set by the DM, but should be a product of the item's rarity.
The item rarity table can be found in the Dungeon Master's Guide on page 129, but for your convenience I have also placed the table below:
Item Rarity - Minimum Creation Cost
Common - 100 GP
Uncommon - 500 GP
Rare - 5,000 GP
Very Rare - 50,000 GP
Legendary - 500,000 GP
Detailed examples of the cost structure can be found in Requirement 4: Instructions.
Requirement 3: Means of Production
At a basic level the means of production for any crafting process are the crafting tools(with or without proficiency), and a crafting location. Most crafting projects do not require a location, however all types of crafting can benefit from the use of a crafting location. Crafting locations confer a standard bonus detailed by the table below, however at the DM's discretion players can find, construct, or otherwise utilize superior crafting locations that confer a greater bonus.
Artisan's Tools - Crafting Location - Location Required - Location Bonus
- Alchemist's Supplies - Lab - No - +10 GP
- Brewer's Supplies - Brewery - Yes - +10 GP
- Calligrapher's supplies - Studio - No - +10 GP
- Carpenter's Tools - Workshop - No - +10 GP
- Cartographer's Tools - Studio - No - +10 GP
- Cobbler's Tools - Workshop - No - +10 GP
- Cook's Utensils - Kitchen - No - +10 GP
- Glassblower's Tools - Studio - No - +10 GP
- Jewler's Tools - Studio - No - +10 GP
- Leatherworker's Tools - Workshop - No - +10 GP
- Mason's Tools - Workshop - No - +10 GP
- Painter's Tools - Studio - No - +10 GP
- Potter's Tools - Workshop - No - +10 GP
- Smith's Tools - Forge - Yes - +10 GP
- Tinker's Tools - Workshop - No - +10 GP
- Weaver's Tools - Studio - No - +10 GP
- Woodcarver's Tools - Workshop - No - +10 GP
Requirement 4: Instructions
For mundane items the instructions requirement is already met by having a lead artisan proficient in the tool required to construct the item.
For magical items the instructions typically come in the form of a written recipe. Recipes are typically given out as quest rewards, or found over the course of exploration. An NPC with knowledge of the item could also serve as the lead artisan on the project, enabling you to build the item.
EXAMPLE: Crafting a Doss Lute
- Recipe: Doss Lute
- Item Rarity: Uncommon
- Total Material Cost: 1035 GP
- Mundane Item To Be Crafted: Lute
- Gemstones/Special Materials Required: 3x Coral, 7x Pearl
- Spells Required: Fly, Invisibility, Levitate, Protection From Evil and Good, Animal friendship, Protection from Energy, Protection from Poison
- Crafting Instructions: A magic user must imbue each of the pearls with the 7 spells required by the recipe. The pearls are then set underneath each of the 7 bars in the lute. The 3 coral must then be imbued with magical force(no specific spell required). The coral is then set into the base of the chamber.
This example is for demonstration only. Ultimately it is up to the DM to determine how to fulfill this requirement.
Requirement 5: Labor
One crafting session lasts 8 hours. At the end of 8 hours the progress in GP of the item(s) being crafted advances by each artisan's individual crafting progression plus the location bonus.
The base crafting rate for mundane items is 5 GP. The base crafting rate for imbuing magical items is 25 GP.
Artisans that are proficient in the artisan's tools roll a proficiency dice at the end of a crafting session and multiply the result by 5 to determine how much extra progress in GP is added. The proficiency dice table used can be found on page 263 of the Dungeons Master Guide. For your convenience it can also be found below:
Level - Proficiency Die
- 1st - 1d4
- 5th - 1d6
- 9th - 1d8
- 13th - 1d10
- 17th - 1d12
When crafting magic items, magic users participating in the imbuing process do not need to have proficiency in the artisan's tools. However, if they are proficient in the tools they are able to add their proficiency roll multiplied by 5 to the imbuing process at the end of an 8 hour session.
An apprentice participating in the crafting process who is not proficient in the tools required can eventually gain proficiency. Once an apprentice has contributed 500 GP worth of crafting contributions using a single set of artisan's tools over their career, they gain proficiency in those tools. An apprentice only gains proficiency progress when assisting in the crafting of mundane items. Progress contributed by imbuing does not count towards proficiency skill progression. The location bonus also does not contribute to an artisan's skill progression.
Over time as an artisan hones their skills they can eventually become an expert at their craft. Once the artisan has contributed 10,000 GP worth of progress using a single set of tools, they eventually gain expertise in those tools. Expertise allows the artisan to roll an additional proficiency die when using said tools. All individual crafting progress requiring that tool counts towards the 10,000 GP total, including imbuing magical items. The location bonus does not contribute to an artisan's skill progression.
As an example if four artisans were building a plate mail and there was one expert artisan, one proficient artisan, and two apprentices; the daily GP progress formula would be as follows:
[5 + 2d4 * 5](Expert Artisan) + [5+1d4 * 5](Proficient Artisan) + 5(Apprentice Artisan) + 5(Apprentice Artisan) +10(Location Bonus) = 20 + 3d4 * 5(37.5 Average) + 10 = ~67.5 GP/day
There is currently no defined limitation as to how many artisans can contribute to a single project, however it is at the DM's discretion to decide if the number of artisans on a project is reasonable.
