Cold iron = default?

[Cheiromancer]

I was thinking of making ordinary iron or steel count as "cold iron." Its properties derive from its symbolic connection with technology, smithing and metallurgy, not from its being "mined deep underground" and "forged at a lower temperature to preserve its delicate properties." So non-magical metal weapons would be cold iron at no extra cost.

Magic weapons made of steel don't count as cold iron unless the extra 2000 gp cost is added. In other words, it is the common, everyday, practical technology that iron represents that allows it to overcome certain kinds of DR. And that doesn't mesh well with the idea of magically enhancing it.

Comments?

 

[Kalanyr]

Well, it makes outsiders with Cold Iron DR (Chaotics) quiet a chunk inferior to their Lawful (silver) counterparts. Since there would no longer be a drawback to using Cold Iron on all normal weapons.

 

[TheAuldGrump]

It also makes it way too easy to kill the fey.

What you might want to try is 'untreated cold iron' at the same price as steel weapons, but on a roll of a natural 1 they break. (Not treated as the optional fumble rules from the DMG, rather this is a weakness of the weapon itself. And lower both Hardness and HP from steel weapons as well.) 'Treated cold iron' is the stuff that costs more, but it doesn't need to worry about breaking either.

Untreated cold iron arrow on the other hand... Who cares whether you can recover untreated cold iron arrowheads or not?

The Auld Grump

 

[S'mon]

Ignoring WotC silliness,

Is it being cold-pressed (stamped) that's important? If so, making decent cold iron weapons would be very difficult.

Is it being _iron_ that's important? In that case, high-carbon steel wouldn't count, but cheap iron weapons would. But these would be soft & bendable - see Slaine RPG.

IMC I tend to say that 'cold-forged iron weapons' simply are low-carbon iron weapons that have their edges hammered out when cold and the edge sharpened; it's the purity of the iron and the low temperature when edged that makes them effective. Unless magical they are soft, inferior weapons. I recall one game where a major demon got driven off by a PC armed with his leather belt & its cold-irob beltbuckle.

edit: following from Slaine, I suggest non-magical iron weapons bend if they do 10 or more dmg on a hit, requiring a full-round action to straighten out.

 

[Raven Crowking]

Note: I am still using 3.0, so this might need some revision to help some of you. (If you even like it!)


Cold Iron Weapon

After the invention of steel, iron weapons were largely abandoned. Only thier cheapness, and utility against certain creatures, keep smiths producing them. Iron weapons cost 75% that of their steel counterparts, but their hardness and hit points are reduced by the same factor. Because iron does not hold an edge as well as steel, all non-bludgeoning iron weapons have their damage die type reduced by one type (ie, 1d6 is reduced to 1d4; 1d8 is reduced to 1d6). Thus, most current iron weapons are bludgeoning types, such as maces. Enchanted blades from before the discovery of steel may be iron, however, or even bronze.

On a natural 1, an iron weapon must make a Strength check DC 10 + maximum damage by die type. There is a +2 circumstance bonus to this check if the weapon is bladed, and a -2 penalty if the weapon is bludgeoning. If the weapon is of masterwork quality, the DC increases by 1. If it is enchanted, the DC increases by 1 for every point of enchantment bonus or enchantment bonus equivilent.

If the check succeeds, the weapon is damaged. Damaged weapons have a -1 circumstance penalty to hit and damage until repaired. The DC for repairs is equal to the DC of the Strength check that damaged the weapon. If the Strength check succeeds by 5 or more, the weapon is destroyed, and cannot be used unless it is reforged.

The term "cold iron" refers to any iron that is not hot; ie, not currently being heated in a forge.

Note: Assume that the example hardness for iron in the PHB (p. 136) should actually apply to steel, as it is used in the longsword description. The actual hardness of iron is therefore 8 (10 x .75 = 7.5, rounded up to 8).

Example: An iron longsword costs 11 gp, 2 sp, 5 cp (15 x .75 = 11.25), but a weaponsmith would probably ask for 12 gp and settle for 11 gp, just for ease of bookkeeping. It has a hardness of 8 and 4 hp (5 x .75 = 3.75, rounded up to 4). It does 1d6 base damage on a successful hit.

Sir Eldric is weilding a cold iron longsword when he rolls a 1 on his attack roll. His Strength is 16, giving a modifier of +3. He must roll a Strength check against DC 16 (10 + 6 for the 1d6 base damage). The longsword is bladed, so he gains a +2 circumstance bonus to this check. If he rolls an 11 or better (11 + 3 for Strength +2 circumstance bonus), the weapon is damaged. If he rolls a 16 or better, the weapon is destroyed. He rolls a 17, destroying the weapon.

On his next action, Sir Eldric drops the hilt shards of his sword quick-draws a cold iron light mace with a +1 enchantment and the ghost touch ability. This weapon has a base damage of 1d4 if he hits. Once again, though, he attacks and rolls a 1.

The base Strength check to damage this weapon is DC 14 (10 + 4 for the 1d4 damage), but it has a +1 enchantment and the ghost touch ability, raising the DC to 16 (+1 enchantment, +1 enchantment equivilent for ghost touch). Sir Eldric has a +1 modifier to this check (+3 for Strength, -2 because the mace is a bludgeoning weapon). He rolls a 15 -- enough to damage the weapon, but not enough to destroy it (the iron handle bent a little). He now suffers a -1 to hit and -1 damage with the weapon. He continues the fight, and manages to defeat his foe.

He now needs to have the mace repaired, so he visits a weaponsmith. The craft (weaponsmithing) DC of the task is 16. The smith turns the work over to an apprentice, who can easily Take 20 and complete the task.

Daniel

 

[Kemrain]

So, meeting the DC of the Strength check, success, is a bad thing? That's rather un-d20, isn't it?

- Kemrain the Confused.

 

[Tonguez]

IMC I use 'a Cold Iron weapon is one where the iron is cold pressed and has NEVER been heated in a forge'. Cold Iron is effective against Fey and certain other creatures however Cold Iron can not be enchanted (since enchantment imc requires Hot Iron)
A fumble roll of 1 causes the weapon to become dented and lose a point of hardness.

 

[MacMathan]

IMC it has not come up too often but I would say for balance keep what you do to cold iron similar to what you do to silver. I would allow a chance for either to need repair after hard use or perhaps on a natural 1.

 

[cyferwolf]

cold iron and hot forged iron are different enough I would rule that there are certainly differnet ame properties to the metal, probably enough on their own to warrant a difference in what they effect.

Beyond that, certain myth holds that cold iron was a particular ward against mythical monsters. in particular it was referred to in english mythology as a ward against the fey, and I vaguely remember something about it from norse mythology but I'm not certain.

in general the fey were considered to be rather chaotic, and often evil. check out some german and austrian opera, alot of it was inspired by similar mythology. in particular there's one song, which title escapes me at the moment, that describes a young boy who is killed by the king of the elves as his father tries to ride with him to safety.

If your curious about eh actual mechanics of the process that make it different form the normal forgingwe're used to seeing form a blacksmith, I've provided a simple definition we just went over in my manufacturing engineering intro class.

by definition cold iron is iron where the working temperature of the iron does not get near the melting temperature. As a general rule its performed close to room temperature. in general it yields a worked product with better accuracy. unfortunately it requires significantly higher forces, it also often results in brittle products when the end product is not annealed properly.

While the material and end product are similar the resulting properties and the process to create them are very different.

 

[Brother MacLaren]

I thought that iron itself was the bane of various fey spirits in mythology. Not any rare and special type of iron - simply "normal" iron.
Salt also had special properties in some legends, silver in others. I've liked the idea of making gold protect against mind-affecting magics (the more the better), thus providing the real reason why rulers wear golden crowns.