Crafting Arms and Armor - Stupid Question

[cmanos]

OK so my cleric has taken the Craft Arms and Armor feat and wants to make a suit of +3 banded mail. I've got the masterwork banded mail....do I need a certain spell to just add an enchantment bonus or is the feat good enough? I can't seem to find info on whether spells are required to put enchantment bonuses on a weaon or armor or if th e feat is all that is req'd

 

[KarinsDad]

No spell is needed.

You do, however, have to be the proper caster level.

9 for a suit of +3 banded mail.

Certain specific armors (Celestial, Demon, etc.) can have spell and/or other prerequisites.

 

[Hypersmurf]

Banded mail? There's banded mail in 3rd edition?

... good lord, so there is. I'd quite forgotten.

Um... why would anyone spend 4500gp and 225xp to turn masterwork banded mail into +3 banded mail...

... when for 2150gp and 25xp, they could buy masterwork full plate and turn it into +1 full plate, granting exactly the same armor bonus, ACP, speed, Max Dex Bonus, and spell failure chance, but making the cost of special abilities cheaper? Is the fifteen pound weight difference so important?

-Hyp.

 

[KarinsDad]

Banded mail? There's banded mail in 3rd edition?

... good lord, so there is. I'd quite forgotten.

Um... why would anyone spend 4500gp and 225xp to turn masterwork banded mail into +3 banded mail...

... when for 2150gp and 25xp, they could buy masterwork full plate and turn it into +1 full plate, granting exactly the same armor bonus, ACP, speed, Max Dex Bonus, and spell failure chance, but making the cost of special abilities cheaper? Is the fifteen pound weight difference so important?

There are two answers to this question:

1) Because WotC did not balance out the armors so that there were good reasons to take ALL armors.

2) Because without Banded Mail, you could not craft Banded Mail of Luck.

Take your pick.

 

[Hypersmurf]

1) Because WotC did not balance out the armors so that there were good reasons to take ALL armors.

I can actually imagine someone wearing banded mail. I can even imagine someone crafting +1 banded mail - it's still cheaper than full plate, though the armor bonus isn't as good.

But +3? That's just crazy talk!

-Hyp.

 

[cmanos]

I was using the banded mail as an example because it is the first thing that came to mind (just found a suit of masterwork banded mail). I really just needed to know if I needed a spell (like Magic Vestment) to make a +3 suit of armor. Yah I realize the level restriction.

Thanks for the replies.