Creating weapons with special abilities

[Darius]

Does a masterworked weapon count as having a +1 enhancement bonus for the purpose of adding a special ability to it? For example: could I make a masterworked shield of bashing?

Thanks in advance for any help.

 

[AuraSeer]

No. If you want to put special abilities on a weapon or armor, it must have a magical enhancement bonus of at least +1.

Note that all magic weapons and armor are also masterwork, so if it worked the way you thought, that +1 requirement would be particularly mindless.

 

[Darius]

I totally agree with your second paragraph. But I couldn't find anywhere in the DMG where it said that the weapon has to have a "Magical" enhancement bonus.

Thank you for your reply

 

[kreynolds]

Does a masterworked weapon count as having a +1 enhancement bonus for the purpose of adding a special ability to it?

No. See page 244 of the DMG, Creating Weapons, 3rd paragraph. Then, see page 177 of the DMG for the description of an enhancement bonus.

 

[Caliban]

I totally agree with your second paragraph. But I couldn't find anywhere in the DMG where it said that the weapon has to have a "Magical" enhancement bonus.

Thank you for your reply

Check the DMG, page 243, Creating Armor, 2nd column, 3rd paragraph, first sentence: "Magic armor or a magic shield must have at least a +1 enhancement bonus to have any of the special abilities listed on table...."

It says the same thing on page 244, Creating Weapons, 1st column, 3rd paragraph, 1st sentence.

So armor or weapons need to be be both Magical, and have a +1 enhancement bonus before you add other special abilities. The only way I know to do that is with a magical +1 enhancement bonus. A "natural enhancement bonus" (such as from Adamantite) isn't magical.

 

[Darius]

Good enough for me. Thank you everyone.

 

[Kraedin]

Magic armor or a magic shield must have at least a +1 enhancement bonus to have any of the special abilities listed on table....

You're misreading that sentence. It could be rephrased: "If an armor or shield is magical, it must have at least a +1 enhancement bonus to have any of the special abilities listed on the table..." without changing the meaning in the slightest.

Edit: Oh, and to the original question, no. A masterwork weapon has an unnamed bonus to attack rolls that does not stack with enhancement bonuses, not an enhancement bonus.