This is a highly artificial and fantastical idea with no bearing on the real world (this is my caveat for the stranger ideas towards the end). The idea is to mass produce cheap and crappy weapons on short notice quickly. All of these items take ½ as long to make, will have less hardness and HP, suffer penalties to attack, and have ¼ the cost in materials to make and would charge ½ the listed PHB price. These items can never be magically enchanted nor are superior materials useable in construction of a lessercraft item.
I'm sure this isn't a new idea, so somebody point me to the right thread. I know Green Ronin's "Wrath and Rage" has some rules for this sort of thing, but I haven't seen it and this is a little different I would imagine. My numbers are fairly random and balancing is sorely needed.
Lessercraft (also known as Monsterpieces)
Just to make a standard lessercraft item decreases the hardness and HP by 2 (help me out on that number, please) and the Craft DC is lessened by 5. The weapon has a -1 penalty to hit.
If one makes an even worse weapon, the weapon has a -2 penalty to hit and -1 to damage. However, The weapon gains a mundane ability somewhat similar to a +1 equivalent ability. The HP and Hardness are lessened by 4 and the Craft DC drops by 10.
Inferior materials must be used: very imperfect and unrefined ores, badly tanned leather and hide, corroded metals, bits of shell rotting wood and fouled sinew. Using little tricks; however, one can create serrated edges that infect the wounds on contact simulating wounding damage or the unintentional alchemcial properties of the sweat, blood, muck, mire and can be treated as weak poison.
For a -3 to hit and -2 to damage, the lessercraftsman can create objects of such astonishing imperfection they hardly have the properties of the weapon at all. One cannot make a composite bow at this level craftsmanship. If the weapon, armor or shield has less than 10 HPs it now has one other wise reduce the HP by 10. The craft DC drops by 15.
Additionally, Races other than those of the same race as the lessersmith are non-proficient with these crude alternatives to surrender. If the lessersmith has a positive racial modifier (i.e. str for half-orcs) they have an intuitive sense of how to make there items like themselves (indeed they would seem to need intuition to make anything as their intelligence and training would appear non-existent). If the race has two or more positive modifiers (i.e. Wood Elfs) just pick one. This does the following:
Strength: The damage dice is increased by one step (Note: 2d4 becomes 1d12 instead of 2d6). If a projectile weapon the range is decreased by ¼.
Dexterity: If a melee weapon, the wielder can add his dexterity modifier in lieu of his strength modifier to hit as per the weapon finesse feat with that weapon only. If a ranged weapon, the range is increased by ¼ but always at least 5 feet.
Consitution: The item gains HPs equal to double your constitution modifier, and Hardness equal to ½ your constitution modifier.
Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma all make the weapon seem exotic and someone not of that lessersmiths race must make a sense motive check (DC 10) to realize it is not masterwork. He will still believe it is mundane and give more than a fair price for this "monsterpiece."
Your comments, questions, and criticisms are enthusiastically requested,
Joe
I'm sure this isn't a new idea, so somebody point me to the right thread. I know Green Ronin's "Wrath and Rage" has some rules for this sort of thing, but I haven't seen it and this is a little different I would imagine. My numbers are fairly random and balancing is sorely needed.
Lessercraft (also known as Monsterpieces)
Just to make a standard lessercraft item decreases the hardness and HP by 2 (help me out on that number, please) and the Craft DC is lessened by 5. The weapon has a -1 penalty to hit.
If one makes an even worse weapon, the weapon has a -2 penalty to hit and -1 to damage. However, The weapon gains a mundane ability somewhat similar to a +1 equivalent ability. The HP and Hardness are lessened by 4 and the Craft DC drops by 10.
Inferior materials must be used: very imperfect and unrefined ores, badly tanned leather and hide, corroded metals, bits of shell rotting wood and fouled sinew. Using little tricks; however, one can create serrated edges that infect the wounds on contact simulating wounding damage or the unintentional alchemcial properties of the sweat, blood, muck, mire and can be treated as weak poison.
For a -3 to hit and -2 to damage, the lessercraftsman can create objects of such astonishing imperfection they hardly have the properties of the weapon at all. One cannot make a composite bow at this level craftsmanship. If the weapon, armor or shield has less than 10 HPs it now has one other wise reduce the HP by 10. The craft DC drops by 15.
Additionally, Races other than those of the same race as the lessersmith are non-proficient with these crude alternatives to surrender. If the lessersmith has a positive racial modifier (i.e. str for half-orcs) they have an intuitive sense of how to make there items like themselves (indeed they would seem to need intuition to make anything as their intelligence and training would appear non-existent). If the race has two or more positive modifiers (i.e. Wood Elfs) just pick one. This does the following:
Strength: The damage dice is increased by one step (Note: 2d4 becomes 1d12 instead of 2d6). If a projectile weapon the range is decreased by ¼.
Dexterity: If a melee weapon, the wielder can add his dexterity modifier in lieu of his strength modifier to hit as per the weapon finesse feat with that weapon only. If a ranged weapon, the range is increased by ¼ but always at least 5 feet.
Consitution: The item gains HPs equal to double your constitution modifier, and Hardness equal to ½ your constitution modifier.
Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma all make the weapon seem exotic and someone not of that lessersmiths race must make a sense motive check (DC 10) to realize it is not masterwork. He will still believe it is mundane and give more than a fair price for this "monsterpiece."
Your comments, questions, and criticisms are enthusiastically requested,
Joe
