D&D 5E Fabricate: a world change spell

[Runny]

All I am saying is variant human hirelings with crossbow expert feat two levels of fighter and repeating hand crossbows. Gotta find a gnome to build the prototype first, but once we move from R&D to production, fabricate will be a Godsend.

 

[Falling Icicle]

Where the spell gets tricky is if people try to leverage real-world chemistry into it. For instance, transforming a few cubic feet of graphite into the world's largest diamond - after all, it's the same material.

The spell states that "the quality of objects made by the spell is commensurate with the quality of the raw materials." Since graphite is a much poorer quality substance than diamond, I don't think that would work. That, and since tool proficiencies are required to create anything that requires a high degree of craftsmanship, I think it's reasonable to conclude that the spell can only create things that a human being using medieval tools could produce.

 

[Falling Icicle]

Find a field of hemp plants, poppy flowers, etc. and become a drug lord

Breaking Bad, D&D edition.

 

[aramis erak]

What is the conversion rate here, mass wise? I've always wondered how much coal or graphite it would take to make a diamond. Aren't diamonds more dense?

Coal, specific gravity ranges 1.2 to 1.5 g/cc as typical figures for bituminous and anthracite, respectively.

Diamond, 3.5 to 3.53 g/cc. so 2.3 to 2.9 times the density. So a 1 pound coal would shrink in side by about a factor of 1.4 (using the cube relationship)... in other words, to get a 1' cube, you need a 1.4' cube.

In other words, assuming a lot of things that aren't explicit in the spell, your 5 cubic feet of coal might get you 1.3 cubic feet of coal. The mass won't change. but the mass will be in a much smaller space.

Me, I'd not allow it; it's well beyond that spell.

 

[Astrosicebear]

Coal is a mineral by definition...so you would 1/10th it anyways.

The important thing here is fabricate does not TRANSMUTE material, it merely converts existing, per say 'raw' materials into other shapes/forms that to people might be more beneficial. Converting a stone slab into stone blocks, a tree into wooden planks, even clay (with proper tools and checks) into pottery and sculptures.

It cannot make diamonds from coal or graphite. It can make smaller diamonds from big ones. Or gold rings from gold ingots.

So who wants to get to level 10 and start a marble/granite countertop business?

 

[MarkB]

The spell states that "the quality of objects made by the spell is commensurate with the quality of the raw materials." Since graphite is a much poorer quality substance than diamond, I don't think that would work. That, and since tool proficiencies are required to create anything that requires a high degree of craftsmanship, I think it's reasonable to conclude that the spell can only create things that a human being using medieval tools could produce.

Graphite is cheaper than diamond, certainly, but poorer quality? That doesn't follow. Both are composed entirely of pure carbon - the only difference is that in diamond, the carbon atoms are arranged in interlocking tetrahedra, whilst in graphite the atoms are arranged in layered flat sheets.

Graphite performs very poorly compared to diamond at being hard, clear and glittery, but on the other hand, diamond would make absolutely useless pencils.

 

[Astrosicebear]

but on the other hand, diamond would make absolutely useless pencils.

Not if we used glass as paper! Make it so.

 

[Falling Icicle]

Graphite is cheaper than diamond, certainly, but poorer quality? That doesn't follow. Both are composed entirely of pure carbon - the only difference is that in diamond, the carbon atoms are arranged in interlocking tetrahedra, whilst in graphite the atoms are arranged in layered flat sheets.

Different things can be composed of the same types of atoms and yet be very different quality. Even two raw, uncut diamonds can be of vary different quality. It's not just the atoms that compose something that measure its quality, it's their density, arrangement, etc. As you said, in a diamond, the carbon atoms have a different arrangement. But that arrangement is extremely important, and is what determines the material's quality.

Graphite performs very poorly compared to diamond at being hard, clear and glittery, but on the other hand, diamond would make absolutely useless pencils.

Which is why fabricating pencils out of diamonds wouldn't be a very good idea. Nor would fabricating jewelry out of graphite.

 

[The Shadow]

How does the character even know that graphite and diamond are both carbon? That wasn't discovered in the real world until the late 18th century.

Reinventing 18th century chemistry in a D&D setting is going to take some pretty darn high Nature checks (or perhaps checks with Alchemist tools), I'd say. And lots of them! Not to mention investing plenty of money in burning diamonds. (!)

And that's assuming that real-world chemistry even applies in a D&D world...

 

[Lalato]

And that's assuming that real-world chemistry even applies in a D&D world...

Winner, winner. Chicken dinner. Chemistry, biology, and physics all work differently in a D&D world. All this talk of turning graphite to diamond is pointless. Everyone knows that diamonds are made of a mixture of stars and souls. That's why they aid in resurrection.