RangerWickett
Legend
This came about from a discussion in the rules forum about Craft, Perform, and Profession skills. I'm trying to come up with a way to let there be masterpieces of art that provide some sort of bonus, the same way that masterpieces of weapons and armor provide bonuses. Of course, I don't want Shakespeare to grant a +1 to-hit bonus, but I'm looking for something perhaps akin to Bardic Music, but more diverse.
Here's the general philosophy I'm working on as I concoct these rules:
Craft is Intelligence-based. You use Craft to make something that you can sell. Characters with high Craft skills can make items that become famous for how well-made they are, like the clocktower Big Ben. Things created with Craft might evoke an emotional response, but that is incidental; the main purpose of this skill is to make things that people can have or use.
Perform is Charisma-based. You use Perform to evoke emotions. You might be able to make money off of performance, but that is incidental; the main purpose of this skill is to do something that will affect the viewer or listener.
If the final result is primarily judged on its physical form, such as whether it's sturdy enough, whether it can cut particularly well, then you use Craft. If the final result is judged on its artistic merit, then you use Perform.
Let's make a new skill, and just call it Art. Or we could make it Craft (Art) and base it on Charisma as an exception. You can make an Art check to make something artistic, and we'll set the base time to make a check to one day. This is enough time to create a few pages of a story, a single painting or sculpture, a few short songs, etc. You can always try again to make it better, but if you're working on a book or something, taking 20 would mean you're spending days on every few pages.
You also have to make a Craft check in tandem with the Art check, to actually make the thing. Of course, crafting words on a page is effectively free; but if you want to make a very nice looking book, or if you're aiming for an expensive, impressive item (that's also brilliantly poetic), the Craft DC will be much higher.
The quality of this art is good or bad based on the total result of your check, with a scale much like Perform. 10 is fair, 20 is really good, 30 is historical. If you create an artistic item, something that stands on its own merits, make your Art check, and that's how good it is. I don't have any idea for rules yet on how an Art check for an inanimate object would ever really affect the game, but I'll think about it.
Now, just as a masterwork instrument (created through Craft) gives a bonus to Perform checks, a masterwork piece of art can help you perform better. If your Art check is 30 or higher, the item is considered a masterpiece, and it provides a bonus to Perform checks that use that piece. The bonus can be a simple +2 bonus, or it can be something specifically appropriate to the piece. What constitutes 'appropriate to the piece,' though, I'm not so sure about.
Any ideas?
Here's the general philosophy I'm working on as I concoct these rules:
Craft is Intelligence-based. You use Craft to make something that you can sell. Characters with high Craft skills can make items that become famous for how well-made they are, like the clocktower Big Ben. Things created with Craft might evoke an emotional response, but that is incidental; the main purpose of this skill is to make things that people can have or use.
Perform is Charisma-based. You use Perform to evoke emotions. You might be able to make money off of performance, but that is incidental; the main purpose of this skill is to do something that will affect the viewer or listener.
If the final result is primarily judged on its physical form, such as whether it's sturdy enough, whether it can cut particularly well, then you use Craft. If the final result is judged on its artistic merit, then you use Perform.
Let's make a new skill, and just call it Art. Or we could make it Craft (Art) and base it on Charisma as an exception. You can make an Art check to make something artistic, and we'll set the base time to make a check to one day. This is enough time to create a few pages of a story, a single painting or sculpture, a few short songs, etc. You can always try again to make it better, but if you're working on a book or something, taking 20 would mean you're spending days on every few pages.
You also have to make a Craft check in tandem with the Art check, to actually make the thing. Of course, crafting words on a page is effectively free; but if you want to make a very nice looking book, or if you're aiming for an expensive, impressive item (that's also brilliantly poetic), the Craft DC will be much higher.
The quality of this art is good or bad based on the total result of your check, with a scale much like Perform. 10 is fair, 20 is really good, 30 is historical. If you create an artistic item, something that stands on its own merits, make your Art check, and that's how good it is. I don't have any idea for rules yet on how an Art check for an inanimate object would ever really affect the game, but I'll think about it.
Now, just as a masterwork instrument (created through Craft) gives a bonus to Perform checks, a masterwork piece of art can help you perform better. If your Art check is 30 or higher, the item is considered a masterpiece, and it provides a bonus to Perform checks that use that piece. The bonus can be a simple +2 bonus, or it can be something specifically appropriate to the piece. What constitutes 'appropriate to the piece,' though, I'm not so sure about.
Any ideas?
