Sun glasses

[El Jeraldo]

I had this idea the other day cause i had a fighter and i wanted to give him some craft skills.
My idea was to take ranks in craft (glass cutting) and craft (metal working) so i could cut lenses and make the farames. Then i would go out and buy glass that was magically imbued with a darkness spell that just slightly dimmed the ambiant light like only 10-20%. Of corse the glass itsself would have to be tinted.

This was my idea if i coudl get some imput on it that would be great. My biggest question right now would be am i right on with the two seperate craft skills ( glass cutting and mettal working ) or should it be just a craft (eyeware) where you make two checks one to make the frames and one to make the lenses? Or am I way behind in thought entirely and this convesation has already happend? All imput is greatly appreciated.

-El Jeraldo

 

[domino]

For what point? I don't think there's any mechanics for being blinded by bright light.

And of course, why use the magic darkness, when you can just have darker tinted glasses.

 

[XCorvis]

Orcs, drow and numerous other creatures are blinded by bright light, and maybe they could give a circumstance bonus to saves that caused blindness by bright light. If they were magic they could give a bonus against gaze attacks, or even make you immune to blindness.

Frames would be very simple. You wouldn't need metalworking - frames have been made of wood, horn, bone and metal. Take ranks in Craft (glassworking), not cutting, and whatever other skill you want. Lenses aren't just cut from a flat piece of glass, they're carefully ground into a specific shape, and a general "glassworking" skill would be much more useful (such as it is).

Personally, I'd say that Craft (glassworking) gives you enough working knowlege of other materials that you know how to make the frames of eyeglasses, or the tube of a spyglass or telescope.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

I went through this with some of my Drow PCs over the years, depending on how DMs handled blindness in PCs from the Underdark.

Lenses have also been made from substances other than glass- the minerals Quartz (Mohs hardness 7) and Corundum (Mohs hardness 9) have been formed into lenses, mainly because of hardness, clarity, and the fact that they don't doubly refract light (read: create twinned images). In fact, both are commonly used as the crystal that covers watch faces (Timex? Quartz. Rolex? Sapphire.). Additionally, neither mineral is particularly brittle, so they both will stand up to wear and tear.

The upside to lenses such as these would be their scratch resistance. At Mohs 7, Quartz is at the middle range of hardness, so only about half of the stuff in the world will scratch them. Very little will scratch sapphire.

The main downsides will be the expense of getting such lenses made (probably requring Dwarven stoneworking skill), and the expense of finding crystals both large enough and clear enough to use in such a product. You'll also face a weight problem- those are going to be heavy lenses. Given "medieval" technology, they'll have to be made as goggles or as visors for helms.

One kind of quartz (called Optical quartz) is perfectly clear- useless for sunglasses. However, smoky quartz (dark brown) and amethyst (dark purple) have been found in inclusion-free (read: clear) forms of sufficient size to use for lensmaking.

Corundum, similarly, comes in several colors- clear white, blue, orange, yellow, purple, pink and red- and probably more besides. Red corundum is known as Ruby, all others are called Sapphire. Elton John had a pair of sunglasses comprised of hexagonal blue sapphire crystals set in platinum.

With all factors put together, you're talking about masterwork items.

 

[El Jeraldo]

Hey guys thanks for all the info. To Dannyalcatraz, thanks for the specific details these were things I wasn't so sure about mainly because I don’t know so much about their actual construction and materials used I was just generalizing, and yes I was assuming that they would be of a masterwork quality. Your information will allow me to put a lot more personalization into them.

Now as to answer for why I would want such an item, I hadn't initially though about the subterranean races that don’t do so good in the light, I had actually just wanted them for my character because he is a blade dancer wearing no armor but a slightly baggy warrior garb (that I don’t wish to explain) that wields a legacy weapon that has the continual wind ability so he has a slight breeze ruffling his clothing and longish hair at all times (even indoors cause it just cool like that) and he really needed some sunglasses to complete the quiet but deadly and totally awesome look. So I guess to answer Domino's question, no this doesn’t have a logical purpose really other than looking totally awesome and role playing.

-El Jeraldo

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

I understand the need for a PC to simply be the embodiment of cool...and approve!

 

[Herobizkit]

I think "sun glasses" made from amethyst are just plain cool for any PC, Drow or no. What about the folks who live in deserts, or on planets with three suns, or the modern day Superstars who want designer lenses...?

 

[Infiniti2000]

For just the look, I don't see a need to make them yourself or even to figure out exactly what they are made of and why.

If no game effects, then just work with the DM on a suitable price you are willing/able to pay (e.g. 100gp). Say they are made from whatever you want (it's unimportant mechanics-wise), and go with it.

 

[ThirdWizard]

There are goggles somewhere in some book... hmmm... its probably Savage Species (maybe Races of the Dragon). I know that a PC playing a kobold uses them in a game I'm playing in and got them from some book.

 

[comrade raoul]

There are goggles somewhere in some book... hmmm... its probably Savage Species (maybe Races of the Dragon). I know that a PC playing a kobold uses them in a game I'm playing in and got them from some book.

Perhaps you're thinking of Races of Eberron, in which you can get "shaders" for a silver piece, which are "goggles of a sort that fit over an orc's eyes with a loop of leather tightened behind the ears. Made from a piece of wood or bamboo with a thin slot carved in it to see out of, shaders negate an orc's light sensitivity but impose a -1 penalty on Spot checks."

They're not quite sunglasses, but they're close enough, and if anything exemplifies Eberron, I think orcs in sunglasses does.