foreward:
I'm working at a low magic renaissance setting, and I have some problems in figuring out what to do with permanent magical items.
The only true spellcasting class is the Alchemist and while it would be natural for alchemists those to create many single-use items such as potions, use-activated powders and similar devices, I don't see them as good magical weapon makers.
There are also no gods (at least not for now)
So I was considering a way to make "magical" items (expecially weapons and armor) through mundane means but at a very high level.
(Note: the setting should be low level: a 10th level character would be considered of high level, a 15th level character would be a true epic character)
In rule terms here it is:
new feat:
Craft Superior Items
requires: craft (something) 10 ranks, skill focus (that craft), Iron Will, Int 13+ or Wis 13+
effect: choose one kind of items options include: a weapon type such as swords or axes, a class or armor (light, medium, heavy, shields), rings, cloaks, pendants, ...
You can create magical items of that time that have a marked price of 2500 gp or less (note: i'll double all the price for permament items. 2500 is in the "standard D&D price")
Crafting one of these items require one month and a Craft check DC 35 (can be modified if the item is very easy or difficult to create). You can take 10, and retry is allowed (but after another month).
You spend a number of XP as per standard core rules
Magical items that can be created with this spell are limited to those that could be considered "artworks" and not those that have a clear magical effect: you can create a +1 sword or a cloak of elvenkind, buy not a necklace of fireball !
This would make the "true mastercraft" items more easy to do by NPCs (for example a there could be a famous swordsmith whose weapons are very well known)
second feat:
Craft Legendary Item
requires: craft 15 ranks, Int 15+ or Wis 15+, craft superior item
effect: same as Craft Superior Item but with the limit of 10.000 gp (a +3 armor or a +2 sword, for example). Time is 2 months and the DC is 45
eventually add a Craft Epic Item; requires 20 ranks, int or wis 17+; limit of 35.000 gp (+5 armor, +4 sword), DC 50, time: one year.
20 ranks should be really epic: only a few great artisans in all the centuries might have arrived to these peaks.
Note 1: If I'll do this way I'll probably remove the Craft Magical Weapons and Armor feat for the alchemists, and the permanent magical items would be much rarer (price x3 or more, rarely sold for mere cash, such as in 2e).
Note 2: these feats are made more for NPC characters (or at leas retired adventurers) than real adventurers. This is my purpose, anyway. (Aragorn has not forged his sword, neither Gandalf did; with some notable exceptions still many legendary items in the LotR and Silmarillion saga are made by great artisans and not by true heros)
I know that increasing the rarity of magical items might create some inherent balance problems, but maybe not that much.
Edit: fixed formatting
I'm working at a low magic renaissance setting, and I have some problems in figuring out what to do with permanent magical items.
The only true spellcasting class is the Alchemist and while it would be natural for alchemists those to create many single-use items such as potions, use-activated powders and similar devices, I don't see them as good magical weapon makers.
There are also no gods (at least not for now)
So I was considering a way to make "magical" items (expecially weapons and armor) through mundane means but at a very high level.
(Note: the setting should be low level: a 10th level character would be considered of high level, a 15th level character would be a true epic character)
In rule terms here it is:
new feat:
Craft Superior Items
requires: craft (something) 10 ranks, skill focus (that craft), Iron Will, Int 13+ or Wis 13+
effect: choose one kind of items options include: a weapon type such as swords or axes, a class or armor (light, medium, heavy, shields), rings, cloaks, pendants, ...
You can create magical items of that time that have a marked price of 2500 gp or less (note: i'll double all the price for permament items. 2500 is in the "standard D&D price")
Crafting one of these items require one month and a Craft check DC 35 (can be modified if the item is very easy or difficult to create). You can take 10, and retry is allowed (but after another month).
You spend a number of XP as per standard core rules
Magical items that can be created with this spell are limited to those that could be considered "artworks" and not those that have a clear magical effect: you can create a +1 sword or a cloak of elvenkind, buy not a necklace of fireball !
This would make the "true mastercraft" items more easy to do by NPCs (for example a there could be a famous swordsmith whose weapons are very well known)
second feat:
Craft Legendary Item
requires: craft 15 ranks, Int 15+ or Wis 15+, craft superior item
effect: same as Craft Superior Item but with the limit of 10.000 gp (a +3 armor or a +2 sword, for example). Time is 2 months and the DC is 45
eventually add a Craft Epic Item; requires 20 ranks, int or wis 17+; limit of 35.000 gp (+5 armor, +4 sword), DC 50, time: one year.
20 ranks should be really epic: only a few great artisans in all the centuries might have arrived to these peaks.
Note 1: If I'll do this way I'll probably remove the Craft Magical Weapons and Armor feat for the alchemists, and the permanent magical items would be much rarer (price x3 or more, rarely sold for mere cash, such as in 2e).
Note 2: these feats are made more for NPC characters (or at leas retired adventurers) than real adventurers. This is my purpose, anyway. (Aragorn has not forged his sword, neither Gandalf did; with some notable exceptions still many legendary items in the LotR and Silmarillion saga are made by great artisans and not by true heros)
I know that increasing the rarity of magical items might create some inherent balance problems, but maybe not that much.
Edit: fixed formatting
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before you respond, eh wolf? ... okay so you've got a magic creating feat ... that's cool]
