Does your character want to construct fire resistant armor from a dragon’s hide, make a cloak bearing your adventuring party’s coat of arms, or carve a dagger from a demon’s horn? The Crafting Iconic Items rules help you create unique personal items that reflect your character’s personality, values, and accomplishments. If your character needs a new pair of boots, they should hike over to the cobbler and buy a pair. If, on the other hand, they want to forge a sword from a smoking hunk of meteoric iron, these are the rules you need.
What Can You Create? #
These rules are for crafting personal items the character takes on their adventures. Examples include customized adventuring gear, unique weapons, specialized armor, and trophies of their victories.
It is also possible to create magic items with these rules. Alternative rules for creating enchanted objects, scrolls, and potions are found in Chapter XX: Expanded Magic on page XX.
These rules are not for building castles, hideouts, towers, and other large, immobile structures. If you want to construct one of these, see Chapter XX: Crafting Castles, Towers, and Hideouts.
Crafting Step-by-Step #
Follow these steps to craft an iconic item. Each of the steps is described in detail later in the chapter.
- Describe the Item: Describe what you want to create, why you want to create it, and what game Effect (if any) it has.
- Set Story Point Cost: The Adventure Guide decides how many Story Points you must spend to craft the item.
- Gather Materials: The Adventure Guide decides if the necessary materials are readily available and if any extraordinary materials are required.
- Select a Craftsperson: The Adventure Guide determines if there is a sufficiently skilled craftsperson available to do the work. The craftsperson could be your character, a local NPC, or an NPC the character must locate.
- Find a Workshop and Tools: The Adventure Guide determines if the craftsperson has access to an appropriate workshop and tools.
- Determine Crafting Time: Make Action Checks to determine how Long it takes to craft the item.
Step 1: Describe the Item #
Describe the item in AS much detail AS possible. What is it made from? What does it look like? What sort of unique characteristics does it have? How will others react when they see it? What special crafting techniques must the craftsperson use to create it? What game effects (if any) would you like it to have?
The better you describe the item, the easier it is for the Adventure Guide to adjudicate the crafting process.
Guidance for Guides: Adjudicating Crafting #
The Adventure Guide is responsible for maintaining game balance and ensuring the story fits the theme and nature of the world where the Adventures take place. If the Adventure Guide believes an item will give the character an unfair advantage over the other characters, or if the item just doesn’t fit the setting, they should help the player come up with alternatives that are better balanced or a better fit with the game world.
Guidance for Players: Collaborate #
Make sure to do your part during crafting by being thoughtful about how the thing you are building impacts the world, the other players, and the story. Ask yourself, does the item fit within the context of the game world? Is it something that might logically exist? Is the magnitude of the Benefit roughly in Line with items other players own or have crafted? What are some of the negative story outcomes the character might face if they are carrying this type of item around in the world?
The rules in this chapter are not intended to power up characters in ways that are unfair to other players or unbalance the game. These rules exist so you can create memorable, interesting characters with amazing signature gear.
Step 2: Story Points #
Crafting costs Story Points. (See Story Points in Chapter: Advancement.) The greater the impact the item has on the game, the greater the Story Point cost to craft it. A relatively mundane item, like a unique cloak or backpack might only cost 3 or 4 Story Points, while a sword forged from the bones of an iron golem might cost 20 Story Points or more. You must spend the Story Points before the Crafting Check is rolled.
A key factor in determining the Story Point cost of an item is the number of game effects it provides and the magnitude of those game effects. An item with no special game effects (such AS a custom scabbard that incorporates a trophy from one of your battles) will cost very little, while an item with a single, minor game Effect will cost slightly more. On the other hand, an item with a whole list of game effects, or a single powerful game Effect should require a substantial Story Point expenditure.
The Story Point Cost section on page XX includes additional information about how many Story Points it costs to create different kinds of items, and at the end of this chapter is a list of Common Game Effects with suggested Story Point costs.
Step 3: Gather Materials #
In most cases, the character does not need to find or purchase materials to craft an iconic item.
Readily Available Materials #
If the Adventure Guide decides the materials needed to craft an item are readily available, either by gathering, purchasing, or manufacturing, the character automatically has everything they need to build the item. There is no cost in coins for mundane materials and no need to roleplay the effort to gather these (unless you want to!). The Story Point cost covers the time and money spent collecting, purchasing, manufacturing, or ordering mundane materials.
Extraordinary Materials #
For some items, the Adventure Guide may rule the crafting attempt requires extraordinary materials. For instance, if a player wishes to create a minotaur horn helm or bind a book in a basilisk’s hide, the Adventure Guide could rule the character must supply the unique, specialized, or superior materials. These are not included in the Story Point cost.
Acquiring extraordinary materials for crafting usually requires one or more Adventures. If you want a dagger carved from a demon’s horn, for example, your character must find and defeat a demon. Often, your character already has the extraordinary materials, having acquired them AS treasure from a previous Adventure. In fact, acquiring these materials is probably what inspired you to create the item in the first place.
Another example of extraordinary materials are materials of exceptional value. These include especially expensive gemstones for a jeweled scabbard or a rare type of ivory for a custom sword hilt. If the Adventure Guide rules the materials are extraordinary, it is up to the character to acquire these, usually by adventuring. Note that the Story Point expenditure still covers standard materials, such AS common gemstones. For instance, standard gold filagree might be covered by the Story Point cost, but the metal for adamant filagree is something a character needs to provide.
The Adventure Guide might also require extraordinary materials for certain game effects. For instance, if you want to craft fire resistant armor, the Adventure Guide might decide this requires dragon hide or a similar exotic material.
The rules do not require a character to procure a specific amount of extraordinary material. The Adventure Guide should rely on the Rule of Common Sense to determine if the character has access to enough of a particular material to craft the item they’ve described. If not, the Adventure Guide and the player should work together to come up with alternatives, or devise a way for the character to get the materials.
Finally, any treatment, preparation, tanning, cutting, or other process necessary to make an extraordinary material ready for inclusion in the item is covered by the Story Point cost and the time used to craft the item.
Warheart has returned from his latest Adventure with a dire wolf pelt. He wants to have a cloak made from this rare hide. Warheart’s player, Steve, pays the Story Point cost to create the cloak. This expenditure covers the expense, time, and effort necessary to clean and tan the hide. There is no need to play it out in the game.Step 4: Select a Craftsperson #
The Adventure Guide and the player must agree on who is crafting the iconic item. After all, any decent tailor can make a cloak, but it takes a special craftsperson to weave one from spidersilk.
The craftsperson’s skill also impacts how Long it takes to make the item. This is especially true for items with a high Crafting Check Difficulty Score. AS described Step 6: Crafting Time, the Effect of the Crafting Action Check determines the time required to build the item.
If the character is having someone else make the item, the Adventure Guide should think about the description of the item, consider whether the item includes extraordinary materials, and take into account the desired game effects. Using this information, the Adventure Guide can decide if there is a craftsperson readily available with the skill necessary to make the item.
If the character is Lucky, there is someone nearby who can do the work. In the case of items with unique game effects or constructed from extraordinary materials, there may only be one or two craftspeople in all the land with the skills necessary to make it. In this case, the Adventure Guide may decide finding the craftsperson is its own Adventure, with the heroes traveling to a distant kingdom to find a master craftsperson spoken of only in legends.
Either way, the Adventure Guide should describe the craftsperson in detail. What do they look like? What is their personality? How did they come by their skills? And why have they decided to help the characters? Creating the item is a key moment in the character’s story (and possibly the craftsperson’s), so this craftsperson should stand out AS an important NPC.
If it is not possible, or practical, to find the perfect craftsperson (or if finding this craftsperson doesn’t sound like a fun Adventure), any craftsperson can do the work. The odds are, however, they will have a relatively low Action Score, leading to a Long crafting time.
For enchanted and magical items, the craftsperson must have the necessary magical abilities. Even a novice blacksmith can craft a sword if they must, but they can’t enchant a blade.
The cost in coins to pay the craftsperson and convincing the craftsperson to do the work are covered by the Story Point expenditure. The Story Points represent money set aside for a project just like this, favors saved up over the years, or even non-monetary effects like the character’s fame convincing the craftsperson to take on the job.
Character Craftspersons #
Alternatively, the character can try to make non-magical iconic items on their own. No matter how unusual or complex the item described, characters can always attempt to craft their own mundane items. Even if the character is not a master craftsperson, they are heroes, and heroes regularly perform tasks impossible for normal people.
Guidance for Guides: Only If It Is Fun #
Only add extraordinary steps to crafting (such AS a quest to find a unique material or an Adventure to locate a famed craftsperson) if the players will enjoy it. They are already paying Story Points, which is a significant cost on its own. Adding additional cost in the form of extra effort with no real Benefit discourages the use of crafting to create fun items and unique characters.
That said, extra steps may still be appropriate, even when the players are opposed to it, to balance especially powerful game effects or AS an alternative if the character is short on Story Points. In these cases, the character gains a measurable Benefit from the extra steps, which makes the extra effort a reasonable trade-off to get what they want.
Step 5: Find a Workshop and Tools #
If an NPC craftsperson is making the item for the character, the NPC will usually have their own workshop, outfitted with all the tools and equipment they need to get the job done. Depending on the item, however, the Adventure Guide may decide something special is required. For instance, forging a sword from a shard of starsteel that plummeted from the heavens may only be possible using a legendary forge. Getting the craftsperson to this forge so they can make the blade might be its own Adventure.
If a character is making the item, they will need to find an appropriate workshop and set of tools. Assuming one is readily available, there is no cost in coins to gain access, and unless it makes for a fun game, no need to convince an NPC to allow the character to use it. Again, the Story Points represent the money saved for this task and the goodwill garnered with the workshop’s owner.
If an appropriate workshop and set of tools are not available, however, this may lead to one or more Drawbacks to the Crafting Check Difficulty Score. Can the character build an experimental repeating crossbow in a wainwright’s shop? Maybe, since the wainwright probably has plenty of woodworking tools, but the work will go a lot faster if the character finds a properly outfitted bowyer’s shop or gearsmith’s lab.
Step 6: Determine Crafting Time #
Since the player is spending Story Points to create the item, there no need to roll for success. The craftsperson will succeed, no matter what. There is, however, still a Crafting Check required. The result of the Crafting Check will determine how Long it takes to craft the item.
Action Score #
For NPC craftspersons, their crafting Action Score is typically listed under their Favored Actions. If not, the Action Score is based on the Primary Attribute most appropriate to the task. For work that is dependent primarily on Strength, muscle memory, or fine motor skills, use Body. For highly technical items, items with complex parts, or items requiring the use of arcane magic, use Mind. For items where instinct and oneness with the material matters most or when divine magic is required, use Spirit.
In addition, if the craftsperson does not have an appropriate crafting Action Score already listed in their description, add an Expertise modifier (usually from +1 to +4) that reflects their experience creating this type of item. Remember, the modifier represents their experience making the specific item in question—not their overall experience at their craft. For instance, if the character asks the town blacksmith to make a sword, their Expertise modifier is going to be much lower than if the character asked them to make a horseshoe. They can probably make a sword, but it’s just not their area of expertise.
If a character is crafting the item themselves, determine the Action Score normally, using one Primary Attribute Score and an applicable MO score.
Action Score Modifiers #
Follow the standard rules for modifying the Action Score for both characters and NPCs. The character’s Background and experience, the quality of the tools and workshop, any additional time spent, appropriate Specializations, and the assistance of others may all serve to add Benefits the Action Score.
Difficulty Score #
The Base Difficulty Score for an iconic item Crafting Check is equal to the Story Point cost of the item. The Adventure Guide should add appropriate Drawbacks AS per the standard rules for determining Difficulty Scores.
Effect: Crafting Time #
The base time necessary to craft an item is 1 month, but the result of the Crafting Check determines the actual crafting time. The amount by which the roll exceeds or is under the Difficulty Score determines the actual crafting time.
Increasing the base crafting time adds a Benefit to the Action Score for each step up the chart. Each decrease of the base crafting time (to a minimum of 1 day) adds a Drawback to the Difficulty Score per step down the chart.
A successful Crafting Check may reduce the amount of time it takes to build the item. For each point the result is over the Difficulty Score, reduce the time by one step. The minimum time required, regardless of the roll, is 1 minute.
A failed Crafting Check increases the time to build the item. Each point rolled under the Difficulty Score increases the time required by one step up the time chart. There is no upper limit to how Long Crafting an iconic item may take, but the characters may abandon the attempt at any time. If they abandon the attempt, they may not try to Craft the same item in the current Adventure, and they expend no less than 1 month on the effort.
Story Point Cost #
The Story Point cost of an item is determined primarily by the magnitude of the game Effect it provides. The greater the game Effect, the greater the Story Point cost. If the item provides multiple game effects, the costs for each Effect are added together to get a total cost.
The final cost, however, is always determined by the Adventure Guide. They may choose to increase or decrease the cost based on factors such the rarity of such items in the setting, the overall power level of the campaign, and how big of a role they want the crafted items to play in your stories.
The Common Game Effects table at the end of this chapter lists item types and game effects along with suggested Story Point costs.
Guidance for Guides: Iconic Item Crafting #
Here are some tips for Adventure Guides when it comes to adjudicating the crafting of iconic items.
Fun Beats Boring #
If the characters could accomplish the same goals by boring, mundane means, let them craft the item! For instance, a magical fire starter is a fun and interesting addition to a story, but if you disallow the item or make it prohibitively expensive, the players will just resort to less interesting alternatives like mundane flint and steel.
This is true even for seemingly powerful items, like a magical steam engine that lets a ship travel without wind. AS Long AS you don’t mind a little steampunk mixed in with your fantasy, let them craft it. Otherwise, they’ll just use a normal ship to get to the same location. The end result will be exactly the same, but the story will be significantly less interesting.
Find Reasons to Say “Yes” #
The more you encourage your players to think creatively and tell interesting stories, the more fun everyone will have at the table. When a player comes up with a creative crafting idea they’re excited about, look for reasons to say “yes.”
From Story Point costs to exceptional materials to requiring special workshops, you have a bunch of knobs you can Turn to allow the player to craft the item they’ve described while effectively managing game balance and story.
Watch Out for Two-For Ones #
A two-for-one is an item that seems like it has a single Effect but really has multiple effects. A great example is the classic ever-burning torch. If the torch just provides Light, that’s pretty straightforward. If the torch provides Light and can set things ablaze (that is to say, it’s real fire) and serve AS a weapon, that’s actually three game effects and you’ll want to adjust the Story Point cost accordingly. That said, see Fun Beats Boring above, since blocking the character entirely might just lead to the exact same outcome achieved in a far less interesting way.
Common Game Effects #
| Story Points | Type of Item | Example |
| 3 | Mundane items with no special game Effect, purely decorative items | A fine cloak emblazoned with the party’s coat of arms; a sword crafted from a giant ant’s pincer |
| 5 | Item with a minor (limited utility) game Effect | A Rope that provides a Benefit when climbing; a masterwork compass that provides a Benefit when navigating; an impressive hat that adds a Benefit when making a first impression |
| 10 | Magic items with no significant game Effect or a simple game Effect, mundane items with a broadly useful game Effect | An ever-burning torch; a cloak the character may use AS a shield to get a Block defense; an animated tapestry; a Rope that provides a Benefit on any actions for which it is used |
| 20 | Magic items with a common game Effect, mundane items with a highly useful game Effect | A masterwork blade that provides a Benefit to all Actions using the weapon (Attack, Parry, Effect, etc.); a sword wreathed in fire that can set things ablaze, create Light, and adds +1 Effect on successful Attack Checks against enemies with a weakness to fire; a pair of boots that add a Benefit to sneak and stealth; an outfit that provides a Benefit to Presence based social Action Checks |
| 30 | Magic items with a strong game Effect, mundane items with an extraordinary game Effect, item featuring technology that is unusual for the setting | A mechanical device that charts the movement of the stars; a suit of armor made from dragonhide that protects AS plate mail, is treated AS Light armor, and naturally adds +1 Armor (Body) against damage from flame or heat |
| 50 | Magic items that make an Action Check an automatic success, mundane items featuring technology that doesn’t exist in the setting | A ring of invisibility; a hat of automatic disguise; a clockwork automatic lock picking tool; a blackpowder pistol; a hang glider |
| 100 | One-of-a-kind magic items with legendary game effects, unreproducible mundane items | A device that lets the person move between dimensions; a semi-intelligent clockwork servant |