Casting/Manifesting Focus Enhancement
A focus enhancement may be applied to magical items that would be part of spellcasting (normally a rod, staff, glove, or holy symbol). A focus enhancement that’s applied to a physical weapon has no effect on weapon attack and damage. Similarly, a weapon enhancement has no effect on spells/powers channeled thru even if the caster/manifester uses it as a focus.
A caster/manifester must have an ability to use the weapon as a focus to be able to take advantage of focus enhancements within a weapon.
Each +1 focus enhancement increases spell attack rolls and total spell damage rolls by +1, as well as spell DC and spell penetration checks. This is an enhancement bonus.
Focus enhancements costs the same as weapon enhancements. If a weapon has both weapon enhancement and focus enhancement, the cost is slightly reduced to be:
(Weapon Enhancement)^2 x 2,000 + (Focus Enhancement)^2 x 2,000 – (Overlapping Enhancement)^2 x 1,000
Where the overlapping enhancement is the enhanced amount for both weapon and focus.
For example, a +5 longsword (+3 focus) would cost:
(5)^2 x 2,000 + (3)^2 x 2,000 – (3)^2 x 1,000 = 59,000gps
Certain special abilities may also be put on a casting/manifesting focus just as special enhancement could be put upon a weapon:
Bane (+1): Select any race (see ranger favored enemies) or subtype. When casting a spell on the selected race, the focus enhancement is treated as +1 higher. Also, if the spell deals damage, it deals an extra +2d6 points of damage to the selected race.
Dispelling (+1): Spells gain +2 bonus on dispel checks.
Enduring (+1): Spells cast are treated as 5 caster levels higher whenever another attempts to dispel or counter your spells.
Focus (+1): Select any school, subschool, or descriptor. When casting a spell with the appropriate school, subschool, or descriptor, the focus enhancement is treated as +2 higher. A focus weapon may only have one Focus special enhancement.
Horizon (+1): Spells gain +50% range.
Magebane (+1): As Bane, except it applies against all arcane spellcasters and invocation users.
Spell-storing ammunition (see below), spellvials, and wands may also have focus enhancement. The cost to enhance a spell-storing ammunition and spellvial costs the same as equivalent weapon enhancement to ammunition (normal cost / 50). Wands however charge full cost to be enhanced.
Mastercraft Equipment
Mastercraft equipment provides a quality bonus to the appropriate stats of the item, which stacks with all magical enhancement bonuses but not with masterwork bonuses. All mastercraft bonuses must be added upon creation of the item. Similar to masterwork bonuses, mastercraft bonuses are non-magical and thus cannot be suppressed by dispels & antimagic effects.
Mastercraft armor provides a +1, +2, or +3 quality bonus to armor class.
Mastercraft weapon provides a +1, +2, or +3 quality bonus to attack and damage rolls.
Mastercraft tools & adventuring gear usually provides a +4, +6, or +8 quality bonus to one skill check.
The mastercraft component is crafted as part of the masterwork component (craft DC 20). Each level of mastercraft raises the DC by +20 and multiplies the cost of the previous step by x5.
+1 mastercraft weapon (cost: +1,500gps, craft DC 40)
+2 mastercraft weapon (cost: +7,500gps, craft DC 60)
+3 mastercraft weapon (cost: +37,500gps, craft DC 80)
+1 mastercraft armor (cost: +750gps, craft DC 40)
+2 mastercraft armor (cost: +3,750gps, craft DC 60)
+3 mastercraft armor (cost: +18,750gps, craft DC 80)
+4 mastercraft tool (cost: +500gps, craft DC 40)
+6 mastercraft tool (cost: +2,500gps, craft DC 60)
+8 mastercraft tool (cost: +12,500gps, craft DC 80)
Mct[+3] weapons are automatically treated as keen, mct[+3] armors are automatically treated as having light fortification.
Due to the crafting skill required to make mastercraft items, they are extremely rare on the market. Even +1 mastercraft items (or +2 for skills) can prove hard to purchase on the open market, where mastercraft items of higher quality usually require special connections to acquire.
Rechargeable Staves
Rechargeable staves are spell trigger items functions like normal staves, except the charges within the staff can be reloaded by expending a spell slot of the appropriate level.
Spells cast by a rechargeable staff expends charges based on their spell level:
Level 1: 1 charge
Level 2–3: 2 charges
Level 4–5: 3 charges
Level 6–7: 4 charges
Level 8–9: 5 charges
When using a spell which has a material or XP component from a rechargeable staff, you must still supply the appropriate component.
To recharge the staff, you must expend a spell level corresponding to one of the spells in the staff. For example, if the staff can cast Haste, you may expend a level three slot to increase the staff’s reserve by 2 charges. A rechargeable staff may have a maximum of 50 charges. Recharging the staff requires a standard action, unless you’re charging it at the same time for which you trigger the spell, in which case it requires no additional actions and functions similarly to a runestaff.
A rechargeable staff costs Spell Level x Caster Level x 750gps for its highest level spell plus Spell Level x Caster Level x 375gps for each additional spell after the first. If a spell requires a focus component or divine focus (holy symbol), you must also add that to the cost of the rechargeable staff.
Spell-Storing Ammunition
Spell-storing ammunition is one of the most deadly and most expensive weapons to use on the field. These ammunition are essentially contingency based spells inscribe into a projectile or thrown weapon to be activated upon impact. Due to their more complex contingency-based trigger, spell-storing ammunition requires better enhancement than simply applying the Spell-Storing property (which is melee only) to a ranged weapon or projectile.
Crafting spell-storing ammunition requires the Craft Magical Arms & Armor feat and Craft Contingency Spell feat.
A single spell-storing ammunition costs Spell Level x Caster Level x 100. Single targeting spells and area-burst spells can be placed upon the ammunition, but not multi-targeting spells (such as Mass Hold Person) or multi-burst spells (such as Fire Storm). A target struck by a spell-storing ammunition with an area-burst spell does not receive a reflex save, if the spell would normally require one.
Example: Javelin of Lightning
Item Familiars
Item Familiars described in Unearthed Arcana, several custom changes have been made below. These rules are also adapted for all intelligent unanimated items.
Item Familiars receive only one swift action and one standard action per round. Item Familiars may treat any casting or activation time of full-round action as a standard action instead. Item Familiars that do not receive an order (whether verbally, telepathically, or empathically) would often delay their actions or ready an action instead.
Item Familiars may see as normal (rather than limited to 60ft). They have base attack bonus equal to the character and have save modifiers equal to 2 + caster level (not affected by further boosts). Their caster level is equivalent to the character’s level (or their own caster level, whichever is higher).
Invest Skill Ranks:
You may only invest ranks from concentration and any intelligence-, wisdom-, and charisma-based skills in Item Familiars. You receive a +2 bonus to any skill you invested skill ranks in, plus an additional +1 per 5 ranks invested. Treat this bonus as if your Item Familiar is constantly using aid other action towards your skill checks.
Invest Spell Slots:
You may invest any number of spell slots. For each spell slot of level two or above invested, you receive one additional spell slot two levels lower.
Spell slots gained through investing in the Item Familiar are not refilled daily. Instead, they are spell-storing slots, which functions more like a Cognizance Crystal. Spells stored within can be utilized at normally, but once expended they must be refilled (rather than regained automatically at the beginning of the next day).
Invest Maneuvers:
You may invest a readied martial maneuver (not including martial stances) to your item familiar. Invested martial maneuvers may only be performed through the item familiar.
For every three readied maneuvers you invest, you may ready an additional martial maneuver. These extra readied maneuvers may not be invested.
Item Familiar Spellcasting:
An Item Familiar with the Cantrips/Orisons special ability, Spell Use special ability, or item imbued spells may cast spells as a standard action (or longer, depending on spell’s casting time). The Item Familiar must meet the ability score required to cast the appropriate spell. It has a caster level equal to your character level (Cantrips/Orisons special ability), your caster level (Spell Use special ability), or the imbued caster level (determined upon item creation/enhancement). It uses its own ability scores to determine the spell’s DC, if any. It substitutes the verbal components of spellcasting with a command word (normally the spell name). It cannot cast any spell that requires a gp or XP component, but may ignore somatic and material components less than 1gp.
Item Familiars do not require its master’s orders to cast an imbued or invested spell. While Item Familiars loyal to its master avoids frivolous use of spells, it may cast spells on its own judgment to protect its master. Item Familiars with a personality conflict over its possessor may try to cast spells to impede or harm its wielder.
Item Familiar Legacy Abilities:
Item Familiars often have Legacy Abilities individual to itself, based on its physical form, imbued magical abilities, and its master’s special abilities. Legacy Abilities are command word triggered abilities that can only be activated by the Item Familiar itself (standard action). Use as Item Familiar spellcasting, you may issue an order (a free action) to the Item Familiar to activate a Legacy Ability. All Legacy Abilities are grouped in four categories: boosts, strikes, counters, and modes.
Boosts – Boosts are abilities that increase the wielder or item’s abilities for a limited duration. Most boosts have a duration ranging from several rounds to an hour and require a standard action to activate. However certain short duration boosts lasts for only one round and requires a mere swift action to initiate. Unless otherwise mentioned, an active boost counts as a spell-like ability and is vulnerable to dispels.
Strikes – Strikes are abilities activated by the item familiar during its wielder’s attack to forge a joint attack effect. A strike will only be successfully executed if the wielder’s attack hits. Strikes require a standard action to activate.
Counters – Counters are abilities activated by the item familiar to defend, maneuver, or retaliate against an opposing attack. Counters require an immediate action to activate.
Modes – Most common to melee and ranged weapons, modes are multiple physical stances of the item familiar that may be changed as a standard action. An item familiar may only be in one mode at any time.
Item Familiars with invested spell slots may often gain the use of more powerful Legacy Abilities that require expenditure of invested spell slots. An Item Familiar may have a number of Legacy Abilities equal to 1 + number of times it takes Improved Sapience.
Item Familiar Special Abilities:
The Item Familiar gains a special ability at level ten, fourteen, eighteen, twenty-one, and every three levels thereafter. You may select these special abilities from the following list in addition to Improved Sapience and Spell Use (see Item Familiars in Unearthed Arcana).
•Ability Use: The Item Familiar may benefit from your class abilities, and may utilize the activated effects of your class abilities just as if you had used it with your own action.
•Assisted Concentration: The Item Familiar may concentration on spells, powers, and other abilities for you. Requirement: Improved Sapience.
•Far Senses: The Item Familiar's darkvision and blindsense extends out to 10ft per character level, and may relay its senses directly to its user through telepathic communication. Requirements: Improved Senses.
•Feat Use: The Item Familiar may benefit from your feats, and may utilize the activated effects of your feats just as if you had used it with your own action.
•Improved Inspiration: Select either Bardic Music, Command Auras, or Draconic Auras. The bonus you grant with the selected ability improves by +1 as your Item Familiar aid you. You may only take this ability once. Requirement: Improved Sapience.
•Improved Senses: The Item Familiar gains low light vision, darkvision 60ft, and blindsense 60ft, and may relay its senses directly to its user through telepathic communication. Requirement: Improved Sapience.
•Martial Recharge: The Item Familiar may recharge your invested maneuvers for you, expending the same actions it would normally take you. If you have the Adaptive Style feat, it may also take a standard action to change all maneuvers readied that are invested or granted by the item familiar. Requirement: Invest Maneuvers.
Regaining Lost Invested Attributes:
If your Item Familiar is destroyed, you may regain Invested Attributes (other than XP) in the same method as retraining.Statistics: Posted by Zanaikin — Sun May 21, 2006 11:20 pm
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