Masterwork Variant (3.5e Variant Rule)
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Masterwork Variant
Master smiths come in all shapes and sizes, and yes, even in all skills. Where one master smith might be able to craft a fine sword, another might be able to craft an even better sword. Unfortunately, in D&D there isn't really a way to tell the difference between the two smiths, and the bonus to attack from masterwork weaponry is quickly subsumed into weapon's magical enhancement bonus. Thus, this variant comes into play, allowing one to further customize one's weaponry and armor without unduly unbalancing the game. This completely replaces the masterwork rules for both weaponry and armor in D&D (and so, masterwork weaponry does not gain a +1 enhancement bonus to attack naturally, nor does masterwork armor have an inherent -1 to ACP).
How it Works
Masterwork weapons and armors come in tiers. For every tier of masterwork, increase the craft DC by three, increase the hardness by one, increase the item's HP by three, and increase the market price of the item by 30 multiplied by two to the power of the tier. At the third tier and every three full tiers thereafter, you may choose one of the customizations below to add to the weapon or armor. You can choose the same a customization more than once, stacking the benefits.
Examples
- Tier 1 Dagger; DC is 12 (base) + 3 * 1 (tier) = 15. Price becomes 1 (base) + (30 * 2 ^ 1) = 61
- Tier 3 Falchion; DC is 15 (base) + 3 * 3 (tier) = 24. Price becomes 75 (base) + (30 * 2 ^ 3) = 240
- Tier 4 Chain Shirt; DC is 14 (base) + 3 * 4 (tier) = 26. Price becomes 100 (base) + (30 * 2 ^ 4) = 580
- Tier 5 Longsword; DC is 15 (base) + 3 * 5 (tier) = 30. Price becomes 15 (base) + (30 * 2 ^ 5) = 975
Customizations
| Name | Effect |
|---|---|
| Lightweight | Weapon is 25% lighter. Stacks with mithril. |
| Durable | Extra 10 hp and 5 hardness to weapon. |
| Armor Piercing | If an enemy has damage reduction, you may ignore up to 2 points of damage reduction. |
| Hooked | +2 to Disarm checks, stacks with any inherent bonus from base weapon. |
| Buster | +2 to Sunder checks, stacks with any inherent bonus from base weapon. |
| Counterweight | +2 to Trip checks, stacks with any inherent bonus from base weapon. |
| Concealable | +2 to Sleight of Hand checks to hide weapon, stacks with any inherent bonus from base weapon. |
| Charging | +2 to damage when charging. |
| Gripped | +2 against Disarm checks, stacks with any inherent bonus from base weapon. |
| Sturdy | +2 against Sunder checks, stacks with any inherent bonus from base weapon. |
| Favored | Choose a favored enemy as per a Ranger, and gain a +1 to damage against that enemy. This stacks with Ranger's favored enemy. |
| Jagged | On a natural 20, weapon gets stuck in the enemy and deals its base damage at the end of the enemy's turn every round. Removing the weapon requires a DC 15 Str check to remove (move action), which deals the weapons's base once more. |
| Light | This weapon counts as one size lighter/smaller for the purpose of two-weapon fighting penalties and wielding penalties. |
| Raging | Deals an extra +2 damage when raging. |
| Sneaky | Deals an extra +1 damage when sneak attacking. |
| Mighty Critical | Deal an extra 1d8 damage or the weapon's base damage (whichever is higher) on a critical hit. |
| Name | Effect |
|---|---|
| Comfortable | You may sleep in light or medium armor without becoming fatigued. Heavy armor given this effect requires a DC 20 Fort save or become fatigued. |
| Lightweight | Armor is 25% lighter. Stacks with mithril. |
| Speedy | Treat the armor as though it were one category lighter for the purpose of speed penalties. Stacks with mithril. |
| Quiet | +2 to Move Silently checks. |
| Camo | +2 to Hide checks. |
| Riders | +2 to Ride checks. |
| Unstoppable | +2 to Overrun checks, stacks with any inherent bonus from base armor. |
| Pusher | +2 to Bull Rush checks, stacks with any inherent bonus from base armor. |
| Stylish | +1 to social skill checks while wearing this armor. |
| Roadblock | +2 against Overrun checks, stacks with any inherent bonus from base armor. |
| Unmoving | +2 against Bull Rush checks, stacks with any inherent bonus from base armor. |
| Footsteady | +2 against Trip checks, stacks with any inherent bonus from base armor. |
| Poor Grip | +2 against Grapple checks, stacks with any inherent bonus from base armor. |
| Swimmer | +2 to Swim checks. |
| Buffering | Gain DR 1/-. Stacks with adamantine. |
| Free Movement | Reduce the armor check penalty by 1 |
| Lesser Crash | Ignore the first 10 ft. of fall damage. |
| Crash | Ignore the first 30 ft. of fall damage. Must already have Lesser Crash applied. |
| Arcanist | Reduce the Arcane Spell Failure of the armor by 5%. |
Special thanks goes to Eiji-kun's variant, where many of the customizations were drawn from.
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