Master-Worked Items (5e Variant Rule)
Master-Worked Items[edit]
Master-Worked Items is an optional variant rule in The Hollowed Lands current campaign setting but is freely welcomed to be used in any setting.
Master-Worked items are items of substantial quality either by the materials they were crafted from, or regular weapons reinforced by various means of metallurgy, layering or other means to strengthen the integrity of said item. A campaign world using the Master-Worked Items variant rule would utilize these rulings for item integrity and breakage. This ruling also is under the assumption of the game utilizing a chain train house ruling for re-rolling natural ones and twenties to see if they repeat respectively for a worse or better effect on that particular attack or action.
Regular weapons, armors and shields are then assumed to be capable of breaking in certain circumstances and can be targeted by other entities as an object.
Weapons
HP- A weapons hp is determined by three of the highest rolls of its damage die. So a Greataxe or Greatsword for example would have 36hp. A shortsword would have 18hp, etc. If a weapon's HP is reduced to zero, it shatters and cannot be used until mended.
AC- A weapons AC is 10+ half its max roll damage die. For instance, a greataxe's AC would be 16, and a shortsword's AC would be 13.
Critical Rules- If a player critical fails an attack, the weapon will roll its damage against its hp and take half the damage rounded down. If they then roll a natural one again following (per chain train house rules), the weapon will undergo immense stress and deal its own damage die rolled against its hp. If a third natural one is rolled per chain train rules, the weapon will deal one and a half times its rolled damage to itself rounded down.
Armor
HP- A piece of armor's HP is equivalent to fifteen times the amount of armor it provides beyond 10, including modifiers so 15(total ac-10). For example, padded armor on a character with a plus three modifier to dexterity would have an AC of 14. So that is four points of AC beyond 10, which would give it for an HP of 60. Full Plate, on the other hand with a flat AC of 18 would have an hp of 120. If an armors HP is reduced to zero, it will be greatly compromised and cannot provide AC until it is mended.
AC- The AC of the armor is mostly irrelevant as it would be the AC of the character wearing it and an attack on the armor would be considered the same as an attack on the character, exceptions being enemy critical hits or intentionally targeted by certain attacks or spells of which it would then use the characters AC.
Critical Rules- If a player is hit by a critical attack from an enemy and it would reduce their hp to zero, the armor will take damage equivalent to whatever damage would have spilt over after being reduced to zero. For instance, if someone was hit with an attack for 30 damage and only had 15 hp left, 15 damage would then spill unto the armor's HP. This is representing its integrity being compromised and needing repair. If an enemy rolls a natural twenty twice on a hit per chain train rules, they will deal their full damage to the armor regardless, and three natural twenties on a hit will deal triple.
Shields
HP- A shields HP is fifty times the AC it provides. Normal shields having 100hp. If a shields HP is reduced to zero, it shatters and cannot be used until mended.
AC- a shields AC is 10 plus four times its AC provided, normal shields having 18 AC.
Critical Rules- If a player is hit by a critical attack from an enemy, and it would deal damage to their armor, it can instead be directed at the shield. If the character is wearing no armor, then the damage is directed at the shield in the same manner as armor.
Master-Worked Integrity
The main point of Master-Worked weapons, armors and shields is to make them more structurally sound and harder to compromise in addition to being strong enough to hold either stronger enchantments or rune slots. For the sake of this list, there are three tiers of master-worked mentioned.
Weapons
Lesser Master-worked will have an additional max hit die for HP and its full max hit die instead for AC instead of half.
Master-worked will have an additional two max hit die for HP and its full max hit die and a half rounded up plus 10 for AC.
Greater Master-worked will have an additional three max hit die for HP and two full max hit die plus 10 for AC.
Armor
Lesser Master-worked armor will have thirty times the AC provided above 10 for its HP.
Master-worked armor will have fourty-five times the AC provided above 10 for its HP.
Greater Master-worked armor will have sixty times the AC provided above 10 for its HP.
Shields
Lesser Master-worked shields will have a hundred times its AC provided for its HP and six times its AC provided plus 10 for its AC.
Master-worked shields will have a hundred and fifty times it AC provided for its HP and eight times its AC provided plus 10 for its AC.
Greater Master-worked shields will have two-hundred times it AC provided for its HP and ten times its AC provided plus 10 for its AC.
Master-Worked costs
The costs of Master-Working an item is as follows:
To buy or request a Lesser Master-Worked Weapon will be five times the usual purchasing cost of said item. To request creation of a Lesser Master-Worked Weapon providing all needed materials will be three times the usual purchasing cost of said item.
To buy or request a Master-Worked Weapon will be ten times the usual purchasing cost of said item. To request creation of a Master-Worked Weapon providing all needed materials will be six times the usual purchasing cost of said item.
To buy or request a Greater Master-Worked Weapon will be twenty times the usual purchasing cost of said item. To request creation of a Greater Master-Worked Weapon providing all needed materials will be twelve times the usual purchasing cost of said item.
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