From This, The Swords of Gods Are Forged! [Materials]

Orichalcum

http://img4.imageshack.us/img4/6359/orichalcum.jpg
A sword fit for kings.

Orichalcum is renowned as the King of Metals, from which the arms and armor of the Solar Exalted are forged. It is a reddish-gold metal, refined from pure gold with the aid of volcanic heat and occult mirrors. Items made of orichalcum are always of masterwork quality.

Orichalcum weapons embody martial excellence. An orichalcum weapon’s damage dice increase by one step, and its critical threat multiplier increases by one, to a maximum of x4. A ranged weapon made of orichalcum also ignores distance penalties. Orichalcum weapons overcome any hardness less than 50 and any form of damage reduction that can be overcome by a specific material, such as adamantine or cold iron. In addition, orichalcum weapons prove remarkably facile to magical enhancement. If an orichalcum weapon has a magic enhancement bonus, then its wielder may apply that bonus to any dice roll made with the weapon, not just attack and damage rolls. It applies, for example, to saving throws made by the weapon or Bluff checks made to feint with the weapon.

Orichalcum armor and shields provide supreme defense to their masters. Anyone wearing orichalcum armor or wielding an orichalcum shield gain damage reduction 5/–. In addition, if the armor or shield has an enhancement bonus, they apply that bonus to any Fortitude save they make. The damage reduction from wearing orichalcum armor and wielding an orichalcum shield stacks, but the enhancement bonus to Fortitude saves does not.

Orichalcum, however, is the sacred treasure of Sol Invictus, and those who are not his champions can scarcely hope to wield it. When held, worn, or carried by anyone except a Solar Exalted or Orichalcum Caste Alchemical Exalted, the effective weight of an orichalcum item is multiplied by 25, leaving it either cumbersome or too heavy to be carried. It is not that the item’s weight actually increases–rather, that is the actual weight of the item; the Exalted are able to wield them with greater ease as their essence infuses and lightens the orichalcum.

Weapons, armor, and shields made out of orichalcum have twice as many hit points as normal. Orichalcum has a hardness of 50 and 100 hit points per inch of thickness.

Moonsilver

http://wizards.com/dnd/images/eb_gallery/82109.jpg
A single moonsilver weapon can take on countless forms.

Ever-fluid moonsilver is the gift of Luna for her champions, chaos forged into metal. Only once in many moons do the planes come into the proper alignment for a nexus to form, a site where two planes begin to bleed into each other. Should a moonbeam pierce such a nexus, it seals away the rift, causing the planar chaos to coalesce into fluid moonsilver. Items made of moonsilver are always of masterwork quality.

Moonsilver weapons are as living extensions of their wielder. A moonsilver weapon is always treated as being a light weapon whenever this would be advantages for its wielder (for example, a moonsilver greatsword could be wielded in only one hand, and would count as a light weapon for determining the penalties incurred for dual-wielding them). In addition, as a swift action, the wielder of a moonsilver weapon may reshape the weapon into any other weapon of the same size and type (light, one-handed, or two-handed). They are not automatically treated as light weapons when determining what kinds of weapons they can be shaped into. When reshaped, the item retains all its magical enhancements. If the item is reshaped into a double weapon, the wielder may choose to have the enhancements apply to only one side, or to apply them to both sides, at the cost of reducing the item’s enhancement bonus by one. When shaping a double weapon into a singular weapon, the wielder must choose a single side’s enhancements to apply to the new form–they cannot pick and choose enhancements from both sides. The moonsilver item retains its new form for as long as its master wills, but it must be restored to its true form before it can be shifted again. A moonsilver weapon that loses contact with its master reverts to its true form at the end of the round. Moonsilver weapons overcome any damage reduction that is overcome by cold iron or alchemical silver.

Those clad in moonsilver armor or shields truly know the best of both worlds: while their armor is a mighty bulwark, it is as light as a wreath of moonbeams. Armor and shields made of moonsilver have no armor check penalty, maximum Dexterity bonus, or arcane spell failure chance. Medium and heavy armor made of moonsilver is treated as light armor, and a character wearing light armor made of moonsilver is treated as being unarmed.

In addition, moonsilver armaments are ideal for shapeshifters. Whenever a character wielding or wearing moonsilver items changes his shape, whether by a polymorph spell, the spirit shape destiny feature, or some other ability, they may choose to absorb any moonsilver items they are wielding into their new form. A moonsilver weapon must be bonded to a natural weapon of the new form. That natural weapon gains all special qualities the weapon possessed (but not its enhancement bonus). Moonsilver armor and shields allow their wearer to retain their special qualities (but not their enhancement bonus to AC) while shapeshifted.

However, it is only the will of Luna’s champions that allows fluid moonsilver to maintain a cohesive form. Only the Lunar Exalted and Moonsilver Caste Alchemical Exalted can use them at their full potential. When not wielded by an appropriate master, a moonsilver weapon weakens and de-solidifies, causing any damage dealt by it (including extra damage from critical hits, sneak attacks, maneuvers, and similar) is halved, and becomes nonlethal. Moonsilver shields and armor not worn by those of the proper Exalt type have their armor or shield bonus to AC reduced to 1.

Weapons, armor, and shields made out of moonsilver have one and a half as many hit points as normal. Moonsilver has a hardness of 20 and 40 hit points per inch of thickness. In addition, each round, a damaged moonsilver item regains 5 hp, as the fluid metal is capable of repairing itself.

Elemental Jade

http://img19.imageshack.us/img19/6946/jadea.jpg
A sword of red jade is imbued with elemental fire itself.

Elemental jade is an alloy of the stone jade with the solidified essence of an element, the favored metal of the Dragonblooded. There are five colors of elemental jade: black jade, alloyed with elemental water; blue jade, alloyed with elemental air; red jade, alloyed with elemental fire; and white jade, alloyed with elemental earth. In addition to these four, there is also green jade, which is alloyed not with an element, but with crystalline positive energy. Items made of elemental jade are always of masterwork quality.

Elemental jade weapons are enhanced with the power of their element. Whenever an attack made with an elemental jade would deal energy damage–whether due to a magic special quality of the item, a spell cast on the wielder, a martial maneuver, or any other ability–the wielder may choose to have the attack instead deal energy damage of the type associated with their weapon’s color of jade. If they do so, they must substitute the energy type for each attack they make with that weapon until the beginning of their next turn. In addition, elemental jade weapons have an additional advantage, based on the color of jade they are wrought from, as below:

• Black jade’s associated energy type is cold. The blade of a black jade weapon flows and parries oncoming blows, granting its wielder a dodge bonus to AC equal to any enhancement bonus on attack rolls the item may have (including the +1 bonus from being a masterwork item).
  
• Blue jade’s associated energy type is electricity. Blue jade is light as the wind, and each iterative attack made with a blue jade weapon is made at a cumulative -3 penalty, rather than -5 (thus, a character with a BAB of +20 would make a full attack with a blue jade weapon at +20/+17/+14/+11, rather than +20/+15/+10/+5).
  
• Green jade’s associated energy type is acid. Green jade is very much a living thing, and it nourishes itself on blood. Every time a green jade weapon deals damage to a living creature, it gains a +3 cumulative bonus on damage rolls until the beginning of its wielder’s next turn.
  
• Red jade’s associated energy type is fire. Red jade burns with the fighting spirit of its master, allowing them to add their Charisma bonus, if any, to any attack rolls made with the weapon.
  
• White jade’s associated energy type is sonic. On a critical hit, any enemy damaged by a white jade weapon must make a Fortitude save, DC equal to the damage the attack dealt, or fall prone. In addition, if they fail the save by 10 or more, they are stunned for 1 round.

Jade armor and shields allow their bearer to weather the elements. An elemental jade armor or shield grants its wearer resistance 5 to the associated element of its color. If the armor or shield has a +1 enhancement bonus, the resistance increases to 10; if it has a +3 enhancement bonus, the resistance increases to 20. Elemental jade armor and shields with a +5 enhancement bonus grant their wearer immunity to their associated element. In addition, elemental jade attunes itself to its wearer’s essence, allowing them to bear it without complaint. The weight of elemental jade armor and shields does not count towards their wearer’s encumbrance, and elemental jade armor can be slept in to no ill effect.

However, elemental jade is made of raw elemental power, and can be dangerous to those unskilled to master it. Anyone except a Terrestrial Exalted or Jade Caste Exalted that wields or wears an elemental jade item takes 5 damage of the item’s associated energy type each round it is held or worn. This damage ignores resistance, and immunity to the energy type only reduces the damage dealt to 1 per round.

Weapons, armor, and shields made out of elemental jade have one and a half as many hit points as normal. Elemental jade has a hardness of 30 and 50 hit points per inch of thickness.

Starmetal

http://wizards.com/dnd/images/tob_gallery/99703.jpg
Few can see the blade of a starmetal weapon...before it strikes them.

Forged from the hearts of stars and the corpses of dead gods, auspicious starmetal is the sacred right of the Sidereal Exalted. It seems no more than mortal iron, only the five-hued rainbow gleam of it betraying its true origins. Starmetal falls to earth from the heavens, a few traces smoldering in the craters left by shooting stars. It would take the starmetal gathered from a thousand such stars to forge a blade of solid starmetal, and thus it is almost always alloyed with mundane iron. However, there is another way to acquire starmetal: the corpses of dead gods, drifting in the Astral Plane, are said to be pocked with veins of starmetal in quantities that would make any Sidereal Exalted quiver with avarice. Items made of starmetal are always of masterwork quality.

Starmetal weapons are fated for triumph. Whenever a character attacks with a starmetal weapon, instead of rolling damage, it instead deals the maximum damage for its damage dice–thus, an attack with a starmetal greatsword automatically deals a base of 12 damage. This only applies to the weapon’s base damage dice, not to damage dice gained through critical hits, magic abilities, maneuvers, or similar (the aura of chaos stance’s extra damage is explicitly not maximized). Once per encounter, anyone attacking with a starmetal weapon may make an auspicious attack, which automatically threatens a critical hit. They must choose to do so before making the attack roll. Regardless of how many starmetal weapons a character has access to, they may make only one auspicious attack per encounter. In addition, a starmetal weapon does not automatically miss on an attack roll of 1.

Starmetal armor and shields twist fate to protect their masters. An attack roll does not automatically hit a character wearing a starmetal armor or shield on a natural 20, although it does still threaten a critical hit and is treated in all other ways as a natural 20. In addition, whenever a weapon deals damage to one wearing a starmetal armor or shield, the weapon’s damage dice is decreased by one step, to a minimum of 1d2. This decrease is not cumulative–wearing an armor and shield both forged of starmetal will not reduce weapon damage by 2 steps.

However, starmetal warps the fate of those not destined to wield it. When not wielded or carried by a Sidereal Exalted or Starmetal Caste Alchemical Exalted, starmetal items bring terrible luck to their wielders. Whenever they roll a natural 20, they must reroll that die, keeping the result of the second roll (they do not reroll if they get a second 20). In addition, once per encounter per starmetal item, when they would roll a d20, the DM may instead decide they automatically fail without making a check, as if they had rolled a natural 1.

Weapons, armor, and shields made out of starmetal have one and a half as many hit points as normal. Starmetal has a hardness of 30 and 50 hit points per inch of thickness.

Soulsteel

http://wizards.com/dnd/images/wl_gallery/90268.jpg
A sword to slay kings.

Soulsteel is an abomination, forged from ores found only in the wastes of Gehenna or the darkness of Dolurrh, and alloyed with tormented souls of the dead. Such a horrific metal is the only fit to serve the Abyssal Exalted. Items made of soulsteel are always of masterwork quality.

Soulsteel weapons are exemplars of cruelty. Any damage dealt by a soulsteel weapon cannot be healed through rest, fast healing, or regeneration. In addition, whenever a soulsteel weapon does at least 10 damage to an enemy in a single attack, the wielder is healed 5 hp.

Soulsteel armor and shields provide horrific defense to their masters. Anyone wearing soulsteel armor or wielding a soulsteel shield gain damage reduction 5/–. In addition, a soulsteel shield or armor with an enhancement bonus of +1 grants its wearer immunity to poison, disease, fatigue, and exhaustion. Soulsteel shields and armor with a +3 enhancement bonus grant their wearers immunity to ability damage and energy drain. Soulsteel shields and armor with a +5 enhancement bonus grant their wearer immunity to death effects.

However, soulsteel saps away the life of those who wield it, save those sanctioned by the bleak Neverborn. Anyone save an Abyssal Exalted or Soulsteel Caste Alchemical Exalted that wields a soulsteel item gains one negative level. This negative level never results in actual level loss, but cannot be removed in any other way. For each day they bear the item, they gain an additional negative level. Only if they lay the soulsteel item aside for a whole week without touching or using it do these additional negative levels subside. The negative levels from multiple soulsteel items stack. A character who dies as a result of negative levels accumulated from soulsteel items has their soul trapped in the soulsteel, and they cannot be resurrected until all soulsteel items they carried are destroyed.

Weapons, armor, and shields made out of soulsteel have twice as many hit points as normal. Soulsteel has a hardness of 50 and 100 hit points per inch of thickness.

Prices
{table=head]Material|Price
Orichalcum Weapon|+75,000 gp
Orichalcum Armor/Shield|+40,000 gp
Moonsilver Weapon|+50,000 gp
Moonsilver Armor/Shield|+50,000 gp
Elemental Jade Weapon|+25,000 gp
Elemental Jade Armor/Shield|+50,000 gp
Starmetal Weapon|+35,000 gp
Starmetal Armor/Shield|+20,000 gp
Soulsteel Weapon|+50,000 gp
Soulsteel Armor/Shield|+60,000 gp
[/table]

Illustration bump!

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Whenever an attack made with an elemental jade would deal energy damage–whether due to a magic special quality of the item, a spell cast on the wielder, a martial maneuver, or any other ability–the wielder may choose to have the attack instead deal energy damage of the type associated with their weapon’s color of jade. If they do so, they must substitute the energy type for each attack they make with that weapon until the beginning of their next round.

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For clarity/standardization I would change "round" to "turn".
edit: is the price increase for an orchalium weapon really supposed to be more than that for armor/shield? If so you need some fluff justifying it.

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Originally Posted by DracoDei

For clarity/standardization I would change "round" to "turn".

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Consider it done.

There is an editing error in soul-steel referring to it as orichalcum. Twice.

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A moonsilver weapon is always treated as being a light weapon whenever this would be advantages for its wielder (for example, a moonsilver greatsword could be wielded in only one hand, and would count as a light weapon for determining the penalties incurred for dual-wielding them). In addition, as a swift action, the wielder of a moonsilver weapon may reshape the weapon into any other weapon of the same size and type (light, one-handed, or two-handed).

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This could be problematic, as any weapon can be shaped into any other weapon (they all count as light weapons, right?). I don't think that that is what you intended.

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Originally Posted by Thane of Fife

This could be problematic, as any weapon can be shaped into any other weapon (they all count as light weapons, right?). I don't think that that is what you intended.

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It's not, I'll clarify that.

I would say that Soulsteel would inflict more than 1 negative level on those unworthy of wielding/wearing it. Seeing as this is an epic evil metal, I'd do at least two.

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Originally Posted by Krimm_Blackleaf

I would say that Soulsteel would inflict more than 1 negative level on those unworthy of wielding/wearing it. Seeing as this is an epic evil metal, I'd do at least two.

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It grows over time. Soulsteel goes "nom nom nom" to your soul. Not "chomp."

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Originally Posted by The Demented One

It grows over time. Soulsteel goes "nom nom nom" to your soul. Not "chomp."

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This is true.

I'm starting to become a really big fan of your work, thank you. That said great Demented One, would it be in poor taste call an intelligent soulsteel greatsword either Stormbringer or Mournblade?

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Originally Posted by Agrippa

I'm starting to become a really big fan of your work, thank you. That said great Demented One, would it be in poor taste call an intelligent soulsteel greatsword either Stormbringer or Mournblade?

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Traditionally, the wielder of the sword Stormbringer is confronted, almost habitually, with moral dilemmas, vis a vis whether the power conferred upon said wielder by the sword is worth the price, vis a vis the souls of the sword's innocent victims, that must be payed in exchange for the power.

On the other hand, most Abyssal Exalted rarely face moral dilemmas at all in their lives. If presented with a magical sword of great power that hungered for the souls of the innocent, their only point of contention would be that hey, they had totally seen those souls first, and had called dibs. But hey, it's no big deal. We can split it. I'll have sausage on my half. Or something to that effect. Perhaps the only way to force an Abyssal Exalt into a moral dilemma would be to confront them with two bags–one full of babies, the other of kittens–and tell them that they can only throw one into a lake of hellfire and sulfur (the traditional Abyssal solution to this dilemma involves cleaving the person holding the bags of assorted squishy things in half, and then throwing in both bags.

Thus, no, you probably shouldn't be calling your soulsteel greatsword Stormbringer.

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Originally Posted by The Demented One

*excellent stuff*

Thus, no, you probably shouldn't be calling your soulsteel greatsword Stormbringer.

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And here, I was going to say that you shouldn't, because soulsteel weapons don't actually steal souls and grant you massive power from them. Stormbringer basically turned it's wielder into a god among mortals, with it granting more power based on what it killed (example: killing a simple man granted a brief boost; killing The Burning God nearly destroyed the wielder, because it was too much power to contain).

Though, I like your example more Demented. :smallbiggrin:

I know, I know Demented One. Stormbringer presents strong moral quandaries for its wielder that wouldn't bother any Abyssal Exalted period. I understand. But couldn't a Neverborn or even Abyssal Exalted forge a soulsteel sword in the same basic mold of Stormbringer with the catch that only non-Abyssal Exalteds can use it. Slowly corrupting non-Abyssal Exalteds and forcing them to make morally horrific choices resulting in the deaths of their loved ones. Bonus points if the poor sap is a Solar. Seemingly harmless or even beneficial to its wielder at first but often times driving them into murderous bloodrages to state the appetites of the unholy weapon. Wouldn't any particularly crafty Abyssal want to do that?

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Originally Posted by Agrippa

I know, I know Demented One. Stormbringer presents strong moral quandaries for its wielder that wouldn't bother any Abyssal Exalted period. I understand. But couldn't a Neverborn or even Abyssal Exalted forge a soulsteel sword in the same basic mold of Stormbringer with the catch that only non-Abyssal Exalteds can use it. Slowly corrupting non-Abyssal Exalteds and forcing them to make morally horrific choices resulting in the deaths of their loved ones. Bonus points if the poor sap is a Solar. Seemingly harmless or even beneficial to its wielder at first but often times driving them into murderous bloodrages to state the appetites of the unholy weapon. Wouldn't any particularly crafty Abyssal want to do that?

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The Neverborn care only for the triumph of Oblivion, vis a vis the destruction of all Creation. Creating a sword to corrupt a good man would be far more inefficient at this than, say, creating a sword to kill several men of varying shades of morality. The Neverborn take no particular glee in the corruption of the noble and innocent–the creation of the Abyssal Exalted was for the sake of expedience in the destruction of Creation, not to prove any philosophical point regarding the corruptive influence of evil.

Now, the Yozis do have some tendency to corrupt the noble and good-hearted, vis a vis the process of transforming Exalts into Akumas and the Infernal Exaltation. Their modus operandi seems to be finding a way to return to Creation, and corrupting the pure-hearted does serve that agenda, given that the majority of such targets for their corruption were responsible for their defeat and could be the agents of their return. Long story short, we may see a sword of Malfean brass that corrupts its wielder over to the side of evil. But probably not one of soulsteel.

Then just forget the part about corruption and focus more on the massive loss of life and souls it would cause. Create one of these swords and let some unwitting non-Abyssal bring about Oblivion for you. Hell, why not make 100 of these things? Maybe even allow the sword to eventually overide the free will of its wielder as he or she becomes an unwilling butcher until they commit suicide with the unholy blade and the sword falls into someone elses hand. Of course Malfean brass and the Yozis sound more interesting to me than the Abyssals and soulsteel does. Just differing tastes in evil, that's all :smallamused:. I wonder if they'd fight over Flagg and (Hellboy's depiction of) Rasputin.

Ok, I have a quick question about the Moonsilver.

Ok, this is in regards to determining the penalties incurred for dual-wielding.
If the weapon is a light weapon or is treated as a light weapon by the wielder say through the Oversize Two Weapon Fighting feat would the two weapon fighting penalties drop to zero?

Demented One, all your stuff is truly awesome. Truly.
Are you going to be doing epic destinies for the Infernal Exalted, or should we just change the fluff of the Abyssal?

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Originally Posted by horngeek

Demented One, all your stuff is truly awesome. Truly.
Are you going to be doing epic destinies for the Infernal Exalted, or should we just change the fluff of the Abyssal?

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He's going to do it once the 2nd ed. Infernals book comes out, which I think is in a month or so.

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Originally Posted by Krimm_Blackleaf

He's going to do it once the 2nd ed. Infernals book comes out, which I think is in a month or so.

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Yup. And it's gonna be so damn awesome.

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Originally Posted by The Demented One

Yup. And it's gonna be so damn awesome.

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Sweeeeeet.

I haven't said so earlier, but I just wanted to say: this stuff is awesome. Great work, o Demented One.

As a fan of weapons that change shape, I have to give a big thumbs up to Moonsilver. Very well done, indeed.