Chitin (3.5e Equipment)

Author: Ganteka Future (talk) Date Created: 14 October 2022 Status: Tentative Completion Editing: Clarity edits only please

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Chitin

Note: Chitin is adapted from SRD:Dragonhide as the base for its design. It may perform slightly better than that material, and it is recommended to use the Pathfinder version of dragonhide (which has more features) instead in a game where chitin is used.

Certain monstrous arthropods (spiders, scorpions, crabs, etc...) have exoskeletons that can be harvested and made into armor, weapons and tools. Trained smiths can work with this material, called chitin, to produce equipment of masterwork quality.

Chitin armor, shields and weapons cost twice as much as masterwork equipment of the same type, though it takes no longer to make compared to ordinary equipment of that type; calculate Craft results with the base price instead of the doubled price.

One monstrous arthropod provides enough harvestable chitin for a single suit of masterwork hide armor for a creature one size category smaller than the monstrous arthropod. By selecting only choice plates and bits of shell, an armorsmith can produce one suit of masterwork banded mail or tower shield for a creature two sizes smaller, one suit of masterwork half-plate for a creature three sizes smaller, or one masterwork breastplate or suit of full plate for a creature four sizes smaller. In each case, enough chitin is available to produce a light or heavy masterwork shield in addition to the armor, provided that the monstrous arthropod is Large or larger.

During the crafting process for making chitin armor, an additional 150 gp can be paid to add one of the following skill bonuses as a masterwork tool of the appropriate type: Climb, Escape Artist, Hide, Jump, Move Silently, Swim.

Chitin can also be crafted into masterwork weapons normally made of wood or metal. Since chitin is not made of wood or metal, it is not subject to spells that specifically target and affect such materials (such as chill metal and warp wood).

Some items and objects can be crafted out of chitin as well, and cost twice as much as their mundane counterparts.

Harvesting chitin from a monstrous arthropod takes some time and requires the appropriate tools and checks (which vary on depending the creature and size). The amount of choice raw material needed for armor and weapons weighs about twice that of the finished product. Less choice pieces can be used to make ordinary equipment and items.

Because chitin isn’t made of metal, druids are not prohibited from using it.

Chitin has 10 hit points per inch of thickness and hardness 10. These items weigh 75% of what the base item would weigh.

Table: Chitin Equipment & Items

Item	Size	Base Market Price1		Weight 2
Medium Armor
		Humanoid Cost	Nonhumanoid Cost
Masterwork Hide	Small	330 gp	360 gp	9.375 lb.
	Medium	330 gp	360 gp	18.75 lb.
Masterwork Breastplate	Small	700 gp	1,100 gp	11.25 lb.
	Medium	700 gp	1,100 gp	22.5 lb.
Heavy Armor
		Humanoid Cost	Nonhumanoid Cost
Masterwork Banded Mail	Small	800 gp	1,300 gp	13.125 lb.
	Medium	800 gp	1,300 gp	26.25 lb.
Masterwork Half-Plate	Small	1,500 gp	2,700 gp	18.75 lb.
	Medium	1,500 gp	2,700 gp	37.5 lb.
Masterwork Full Plate	Small	3,300 gp	6,300 gp	18.75 lb.
	Medium	3,300 gp	6,300 gp	37.5 lb.
Shields
Masterwork Light Shield	Small	318 gp		2.25 lb.
	Medium	318 gp		4.5 lb.
Masterwork Heavy Shield	Small	340 gp		5.625 lb.
	Medium	340 gp		11.25 lb.
Masterwork Tower Shield	Small	360 gp		16.875 lb.
	Medium	360 gp		33.75 lb.
Masterwork component costs are part of the doubled base price costs. You may want to round the listed weights up to the nearest half pound for simplicity.

Table: Chitin Adventuring Gear

Item	Cost	Weight
Barrel (empty)	4 gp	22.5 lb.
Basket (empty)	8 sp	.75 lb.
Bucket (empty)	1 gp	1.5 lb.
Caltrops	2 gp	1.5 lb.
Case, map or scroll	2 gp	.375 lb.
Chain (10 ft.)	60 gp	1.5 lb.
Chest (empty)	4 gp	18.75 lb.
Crowbar	4 gp	3.75 lb.
Fishhook	2 sp	—
Grappling hook	2 gp	3 lb.
Hammer	1 gp	1.5 lb.
Ladder, 10-foot	1 sp	15 lb.
Lamp, common	2 sp	.75 lb.
Lantern, bullseye	24 gp	2.25 lb.
Lantern, hooded	14 gp	1.5 lb.
Manacles	30 gp	1.5 lb.
Manacles, masterwork	100 gp	1.5 lb.
Pick, miner’s	6 gp	7.5 lb.
Piton	2 sp	.375 lb.
Pole, 10-foot	4 sp	6 lb.
Pot, chitin	1 gp	7.5 lb.
Spade or shovel	4 gp	6 lb.
These items weigh one-quarter this amount when made for Small characters. Containers for Small characters also carry one-quarter the normal amount.

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