Publication:Complete Gear/Variant Rules/Special Materials

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Special Materials

Some Game Masters and players may not be able to think of special materials as a property that a character can change about their weapon or armor. In this case, a simple variant to the rule should be employed. The data given on the table regarding Influence Points by level could be reduced by a specified amount so that the difference can be given to the players in the form of gold pieces. With that gold, a player can buy a piece of armor made out of the special materials which can then be influenced by the character as the player desires. In the end, the result is the same.

As an example of this variant, a 10th level character should have 49,000 IPs available to them. If the player wanted to purchase an adamantine chain shirt in a game using this variant rule, the player’s IP pool could be lowered to 43,850 IPs and then given 5,150 gold via treasure in order to purchase a masterwork adamantine chain shirt. Of course, it is masterwork because items made of adamantine are always masterwork in quality.

The most important aspect to this variant is that communication of expectations needs to be made between the Game Master and the players. If the Game Master wishes to use this variant, it is up to the Game Master to ensure that they provide enough gold in treasure to accommodate any desires a player may have regarding special materials. Likewise, it is important that players communicate their hopes with respect to the amount of gold needed to purchase the desired material when using this variant. This is a discussion that should happen at the inception of the game so that the rules and expectations are clear from the beginning.

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