Special Material Rules
Special Materials and Item Quality
Items made of special materials add the special material's cost after multiplying the item's base cost by the item's quality. The total is then divided or multiplied depending on the item's size.
Special Material Settlement Availability
The amount of special materials available for purchase in a settlement, both in its raw form and manufactured form, is limited based on the settlement's size.
Table: Special Material Settlement Availability
| Special Material | Thorpe | Hamlet | Village | Small Town | Large Town | Small City | Large City | Metropolis | (+1) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adamantine | |||||||||
| Aetherium | |||||||||
| Alchemical Silver | |||||||||
| Aranea Silk | |||||||||
| Blood Crystal | |||||||||
| Cold Iron | |||||||||
| Chthonic Steel | |||||||||
| Dragonhide | |||||||||
| Dragonskin | |||||||||
| Eel Hide | |||||||||
| Elysian Bronze | |||||||||
| Fireforged Steel | |||||||||
| Frostforged Steel | |||||||||
| Glassteel | |||||||||
| Greenwood | |||||||||
| Griffon Mane | |||||||||
| Ironleaf Cloth | |||||||||
| Ironwood | |||||||||
| Living Steel | |||||||||
| Primal Iron | |||||||||
| Silversheen | |||||||||
| Singing Steel | |||||||||
| Sunsilver | |||||||||
| Viridium | |||||||||
| Voidglass | |||||||||
| Whipwood | |||||||||
| Wyroot |
Adamantine
Weapons
Weapons fashioned from adamantine have a natural ability to bypass hardness when sundering weapons or attacking objects, ignoring hardness less than 20. Adamantine weapons also ignore up to DR 20/armor and up to +20 non-adamatine shield bonus to DV.
Weapons that do not normally have metal parts can be made entirely out of adamantine, such as a quarterstaff.
Armor
Armor made from adamantine grants its wearer DR/epic instead of DR/armor, and increases its armor bonus by +1 if it's light armor, +2 if it's medium armor, and +4 if it's heavy armor. Adamantine armor and shield bonuses can be applied against firearms at all range increments.
Shield
The shield bonus from adamantine shields is increased by 50% from its non-adamantine version, and can be applied against firearms.
| Type of Item | Item Cost Modifier |
|---|---|
| Ammunition | +60 gp per missile |
| Light armor | +5,000 gp |
| Medium armor | +10,000 gp |
| Heavy armor | +15,000 gp |
| Other items | +1,000 gp/lb. |
Aetherium
When worked like steel, aetherium becomes a wonderful material from which to create armor, and is occasionally used for other items as well. Most aetherium armors are one category lighter than normal for purposes of movement and other limitations. Heavy armors are treated as medium, and medium armors are treated as light, but light armors are still treated as light. This decrease does not apply to proficiency in wearing the armor. A character wearing aetherium full plate must be proficient in wearing heavy armor to avoid adding the armor's check penalty to all his attack rolls and skill checks that involve moving. Armor check penalties are decreased by 3 (to a minimum of 0). Aetherium armor and shield bonuses can be applied against firearms.
Items not primarily of metal are not meaningfully affected by being partially made of aetherium. Weapons that do not normally have metal parts can be made entirely out of aetherium, such as a quarterstaff. Aetherium weapons that can be wielded in one hand are considered as light weapons.
| Type of Item | Item Cost Modifier |
|---|---|
| Light armor | +1,000 gp |
| Medium armor | +4,000 gp |
| Heavy armor | +9,000 gp |
| Shield | +1,000 gp |
| Other items | +500 gp/lb. |
Dragonhide
HP/inch 10 (hide of a dragon is typically between 1/2 inch and 1 inch thick); Hardness 10; Cost Dragonhide armor costs twice as much as masterwork armor of the same type, but it takes no longer to make than ordinary armor of that type (double all Craft results). If the armor or shield is later given the ability to protect the wearer against that energy type, the cost to add such protection is reduced by 25%.
One dragon produces enough hide for a single suit of masterwork hide armor for a creature one size category smaller than the dragon. By selecting only choice scales and bits of hide, an armorsmith can produce one suit of masterwork banded mail 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 hide is available to produce a light or heavy masterwork shield in addition to the armor, provided that the dragon is Large or larger. If the dragonhide comes from a dragon that had immunity to an energy type, the armor and shield is also immune to that energy type, and confers to the wearer an energy resistance to that type equal to its armor bonus.
Because dragonhide armor isn’t made of metal, druids can wear it without penalty.
Though smiths have been making dragonhide armor for centuries without the benefit of dragoncrafting, those with the Dragoncrafting feat are able to improve upon an already excellent product.
Normally, if a suit of dragonhide armor has energy immunity, one may enhance such a suit with additional energy protection for the wearer at a 25% reduced cost. However, only effects with the same elemental type as the armor’s immunity are eligible for this discount. An artisan with the Dragoncrafting feat may add 1 additional elemental protection to a suit of dragonhide armor at the same 25% discount, even if this energy resistance is not normally associated with the type of dragonhide being used.
Ironleaf Cloth
HP/inch 20; Hardness 10; Cost see table.
| Type of Item | Cost Modifier |
|---|---|
| Clothing | +500 gp |
| Light armor | +750 gp |
| Medium armor | +1,500 gp |
| Other items | +375 gp/lb. |
Ironleaf cloth is a special form of flexible material made by weaving together leaves and thin strips of bark from ironwood trees, then treating the resulting fabric with special alchemical processes. The resulting material is tough as cured hide but much lighter, making it an excellent material from which to create armor. Armor check penalties decrease by 3 (to a minimum of 0).
An item made from ironleaf cloth weighs half as much as the same item made from normal cured leather, furs, or hides. Items not primarily constructed of leather, fur, or hide are not meaningfully affected by being partially made of ironleaf cloth. As such padded, leather, studded leather, and hide armor can be made out of ironleaf cloth (although other types of armor made of leather or hide might be possible). Because ironleaf cloth remains flexible, it cannot be used to construct rigid items such as shields or metal armors.
Ironwood
HP/inch 10; Hardness 10; Cost +100 gp per pound.
This rare magic wood is as hard as iron but very lighter than normal wood.
Any item made out of wood, metal, or a combination of both can be made with ironwood, and it would weigh only half as much as a normal item of that type. The armor check penalty of an ironwood armor or shield is lessened by 2 (to a minimum 0).