Creating Magical Items

This is partly house rules, partly a summary of canon rules.

General

• These are general limits that apply in addition to canon rules:
  • How many items can a character create and still get other things done?
  • How many items can a character use and not have anything backfire?
• These apply to items that work permanently (until/unless somehow destroyed or otherwise ruined).
• These do not apply to items that work only once (e.g. talens, alchemical products).

Types of items

• Items must be spelled out in a book (e.g. a specific fetish) or emulate a specific power (or combination of powers)
• Items may require conversion (e.g. if a gift costs Gnosis, then a treasure emulating that gift may cost Glamour instead)
• To emulate a power from a different game line, the creator must have at least 3 dots in the relevant Lore

Level and genre

• The level of an item emulating one or more powers is the sum of the levels of those powers
• The genre of an item is based on its creator's race/subrace

Creation

• Each creator gets a number of tokens per month
• Successfully creating an item uses a number of tokens equal to its level
• Tokens do not roll over from one month to the next
  • Exception: Creating a single item that would use up to two months worth of tokens
  • Exception: If staff takes several weeks to process a request, tokens may be taken from any month within that time

Character	Building limit
Shifter	Rituals x 2
Changeling	Gremayre x 2
Technocrat	Hypertech x 2
Other	Occult x 2

Carrying/use

• Characters are limited by how many items they can bring into a scene
  • Characters can have/use an unlimited number of items at home
• The limit is compared to the sum of the item levels
• To use an out-of-genre item, a character must have at least as many dots in Occult as the item's level
  • Shifters must have Rituals instead
  • Changelings must have Gremayre instead
  • Technocrats using a non-Technocrat item (mage or otherwise) must have Occult and/or RD Data
  • If the item requires spending something (e.g. Gnosis), then the character must also have that thing
  • All items are considered out-of-genre for the 'Other' group below
• Receiving an item made by another PC does not require buying background dots

Character	Carrying limit	Notes
Vampire	Highest discipline + Occult	not x2 (magical items are uncommon for vampires)
Shifter	(Rank + Rituals) x 2
Mage	(Arete + Occult) x 2	Technocrats use Hypertech instead of Occult
Sorcerer/Psychic	(Highest Numina + Occult) x 2
Changeling	(Highest Art + Gremayre) x 2
Wraith/Risen	(Highest Arcanos + Occult) x 2
Demon	(Faith, max 5 + Occult) x 2
Other	Occult x 2	Includes Mortal, Ghoul, Subrace:Kinfolk, Subrace:Kinain, Possessed, Bygone

Discrepancies

• Need to decide on in-between limits for items that work for a fixed duration (e.g. one month) but are reusable within that time

Vampire

(to be filled out: Enchant Talisman, Chanjelin Ward, Entrap Ephemera, etc.)

Werewolf

Fetishes

Hammer and Klaive chapter 2 (pages 41-59)

Note: Some rites do not use the usual dice pool for their type (WtA 155, "Rites Chart" at upper right)

Step 1: Decide what your fetish will do

• Must be in a book or emulate a power from a book
• Level 1 to 5 (H+K 46-47)
• Gnosis 4 to 8 (H+K 46)

Step 2: Optional modifiers to Rite of the Fetish difficulty

Activity	Dice Roll	Difficulty Modifier	Notes
Research	Mentor or Kinfolk vs 8, or Allies or Contacts vs 9 (requires justification)	-1 per success	Takes one week per die rolled (you can choose to roll only part of your pool)
Rite of Cleansing	Charisma + Rituals vs 7 (6 if performed at dawn) (WtA 157)	-1 per success over the fetish's level

Step 3: Decide what type of spirit to summon (WtA 298-301, Axis Mundi)

• Some optional modifiers depend on the spirit's Willpower
• Cite the book and page number to staff, not just the name of the type

Step 4: Perform Rite of Summoning (WtA 161)

• Pierce or enter the Gauntlet (generally handwaved)
• Summon a spirit (generally handwaved that you spend a couple hours working on it; roll your Gnosis, difficulty = 3)
  • If you get less than 3 successes, the spirit is initially hostile (+1 difficulty to Rite of the Fetish)

Step 5: More optional modifiers to Rite of the Fetish difficulty

Activity	Dice Roll	Difficulty Modifier	Notes
Call to Duty gift (WtA 140)	Charisma + Leadership vs spirit's Willpower	-1	Requires spending 2 Gnosis or knowing a specific spirit's name
Clever persuasion	Charisma + (Expression or Performance or Leadership) vs spirit's Willpower	-1 if you get at least as many successes as the fetish level
Spend permanent Gnosis		-2 per dot spent
Taboo		-1 to -3
Direct threat		Up to -4 or automatic failure
Indirect threat	(Charisma or Manipulation) + Intimidation vs spirit's Willpower	-1
Activated using Willpower instead of Gnosis		+2	Allows fetish to be used by characters without Gnosis, e.g. kinfolk

Step 6: Perform Rite of the Fetish (WtA 161)

• Wits + Rituals vs 10 (taking any optional modifiers into account)

Using a fetish (WtA 240-241)

• Attunement is generally handwaved
• Counts as dedicated without using up a Rite of Talisman Dedication slot
• Activation: Roll your Gnosis (difficulty = fetish's Gnosis), or spend a Gnosis

Multiple spirits per fetish (H+K 57)

• Black Furies can perform Rite of Summoning multiple times, or use Call of Duty to attract multiple spirits
• Glass Walkers can perform Rite of Summoning multiple times
• Grand klaives and other fetishes with multiple effects (any tribe can attempt this):
  • Perform Rite of the Fetish an additional time for the additional effect; if it fails, stop and try again later
  • Roll the fetish's old Gnosis vs (new level * 2)
    • Success = existing spirit(s) get angry; fetish ruined, ritualist takes 1 (potentially soakable) agg per success
    • Number of dice can be reduced using same methods as reducing difficulty of Rite of the Fetish

Talens

• Same as fetishes, except Rite of the Fetish is replaced with Rite of Binding
  • Spend 1 or more Gnosis
  • Roll Willpower vs (spirit's Gnosis - amount of Gnosis spent)
    • -1 if creator has created that type of talen before and performs Renewing the Talen
  • 1 talen per success, plus 2 to 3 more if a greater spirit is bound

Mage

Artifacts/Inventions

• Forged by Dragon's Fire 15-20, examples 20-25
• Crafting
  • Artifacts: Dexterity + Crafts
  • Inventions: Intelligence + (Technology or Computer, or Hypertech but it's more prone to Paradox Earth-side)
  • One roll = one IC hour
  • Accumulate 30+ successes
• Purification (optional)
  • Prime 2
  • Get 3 successful rolls in a row; if you do, Quickening is -2 difficulty
• Quickening
  • Prime 4 (3 with Tass with appropriate resonance, 4 lets you create your own Tass from Quintessence), vulgar
    • Living artifact: need Prime 5 (4 with appropriate Tass)
    • Paradox handling other than mitigating: need Prime 5
  • Must have sphere level(s) sufficient to create the desired effect
  • One roll = one IC hour
  • Item's point value equals sum of sphere levels to create its effect
    • Flaws can reduce point value by up to 3
    • Item is continuously active: double point value
  • Accumulate 2 successes per point
  • Spend 1 Quintessence/Tass per success required (does not reduce difficulty)
• Usage
  • Must activate each time: roll Arete vs (3 + highest sphere level emulated) and get at least one success
  • This does not apply if the item is continuously active

Charms/Gadgets

• Forged by Dragon's Fire 25-28, examples 28-31
• Single-use items
• Crafting and purification works the same as artifacts/inventions
• Quickening
  • Requires one less dot of Prime
  • Paradox handling is limited to mitigating
  • Point value is half the highest sphere level (round up) + 1 per additional sphere (regardless of levels)
  • Can create (Arete x 2) instances at once
• Does not require an Arete roll to activate
• Shelf life:
  • Default = 3 months
  • 1 extra success = 1 year
  • 2 extra successes = 5 years
  • 3 extra successes = 10 years
  • 4 extra successes = 25 years
  • 5 extra successes = 100 years
  • 6 extra successes = never goes bad

Fetishes

• Forged by Dragon's Fire 31-36, examples 36-39
• Preparation: Spirit must be coerced, beaten in combat, or given chiminage
• Binding
  • Spirit 4
  • One roll = one IC hour
  • Point value is 1 to 5 at ST discretion
  • Accumulate four successes per point
  • Paradox handling is limited to mitigating or absorbing
• Usage
  • Must attune once: roll Willpower vs fetish's Gnosis, fail = must placate spirit before trying again
  • Must activate each time: roll Willpower vs fetish's Gnosis and get at least one success

Periapts

• Forged by Dragon's Fire 39-42, examples 42-43
• Quickening
  • Usable only by creator: Prime 4 (5 if living)
  • Usable by anyone: Matter 5 (Life 5 if living)
  • Accumulate 2 successes per level
  • Spend 10 points of Tass per level (does not reduce difficulty)
  • Holds up to 5 points of Quintessence per level
  • Leave it full for (level) months to avoid flaws
• Usage: transfer its Quintessence to yourself
  • Physical contact: auto-succeeds, but takes a full turn
  • Line of sight: Prime 2
  • Outside line of sight: Prime 2 Corr 2
• Recharging: transfer Quintessence to it
  • Leave it at a node: (level) points per day
  • Prime 3: from a node, Tass, another periapt with same type of resonance (dynamic/static/entropic)
  • Prime 4: from an inanimate object, unweaving and possibly destroying it
  • Prime 5: from a living (or undead) creature
• Fused periapts
  • Worn by mage or familiar continuously for (10 - level) weeks
    • If removed, it's reduced to a normal periapt until it has time to re-fuse
  • Can spend/recharge its Quintessence as if it was your own
  • Also increases your maximum possible Paradox

Talismans/Devices

• Forged by Dragon's Fire 45-51, examples 51-65
• Has its own Arete
  • Mage and talisman can cast effects during same turn
  • Can be used by sleepers
• Crafting works the same as artifacts/inventions
• Imbue Arete (required, replaces purification)
  • Prime 3, vulgar
  • Spend one Tass per roll (does not reduce difficulty)
  • Successful roll: item gains one dot of Arete (regardless of number of successes)
  • Failure: take a one-point flaw and keep going, or accept the item's current Arete and go to Imbue Powers
  • Botch: item useless, if you already took flaws then take 1 aggravated damage per flaw
  • One roll = one IC hour
• Imbue Powers (similar to Quickening)
  • Accumulate 1 success per point
  • Can include Quintessence storage (talisman is a periapt in addition to other effects)
  • Paradox handling can include nullification
• Bind the Will: spend 1 permanent Willpower
• Adding powers to an existing talisman:
  • Just perform the Imbue Powers step
  • Original creator is -2 difficulty, anyone else is +2 difficulty

Grimoires/Principiae

• Forged by Dragon's Fire 65-71, examples 71-75

(to be filled out)

Sorcerer

Enchantment and Alchemy:

• Determine level needed (see Numina chart)
• Work out the ritual (3 XP per dot)
• Cast the ritual (can be reused)
  • Enchantment: Intelligence + (Occult / Science) vs (3 + level of ritual)
  • Alchemy: Intelligence + (Alchemy / Herbalism / Science) vs (3 + level of ritual)
• Level of item created:
  • Enchantment 1-3 typically creates a level 1 item
  • Enchantment 4 typically creates a level 2 item
  • Enchantment 5 typically creates a level 3 item
  • Alchemy is similar, but creates a single-use item

Changeling

Dreams and Nightmares pages 119-122

• Volume
• Amount, scarcity, location
• Harvesting
  • Dexterity + Kenning vs 7 (6 for nockers/boggans/nunnehi)
• Crafting/forging
  • Extended Dexterity + Crafts vs 7
  • Accumulate 6 to 28 successes
  • After 8+ successes (if you're not finished already), replace Dexterity with Stamina
• Tempering
  • Future owner (if not yourself) should be present at this point
  • Dexterity + Kenning vs 8
• Testing
  • Intelligence + Enigmas vs (N/5, maximum 9)
  • N = amount of Glamour invested

(to be filled out: Nocker-specific stuff)

House rules

How many chimera points do you need?

• Redes: 1 per dot
• Banes: 1 or -1 per dot at staff discretion
• Effects based on an art: 2 per dot
  • Crafter must have that art at that level or higher
• Glamour: 1 per dot
  • Only required if a rede or effect requires spending Glamour
  • Holder cannot spend their own Glamour, it must come from the item
  • Recharge as normal, e.g. leave it in a freehold
• Treasure: 5 extra chimera points
  • This cost is based on the Wyrd rede, but does not affect the item's level

How do you acquire the materials to provide these chimera points?

• Buy them with Dross (+rules Dross)
  • Each dot of Dross pays for 4 chimera points per month
  • Cannot be stockpiled except by declaring it up front for a specific item
• Harvest them yourself
  • Find an area of the Dreaming with appropriate material
  • Once per type per month
  • Dexterity + Kenning vs 6 (nockers/boggans/nunnehi) or 7 (others), fail = try again next day, botch = try again next month
  • Staff will roll privately to check for motherlodes, etc.

How do chimera points affect your rolls?

• Crafting successes: 3 per chimera point, minimum 6, maximum 28
• Testing difficulty: Based on N = number of chimera points

Chimerical armor or melee weapons with no special effects (i.e. the only thing magical about them is that they're chimerical):

• If you have the Dross background, you can probably just buy them from an NPC
• If you want to create them yourself:
  • Armor requires one chimera point per soak level
  • Melee weapon that does Str+N damage requires N+1 chimera points
  • Extended Dexterity + Crafting vs 6 (nockers/boggans) or 7 (others), accumulate at least one success per chimera point

Wraith

(to be filled out)

Demon

Enhance Object (Forge 1)

Demon Player Guide 142-148

• What can you enhance?
  • Must be manufactured (Crafts or Technology)
  • Must have a physical game mechanic
  • Must not have been previously modified with any level of Forge
• Perception + Crafts
  • Base difficulty is 5 to 10, depending on size and complexity of item
  • Ravage thralls (DtF 251) for more dice (up to your Faith)
  • Spend Faith and/or Willpower for one automatic success each
  • Take extra time for more dice (up to 2)
  • Use resonant tools (DPG 68-71) for -1 difficulty
  • Apocalyptic form:
    • Reduced difficulty on Crafts applies
    • Reduced difficulty on Perception does not apply
    • Increased Perception applies
  • +1 or +2 difficulty if unfamiliar with the item (can perform a separate Enhance Object evocation to become familiar)
• Allocate successes:
  • Reduce a difficulty (-1 per success, minimum 3)
  • Increase a difficulty (+1 per success, maximum 10)
  • Increase an effect (e.g. damage dice, soak dice) (1 die per success, maximum double original)
  • Increase durability (1 health level per success, maximum double original)
  • Improve another factor (e.g. car's top speed, pistol's range, computer's memory and speed) (20% per success, maximum double original)
• Duration:
  • Lasts for the scene
  • Spend a Willpower to make it permanent
  • Gift it to a thrall and have them spend a permanent Willpower to make it permanent; they must then activate it per use in some fashion (e.g. succeed at Willpower vs 8, spend Willpower, take 1 unsoakable bashing)

Enchant Object (Forge 4)

Demon Player Guide 148-159

• What can you enchant?
  • Can be mechanical, but not technological (unless broken)
  • Must not have been previously modified with any level of Forge
• Need at least one dot in the Lore(s) to be emulated (or work with a collaborator who has it)
  • Can also emulate an aspect of the apocalyptic form associated with the Lore
• If you create the item from raw materials:
  • (Dexterity or Wits or Intelligence) + (Crafts or Technology), extended (one roll per day)
  • Up to +2 difficulty if fine work or special tools are needed (e.g. intricate clockwork, engraving)
  • Successes are capped at 3 * background (e.g. Resources) used to get the raw materials
• Performing the evocation:
  • Dexterity + Crafts, extended
  • If you created the item from raw materials:
    • Base difficulty = 6 (7 if working with one or more collaborators)
    • Successes are capped at the number of successes you got when creating the item
  • Otherwise:
    • Base difficulty = 8 (9 if working with one or more collaborators)
    • Successes are capped at 3 * background used to get the item
• Allocate successes:
  • Minimum = 2 * highest level of Lore emulated
    • +2 per collaborator
    • Up to -2 for requiring onerous/severe sacrifice to activate
    • Up to -2 for significant/drastic limitation (e.g. more limited target than usual)
    • Up to +2 for bonuses (e.g. longer range)
  • Power: Item's dice pool = creator's dice pool for the Lore being emulated; 1 success = 2 more dice
  • Frequency: One use per scene; 1 success = 1 more use per scene, or 5 successes = unlimited uses per scene
  • Ravage thralls (DtF 251) for more dice (up to your Faith) (on one roll, affecting another roll requires ravaging again)
  • Spend Faith and/or Willpower for one automatic success each (on one roll, affecting another roll requires spending again)
  • Use resonant tools and/or enchant a resonant item for -1 difficulty (does not stack if you do both)
  • Make the item produce resonant side effects for -1 difficulty
  • Apocalyptic form: Bonuses to Crafts and/or Dexterity apply
• Spend Faith equal to highest Lore emulated (+1 or -1 at ST discretion, minimum 1)
  • This is increased from DtF 191 which just requires spending 1 Faith
• Activating it for a scene:
  • Demons must roll Faith vs 6 or spend Faith (botch = lose 1 Faith)
  • Others must roll Willpower vs 8 or spend Willpower (botch = lose 1 Willpower)
  • If the creator evoked the high-torment version of Forge 4:
    • Demons must gain 1 Torment to activate
    • Others must spend Willpower to activate
    • Item botches more often (2s count as 1s)
  • Can attune yourself to an item:
    • Demons spend 1 permanent Faith
    • Others spend 1 permanent Willpower
    • This eliminates the requirement to roll/spend Faith/Willpower or gain Torment
    • If the relic has additional activation requirements, those are not eliminated
    • If the relic was created with high-torment Forge 4, it still botches more often
    • Multiple characters can be attuned to the same item

Demonic Relics

Demon Player Guide 159-166

(to be filled out)