Can worforged eat? [Archive] - Wizards Community

Can worforged eat? [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
limelizard
05-18-07, 01:28 AM I know warforged benefit from magical consumables, but can a warforged eat mundane food?
Rerecros
05-18-07, 03:07 AM yes, though they gain no advantage from it, I'm not sure if they can taste, and if they can tast I'm not sure weather their tastes resemble anything like a human's.
UnderworldLord
05-18-07, 03:26 AM The warforged according to a dragon article, have all five sense.
Edymnion
05-18-07, 08:33 AM Remember the Warforged Rule of Thumb:
"Unless specifically stated otherwise, treat the WF just like any other race."

And it's companion piece:
"If not specifically stated otherwise, replace the word 'warforged' in your question with the word 'human', and ask it again. If the answer is yes to that one, then it is yes for the WF as well, and vice versa."

Nowhere does it say that WF are incapable of eating, just that they don't need to.
gelalshawr
05-18-07, 01:29 PM according to MoE, WF do not have a sense of smell, and as such, if they have a sense of taste it would be weakened.
UnderworldLord
05-18-07, 02:02 PM I couldn't find anywhere in magic of eberron that is said they had no sense of taste/smell. However, I did recall the tracker mask from RoE which in its fluff says its coveted by warforged because it allows them to smell all smells (as per scent). You could infer that to mean that they have no sense of smell.

But considering we're talking about magical living constructs, you presume that taste and smell are related, which may or may not be. If you want the more robot-like feel, go for a no. If you prefer them more 'living' go with that they can. Personal preference with fluff to back up it being either way. Unfortunately, my google-fu is weak, and I cannot seem to find the article. I also remember the five sense discussion having been said on here before, but again, weak google-fu.
gelalshawr
05-18-07, 04:27 PM I couldn't find anywhere in magic of eberron that is said they had no sense of taste/smell. However, I did recall the tracker mask from RoE which in its fluff says its coveted by warforged because it allows them to smell all smells (as per scent). You could infer that to mean that they have no sense of smell.

But considering we're talking about magical living constructs, you presume that taste and smell are related, which may or may not be. If you want the more robot-like feel, go for a no. If you prefer them more 'living' go with that they can. Personal preference with fluff to back up it being either way. Unfortunately, my google-fu is weak, and I cannot seem to find the article. I also remember the five sense discussion having been said on here before, but again, weak google-fu.

You have correctly discovered my mistake, I was speaking of the Tracker mask in RoE
RogueElement
05-18-07, 07:28 PM according to MoE, WF do not have a sense of smell, and as such, if they have a sense of taste it would be weakened.

Not true, the Tracker Mask entry in MoE is misleading. Check out the warforged dragonshards on the wizards.com site for the clarification.
LoneStranger
05-18-07, 07:39 PM Yeah there's a two part article about the warforged online mentioning they have all five senses, just that taste and smell are the least developed (but still remarkable since it sounds like they weren't included in the design at all). So basically it is possible for a warforged to become a cook in peacetime, just expect it to take a while for him/her to become good at it.
limelizard
05-18-07, 09:47 PM I was thinking of having a warforged take the Adamantine Chef prestige class.
limelizard
05-18-07, 09:48 PM If they eat, were dose the food go?
Bluebrush
05-18-07, 09:48 PM (but still remarkable since it sounds like they weren't included in the design at all).Part of the implication is that it emerged as a feature without any intent from the Cannith designers.
It's another reminder that they're dealing with ancient magic they don't fully understand.
So basically it is possible for a warforged to become a cook in peacetime, just expect it to take a while for him/her to become good at it.I had a player with a warforged rogue/cook. Fun idea.
Rerecros
05-18-07, 11:10 PM Even with a sense of tast, this in noway implies they taste like humans. :P

Warforged: MMMM...iron fillings and drano, my favorite.
Bluebrush
05-19-07, 06:39 AM Incidentally, the title typo makes me want to see a Warforged with a Bat'leth.
Cifer
05-19-07, 09:33 AM If they eat, were dose the food go?
It's broken down to its components, drained of anything interesting (which, since it's nonmagical, is pretty much nothing) and given back to the air as more or less single molecules (or whatever it is Eberronian food is composed of).

An alternative that was presented a while ago is that they just chew the food, their lifewood fibers suck up magic and fluid and they spit it out again, which leads to a very important lesson: Never invite a Warforged to an important dinner.
Edymnion
05-19-07, 12:56 PM according to MoE, WF do not have a sense of smell, and as such, if they have a sense of taste it would be weakened.Incorrect, the Tracer Mask was in Races of Eberron, and is one of the reasons I think it is such a terrible book when it comes to fluff. However, since RoE is not an Eberron book, it has no bearing on what the Warforged in the setting are actually like. It could say that the WF cluck like chickens, but that doesn't make it so.Not true, the Tracker Mask entry in MoE is misleading. Check out the warforged dragonshards on the wizards.com site for the clarification.Also remember that the WF dragonshards came out AFTER RoE, and Keith was essentially backpeddling to try to cover up for the outright mistake that some n00b made in RoE. Since he's not allowed to contradict written material, that was the best he could do to try and correct things.

Honestly, I wish he had never mentioned it, because that just added validity to the idea.
gelalshawr
05-19-07, 02:23 PM Incorrect, the Tracer Mask was in Races of Eberron,

if you had read the entire thread you would have seen that was corrected already... not like it's a hard read, it's still only one page.
InfinityStar8
05-19-07, 02:30 PM I was reading and I don't see anywhere that Elfs ever need to use the bathroom, so they don't right? Also, I don't see where Half-Orcs are smart enough to hold there breath when they swim so they just drown right? And Dwarfs are short right, so they can't reach anything over there head without some special elemental powered booster chair right? Right?
Raziel_Brokodar
05-19-07, 03:52 PM I was reading and I don't see anywhere that Elfs ever need to use the bathroom, so they don't right? Also, I don't see where Half-Orcs are smart enough to hold there breath when they swim so they just drown right? And Dwarfs are short right, so they can't reach anything over there head without some special elemental powered booster chair right? Right?

you are correct in all your assumptions
gelalshawr
05-19-07, 05:12 PM in my Eberron warforged can eat just fine, it just sits around stuck to their insides and rots though, so WF's that eat (at least nonmagical foods, the material part of hero's feast would just fade to nothing at the end of the spell's duration) and don't wash themselves well tend to stink very bad.
NHBDY
05-27-07, 10:37 PM wait then, couldn't they use that to hide something small inside them, like a ring or a scroll?
Edymnion
05-27-07, 11:30 PM if you had read the entire thread you would have seen that was corrected already... not like it's a hard read, it's still only one page.I was agreeing with you, no need to get snippy.wait then, couldn't they use that to hide something small inside them, like a ring or a scroll?Yes, but so could a human. You wanna hide that magic ring from the guards? Swallow it. You won't enjoy digging it out of the pile later on, but if it helps get you out of a cell, its worth it.
kentonblack
05-27-07, 11:43 PM You wanna hide that magic ring from the guards? Swallow it. You won't enjoy digging it out of the pile later on, but if it helps get you out of a cell, its worth it.

*conceives of the mental image*

*hemmorages*

*cries*
Bluebrush
05-28-07, 06:18 AM Remember folks. Prestigiation is your friend!

Especially if you're going to need to swallow it again.
Edymnion
05-28-07, 06:04 PM Remember folks. Prestigiation is your friend!

Especially if you're going to need to swallow it again.:rofl:
TheAnthroDM
05-28-07, 11:18 PM :rofl:

Seconded.

Also to add to the question of what happen to a Warforged's food. In my campaigns it's been explained that when a Warforged eats food the mystical energies in the Warforged's body rip apart the food and convert it into extra energy. No since a Warforged has an unlimited or always renewing source of energy, what happens to it then is still unknown.
Luis_Dragunov
05-29-07, 07:16 PM In Faiths of Eberron, it says that a cult of Warforged (The Reforged, I assume) seeks to emulate living creatures and many of their followers seek magical enhancements to acquire the senses of taste and smell and touch so I assume that, at the very best, such senses on a warforged are dulled.
Neutronium_Dragon
05-29-07, 10:58 PM It's tangential, but I actually find it rather odd that warforged weren't designed with a sense of smell as an intended feature. While they might not have been expected to need to worry about social graces, smell is still a pretty important sense for alerting you when something is wrong, and that'd be valuable in their military capacity.
Bluebrush
05-30-07, 03:09 AM warforged weren't designedAnd there's the key.

Like the Ghulra, the sense of smell (And whole free will thing) is an unintended element of warforged which appears when they emerge from the creation forge.

Cannith have scratched the surface, but the mystery of the warforged is yet to be fully explored.
Darakhoranon
06-02-07, 09:02 AM I was thinking of having a warforged take the Adamantine Chef prestige class.

At least take the "Adamantine Body" feat then...
Lord_Zzyzx
06-02-07, 03:19 PM I was agreeing with you, no need to get snippy.Yes, but so could a human. You wanna hide that magic ring from the guards? Swallow it. You won't enjoy digging it out of the pile later on, but if it helps get you out of a cell, its worth it.

Of course if you wanted to push the idea of warforged consuming magic to its extreme you could say by swallowing a magic ring they would strip it of its magic. (Not to mean that they would absorb the effects of the ring.) Who is to say what the limits of these strange creatures would be. Of course then they start to look like arcane spiders or disenchanters, but what the hell. Why not.
Antioch
06-03-07, 03:05 AM I know warforged benefit from magical consumables, but can a warforged eat mundane food?

A warforged possesses a diluted sense of taste, but cannot swallow food or drink water. Even magical substances are spit out: they have no digestive system of any sort.
Encard
06-03-07, 03:59 AM Actually, in The Gates of Night (- Keith Baker), it's mentioned that warforged can't normally eat. To quote a couple sentences, "Peirce didn't have a stomach. He couldn't consume food if he wanted to." This is before it is mentioned that Hero's Feast (and, presumably, other magical consumables) actually boil down to shaped magical energy, and can thus be absorbed by warforged.
Antioch
06-03-07, 11:47 AM In the case of magical consumables (such as heroes' feast and potions), the warforged would chew the food or swill the liquids around, then spit them out.
gelalshawr
06-03-07, 02:23 PM In the case of magical consumables (such as heroes' feast and potions), the warforged would chew the food or swill the liquids around, then spit them out.

I'd like to know what book this is written in, just for reference, since you seem so certain that this is how it works.
Antioch
06-03-07, 09:53 PM I recall seeing it written somewhere, either in a book or in the Keith Baker FAQ, but I couldnt remember which/where, so I just asked Keith himself.
Encard
06-04-07, 06:45 PM In the case of magical consumables (such as heroes' feast and potions), the warforged would chew the food or swill the liquids around, then spit them out.
As I said... At least according to The Gates of Night, magical consumables (or at least Hero's Feast) can be absorbed directly into the warforged's animating magical energy - in other words, no need for a stomach or spitting.
BraulioB
06-08-07, 07:11 PM Of course they can.... that's what Iron Rations are for. :)

For a snack, they can eat a bag of nuts and bolts.

B
Antioch
06-16-07, 03:48 AM As I said... At least according to The Gates of Night, magical consumables (or at least Hero's Feast) can be absorbed directly into the warforged's animating magical energy - in other words, no need for a stomach or spitting.

I have Keith on my GoogleTalk list. I literally asked him.

me: Quick question: can a normal warforged actually consume food and water? I read something that I thought you wrote that said they can chew, and even have a diluted sense of taste, but cant actually swallow.
Keith: That's basically correct.
They have no stomach or digestive system.
They are capable of absorbing the magical effects from potions or a Heroes' Feast...
But they don't actually fully consume the physical matter.
Essentially, they put it in their mouth, and ultimately have to spit it out.
ArcTan
06-16-07, 03:16 PM Of course if you wanted to push the idea of warforged consuming magic to its extreme you could say by swallowing a magic ring they would strip it of its magic. (Not to mean that they would absorb the effects of the ring.) Who is to say what the limits of these strange creatures would be. Of course then they start to look like arcane spiders or disenchanters, but what the hell. Why not.

Why not? Because it creates an actually quite powerful mechanic that players will try to abuse? And it has nothing to do with the existing flavor of how Warforged work?

Warforged "absorb the magic" from potions because potions are *designed to have the magic absorbed from them*. Potions are nothing but magic items designed to activate when you swallow them, just like oils are nothing but magic items designed to activate when you rub them into your skin. The fact that potions work on warforged even though warforged don't eat or drink isn't remarkable at all, and is entirely based on the way potions work, not the way warforged work.
ArcTan
06-16-07, 03:17 PM Remember the Warforged Rule of Thumb:
"Unless specifically stated otherwise, treat the WF just like any other race."

And it's companion piece:
"If not specifically stated otherwise, replace the word 'warforged' in your question with the word 'human', and ask it again. If the answer is yes to that one, then it is yes for the WF as well, and vice versa."

Nowhere does it say that WF are incapable of eating, just that they don't need to.

...That's a guideline for keeping mechanics balanced, not for flavor.

I don't assume warforged have a pancreas or lymph nodes just because nothing says they don't. I similarly don't assume that about stomachs. (And, as Keith has pointed out, warforged *aren't* supposed to have stomachs, just a place in their mouths where they can temporarily store something they've "eaten".)
ArcTan
06-16-07, 03:18 PM It's tangential, but I actually find it rather odd that warforged weren't designed with a sense of smell as an intended feature. While they might not have been expected to need to worry about social graces, smell is still a pretty important sense for alerting you when something is wrong, and that'd be valuable in their military capacity.

That's what the tracker mask item was intended for (which actually boosts a Warforged's chemical senses to the level of a bloodhound, way beyond that of a Human).
ArcTan
06-16-07, 03:57 PM Incorrect, the Tracer Mask was in Races of Eberron, and is one of the reasons I think it is such a terrible book when it comes to fluff. However, since RoE is not an Eberron book, it has no bearing on what the Warforged in the setting are actually like. It could say that the WF cluck like chickens, but that doesn't make it so.

And Keith Baker's Dragonshards aren't D&D books at all, and are technically less canon than any D&D book that comes out, ever (including the "In Eberron" sections in books like MM4). To say nothing of the fact that Keith Baker's posts on these boards have no canonicity whatsoever.

That has no bearing on whether you decide to *treat* them as canon, which is based on whether you like the books or not. (FWIW, if we treat RoE as just a D&D book rather than an Eberron book, the stuff it says about monsters *in general* is still canon, just like the stuff Races of the Wild says about elves' biology and general cultural traits is still canon.)

Also remember that the WF dragonshards came out AFTER RoE, and Keith was essentially backpeddling to try to cover up for the outright mistake that some n00b made in RoE. Since he's not allowed to contradict written material, that was the best he could do to try and correct things.

It's not a "mistake", it's a difference of opinion. If RoE isn't an Eberron book, then, by definition, things it says about Eberron that contradict the ECS aren't mistakes but changes.

Honestly, I wish he had never mentioned it, because that just added validity to the idea.

What's wrong with that? Do you really think it makes it better to have warforged have exactly the same acuity in taste and smell as a human being?

I'm sorry to keep picking this fight, but I'm sick of you deciding every time someone brings up RoE or likes the book it's time for a bash-fest, and of the idea that anything that contradicts the ECS is by definition wrong. (It's not like there weren't plenty of lame ideas in the ECS itself.)
urklore
07-06-07, 08:55 PM Adamantine Chef?

Where is that prestige class?
greatamericanfolkhero
07-10-07, 03:27 PM Adamantine Chef?

Where is that prestige class?

It was a joke...for now.:D

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
limelizard 05-18-07, 01:28 AM	I know warforged benefit from magical consumables, but can a warforged eat mundane food?
Rerecros 05-18-07, 03:07 AM	yes, though they gain no advantage from it, I'm not sure if they can taste, and if they can tast I'm not sure weather their tastes resemble anything like a human's.
UnderworldLord 05-18-07, 03:26 AM	The warforged according to a dragon article, have all five sense.
Edymnion 05-18-07, 08:33 AM	Remember the Warforged Rule of Thumb: "Unless specifically stated otherwise, treat the WF just like any other race." And it's companion piece: "If not specifically stated otherwise, replace the word 'warforged' in your question with the word 'human', and ask it again. If the answer is yes to that one, then it is yes for the WF as well, and vice versa." Nowhere does it say that WF are incapable of eating, just that they don't need to.
gelalshawr 05-18-07, 01:29 PM	according to MoE, WF do not have a sense of smell, and as such, if they have a sense of taste it would be weakened.
UnderworldLord 05-18-07, 02:02 PM	I couldn't find anywhere in magic of eberron that is said they had no sense of taste/smell. However, I did recall the tracker mask from RoE which in its fluff says its coveted by warforged because it allows them to smell all smells (as per scent). You could infer that to mean that they have no sense of smell. But considering we're talking about magical living constructs, you presume that taste and smell are related, which may or may not be. If you want the more robot-like feel, go for a no. If you prefer them more 'living' go with that they can. Personal preference with fluff to back up it being either way. Unfortunately, my google-fu is weak, and I cannot seem to find the article. I also remember the five sense discussion having been said on here before, but again, weak google-fu.
gelalshawr 05-18-07, 04:27 PM	I couldn't find anywhere in magic of eberron that is said they had no sense of taste/smell. However, I did recall the tracker mask from RoE which in its fluff says its coveted by warforged because it allows them to smell all smells (as per scent). You could infer that to mean that they have no sense of smell. But considering we're talking about magical living constructs, you presume that taste and smell are related, which may or may not be. If you want the more robot-like feel, go for a no. If you prefer them more 'living' go with that they can. Personal preference with fluff to back up it being either way. Unfortunately, my google-fu is weak, and I cannot seem to find the article. I also remember the five sense discussion having been said on here before, but again, weak google-fu. You have correctly discovered my mistake, I was speaking of the Tracker mask in RoE
RogueElement 05-18-07, 07:28 PM	according to MoE, WF do not have a sense of smell, and as such, if they have a sense of taste it would be weakened. Not true, the Tracker Mask entry in MoE is misleading. Check out the warforged dragonshards on the wizards.com site for the clarification.
LoneStranger 05-18-07, 07:39 PM	Yeah there's a two part article about the warforged online mentioning they have all five senses, just that taste and smell are the least developed (but still remarkable since it sounds like they weren't included in the design at all). So basically it is possible for a warforged to become a cook in peacetime, just expect it to take a while for him/her to become good at it.
limelizard 05-18-07, 09:47 PM	I was thinking of having a warforged take the Adamantine Chef prestige class.
limelizard 05-18-07, 09:48 PM	If they eat, were dose the food go?
Bluebrush 05-18-07, 09:48 PM	(but still remarkable since it sounds like they weren't included in the design at all).Part of the implication is that it emerged as a feature without any intent from the Cannith designers. It's another reminder that they're dealing with ancient magic they don't fully understand. So basically it is possible for a warforged to become a cook in peacetime, just expect it to take a while for him/her to become good at it.I had a player with a warforged rogue/cook. Fun idea.
Rerecros 05-18-07, 11:10 PM	Even with a sense of tast, this in noway implies they taste like humans. :P Warforged: MMMM...iron fillings and drano, my favorite.
Bluebrush 05-19-07, 06:39 AM	Incidentally, the title typo makes me want to see a Warforged with a Bat'leth.
Cifer 05-19-07, 09:33 AM	If they eat, were dose the food go? It's broken down to its components, drained of anything interesting (which, since it's nonmagical, is pretty much nothing) and given back to the air as more or less single molecules (or whatever it is Eberronian food is composed of). An alternative that was presented a while ago is that they just chew the food, their lifewood fibers suck up magic and fluid and they spit it out again, which leads to a very important lesson: Never invite a Warforged to an important dinner.
Edymnion 05-19-07, 12:56 PM	according to MoE, WF do not have a sense of smell, and as such, if they have a sense of taste it would be weakened.Incorrect, the Tracer Mask was in Races of Eberron, and is one of the reasons I think it is such a terrible book when it comes to fluff. However, since RoE is not an Eberron book, it has no bearing on what the Warforged in the setting are actually like. It could say that the WF cluck like chickens, but that doesn't make it so.Not true, the Tracker Mask entry in MoE is misleading. Check out the warforged dragonshards on the wizards.com site for the clarification.Also remember that the WF dragonshards came out AFTER RoE, and Keith was essentially backpeddling to try to cover up for the outright mistake that some n00b made in RoE. Since he's not allowed to contradict written material, that was the best he could do to try and correct things. Honestly, I wish he had never mentioned it, because that just added validity to the idea.
gelalshawr 05-19-07, 02:23 PM	Incorrect, the Tracer Mask was in Races of Eberron, if you had read the entire thread you would have seen that was corrected already... not like it's a hard read, it's still only one page.
InfinityStar8 05-19-07, 02:30 PM	I was reading and I don't see anywhere that Elfs ever need to use the bathroom, so they don't right? Also, I don't see where Half-Orcs are smart enough to hold there breath when they swim so they just drown right? And Dwarfs are short right, so they can't reach anything over there head without some special elemental powered booster chair right? Right?
Raziel_Brokodar 05-19-07, 03:52 PM	I was reading and I don't see anywhere that Elfs ever need to use the bathroom, so they don't right? Also, I don't see where Half-Orcs are smart enough to hold there breath when they swim so they just drown right? And Dwarfs are short right, so they can't reach anything over there head without some special elemental powered booster chair right? Right? you are correct in all your assumptions
gelalshawr 05-19-07, 05:12 PM	in my Eberron warforged can eat just fine, it just sits around stuck to their insides and rots though, so WF's that eat (at least nonmagical foods, the material part of hero's feast would just fade to nothing at the end of the spell's duration) and don't wash themselves well tend to stink very bad.
NHBDY 05-27-07, 10:37 PM	wait then, couldn't they use that to hide something small inside them, like a ring or a scroll?
Edymnion 05-27-07, 11:30 PM	if you had read the entire thread you would have seen that was corrected already... not like it's a hard read, it's still only one page.I was agreeing with you, no need to get snippy.wait then, couldn't they use that to hide something small inside them, like a ring or a scroll?Yes, but so could a human. You wanna hide that magic ring from the guards? Swallow it. You won't enjoy digging it out of the pile later on, but if it helps get you out of a cell, its worth it.
kentonblack 05-27-07, 11:43 PM	You wanna hide that magic ring from the guards? Swallow it. You won't enjoy digging it out of the pile later on, but if it helps get you out of a cell, its worth it. conceives of the mental image hemmorages cries
Bluebrush 05-28-07, 06:18 AM	Remember folks. Prestigiation is your friend! Especially if you're going to need to swallow it again.
Edymnion 05-28-07, 06:04 PM	Remember folks. Prestigiation is your friend! Especially if you're going to need to swallow it again.:rofl:
TheAnthroDM 05-28-07, 11:18 PM	:rofl: Seconded. Also to add to the question of what happen to a Warforged's food. In my campaigns it's been explained that when a Warforged eats food the mystical energies in the Warforged's body rip apart the food and convert it into extra energy. No since a Warforged has an unlimited or always renewing source of energy, what happens to it then is still unknown.
Luis_Dragunov 05-29-07, 07:16 PM	In Faiths of Eberron, it says that a cult of Warforged (The Reforged, I assume) seeks to emulate living creatures and many of their followers seek magical enhancements to acquire the senses of taste and smell and touch so I assume that, at the very best, such senses on a warforged are dulled.
Neutronium_Dragon 05-29-07, 10:58 PM	It's tangential, but I actually find it rather odd that warforged weren't designed with a sense of smell as an intended feature. While they might not have been expected to need to worry about social graces, smell is still a pretty important sense for alerting you when something is wrong, and that'd be valuable in their military capacity.
Bluebrush 05-30-07, 03:09 AM	warforged weren't designedAnd there's the key. Like the Ghulra, the sense of smell (And whole free will thing) is an unintended element of warforged which appears when they emerge from the creation forge. Cannith have scratched the surface, but the mystery of the warforged is yet to be fully explored.
Darakhoranon 06-02-07, 09:02 AM	I was thinking of having a warforged take the Adamantine Chef prestige class. At least take the "Adamantine Body" feat then...
Lord_Zzyzx 06-02-07, 03:19 PM	I was agreeing with you, no need to get snippy.Yes, but so could a human. You wanna hide that magic ring from the guards? Swallow it. You won't enjoy digging it out of the pile later on, but if it helps get you out of a cell, its worth it. Of course if you wanted to push the idea of warforged consuming magic to its extreme you could say by swallowing a magic ring they would strip it of its magic. (Not to mean that they would absorb the effects of the ring.) Who is to say what the limits of these strange creatures would be. Of course then they start to look like arcane spiders or disenchanters, but what the hell. Why not.
Antioch 06-03-07, 03:05 AM	I know warforged benefit from magical consumables, but can a warforged eat mundane food? A warforged possesses a diluted sense of taste, but cannot swallow food or drink water. Even magical substances are spit out: they have no digestive system of any sort.
Encard 06-03-07, 03:59 AM	Actually, in The Gates of Night (- Keith Baker), it's mentioned that warforged can't normally eat. To quote a couple sentences, "Peirce didn't have a stomach. He couldn't consume food if he wanted to." This is before it is mentioned that Hero's Feast (and, presumably, other magical consumables) actually boil down to shaped magical energy, and can thus be absorbed by warforged.
Antioch 06-03-07, 11:47 AM	In the case of magical consumables (such as heroes' feast and potions), the warforged would chew the food or swill the liquids around, then spit them out.
gelalshawr 06-03-07, 02:23 PM	In the case of magical consumables (such as heroes' feast and potions), the warforged would chew the food or swill the liquids around, then spit them out. I'd like to know what book this is written in, just for reference, since you seem so certain that this is how it works.
Antioch 06-03-07, 09:53 PM	I recall seeing it written somewhere, either in a book or in the Keith Baker FAQ, but I couldnt remember which/where, so I just asked Keith himself.
Encard 06-04-07, 06:45 PM	In the case of magical consumables (such as heroes' feast and potions), the warforged would chew the food or swill the liquids around, then spit them out. As I said... At least according to The Gates of Night, magical consumables (or at least Hero's Feast) can be absorbed directly into the warforged's animating magical energy - in other words, no need for a stomach or spitting.
BraulioB 06-08-07, 07:11 PM	Of course they can.... that's what Iron Rations are for. :) For a snack, they can eat a bag of nuts and bolts. B
Antioch 06-16-07, 03:48 AM	As I said... At least according to The Gates of Night, magical consumables (or at least Hero's Feast) can be absorbed directly into the warforged's animating magical energy - in other words, no need for a stomach or spitting. I have Keith on my GoogleTalk list. I literally asked him. me: Quick question: can a normal warforged actually consume food and water? I read something that I thought you wrote that said they can chew, and even have a diluted sense of taste, but cant actually swallow. Keith: That's basically correct. They have no stomach or digestive system. They are capable of absorbing the magical effects from potions or a Heroes' Feast... But they don't actually fully consume the physical matter. Essentially, they put it in their mouth, and ultimately have to spit it out.
ArcTan 06-16-07, 03:16 PM	Of course if you wanted to push the idea of warforged consuming magic to its extreme you could say by swallowing a magic ring they would strip it of its magic. (Not to mean that they would absorb the effects of the ring.) Who is to say what the limits of these strange creatures would be. Of course then they start to look like arcane spiders or disenchanters, but what the hell. Why not. Why not? Because it creates an actually quite powerful mechanic that players will try to abuse? And it has nothing to do with the existing flavor of how Warforged work? Warforged "absorb the magic" from potions because potions are designed to have the magic absorbed from them. Potions are nothing but magic items designed to activate when you swallow them, just like oils are nothing but magic items designed to activate when you rub them into your skin. The fact that potions work on warforged even though warforged don't eat or drink isn't remarkable at all, and is entirely based on the way potions work, not the way warforged work.
ArcTan 06-16-07, 03:17 PM	Remember the Warforged Rule of Thumb: "Unless specifically stated otherwise, treat the WF just like any other race." And it's companion piece: "If not specifically stated otherwise, replace the word 'warforged' in your question with the word 'human', and ask it again. If the answer is yes to that one, then it is yes for the WF as well, and vice versa." Nowhere does it say that WF are incapable of eating, just that they don't need to. ...That's a guideline for keeping mechanics balanced, not for flavor. I don't assume warforged have a pancreas or lymph nodes just because nothing says they don't. I similarly don't assume that about stomachs. (And, as Keith has pointed out, warforged aren't supposed to have stomachs, just a place in their mouths where they can temporarily store something they've "eaten".)
ArcTan 06-16-07, 03:18 PM	It's tangential, but I actually find it rather odd that warforged weren't designed with a sense of smell as an intended feature. While they might not have been expected to need to worry about social graces, smell is still a pretty important sense for alerting you when something is wrong, and that'd be valuable in their military capacity. That's what the tracker mask item was intended for (which actually boosts a Warforged's chemical senses to the level of a bloodhound, way beyond that of a Human).
ArcTan 06-16-07, 03:57 PM	Incorrect, the Tracer Mask was in Races of Eberron, and is one of the reasons I think it is such a terrible book when it comes to fluff. However, since RoE is not an Eberron book, it has no bearing on what the Warforged in the setting are actually like. It could say that the WF cluck like chickens, but that doesn't make it so. And Keith Baker's Dragonshards aren't D&D books at all, and are technically less canon than any D&D book that comes out, ever (including the "In Eberron" sections in books like MM4). To say nothing of the fact that Keith Baker's posts on these boards have no canonicity whatsoever. That has no bearing on whether you decide to treat them as canon, which is based on whether you like the books or not. (FWIW, if we treat RoE as just a D&D book rather than an Eberron book, the stuff it says about monsters in general is still canon, just like the stuff Races of the Wild says about elves' biology and general cultural traits is still canon.) Also remember that the WF dragonshards came out AFTER RoE, and Keith was essentially backpeddling to try to cover up for the outright mistake that some n00b made in RoE. Since he's not allowed to contradict written material, that was the best he could do to try and correct things. It's not a "mistake", it's a difference of opinion. If RoE isn't an Eberron book, then, by definition, things it says about Eberron that contradict the ECS aren't mistakes but changes. Honestly, I wish he had never mentioned it, because that just added validity to the idea. What's wrong with that? Do you really think it makes it better to have warforged have exactly the same acuity in taste and smell as a human being? I'm sorry to keep picking this fight, but I'm sick of you deciding every time someone brings up RoE or likes the book it's time for a bash-fest, and of the idea that anything that contradicts the ECS is by definition wrong. (It's not like there weren't plenty of lame ideas in the ECS itself.)
urklore 07-06-07, 08:55 PM	Adamantine Chef? Where is that prestige class?
greatamericanfolkhero 07-10-07, 03:27 PM	Adamantine Chef? Where is that prestige class? It was a joke...for now.:D