Adamantium [Archive] - Wizards Community - Pages Merged by Solauren

Adamantium [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
TLomon
02-06-05, 10:22 PM Yah, yah. I know there are different variations of the name, but I prefer this spelling over others.

Here is my dilemna...

A player who has focused on a Craft (Armormaking) has come across a supply of adamantium ingots. However, it is not the pure stuff so to speak. As such, when referencing 1st edition, items made from this can be enchanted up to +5. However, pure adamantium can be enchanted up to +6. The character has this information, and has found a master smelter in a dwarven community who is willing to do the work in exchange for half of the finished product.

Now, step 1. This would have been smelting the ore. However, the process has already been completed and is moot here.

Step 2 would be refining the adamantium ingots even further to create pure adamantium. I have already ruled in this area that it is a 25% return. (4 ingots will become 1).

Now, this is where I am stuck. I feel an extra ingredient should be required for the second process. Yes, I know. We do a lot of math in my games because it is what the players and myself enjoy. (Bookkeeping for running a kingdom, etc. is commonplace for us.)

So, any suggestions on a process to make the adamantium pure? Possible ideas:

* Dragons Blood
* Diamond Dust

anyway, just posting here while I think about it at work. I welcome any responses.
Nuntius128
02-06-05, 10:29 PM Which edition are you playing? If its 3.0, or 3.5, there's no difference in 'purity' of any of the metals, and you can enchant them up to whatever you can afford. There's no other limit to how far you can enchant an item.
TLomon
02-06-05, 10:33 PM We are playing 3.5 but there are major house rules when it comes to item creation. Basically, the campaign has been ongoing since 1st edition, and we are grandfathering in a few of the original rules. I guess the best description of the rule set is all editions at once.

Basically, adamantium is the form that is still light sensitive and decays due to impurities in the drow manufacturing process. Pure adamantium does not contain these impurities and as such, does not decay in light.
Wharin
02-06-05, 10:38 PM Well if you are trying to get a pure substance, adding an ingredient isnt going to make the said substance any more pure, quite the opposite.

Now, the question is what is adamantine? Is it an element? Is it an alloy? I think that the DMG hints that adamantine is like iron, gold, silver... its a pure element (a made up one, granted but a pure element)

As for refining the addy out of the ingots. Well, i am not an expert on smithing, but i know how they seperate alot of impure substances into their base parts is by melting/evaporating. Different substances have different melting/evaporating points. As you raise the temperature , the impure stuff should just melt away while the adamantine stays behind, provided that the temperature is high enough to melt the secondary substance and not high enough to melt the addy.

As for the % return... Well i suppose it depends on how much pure addy is in this ingot and go from there. If only a quarter of the ingot is addy, than yeah 4:1 ratio would be appropriate.
Nuntius128
02-06-05, 10:38 PM Ahh, well, if you're using house rules, that complicates things terribly, and I really can't provide an answer without understanding all of the rules concerning crafting. I don't know anything about 1st edition. The best way I can think of is to create a spell for the purpose of refining a metal into its pure state.
TLomon
02-06-05, 10:46 PM That's the kind of information I was looking for, Wharin. Thank you. And thank you for taking the time to read the thread Nuntius128.

I think I am going to rule that they are going to need a hotter heat source then their typical magical enchanced forge. Most likely a volcano. No other ingredients needed. As you kindly pointed out, that would be goofy. Thanks again!
Rulebook
02-06-05, 11:19 PM i dunno if a volcano would do it. a magically created superhot fire would though. Adamantine strikes me as having an excpetionally high melting point, similar to that of Tungsten.
Wharin
02-07-05, 12:01 AM Maybe scrap Darkwood? I would imagine that that could have a high burning point. I dont think you would nessisarily need access to magical forges/volcanoes to get that temperature, though i am sure they would help.
primemover003
02-07-05, 12:17 AM Or get a red dragons breath to do it... If it'll work on artifacts it'll purify some metal!
tarkin
02-07-05, 11:34 AM Rule that the ingots must be heat processed in a special gas.

Maybe, it must be heated for x hours at y temperature, while inside an air elemental/on the Elemental plane of Air.

Or maybe while in a permanent Acid Fog Cloud.
Wolf72
02-07-05, 12:59 PM going off of some previous suggestions:

if you use the drow formula, maybe you can get a 50% return instead (but then again not much fun if it disintegrates in sunlight).

as for your catalyst (not even sure if that's the right word for it) ... dragon's blood sounds good, hard and dangerous to get.

I'd go with several different options, dragon's blood may work ... but come up with some others too. Give the PCs some options in which way they want to get creamed ... er adventure to find this stuff :D
Tony Vargas
02-07-05, 01:15 PM I think I am going to rule that they are going to need a hotter heat source then their typical magical enchanced forge. Most likely a volcano. No That's something like what I did in my old 1E game. There was 'adamantine steel' and the party had acquired mineral 'adamantite,' but had no idea how to use it to make the superior metal (since the mineral was soft, and didn't seem to melt). They eventually found a smith with who knew how to make adamantine, and it turned out the secret was that you didn't alloy iron with adamantite - you burned the adamantite to get the flame hot enough to forge adamantine steel.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
TLomon 02-06-05, 10:22 PM	Yah, yah. I know there are different variations of the name, but I prefer this spelling over others. Here is my dilemna... A player who has focused on a Craft (Armormaking) has come across a supply of adamantium ingots. However, it is not the pure stuff so to speak. As such, when referencing 1st edition, items made from this can be enchanted up to +5. However, pure adamantium can be enchanted up to +6. The character has this information, and has found a master smelter in a dwarven community who is willing to do the work in exchange for half of the finished product. Now, step 1. This would have been smelting the ore. However, the process has already been completed and is moot here. Step 2 would be refining the adamantium ingots even further to create pure adamantium. I have already ruled in this area that it is a 25% return. (4 ingots will become 1). Now, this is where I am stuck. I feel an extra ingredient should be required for the second process. Yes, I know. We do a lot of math in my games because it is what the players and myself enjoy. (Bookkeeping for running a kingdom, etc. is commonplace for us.) So, any suggestions on a process to make the adamantium pure? Possible ideas: * Dragons Blood * Diamond Dust anyway, just posting here while I think about it at work. I welcome any responses.
Nuntius128 02-06-05, 10:29 PM	Which edition are you playing? If its 3.0, or 3.5, there's no difference in 'purity' of any of the metals, and you can enchant them up to whatever you can afford. There's no other limit to how far you can enchant an item.
TLomon 02-06-05, 10:33 PM	We are playing 3.5 but there are major house rules when it comes to item creation. Basically, the campaign has been ongoing since 1st edition, and we are grandfathering in a few of the original rules. I guess the best description of the rule set is all editions at once. Basically, adamantium is the form that is still light sensitive and decays due to impurities in the drow manufacturing process. Pure adamantium does not contain these impurities and as such, does not decay in light.
Wharin 02-06-05, 10:38 PM	Well if you are trying to get a pure substance, adding an ingredient isnt going to make the said substance any more pure, quite the opposite. Now, the question is what is adamantine? Is it an element? Is it an alloy? I think that the DMG hints that adamantine is like iron, gold, silver... its a pure element (a made up one, granted but a pure element) As for refining the addy out of the ingots. Well, i am not an expert on smithing, but i know how they seperate alot of impure substances into their base parts is by melting/evaporating. Different substances have different melting/evaporating points. As you raise the temperature , the impure stuff should just melt away while the adamantine stays behind, provided that the temperature is high enough to melt the secondary substance and not high enough to melt the addy. As for the % return... Well i suppose it depends on how much pure addy is in this ingot and go from there. If only a quarter of the ingot is addy, than yeah 4:1 ratio would be appropriate.
Nuntius128 02-06-05, 10:38 PM	Ahh, well, if you're using house rules, that complicates things terribly, and I really can't provide an answer without understanding all of the rules concerning crafting. I don't know anything about 1st edition. The best way I can think of is to create a spell for the purpose of refining a metal into its pure state.
TLomon 02-06-05, 10:46 PM	That's the kind of information I was looking for, Wharin. Thank you. And thank you for taking the time to read the thread Nuntius128. I think I am going to rule that they are going to need a hotter heat source then their typical magical enchanced forge. Most likely a volcano. No other ingredients needed. As you kindly pointed out, that would be goofy. Thanks again!
Rulebook 02-06-05, 11:19 PM	i dunno if a volcano would do it. a magically created superhot fire would though. Adamantine strikes me as having an excpetionally high melting point, similar to that of Tungsten.
Wharin 02-07-05, 12:01 AM	Maybe scrap Darkwood? I would imagine that that could have a high burning point. I dont think you would nessisarily need access to magical forges/volcanoes to get that temperature, though i am sure they would help.
primemover003 02-07-05, 12:17 AM	Or get a red dragons breath to do it... If it'll work on artifacts it'll purify some metal!
tarkin 02-07-05, 11:34 AM	Rule that the ingots must be heat processed in a special gas. Maybe, it must be heated for x hours at y temperature, while inside an air elemental/on the Elemental plane of Air. Or maybe while in a permanent Acid Fog Cloud.
Wolf72 02-07-05, 12:59 PM	going off of some previous suggestions: if you use the drow formula, maybe you can get a 50% return instead (but then again not much fun if it disintegrates in sunlight). as for your catalyst (not even sure if that's the right word for it) ... dragon's blood sounds good, hard and dangerous to get. I'd go with several different options, dragon's blood may work ... but come up with some others too. Give the PCs some options in which way they want to get creamed ... er adventure to find this stuff :D
Tony Vargas 02-07-05, 01:15 PM	I think I am going to rule that they are going to need a hotter heat source then their typical magical enchanced forge. Most likely a volcano. No That's something like what I did in my old 1E game. There was 'adamantine steel' and the party had acquired mineral 'adamantite,' but had no idea how to use it to make the superior metal (since the mineral was soft, and didn't seem to melt). They eventually found a smith with who knew how to make adamantine, and it turned out the secret was that you didn't alloy iron with adamantite - you burned the adamantite to get the flame hot enough to forge adamantine steel.