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Solar Crafts Charms by CrownedSun

Craftsman's Evaluating Eye

 Cost: 1 mote
 Duration: Instant
 Type: Simple
 Minimum Craft: 2
 Minimum Essence: 1
 Prerequisite Charms: Flawless Handiwork Method

Through the use of this Charm, the character hones his knowledge of tradecraft to a legendary degree. Through a careful examination of any item of craftwork that she's familiar with (not necessarily skilled in), she can determine a number of facts about the item. If the item is fairly mundane and mechanical, she can determine it's obvious and unobvious functions -- powerful and obscure artifacts are typically beyond the use of this charm, requiring a Lore charm instead. The Solar can determine what material the item is made of, the quality of that material and the rough manner in which it was gathered (by the craftsman’s hand, rote labor by felons, etc), as well as how much care was put into the crafting of the item. The Solar can gain some insight into the frame of mind of the craftsman, learning how it was created and how the Craftsman felt about the item. Any unusual methods used in the creation of the item are as clear as day, and the Solar has a very good idea of the condition and quality of the item both now and when it was originally crafted. Finally, the Solar can guess what has happened to the item since it's construction, how well it's been cared for since then and if it's received any special treatment.

The exact amount of time required to examine one object depends on how much information the Solar seeks, assume that it typically takes 1-3 minutes of handling. The Solar must hold or touch the charm while using this charm, and some information might require a Perception or Intelligence + Craft roll to determine at the Storytellers discretion.

This charm acts as an alternative prerequisite in the Solar Charm tree, taking the place of "Object-Strengthening Touch". It thus allows you to buy Durability-Enhancing Technique, Chaos-Resistant Preparation, and Shattering Grasp -- as well as any other charms relying that charm.

Unlocking the Inner Shape

 Cost: 6 motes
 Duration: Until crafted
 Type: Simple
 Minimum Craft: 4
 Minimum Essence: 2
 Prerequisite Charms: Craftsman's Evaluating Eye

It is often said by Master Craftsman that every bit of stone or wood has something waiting within, and the Solar Exalted know this to be true. They can catch glimpses of the Inner Shape that pulls at a bit of material, and chip away at it until it's final form is revealed. This charm facilitates this, its use creating essential items -- while the Solar has little control over exactly what kind of item will emerge, he can typically make educated guesses as he grows more familiar with his craft. The crafting in question takes as long as it normally would, but is almost trivially easy. If the Solar gets at least a single success on the Craft roll, the item itself is created in almost perfect form.

Any object created with this charm were called 'True' Objects in the First Age, such as a 'True Sword' or a 'True Flute'. These objects are always considered Perfect (see page 145 of the Exalted Players Guide). They are also slightly resistant to the Wyld, and fairly durable (mostly roleplaying; no game effects); if this charm is stacked with Durability-Enhancing Technique and Chaos-Resistance Preparation, the object becomes almost unbreakable and impossible for the Wyld to twist and shape.

A Solar can try to direct roughly what kind of object he will end up with by carefully selecting his material, using a Perception + Craft roll. This doesn't always work, however, and sometimes a material will surprise its craftsman no matter what.

Dream-Forged Goods

 Cost: 8 motes, 1 willpower
 Duration: One scene
 Type: Simple
 Minimum Craft: 5
 Minimum Essence: 3
 Prerequisite Charms: Unlocking the Inner Shape, Impurity-Hammering Blow (CB: Twilight)

It always pains any great craftsman when the items he crafts with his hands and tools are less than the ones that he crafts within his mind. Often the fault lies not with the Craftsman himself (though it may), but with the materials he is forced to work with -- a Solar with this charm has worked beyond such limitations, however, able to forge the very ideal of an item into what he feels it should be. This process takes just as long as always, requiring tools and a appropriate workship. At first, the Solar seems to merely be going through the motions of craft; then, gradually, a glowing mote of golden light begins to take shape. Slowly, it grows until it is a radiant burning shape of light that he shapes into the final form that he wishes to craft!

A Solar using this charm requires no materials of any sort, conjuring what is needed from his soul and the energies of creation. For the purposes of this charm, each scene is typically a day -- though if the character is using Craftsman Needs No Tools it might instead be an hour. If the item requires more than one scene to be created, the cost of the charm must be paid again. It is possible to complete this work piece by piece over time, though until the item is complete it is not fully real and exists only when worked upon.

Comments

Very, very nice! I love Unlocking the Inner Shape and Dream-Forged Goods. Craftsman's Evaluating Eye is good too, and should probably have an Instant duration; it takes time to study the object, but once it's been studied, the understanding remains. - Quendalon

I more or less based it off the Medicine charm of a similar nature; the idea, I believe, is that it lets you examine more than one item in a given period of time. However, your right, probably not necessary. Glad you liked 'em; some of my favorites so far, though I still think Perfect Golden Party is just beyond cool:P -CrownedSun

Very nice, CrownedSun. I like much. However, I have to ask some questions... :) For some reason I think you should ditch the willpower cost of Dream-Forged and actually make it a health level. You're using your own life energy to make goods.

Also, what happens when you make a reall high roll on Inner Shape, do you get even more exceptional items? What about if you made a "True" Starmetal Daiklave? Do magical items made from True items get any special benefit? It seems to me these would be especially potent if it actually happened (they'd be quite rare). Finally, what about very large objects? Like boats. Wouldn't it be kinda hard to find a tree that's true shape is the third rib of a junk? :) -- DaveFayram

Thank you, glad you like 'em! First, Inner Shape is a lot like the Lunar 'near perfect' dodge; you need one success, and that's it. Any more doesn't help. The True Shape is the True Shape, and you can't really do a 'really improved true shape':P It's already as good as it can get. For the reallly big things, that's a tougher one there. I'm not sure of a good answer there; maybe the answer is going out into the far east where you get infini-trees:P

Lastly, I thought about making Dream Forged require a Health Level. However, it's more mental than 'forged of the body'. I could see an Abyssal version that cost a Health Level, but I think Dream Forged works best with Willpower. -CrownedSun

(Creators Note) I changed the roll required for Inner Shape, as requested, and erased the comments pertaining to that.

I think that items created with Unlocking the Inner Shape be treated as 'Perfect' items as per the Player's Guide (page 145). - Quendalon

Good idea! I'd not considered that; *makes the changes* -- CrownedSun