Materials

In Labyrinths & Liontaurs, the technology of iron and steel is new, and in some places, rare. Other roleplay games assume iron to be ubiquitous, but that is not always the case in this game. Certain materials are rarer in certain lands. The prices below are for places in which such materials may be found; in other places, prices may be much higher, and availability may be very rare to unobtainable.

The materials below can be used to craft weapons and armor in place of iron. Some of these possess special characteristics that iron does not offer. If you make a suit of armor or weapon out of more than one special material, you get the benefit of only the most prevalent material. However, you can build a double weapon with each head made of a different special material.

Each of the special materials described below has a definite game effect. Some creatures have damage reduction, making them resistant to all but a special type of material, such as werewolves and silver weapons, or fey and cold iron weapons. Characters may choose to carry several different types of weapons, depending upon the types of creatures they expect to encounter.

The prices below are added to the usual cost for the weapon, and do not include the extra cost for masterwork quality. Prices on this page apply to items sized for a medium two-legged creature; the modifiers to cost for other sizes and shapes of users apply to the costs below.

Adamantine: Smelted from rocks that fell from the heavens, this ultrahard metal adds to the quality of a weapon or suit of armor. Items made primarily without metal parts cannot be made from adamantine. An arrow or breastplate could be made of adamantine, but a quarterstaff or studded leather armor could not. Only certain Expert and powerful dwarves know the secret of how to craft admantine. Weapons and armor normally made of steel that are made of adamantine have one-third more hit points than normal but weigh the same as iron. Admantine has the same deleterious effects on certain people and creatures that iron imposes on those sensitive to iron, such as elves, gnomes, and the fey.

Weapons fashioned from adamantine have a natural ability to bypass hardness when sundering weapons or attacking objects, ignoring hardness less than 20. Adamantine weapons and ammunition offer an increased critical hit damage multiplier (×2 becomes ×3, etc.) — in addition to a +1 enhancement bonus on critical confirmation rolls if it is of masterwork quality, as almost all adamantine items are. Ammunition that would normally be destroyed in use is only broken if made of adamantine and can be repaired.

Armor made from adamantine grants its wearer damage reduction of 1/— if it's light armor, 2/— if it's medium armor, and 3/— if it's heavy armor. The armor check penalty of adamantine armor is lessened by 1 compared to ordinary armor of its type. An adamantine shield does not grant damage reduction but gives its wielder a +1 enhancement bonus on reflex saving throws against evocations.

Type of Adamantine Item	Item Cost Modifier
Light armor	+5,000 gp
Medium armor	+10,000 gp
Heavy armor	+15,000 gp
Shield	+5,000 gp
Weapon	+5,000 gp
Ammunition	+100 gp per missile
Other items	+500 gp/lb.

Adamantine has 40 hit points per inch of thickness and hardness 20.

Bronze: Crafting copper and tin to make bronze is an ancient art, known among all peoples. Weapons made of bronze instead of iron impose a -1 penalty on damage (damage reduced to zero inflicts a single point of nonlethal damage). Bronze shields are equivalent to iron ones. Armor made of bronze is weaker but allows greater range of movement -- the bonus to armor class is reduced by one, but the armor check penalty is also reduced by one. Bronze weapons are uncommon generally, but common among elves and gnomes. Bronze items cost the same as iron ones.

Bronze has hardness 9 and 20 hit points per inch of thickness.

Cold Iron: This iron, the dross left over in the smelting of adamantine, is known for its effectiveness against outsiders and fey creatures. It is the only source of refined iron not made from iron ore. Weapons made of cold iron add 250 gp to their cost. Also, adding any magical enhancements to a cold iron weapon increases its price by 1,000 gp. In addition to the usual deleterious effects imposed by iron on certain creatures, cold iron can defeat the damage reduction ability of some monsters and adds 1d4 damage against fey, elves, and gnomes. No advantage is gained making armor or other objects from cold iron.

Items without metal parts cannot be made from cold iron. An arrow could be made of cold iron, but a quarterstaff could not.

Cold iron has 30 hit points per inch of thickness and hardness 10.

Darkwood: This rare magic wood is as hard as normal wood but very light. Any wooden or mostly wooden item (such as a bow or spear) made from darkwood weighs only half as much as a normal wooden item of that type. Items not normally made of wood or only partially of wood (such as a battleaxe or a mace) either cannot be made from darkwood or do not gain any special benefit from being made of darkwood. Those with the Adventurer Tier Elf Weapons racial power can craft light blades, longswords, elven curve blades, and all bows (and arrows) entirely from darkwood, without using any metal; such weapons have the same weight and properties as iron weapons (and darkwood bows increase their range increment by half again). The armor check penalty of a darkwood shield is lessened by 2 compared to an ordinary shield of its type, and the arcane failure percent of such items is reduced by 2%. Darkwood weapons add 50 gp to the cost of light weapons, 100 gp to the cost of one-handed weapons, 200 gp to the cost of two-handed weapons. and 250 gp to the cost of shields.

Darkwood has 10 hit points per inch of thickness and hardness 5.

Dragonhide: Armorsmiths can work with the hides of dragons to produce armor or shields. One dragon produces enough hide for a single suit of 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 banded mail for a creature two sizes smaller, one breastplate or suit of half-plate for a creature three sizes smaller, or one suit of full plate for a creature four sizes smaller. In each case, enough hide is available to produce two bucklers or a light or heavy 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 are also immune to that energy type, although this does not confer any protection to the wearer. If the armor is later enchanted, and if the soul-linked owner chooses the Energy Resistance ability, the resistance conferred is 25, not 15.

Type of Dragonhide Item	Item Cost Modifier
Hide armor	+1,000 gp
Banded mail armor	+2,000 gp
Breastplate or half plate armor	+3,000 gp
Full plate armor	+4,000 gp
Buckler	+250 gp
Light or heavy shield	+500 gp

Because dragonhide armor isn't made of metal, druids can wear it freely.

Dragonhide has 10 hit points per inch of thickness and hardness 10. The hide of a dragon is typically between 1/2 inch and 1 inch thick.

Iron: Iron is the default metal used in these rules; if not otherwise specified, assume that weapons, armor, and shields are made of iron (masterwork iron items are assumed to be made of steel). However, in places ruled by elves, gnomes, and druids, the default metal is bronze.

Iron has 30 hit points per inch of thickness and hardness 10.

Mithral: Mithral is a very rare silvery, glistening metal that is lighter than steel but just as hard. It is beloved of elves and dwarves. When worked with expertise, it becomes a wonderful material from which to create armor and weapons, and is occasionally used for other items as well, especially when weight is a consideration. An item made from mithral weighs half as much as the same item made from other metals. Items made of mithril do not affect those who are made queasy by iron.

Most mithral 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 mithral 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. Spell failure chances for armors and shields made from mithral are decreased by 10%, maximum Dexterity bonuses are increased by 2, and armor check penalties are decreased by 3 (to a minimum of 0).

Although mithril weapons are lighter, this does not change a weapon's size category or the ease with which it can be wielded (whether it is light, one-handed, or two-handed), but mithril weapons and ammunition offer an increased critical hit range (20 becomes 19-20, etc.) — in addition to a +1 enhancement bonus on critical confirmation rolls if it is of masterwork quality, as almost all mithril items are. Items not primarily of metal are not meaningfully affected by being partially made of mithral. (A longsword can be a mithral weapon, while a quarterstaff cannot.) Mithral weapons count as silver for the purpose of overcoming damage reduction, but do not inflict extra damage.

Type of Mithral Item	Item Cost Modifier
Light armor	+2,000 gp
Medium armor	+4,000 gp
Heavy armor	+6,000 gp
Shield	+2,000 gp
Weapon	+2,000 gp
Ammunition	+40 gp per missile
Other items	+200 gp/lb.

Mithral has 30 hit points per inch of thickness and hardness 15.

Silver: Silver is primarily used against creatures vulnerable to it. Weapons made of silver instead of iron impose a -1 penalty on attack rolls and damage (damage reduced to zero inflicts a single point of nonlethal damage); the damage penalty does not apply when striking creatures vulnerable to silver; lycanthropes and devils suffer an extra 1d4 damage when struck by silver. Armor is not made of silver. Silver weapons are uncommon but generally available in any land, and they add 10 gp to the cost of light weapons, 25 gp to the cost of one-handed weapons, and 50 gp to the cost of two-handed weapons. Silver weapons gain the broken property when the wielder rolls a natural 1 on an attack roll.

Silver has hardness 6 and 10 hit points per inch of thickness.

Stone and Bone: Stone and bone (including similar materials, such as ivory, shell, coral, etc.) are the weakest materials commonly used to make weapons and armor, but druids especially may employ them because they find the use of metals to be personally abhorrent. Only light and one-handed axes and weapons that cause bludgeoning or piercing damage may be made of stone and bone. Weapons made of stone or bone instead of iron impose a -1 penalty on attack rolls and a -2 penalty on damage (damage reduced to zero inflicts a single point of nonlethal damage); clubs and greatclubs made of bone or stone do not suffer these penalties. Among armors, only studded leather can be made with bone or stone instead of metal, but bone-studded leather armor weighs twice as much as regular studded leather and its armor check penalty is -2, not -1. Stone and bone items are common and cost the same as iron ones. Stone and bone weapons gain the broken property when the wielder rolls a natural 1 on an attack roll.

Bone has hardness 6 and 10 hit points per inch of thickness. Stone has hardness 8 and 15 hit points per inch of thickness.