Sacred Smith

“The Sacred Smith” Holy weapons stand apart in a magical armoury.

The Quintessential Paladin
Author Alejandro Melchor
Series Quintessential Series
Publisher Mongoose Publishing
Publish date 2002

Few divine casters have the interest or the resources to learn the crafting of magic weapons and armour, even if they are as capable of infusing an item with holy magic as arcane crafters are of pouring their own powers into an item. The sacred smith is one of the few who practice the trade of the smith, yet is pious enough to channel divine energies into his work to create sacred weapons. Most relic weapons and armour were forged by a sacred smith and, although the art of making holy relics is lost (or was never exact enough to be known in the first place), honest artisans strive to recover it so the champions of good will stand a better chance against the apparently endless forces of evil.

Sacred smiths come almost exclusively from experts who find faith and become priests without forgetting their origins, although legends do speak of heroes who could forge their own weapons, forging them in fires both mundane and divine.

Hit Die: d6.

Requirements

Alignment: Lawful Good.
Skills: Craft (armoursmith) 10 ranks, Craft (weaponsmith) 10 ranks.
Feat: Skill Focus (Craft – armoursmith or weaponsmith).
Spellcasting: Ability to cast 1st level divine spells.

Class Skills

The sacred smith’s class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Alchemy (Intelligence), Appraise (Wisdom), Concentration (Constitution), Craft (Intelligence), Heal (Wisdom), Knowledge (Arcana, religion) (Intelligence), Profession (Wisdom), Spellcraft (Intelligence) and Use Magic Device (Charisma).

Skill Points at Each Level: 6 + Intelligence modifier.

The Sacred Smith
Level	Base Attack Bonus	Fort Save	Ref Save	Will Save	Special	Spells per Day
1	+0	+2	+0	+0	Master of the forge	+1 level existing class
2	+1	+3	+0	+0	Bless weapons and armour	+1 level existing class
3	+2	+3	+1	+1	Channel divine favour	+1 level existing class
4	+3	+4	+1	+1	Hammer of the righteous	+1 level existing class
5	+3	+4	+1	+1	Craft minor relic	+1 level existing class

Class Features

Armour and Weapon Proficiency: Sacred smiths are proficient with all simple and martial weapons. They are proficient with all types of armour and with shields. Note that armour check penalties for armour heavier than leather apply to the skills Balance, Climb, Escape Artist, Hide, Jump, Move Silently, Pick Pocket and Tumble. Also, Swim checks suffer a -1 penalty for every 5 pounds of armour, equipment, or loot carried.

Spells per Day: The sacred smith continues to gain ability as a divine spellcaster. For each level gained as a sacred smith, the character gains new divine spells as if he had also gained a level in whatever divine spellcasting class he belonged to before becoming a sacred smith. The sacred smith does not, however, gain any other benefits of his former divine class, such as improved chance of turning or rebuking undead. In other words, to determine the number of spells that a sacred smith can cast per day, simply add his level of sacred smith to the level of his previous divine spellcasting class. Characters with more than one divine spellcasting class must decide which class to assign each level of sacred smith to for purposes of determining spells per day.

Master of the Forge (Ex): The gods smile upon the smith’s labours, his virtue being enough to create wondrous works of art. For each level the character has as a sacred smith, he can subtract 50 gp from both the cost to make a masterwork item and the target number to reach with weekly Craft checks, as described under the Craft skill. The market price of the masterwork item remains unchanged, the smith was simply blessed by the gods to make it for less.

Bless Weapons and Armour: The sacred smith gains the Craft Magic Arms and Armour item creation feat at this level, even if he does not meet the spellcaster level prerequisite, although it only works for making magic weapons and armour with divine magic. This ability has no effect if the character already has the feat.

Channel Divine Favour (Su): Creating magic weapons and armour becomes easier for the sacred smith, for his hammer is the vessel of holy power, and his faith stokes the fires in his forge. When crafting magic weapons and armour, the smith’s required caster level for creating a magic weapon or armour is two times the item’s enhancement bonus, instead of three times as for normal crafters.

Hammer of the Righteous (Ex): The smith’s arm is guided by divine inspiration. When he is forging a masterwork weapon or armour, he re-rolls any result below the item’s Craft check DC. He can only re-roll a single result once.

Craft Minor Relic: The sacred smith channels divine will into his work to forge an item so powerful that it is sure to make its way into legend. The smith can only craft one relic in his lifetime, although he has the liberty to do it at any point after attaining 5th level. For making a specific weapon or armour, the smith ignores any caster level prerequisite and can pay with experience any needed spell that he does not possess or is not able to cast. The item must be crafted in the name of a deity, for a specific character of at least 15th level or to serve a specific purpose. Calculate the cost and prerequisites of the item normally, including any hidden powers. If the item requires a spell not available to the character, he must pay 100 XP for every spell level that he cannot cast. For example, if an item requires a 6th level spell but the smith can only cast up to 4th level spells, he pays 200 XP for the missing spell levels. If the spell is unavailable because it is not in the smith’s spell list, pay the full levels in XP (said 6th level spell would cost 600 XP if it is not in the smith’s spell list).

Multiclass Note: paladins can gain levels in the sacred smith class and still be able to advance as paladins.