Artificers¶
"The casting talent is very rare among the mortal races, and the vast majority of human oracles, witch doctors, soothsayers, fortune tellers and other common magic users are actually artificers and not casters." — Creating Magic Items (S391)
Artificers are the makers of magic. They are not casters, or need not be: they bind a source of power, a learned spellcraft and a craftsman's skill into an object that does what a spell would. Most of the magic ordinary people meet is theirs, and many of the fortune-tellers and village witch doctors of the world are artificers passing as casters. The Alchemy page describes the wider family of reagent magic to which they belong.
What an artificer is¶
"An artificer is a specialized sort of alchemist that combines an external power source, known spellcraft and strong crafting skills to produce magical items" (S208). "An Artificer is a creator of magical objects and permanent enchantments" whose art rests on two kinds of knowledge: "a knowledge of a particular kind of spellcraft that will be used to shape the magical effects for the items. The spellcraft will determine which type of power source(s) will work with the object (Mithis, Fae or Ethereal)", and "a master's knowledge for crafting the item" (S208, S212). An artificer who knows arcane spellcraft and smithing makes different things from one who knows Fae spellcraft and leatherwork.
The archive's artificer is a craftsman of last resort. "Artificer is a special class that is NOT a caster. Having no ability to cast magic directly, they have turned to combining magical components in various ways to create magical items and effects. For survival, they often need to rely on stealth, bluff, sleight of hand and trickery to pass themselves off as casters" (S363, S391).
Components, mediums and power sources¶
The archive describes an artificer's work as the joining of three things (S363, S391):
- Components, "parts of a creature with magical origins, magical abilities, or both. The knowledge of how to manipulate mithis into creating effects is built into these components". Power components "contain the recipe(s) for magical effects"; modifier components "alter or enhance" them.
- Mediums or matrices, "a creation which is able to join together components and a power source. A medium can be formed from many different materials, but requires a powerful mithis source to create it (not to maintain it)". A power matrix only joins; a holding matrix also stores energy.
- Power sources, "a mithis material which gives off magical energy on a renewable basis".
The matrices are made of blood. A power matrix "requires a power matrix component, the most common of which is a magical creature's blood", worked into the object: "for leather and cloth, it is often mixed in during the dying process. For potions, it is simply mixed into a solution. For metal, wood, bone, gems and minerals, it is etched into the material, usually in the form of runes or other carvings, using a solder-like mixture. Once etched or imbued in this fashion, the entire object becomes the matrix" (S363). A holding matrix "requires a holding matrix component, which is normally only found in the blood of creatures capable of spell-casting, such as dragons, unicorns, wizards, elves, etc." (S363). The blood of mages is a trade good.
Kinds of artificer¶
The archive names several ways of working (S391, S363):
| Craft | How it works |
|---|---|
| Alchemist | "a master of magical components. While potions are often the easiest to produce, the alchemist's abilities can stretch far beyond the brewing of potions" |
| Inscriptionist | prepares "reagents and mediums into purified forms (inks and liquids usually). They can then inscribe complex equations which interconnect to create effects" |
| Arcane Tinker | "a master of magical circuitry. Constructing a magical item is an exercise in precision, patience and skill. The outcomes are known beforehand, it is just a matter of time and skill" |
| Spellforger | imprints spells into a Mithis material at a stress point |
| Runemaster | a channeler who empowers runes in an altered ink (see Rune Magic) |
The Arcane Tinker works from schematics: "Schematics are to Arcane Tinkers as Spells are to Wizards. The Schematic is the circuitry required to produce a magical effect. The Tinker may research new schematics, trade schematics with other tinkers, or reverse engineer components or magic items" (S391). Tinkers are "specialists in only a few select crafts, such as metalworking, woodworking, masonry", and every creation needs "a magical power source (mithis) embedded into the creation in order to power the effect" (S391).
Runemastery, in the archive's day, "is nearly extinct for two reasons: First, dwarven-born channelers have been declining and second, the lore has been lost for thousands of years and is only now resurfacing" (S391).
Spellforged¶
"A Spellforged item is made up of a single part: A Mithis Material. The item must be brought to a stress point (such as molten during forging, or bathed in a Mithis energy stream). At this point a spellcaster can imprint a single spell into the Mithis. With additional skill and some control magic, additional spells and triggers can also be embedded into the item" (S391). The Mithis metals spellforgers work are described under Mithis Metals and Gemstones.
Sancturi Spellforge¶
The Sancturi found a way to spellforge after Mithis had turned to Malum. "Using divine magic it is possible to completely cleanse small amounts of Malum and turn it into Mithis again. The danger is that when this is out in the world it is effortlessly corrupted back into Malum. That is why these objects are only ever allowed to be wielded by clerics or in the presence of clerics that can insure they remain pure. (ie they require frequent replenishment using divine energy)" (S132). The Sancturi did not simply enchant objects with divine power, "because the Sancturi don't give out their power like that. They rely on their followers to give up their lifeforce for it (which can't hold a permanent enchantment) … [so] the mithis holds the enchantment, and holy energy ensures it stays 'clean'" (S132). The method is a variation of the Maldetinence, the rite that renders Malum inert, described under Hollow Magic (S132).
Hollowsmiths¶
During the Hollowing, makers who worked with Hollowed Mithis made permanently active objects; they are described under Hollowcasting.
Automata cores¶
The constructs of the Sancturi age are artifice on the largest scale. Among the compartments of an automaton are its power sources and its "Automata Core (soul to automata interface)" (S110). The frames themselves are described under Constructs.
Sovereignty¶
Some items grant powers called Sovereignty. In a vault beneath Proturas the Proturan party found an orb that could create a field of darkness and "also offers Sovereignty", and a sickle that "can harvest the souls of living creatures. It also offers Sovereignty: DEATH-PASSAGE" (S042).
Gap
No source says what Sovereignty is, beyond these two items: who can use it, what Death-Passage does, or whether it is related to the "Sovereign magics" an Acadian orb is said to use (S358, on Arcane Magic). No source describes an artificer's workshop, guild or training in the world.
Legacy rules for artifice are kept under Mechanics: Artificer and Magic Item Creation and Constructs and Automata.