Help With Asc Item

[Bumlader]

Im no good with Asc Items, or what to put in it, I plan on making a application where I can get a weapon. BUt I have -no- idea what to put in it, I need help with it..Anyone know what would be a good idea to put on a weapon?

[xkcdapostle]

Arguable, since if you make the weapon too powerful, it may be lost to you (through a disarm) and the weapon turned on its former master...

So I would recommend a boost in Discipline to help you make sure its not easy to disarm. Though this can also be achieved with additional ability points in strength as well. (Since Disarm attempts are based on the opponents Attack Roll, a Discipline Skill rank of 24 or more would be prudent)

The Attack Bonus (AB) boost you can get should also be used, especially as many creatures on the server have had a boost in Armour Class (AC) (notably the ones in Geltzburg)... Though with the limit of +20 to attack rolls, you can reduce this if you have other gear (not weapons...) that add a boost to your attack rolls or spells you can cast to get a boost through increases in Strength or a direct increase in your AB.

A weapons AC bonus it gives is of the deflection type, so if you have items that already provide a boost to AC through deflection (a ring, cloak or helmet) then it won't stack. Most items I've seen provide a deflection AC bonus, i.e. +4 on the Stalker's Band.

Since a weapon is more to cause damage than to prevent it, I suppose using one to boost your character's defence isn't the best idea. So I would recommend also considering the damage rolls you can apply on the weapon, since you are restricted to at least two types of damage dice I would recommend looking at using Positive and Sonic damage, since not many items give protection from them and only one series of spells can protect you from sonic damage. (Protection from Elements, Endure Elements, etc.)

Now, if you have in mind how you want to use your weapon after thinking about the paragraphs I've written. You have to consider the base type of weapon that suits the use you intend for it and consider the additional customisations that will make it a nuisance.

Knowing you, you possibly want an, forgive the phrase, epic whip.
Since a whip is a low damage disarming beauty, I would recommend that it gives a strength bonus and be complemented with some additional AB to make the free Disarm attempts you can make easier to achieve. With two dice rolls of damage as well, the Whip would shape up to be a lovely bit of binary code to use in a 1 & 0 world... Though I would hasten to add that you should add boosts to Discipline to make it so that the whip stays in your hands.

[gatalis]

xkcd basically summed it up.

While an asc weapon is probably one of the strongest things makeable, I'm pretty sure its legal for another player to loot it if they kill you and such (unless the DMs have rules about that that I haven't spotted...)

I personally suggest that if you make an asc item, it should be something that is always going to be equipped on your character (I.E. your character may disarm themselves occasionally, but they won't ever take off a belt, boots, ring, etc. outside of an RP situation) and, if possible, something that is easier to conceal (I.E. a Pendant, or ring).

In either case there's a large number of things you can place on it depending on what your character is good at from stealth, combat, and magic. Its harder to create an offensive non-weapon item if you aren't a mage, but it is possible.

Still, if you're set on a weapon, Apostle covers the details rather nicely.

[BALLS OF STEEL]

The Disarm Mechanics work thusly

An attack roll is made with your equipped weapon at a -6 penalty and if it succeeds this roll is used in the disarm check.

You recieve a +4 bonus derived from the relative size of your weapon to your opponent's weapon.

IE for every size category that your weapon is larger than your opponent's, you will recieve a cumulative +4 bonus to your disarm check, making Greatswords and Greataxes the best choice for disarming, as they are always larger than another weapon, if not the same size.

This bonus from relative weapon size is added to your attack roll, so large weapon users can actually increase their attack bonus when fighting small or tiny weapon users.

The resulting number from the above check is then used as a DC for an opposing Discipline check from the opponent, rolling D20 + [Discipline]

On a side note however, An ascension item whip is not guaranteed to have the Disarm bonus feat, as these properties are cleared from the weapon when it is created to make room for your properties.

I would recommend a once per day AOE stun spell such as bewildering cloud or stinking cloud or a fortsave spell such as blindness/deafness on your weapon to make for easy crowd control. I also recommend putting the maximum AB that we allow, which I believe is 8. (Edit : it's actually 9)

Finally I recommend you fill in any remaining item levels with an exotic damage type such as Positive damage, as there are less items and spells that confer a resistance to this damage type.

[xkcdapostle]

Though a whip may not have the item property, if you specify the whip's disarm property in your ascension application (for a Whip...) it shouldn't affect the value of the item. Thus ensuring that you get the option to use the whip's disarm without having to compromise the properties you want the item to have.

Thinking about an ascension weapon for Mages, I have the whimsical idea of creating a Great Axe of Illumination to cut down Ringwood forest after Vesur enchants it with all his Knowledge of the Arcane to be an intelligent weapon with the ability to float around and hew down the foes of the Champions of Knowledge... (Think Black blade of disaster, though as a Great Axe...)