Craft Armor allows a character to craft armor and shields from a variety of materials.
Modifying ability: Intelligence
Classes: Barbarian, Bard, Cleric, Fighter, Paladin, Ranger, Swashbuckler, Wizard, Warlock; Arcane Scholar of Candlekeep, Blackguard, Divine champion, Dwarven defender, Eldritch knight, Harper agent, Invisible blade, Neverwinter Nine, Red dragon disciple, Warpriest
Requires training: No
Check: Skill must meet the minimum rank required to craft the type of armor with its material components.
Special: See notes below
Use: Use the smith's hammer on a crafting station (or applicable device).
Gameplay Notes[]
Using this craft skill requires a Blacksmith's Workbench and a smith's hammer, in addition to the appropriate materials (metal ingots, wooden planks, and/or leather hides) and a mold for the desired armor or shield. The character places all components, including the mold, in the workstation's inventory, then uses the smith's hammer's special ability on the workstation. If the character has enough ranks in Craft Armor, the new item is created. The mold for each specific armor or shield lists which materials that item requires.
The base skill requirement for crafting a suit of armor or a shield is equal to the armor bonus that item provides. For example, a breastplate provides a +5 armor bonus to AC, so the character must have 5 ranks of Craft Armor to craft a breastplate. Basic Crafting Ranks Required to Craft Armor
Armor and shields can be crafted from basic materials (iron, wood, or leather), or from more exotic components, such as mithral or wyvern hide. Exotic materials increase the skill requirement to craft the item, but also provide additional benefits.
- The type of Armor/Shield Rank + Materials Rank = Craft Armor Rank NEEDED to Produce.
- Skill Rank + Additional Skill Ranks + Int Mod = Craft Armor Rank.
These are based on MotB expansion pack; SoZ has different setup that armors don't work.
| Materials | + Additional Skill Ranks | Bonus Effects |
|---|---|---|
| Iron | No modifier | N/A |
| Leather Hide | N/A | |
| Duskwood | +5 ranks | Weight Reduction & other + |
| Darksteel | +10 ranks | Acid Resistance: 5/- |
| Mithral | +10 ranks | Armor Check Penalty Reduction,Max Dex Bonus are increased,Spell Failure & Weight Reduction. |
| Zalantar wood | +10 ranks | Shields only; AC Bonus &Spell Failure Reduction. |
| Salamander Hide | +12 ranks | Armor only; AC Bonus +1,Fire Resistance 10/- &Weight Reduction of 40% |
| Adamantine | +15 ranks | Damage Reduction. |
| Umber Hulk Hide | +17 ranks | AC Bonus +2 &Immune to Mind Effecting Spells |
| Wyvern Hide | +20 ranks | Armor only; AC Bonus +2,Save Bonus +4 on Poison &Weight Reduction of 20% |
| Red Dragon Hide | +23 ranks | AC Bonus +3,Fire Resistance 20/- &Weight Reduction of 20% |
Note that in order to create a suit of armor or shield out of an exotic material, all the materials used to craft that armor must be of the same type. For example, crafting a suit of full plate requires three metal ingots. In order to create a suit of adamantine full plate, three adamantine ingots must be used. Alloying such exotic materials is beyond even the greatest smiths.
Enchantment Note[]
Mithral bonuses/properties do not count against enchantment limits - but only for armor, not shields. Note that as of V1.23 of the game, when using any exotic materials to craft with (aside from Mithral), all of the bonuses granted from the exotic material used count as separate properties against enchantment limits. Therefore, in cases where you seek to have exotic armor or shields with high AC bonuses, this can make certain items rather unattractive. However, if you have enough skill ranks/enhancements and levels (e.g epic) to get there - and the right materials - it may be worth the time and resources.
Mithral makes very good chainshirts for rogues due to the 0 armor check penalty.
Adamantine gives you damage reduction but, due to a bug, does so on armor only - not shields.
Making profits[]
- Light (2 planks) shields made of zalantar are extremely profitable and can be sold for 15852g each. Tower shields cost roughly the same but require 3 planks to be produced. Heavy shields are way cheaper due to a bug.
- Light shields made of other materials have the following prices: duskwood (65), darksteel (415), adamantine (3317), mithril (4817), umber hulk (14276). Adamantine and mithril heavy shields cost 6623g and 9068g respectively. Adamantine tower shield can be sold for 9950g, mithril one for 11707g, other tower shields are not very different from light shields in terms of price but cost 3 bars instead of 2 to make.
- Mithril half-plates and full plates can be sold for 6636g and 6930g respectively but both require 3 metal bars. Other mithril armors are way cheaper.
- Adamantine Banded mail only requires 2 bars and can be sold for over 10000g a piece making it the most profitable adamantine product to craft (25 molds can be bought from Fibba in act II). Adamantine chain shirt costs 3428g (2 bars), medium armors cost ~6800g (3 bars), other heavy armors cost ~10300g (also 3 bars).
- All darksteel armors are very cheap and not profitable.
- Salamander hide can be used to craft hide armor, leather and studded leather armor all of which cost ~5370g but only the first one requires 2 pieces of hide (the latter ones require 3 pieces).
- Umber hulk hide can't be used to craft any kinds of leather/hide armor, instead it can only be used for breastplates and half-plates that can be sold for 14402g and 14666g respectively. Same is true for wyvern hide which can only be used to craft certain medium and heavy armors (scale mail, breastplate, half-plate or full plate), all of which require 3 pieces and can be sold for roughly the same price (~10300-10700g). Finally, breastplates, half plates and scalemail armors made of red dragon hide all cost over 20000g.
Prices are given with Appraisal 10 and from the same merchant.