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Campaign Systems / Magic Item Creation / Talismanic Components

Using Components

Source Ultimate Campaign pg. 174
You spend talismanic components exactly like gp for the purpose of crafting magic items, and they’re destroyed as part of the item’s creation or incorporated into the item. Once used, they’re expended and can’t be used again. Talismanic components don’t change the crafting time, DC, or any other aspects of creating a magic item; they are just a substitute for the gp cost to craft it.

Example: Dragon heartblood is a talismanic component useful for all magic items. Patrick’s wizard wants to create a wand of burning hands, which has a price of 750 gp. Crafting the wand requires him to spend 375 gp on magic supplies. The wizard has a vial of dragon heartblood worth 300 gp. He decides to use all 300 gp worth of his heartblood to craft the wand, and uses his actual gold to cover the remaining cost of crafting the wand.

Most components are only usable for crafting certain magic items, but some are usable for any kind of magic item. A component’s description lists what kind of items it can be used for. Using an inappropriate component in crafting an item normally has no effect, but the GM might allow a desperate crafter to use an inappropriate component at a higher crafting DC, increasing the risk of failure or creating a cursed item.