Class Feature Friday: Weapon Innovation (Pathfinder Second Edition Inventor Innovation)
(art by Sidney Torck on Artstation)
And now we’re at the third and final innovation for inventors (for now, though who knows if or when they might add new options for the inventor).
We’ve done armor, and companions, and now it is time to focus on those that develop weapons.
It is a tragic truth that few forces in this world are more influential on technological development than warfare. Powerful leaders always want better, more efficient ways to kill enemy soldiers, especially if said weapons render previous forms of protection obsolete. And then the enemy, if they are lucky, develop defenses against said weapons and perhaps reverse-engineer the weapons themselves while creating their own deadly innovations, and the cycle continues to repeat all the way from sharp stick to atomic weaponry and beyond.
The scientists that create these weapons may play along with the deadly game, or they may naively delude themselves about what the technology is going to be used for, but the simple fact of the matter is that they design tools of death, and they’re going to have to live with that fact however they can.
A sobering thought to consider, but while fantasy often casts a mirror upon reality, it is still fantasy, so we can enjoy playing as heroic inventors whose innovative weapons are used for defending the innocent.
While historically weapons innovation has a lot of iterations of “change the shape of the business end so it can do different things” (and there is some of that in this character option), this innovation also has a lot of gadgeteering, adding quirky doodads to increase the potency of the weapon. Things like extendable coils to bind foes, gunpowder shells set to trigger on impact to add extra force to a blow, and so on.
Needless to say, the weapons that these inventors create are definitely not ready for mass production, and maybe never will be. They might simply be too heavy for anyone but their creator to effectively wield, or the inventor may be more interested in improving the gadget for self-defense rather than perfecting it for mass adoption by society.
If you’d rather have a versatile and deadly attack option, this form of inventor may appeal to you, whether you’re wielding a deadly melee or ranged weapon. So, let’s take a look!
Starting off, the weapon gains the benefits of damage boost, overdrive, and other abilities while being wielded and used, though it does get the additional quirk of being able to deal fire damage with the overdrive ability, as well as being able to be enchanted. However, the base form of the weapon must be a 0-level basic or martial weapon (or other 0-level weapon which you have access to via ancestry or background). If you’re worried about not being able to take your favorite weapons, don’t be, as the only weapons with an item level greater than 0 are those that are more complex, such a double-barreled muskets and the like.
They also have their own list of basic modifications, such as turning ranged projectiles into blunt ones, improving the damage and versatility of a simple weapon, greater weight to add oomph when wielding a one handed weapon two-handed or weighting a thrown weapon to return when thrown, entangling wires to bind foes, added spikes to pierce and hamper, added durability and weight to improve smashing capability, a complex weapon head or ammo selection to attack with any physical damage type, redesigning for nonlethal combat, adding extra blades for bleeding wounds, or making the weapon out of multiple collapsible parts.
When they make a breakthrough, inventors can also add things like a rangefinder for more precise shooting, redesign it for aerodynamic construction and long fluid swings, a concealed outer casing to hide the weapon’s true nature, integrating smaller weapons into a gauntlet to keep the wielding hand free, alloy the metal to strike true against foes vulnerable to cold iron or silver, add a rope net launcher to entangle foes, or add a rope or cable to a thrown weapon to ensnare foes and retrieve the weapon with ease.
When the weapon becomes truly revolutionary, it gains access to the following: an auto-compensator to improve accuracy on follow-up attacks, modifying the striking area to make them especially deadly on critical blows, refining the weapon to deal more damage overall, adding collapsible sections and modified weighting to extend reach when needed, creating a legendary alloy of all seven starmetals in the weapon, improved balance for faster and more accurate repeated strikes (or perhaps a faster reloading mechanism), stabilizers to improve accuracy at both close and long range, or even have space for an additional rune.
Of course, there are also feats geared towards the weapon innovation specifically, such as Wukong Extension for a shockingly long-reaching blow, Dual-Form weapon to have a second form for your weapon that you can switch between, Megaton Strike and it’s improvements for greater might, Clockwork Celerity for greater attack or reload speed, Guardian Lion Roar for a sonic attack, Silk Bracelet to add a toxic surprise to the weapon, Celestial Cachophany to rig the weapon with a supply of gunpowder blasts to harm and inhibit foes, Explosive Maneuver to incorporate spring-loaded sections to entangle or overwhelm foes, Devastating Weaponry to turn the innovation into a ranged weapon of mass death, and Full Automation to attack even faster and more often with it.
Other feats might also appeal to you, including such options as Built-In Tools, Explosive Leap, Haphazard Repair, Variable Core, Megavolt, Visual Fidelity, Manifold Modifications, Boost Modulation, Deep Freeze, Gigavolt, Unstable Redundancies, Persistent Boost, and any other that suit your build.
This innovation is definitely for the inventor that wants to be an offensive powerhouse. I recommend looking over the various weapon traits you want to add to your base weapon to determine what sort of build you want to go for, be it a withering ranged combatant on a melee option that can take control of the battlefield with strange devices attached to their weapon of choice.
Much like other innovations, describing how all the individual modifications and abilities of these weapons work is half the fun of playing an inventor in the first place, so have fun and be creative!
A ghandarva, or eastern muse sprite, Jian has long tinkered with springs and wheels to create what in their mind is the perfect weapon. So far, they’ve managed to create a miniature crossbow with enough strength to rival the full-sized thing, but who knows where their tinkering could take them?
For the last decade, a cloud giant tyrant has ruled over Nivana Valley, demanding tribute from the farms and wineries. Among these oppressed locals is a tinkerer who believes they’ve developed a weapon deadly enough to overcome her magic and might, if only a daring group of heroes can get them close enough.
The tomb of the grand engineer Uld’Fahi is said to be a ticking fortress of traps and construct guardians, but at it’s heart are his many notes and blueprints for all manner of powerful weapons, which could be adapted to give an army an edge.
