Weaponcrafters’ Guild

The Weaponcrafters’ Guild follows the normal customs and rules set out by the Mangai, the association of Lythian guilds. The Hârnic realms have their own chapters, each with a guildhall (often the chapter master’s workshop or house) located in the capital city or other important town. A chapter council made up of all freemasters (those who own a franchise) elects one of its members each year to be the grandmaster of the chapter. Many grandmasters serve for a number of years, some for life.

The guild has the usual ranks of master, journeyman, and apprentice. Apprentices are taught the basic skills of the craft and whatever aspects their master chooses to teach them of their primary discipline. The length of an apprenticeship varies. For example, learning the skills of a bowyer takes a couple of years but those of an armorer can take seven or more.

A journeyman is expected to work for several masters over time to build up skills in multiple disciplines. The balance between working and learning is a common source of tension. A journeyman expects to learn skills he doesn’t already have, but some masters wish to exploit their journeyman’s existing skills rather than teach him new ones. A journeyman who is a skilled armorer may take a position with a master swordsmith hoping to learn more about bladesmithing, yet find himself doing mostly armor repair jobs the master doesn’t want to do himself. Disputes of this nature are resolved by the guild chapter council.

To achieve the rank of master, a journeyman collects recommendations from at least three masters under whom they have served and produces a “masterpiece” in one discipline for validation by the members of the chapter council. A newly named master may try to obtain his or her own franchise but will more commonly accept bonded service with another master while they continue to improve their skills and save their coin.

Weaponcrafter Locations

There are relatively few weaponcrafters on Hârn but most cities and towns have at least one. Some are freemasters with their own franchises, but most are bonded masters employed by the local ruler or military leader or by a freemaster. Fighting orders and armies often have their own weaponcrafters to accompany them on campaigns and maintain their armor and weapons.

Weaponcrafters can be hard to find in rural areas. There are few freemasters and not all manor lords can afford to support a bonded weaponcrafter. People in these areas often must travel to the nearest city or town to obtain the goods or services of a weaponcrafter.

Specialization

Weaponcrafters may work across the entire spectrum of their craft, but the majority specialize in one of five disciplines: armorer, bowyer/fletcher, shieldmaker, swordsmith, or weaponsmith.

Specialization is a matter of interest, not restriction. Any weaponcrafter, regardless of specialization, is free to make any item under the guild’s purview.

Income

The wage rates below are for bonded masters. Journeymen receive 30–60% of the list amount and apprentices will likely get only room and board and perhaps a few coins for pocket money.
• Daily 18cp
• Monthly 108sp
• Yearly 1,296sp

Annual Costs

All masters, whether bonded or free, pay 10% of their income as guild dues. Freemasters must pay for their workshop, tools, and maintenance, as well as general costs of running the franchise. The approximate annual costs are as follows:

• Bowyer or shieldmaker 720sp
• Armorer (cloth/quilt only) 720sp
• Armorer (leather or kurbul) 840sp
• Weaponcrafter or swordsmith 960sp
• Armorer (all types) 1,440sp

Opening a Franchise

To ensure the livelihood of its masters, the guild limits the number of franchises. Many masters, either by choice or financial circumstance, never obtain one.

A prospective freemaster must persuade (or bribe) the masters in the local chapter to award him a franchise, then pay a new franchise fee (720gp is typical for most areas of Hârn). A share of this fee may go to other masters in the area to compensate for potential loss of business. A weaponcrafter who inherits a franchise must pay a transfer fee, typically 120gp.

Working Time

Regardless of how many hours a shop is open for business, a crafter’s productive time averages roughly six hours per day. Most masters have sufficient work for only about three quarters of the year.

In feudal kingdoms, the monopoly held by the Weaponcrafters’ Guild means that they are the only official source for most weapons and armour. Finding a weaponcrafter can be difficult, as not all settlements have one. Even if there is a weaponcrafter, they may be bonded and not free to sell their products and services to others without their master’s permission.

Most weapons are made to order. Although common items such as daggers, spears, arrows, and roundshields are often available for immediate sale, weaponcrafters seldom have a stock of other weapons and armour to sell “off the shelf.” Most weaponcrafters have examples of their wares that they might be persuaded to part with at additional cost.

Since most Hârnic realms have legal restrictions on who is allowed to carry weapons, the market for second-hand goods is limited. While a weaponcrafter may purchase an item of exceptional quality and value for resale, very few will deal in used goods of average quality. Some chandlers trade in such goods but will pay only a fraction of the original value.

Those who have no access to the products of a weaponcrafter are still able to arm themselves for combat. A kitchen knife, grain flail, or wood axe can do nearly as much damage as proper weapons, and a leather jerkin or heavy winter tunic will give some level of protection. Such improvisations will normally count as a class or quality level below normal.

Weaponcrafting as a distinct occupation is rare among Hârn’s tribal nations. Warriors tend to make their own armour and weapons or someone in their clan will produce them as required. Tribesmen often obtain arms from their “civilized” neighbors through trade or capture.

Other craftspeople are capable of manufacturing weapons: metalsmiths can make axes and spearheads, woodworkers can construct simple shields, and hideworkers can produce protective leather items. Although these products can be as serviceable as those from a weaponcrafter, making and selling them may violate the guild’s monopoly, where it applies. The guild tends to turn a blind eye to such activities if it is an uncommon event and no franchise is losing business. One particular area of acceptance is the making of hunting shortbows and arrows by foresters and woodsmen, which the guild considers to be “tools” rather than proper weapons.

Alternative Sources

Some weapons are obtained from practitioners of non-weaponcrafter occupations:
• Fisherman: Net
• Hideworker: Isagra, Sling, Whip
• Metalsmith: Hatchet, Knife, Sickle
• Woodcrafter: Club, Grainflail, Maul, Staff, Staffsling

Made to Measure

Chivalric weapons and armour are usually made custom to the client and thus are the right size, weight, balance, and finish to meet the customer’s needs. The person who will use the weapon or wear the armour must be present when the order is made so the weaponcrafter can take the proper measurements to ensure that the item will properly fit the customer.

A prospective customer will usually visit a weaponcrafter to discuss their requirements and see samples of the crafter’s work. Any special requirements, such as using superior materials, balancing weapons, and closely fitting armour and decorations, is discussed and a price is agreed.

Customers with requests that the crafter can’t fulfill may be referred to an another craftsman. Except for the most common items, a weaponcrafter will not “order in” another’s product; goods are made to fit and the customer must be present.

Generally, a weaponcrafter will not start work on the item until a deposit has been paid. For a standard item, this may be a simple deposit of half the cost. For more custom work, weaponcrafters often insist on a deposit that covers the total cost of materials and half or more of their labor.

When the item is near completion, the customer will be expected to visit the weaponcrafter again so that the weapon’s balance or armour’s fit can be tested. For larger or custom commissions, several fitting sessions may be needed.

When the piece is completed, the remainder of the cost must be paid before the weaponcrafter will hand over the item.

If the customer fails to pay the final cost or, by general custom, is out of touch with the weaponcrafter for more than 60 days, they forfeit their deposit and interest in the item. The weaponcrafter will try to sell the item to some other customer, possibly as an offthe-shelf product.

Feudal kingdoms tend to have restrictive laws and customs around the use of weapons and armour. The right to bear arms devolves from the sovereign, whose duty it is to defend the state. In the strictest sense, only those explicitly so granted by the sovereign or his vassals have the right to bear arms. In practice, the right to bear arms may be delegated by anyone who possesses it. Thus a knight can arm retainers in his employ but is responsible for the behavior of those he arms.

Towns charged with their own defense generally have a charter to organize a militia under the command of a knight. Fighting orders, legions, and similar organizations have the right to arm their troops. Honorably discharged members of these groups often retain the right to bear their former arms, especially those who act as reservists. Many mercenaries are, or claim to be, former soldiers. In some places, a soldier’s children may claim the right to bear arms.

For the purpose of bearing arms, society may be divided into three basic classes: the unfree, simple freemen, and nobility. Generally speaking, the unfree can use “tools” but have no right to bear true weapons or wear armour except when acting as militia. Simple freemen can carry common, non-chivalric weapons, but to what degree depends on their occupation and the situation. The nobility can bear whatever weapons and armour they please but usually prefer chivalric weapons and armour to further express their social class.

Nobles consider certain weapons to be dishonorable. No chivalric gentleman would, for example, fight with a crossbow or a weapon manufactured by a gargun, nor would he be happy with a commoner carrying one. Many nobles will use a bow for hunting but consider the use of one in battle as beneath the dignity of their station.

In terms of law enforcement, the conspicuous bearing of arms will attract attention, as will unusual weapons or excessive armour. Feudal society is not particularly tolerant, especially of well-armed strangers. Commoners must be especially careful of passing themselves off as gentlefolk to justify the arms they bear. Breach of rank is a serious offense in all civilized jurisdictions of Hârn. Some courts deem the bearing of chivalric arms as proof of guilt of this crime.

Customs and codes of law vary from one place to another. The ruling classes are normally willing to tacitly grant foreigners their own customs when it comes to bearing arms, and in return can expect to receive similar treatment when traveling abroad themselves.

Weaponcrafters support, although sometimes reluctantly, the customary constraints on weapon use and are expected to refuse to sell chivalric weapons or armour to customers unable to prove their gentility. In any event, the price of chivalric weapons is prohibitively high for most commoners.

Weaponcrafters themselves are generally exempt from the normal limitations imposed on simple freemen. In effect, they are “honorary gentlefolk.” Their right to carry a reasonable quantity of the products of their craft is rarely questioned, but individuals attempting to pass themselves off as weaponcrafters without the appropriate proof of guild membership will run afoul of the law.

See Law (COL #4035) for more information on bearing arms.

Non-Feudal Kingdoms

Ivinian kingdoms have few restrictions on what clansmen may equip themselves with. What they can afford is the limiting factor. However, plate armour is hard to find and bows are not generally used for war. In much of Orbaal, the options available to the Jarin are even more restricted than feudal peasants face elsewhere.

Khuzdul and Sindarin

Khuzdul and Sindarin societies emphasize the individual rather than social classes. Members of these cultures expect to be able to carry whatever arms they prefer, even when traveling beyond their kingdoms’ borders, although some local noblemen might take exception to this.

Barbarians and Non-Humans

There are no hard rules on carrying weapons in less-structured societies. In some tribes, anyone may carry what they like without issue, while in others individuals must earn the right through force of arms. Many tribes and species have subtle rules that are unknown to outsiders before they are breached.

Weaponcrafters are respected across all societies, especially in feudal areas where they are guilded freemen. They tend to be wealthy, with the average master earning roughly £5½ per year after expenses. Masters rarely have continuous work, with some having commissions for only half of the year, so prices are adjusted accordingly. They often spend their time off learning new skills and practicing techniques.

Although weaponcrafters are relatively uncommon in the general population, they are easy to justify in an adventuring party as a PC or NPC. With their skills in crafting and maintaining weapons and armor, they have a natural place in noble households and military expeditions of feudal armies or fighting orders. A master weaponcrafter may even be sufficiently wealthy to be able fund their own expeditions.

Weaponcrafters are a good asset to any party. They tend to be strong and dexterous. Their craft involves using a wide range of skills, from sewing cloth to shaping wood to hammering steel, and these abilities can be very useful for repairing adventuring gear well beyond basic weapons and armor. As long as these activities are not being done on a commercial basis, they are not violating the privilege of other guilds.

Weaponcrafters normally have some level of proficiency in the weapons they produce, and those in feudal kingdoms often have training as part of the local militia. Additionally, they usually have access to a good range of weapons and armor at cost price.

Playing a Weaponcrafter

Weaponcrafters in general are respected and influential members of society with the protection of their guild and local rulers. They have skills that are in high demand and hard to learn and they control access to key technical knowledge. Warriors’ lives depend on their skills. This gives many weaponcrafters a degree of self-importance, confidence, and status. They expect to be honored by higher classes and respected by lower ones.

When adventuring, weaponcrafters often have roles in the forefront of combat, where they can use their better-than-average skills and equipment. As craftsmen, they can repair anything from a tent to a cauldron and are likely to be good practical problem solvers.

Jmorvi Shek P'Var often have membership in the Weaponcrafters’ Guild. They rarely advance beyond journeyman status, although their skill may be high. They often trade labor or knowledge for workshop access.

Weaponsmiths are the most generalist of the guild’s specializations and are often willing to tackle repairs on any armour or weapon. Their specialty, however, is the manufacture of hafted weapons such as axes, maces, polearms, spears, and warhammers.

Weaponsmiths at Work

The weapons produced by weaponsmiths generally consist of a forged metal head and a shaped wooden shaft. The two processes are carried out separately, with the head joined to the shaft as one of the last stages of manufacture.

The forging process involves raising the iron to be worked to whitehot temperature, achieved by pumping air through the forge’s charcoal using giant bellows. The iron stays hot enough to be worked for only a few minutes before it needs to be reheated. Working the bellows is exhausting work, as is hammering the iron and sharpening the edges. With the heat, smoke, and sweat, a forge needs to be well ventilated. Most are in an opensided work shed or lean-to, while some are completely in the open.

In contrast to the forging of the head, shaping a wooden handle or shaft is a cold process. The weaponsmith sits on a wooden bench called a shaving-horse and uses draw-knives and spokeshaves to produce a rounded profile over the length required. The presence of a shaving-horse in a workshop is a sure sign that the weaponsmith is a maker of hafted weapons.

Unlike some other specialist weaponcrafters, weaponsmiths are likely to have items on hand for immediate sale. Handaxes, maces, javelins, and spears can be mass produced and stored until needed. However, the top end of their wares, such as battleaxes and warhammers, are almost always made to order.

Weaponsmith Skills

A weaponsmith’s skills generally overlap with those of metalsmiths, and they also share some of the skills of woodcrafters. Weaponsmiths are usually quite proficient in using the weapons they make.

Training

Journeymen working under a weaponsmith are often able to learn skills in the other specialties, as master weaponsmiths tend to have at least a limited degree of proficiency in all facets of weapon and armour maintenance and repair.

Tools

The weaponsmith’s common tools include hammers, tongs, pincers, punches, cold chisels, drills, files, and grindstones. Saws, planes, and draw knives are used when working wood.

Like armourers and swordsmiths, a weaponsmith’s workshop is not truly portable. They can, however, use a metalsmith’s forge or even an improvised one. The basic tools commonly fit in a small shoulder bag or pack.

Materials and Trade

Weaponcrafters source iron and steel bars from metalsmiths or miners, quality hardwood for handles and shafts (often branches from coppiced trees) from timberwrights, and fuel to power their forges from charcoalers.

Place of Work

Weaponsmiths normally work from a basic forge. This is often a lean-to shed open to the air on at least one side. It is equipped with a charcoal-fired forge, with large bellows to get the iron white hot, a large anvil for hammering the weapons to shape, a woodworking (shaving-horse) bench for making handles and shafts, and stores of charcoal, iron bar stock, and other supplies.

Axes

Except for the warhammer, axes are single or double blades on the end of a wooden handle. They are designed for cutting and slashing by being swung from side to side.
• Battleaxe: A hand-and-a-half, double-bladed, and long-shafted axe, typically around 4’ long. They are favored by Khuzdul.
• Handaxe: A one-handed, often single-bladed, combat axe.
• Shorkana: A single-handed axe balanced for throwing. The shorkana originated in Shorkyne but is now common elsewhere.
• Warhammer: A large hammer designed to puncture plate armour. They are more common among the Khuzdul than in human realms.

Clubs

These single-handed weapons consist of a shaft with a heavy metal head on the end, which may be spiked to inflict piercing damage.
• Mace: A reinforced club with a metal, often ridged, head.
• Morningstar: A mace with protruding spikes on the head.

Flails

Flails are generally two metal or wooden poles held together by a chain, rope, or leather. They are usually wielded two-handed.
• Ball & Chain: A spiked ball on the end of a chain attached to a wooden shaft; may be used 1-handed.
• Nachakas: A short, symmetrical flail where either end can be used to attack, entangle, and disarm.
• Warflail: A metal-reinforced flail developed from the peasant’s grainflail; some have metal heads or handles.

Polearms

Polearms are long-shafted (greater than 6’ long), two-handed weapons that terminate in a blade or axe-head. They are wielded horizontally and generally used for thrusting at cavalry.
• Glaive: A single-edged blade on the end of a long (6–8’) pole.
• Pike: A pike is a much longer (10–14’) version of the spear.
• Poleaxe: A single axe blade on the end of a long pole, often combined with a spear-like point. A peasants’ version is called a bill.

Spears

Spears are wooden shafts with a point or blade on the end designed for thrusting or throwing. Most can be used one-handed.
• Spear: A wooden shaft (5–6’) with a pointed or leaf-shaped blade (up to 1’ long) on the end.
• Javelin: A light, short spear designed to be thrown. Skirmishers often carry a handful of javelins in their shield hand to be thrown before drawing a melee weapon.
• Lance: A lance is a medium-length (8–10’) spear designed to be used on horseback, either couched under one arm when charging or carried overhand to stab downwards at warriors afoot.
• Jousting Pole: A longer (10–12’) lance with a padded head and often a hand guard (vamplate); considered a non-lethal or training weapon.
• Trident: A three-pronged spear head on the end of a long shaft, developed from the pitchfork.

Equipping an Army

Weaponsmiths make the weapons that are easiest to mass produce and among the easiest to use. Many feudal lords have weaponsmiths bonded to them to produce the spears and polearms often used to arm the militia. Bonded weaponsmiths are normally based in castles and keeps and will eat and sleep with the garrison.

In Ivinian kingdoms, the weaponsmith clan is normally allied to the royal clan. As the kingdom’s poorer clansmen are armed by the valhakar’s largess, it is no surprise that many are armed with spears and axes.

Quality and Embellishment

Manufacturing these weapons involves the simplest tasks a weaponcrafter can perform. Most items are plain and undecorated. A basic axe head can be made in an hour on the simplest of forges.

At the other end of the scale, a battleaxe can be a work of art, beautifully balanced and decorated with runes on the blade and leather bindings on the handle. Khuzdul weaponcrafters are said to make the best battleaxes. Some claim that they stay sharper than normal axes and are virtually unbreakable.

Crafters in Ivinian and Jarin societies are renowned for carving runes or other designs along the edge of their axe blades. Some are as simple as the owner’s name, while others are reputed to bestow mystical properties.

The Agrikan fighting orders in western Hârn are known for using a wide variety of maces and morning stars. Some orders have a tradition of using high-quality, rustproof steel and tough hickory shafts.

In many areas, jousting has been elevated to an entertainment rather than combat. Knights wishing to be recognized ensure that their jousting poles are painted in their heraldic colors and decorated with a pennant of their arms.

Swordsmiths, also known as bladesmiths, make a variety of bladed weapons, including knives, daggers, and swords. Bladed weapons need to be correctly balanced to be wielded easily. They need to be light yet strong and fitted to the physique and fighting style of the owner. Swordsmiths may produce a limited variety of weapons, but such specialization leads to great depth of knowledge and skill.

Making a Blade

Swords and daggers are used against both armoured and unarmoured opponents to thrust, slash, parry, and, in the case of the heavier weapons, to bludgeon. To survive combat use, blades need to be strong, sharp, and flexible, factors that can be mutually exclusive. The choice of materials, the shape and cross-section of the blades, and the method of manufacture are all crucial to achieving the best balance between these criteria.

The shape of the blade affects the balance of the weapon, its flexibility, and its overall weight. The type of iron or steel used determines its strength and ability to hold an edge. The properties of steel vary by carbon content and presence of trace metals. Swordsmiths are experts at making the steel required for a purpose. Most quality blades are made with a bar of hard steel sandwiched between two strips of softer, more malleable steel. This makes the blade less brittle but still able to hold an edge. Grooves known as fullers can be added to the blade to reduce weight and increase strength. Blades are often quenched in different liquids, including water, wine, blood, and oil, to control the cooling rate, which affects hardness and strength.

The working of the iron and steel bars into a basic blade shape is done over a hot forge and anvil. This normally involves team work, with an apprentice working the bellows, a journeyman wielding the hammer, and the master holding and moving the billet with tongs and directing the work. Finishing the blade is done in a workshop away from the heat of the forge. There, the basic blade is ground to give it the proper profile and edge, then polished and fitted with a hilt.

Making the fittings for the sword, guard, grip, and pommel can be an art in itself. The grip may be made of wood, bone, or antler and is often wrapped in leather or twisted wire for a secure grip. The guard and pommel may be highly ornamented, often with similar designs. They may be covered in incised designs or made of exotic materials, even solid gold, or embellished with enamel or gems.

Every sword and dagger will have a scabbard. Some bladesmiths make their own, while others source them from woodcrafters and hideworkers. The bladesmith will often decorate the scabbard to match the hilt.

Swordsmith Skills

The swordsmith’s greatest asset is his ability to use different steels and forging techniques to achieve the best compromise between strength, flexibility, and sharpness for the job at hand. A good swordsmith will also be adept at shaping wood, horn, and leather for making handles.

Training

Learning to shape the blade is the easy part of a swordsmith’s training. Mastering the preparation and combination of materials and the precise techniques of forging and tempering the blade is done over long years of training. Journeymen who are lucky or skilled enough will study with and learn different techniques from a number of masters.

Tools of the Trade

A swordsmith’s workshop contains tongs, hammers, pincers, punches, chisels, drills, and knives, as well as abrasives and stones for polishing and sharpening. Most important, however, are the forge and the bellows needed to raise the temperature of the charcoal to make white-hot steel. Some bladesmiths have access to a traveling forge (see the Armourers post below) that allows them to practice their craft when mobile.

Materials and Trade

Bladesmiths require iron and steel bars for blades; copper or bronze ingots for fittings; horn, hardwoods, and flexible leather for grips; and quality charcoal for their forges. For these they trade primarily with miners, butchers, timberwrights, hideworkers, and charcoalers.

Daggers

Daggers are short, single-handed blades often used as a secondary eapon in the off hand or when the primary weapon can’t be used.
• Dagger: A double-sided blade with simple hilt, one step up from a domestic knife.
• Keltan: A fighting dagger with a projecting guard designed to capture the blade of the opponent; often used for parrying in the off hand.
• Taburi: A carefully balanced knife designed for throwing; it has a sharp point but no edge to speak of.

Swords

Swords are longer blades and used as a primary weapon in melee combat. In many cultures, they are the most revered weapons.
• Broadsword: The most common type of sword. Named for its broad blade, this sword is around 3’ long and used single-handed.
• Shortsword: Swords with a blade length around 2’, but may be shorter.
• Battlesword: Also called great swords, these weapons are 4–6’ in length and wielded two-handed.
• Bastard Sword: Also known as a hand-and-a-half sword, the bastard sword is a compromise between broadswords and battle swords in terms of size and grip. It may be used one-handed (by the strong) but the hilt is large enough for two hands.
• Falchion: A one-handed, single-edged sword (30–36” in length) with a curved leading edge that gives it good cutting power.
• Estoc: A rare, sharply pointed narrow blade about 3–4’ in length, used one-handed for thrusting. Also called a Tuck.
• Longknife: A straight, double-edged, thin-bladed shortsword preferred by Sindarin warriors, who call it the vagorsereq in their language.
• Mang: A heavy falchion affixed to a wooden haft, often considered a bladed club. This is principally a gargun weapon and few human weaponcrafters would make one.
• Mankar: A short, single-edged gargun sword. It’s curved, relatively heavy blade is similar to that of a falchion.

Pattern Welding

A few bladesmiths have mastered the rare technique of pattern welding, where rods of steels of different properties are repeatedly heated up, folded and twisted, and welded together. This produces a blade with properties of both hard and flexible steels that can be both sharp and less prone to breaking.

Such techniques are usually reserved for swords; very few “lesser” weapons are made this way. A pattern-welded sword is a treasured item, very hard to come by and often extortionately expensive.

This technique is mostly used by the Khuzdul and Sindarin. It is a closely guarded secret; swordsmiths with the knowledge rarely share it other than with favored journeymen.

Quality and Embellishment

The Khuzdul are reputed to make the best blades in Lythia: strong, resilient, and well balanced. Khuzdul masters mark their work with their clan sigil and often embellish the pommel and guard with cut gemstones. Sindarin blades are beautifully figured and highly polished. Many have cursive Selenian script running along the blade and some are inlaid with precious metal. Khuzdul and Sindarin blades that fall into human hands are often claimed to have magical properties and sell for astronomical sums.

Hepekerian Thanath swords are very rare yet have a reputation that stretches as far as northwestern Lythia. They are said to be so finely wrought and sharply honed that they can cut clean through the anvil they are forged on in a single stroke.

Mundane weapons may also be decorated. Hilts are easy to swap and upgrade and can easily add several times the value of the base weapon.

Some clans possess heirloom swords that were carried by revered ancestors. These weapons were often wielded in battles won against the odds. Too precious to be carried in battle, these blades are often reserved for ceremonial use or display. In legends, some are even said to confer the status of king on whoever wields them. These swords can be ancient and austere or embellished to the point that they would be too fragile for use in combat.

Practitioners of this weaponcrafting specialty are guilded professionals who make bows and arrows primarily for combat. Individuals outside the profession may manufacture similar items, but these are typically used for hunting and can be considered tools more than weapons. They are normally less powerful and accurate than those made by professional bowyers but are nonetheless used by many common archers.

The techniques for making bows and arrows are, strictly speaking, separate skills. Bowyers select and prepare the right types of wood to give the correct springiness (draw weight) to the bow, then shape the bow stave and nocks. Fletchers craft arrow shafts to be straight and true, then fix the flights (feathers) and arrowheads. However, most practitioners of one have at least some skill in the other, so both areas of expertise are covered by the HârnMaster Fletching skill.

Fashioning Bows and Arrows

A simple bow or arrow can be made with little more than a bench and the appropriate tools. The limiting factor on making a high-quality bow is not equipment, but skill.

Crafting a war bow requires shaving small pieces of wood to taper the stave, and continuously testing the flex to ensure that the bow has the right draw weight and symmetrical deflection of the limbs. This painstaking work is done with a drawknife and spokeshave. Once shaped, the tips of the stave are sheathed with nocks of bone and fitted with a bowstring of hemp.

Composite bows have an additional stage. Rather than starting with a single stave of wood, the blank for the bow must first be made by laminating together different types of wood, sometimes with exotic materials like bone, horn, metal, or sinew sandwiched in between.

Arrows require straight shafts of even diameter. These are made by roughing out the shaft before forcing it through a jig (a hole drilled in metal plate) to round it off. The arrowhead is attached to one end of the shaft, while a nock is cut into the other. Feathers are glued to the shaft and held in place by wrapping with twine. When an army is preparing for a campaign or siege, anyone with fletching skill will be put to work making the hundreds or thousands of arrows needed.

Bowyer and Fletcher Skills

Bowyers and fletchers have similar skills to those of woodworkers and metalsmiths. The smithing skills necessary to produce arrowheads are pretty basic, but the skills for shaving the bow staves to shape and laminating different woods and horn for compound bows are specialized. Most bowyer and fletchers are proficient archers in their own right.

Training

Of the weaponcrafter specializations, those of the bowyer and fletcher are the simplest to learn. In rural areas, most bows and arrows are made by peasants, hunters, woodsmen, and other non weaponcrafters. Producing a well-balanced, high-weight war longbow, however, takes decades of experience that only professional weaponcrafters can gain.

Tools of the Trade

Bowyers and fletchers need a range of wood-working tools, such as draw knives, carving knives, saws, and custom jigs and frames. The basic tools are compact enough to fit in a large pouch.

Most also prefer to work sitting on a drawhorse. These large wooden frames can be collapsed for storage and transport.

Materials and Trade

Bowyers and fletchers need to source straight, defect-free hardwood timber, horn, feathers, hoof and rabbit-skin glues, linen twine, and linen or hemp thread for the strings.

For a longbow, the preferred wood is yew, but not just any part of the tree. The stave for a bow is carefully cut from timber containing both the heartwood and sapwood of the yew, as the different properties of the wood form a natural composite.

For these items, the bowyer trades with clothiers (twine and thread), butchers (horn and feathers), hunters (glue materials), and timberwrights.

Many different types of bows are used in Lythia. The shape of the bow is a cultural matter. What really matters is the bow’s size, which determines its range and accuracy. In general, the larger the bow, the more powerful it is. In combat, bows are generally employed en masse by foot archers to break up enemy formations.

Bows

• Shortbow: This is the most common, and broadest, classification of bow. It encompasses the basic bows commonly used by hunters and garrison soldiers as well as the horsebows used by some tribesmen. A shortbow can be straight or recurved, and made from a single stave of wood or a composite of horn, metal, and hardwoods. Most are 4’ or shorter, but can be made longer for particularly tall or strong archers. The maximum effective range is 200–300 yards. Shortbows are made by unguilded bowyers as well as weaponcrafters.

• Longbow: Longbows are more powerful than shortbows and generally the same height as the archer. The defining characteristic of the classic Emelrene-style longbow used throughout western Lythia is its method of construction, with yew staves carefully crafted so the heartwood and sapwood form a natural composite. The longbow has amazing power and accuracy when used by skilled archers, but it takes years of training to become proficient; such archers are not common on Hârn. The effective range is 300–400 yards. A skilled archer can fire 5–7 arrows per minute in combat and as many as 20 per minute have been seen in tournaments. The time, effort, and skill required to craft a longbow makes them largely the purview of the Weaponcrafters’ Guild.

• Hartbow: This composite shortbow is constructed by the Sindarin from wood, sinew, and bone. The hartbow has the size and weight of a shortbow but its range and impact exceed those of a longbow. Hartbows are typically inlaid with gems and silver or gold designs.

• Crossbow: A small bow mounted horizontally on a wooden stock with a trigger device to release a short arrow known as a bolt or quarrel. Unlike other bows, they may be carried loaded and ready to fire, but this advantage is offset by their longer time to reload. In many Hârnic realms, they are used almost exclusively for hunting and their use against people is strictly forbidden by law; those carrying a crossbow may be viewed with suspicion. The Khuzdul have no such societal restrictions and commonly use crossbows for hunting and in combat.

Projectiles

• Arrows: Most arrowheads are pointed, with or without barbs, and mounted on thin wooden shafts 24–36” in length. These are designed to create puncture wounds and can be frighteningly effective. The most common type of head used in combat is the bodkin, which is pyramidal or pointed and can pierce armour. Specialized arrow heads include broad-leaf arrows for hunting, bladed or edged arrows designed for cutting rigging, blunt arrows to stun, incendiary arrows, and whistling arrows designed to signal or intimidate.

• Bolt (Quarrel): Bolts are shorter than arrows and used on crossbows. They usually have broad-leaf heads for hunting. Where crossbows are used in combat, the quarrels are typically fitted with bodkin heads to penetrate armour.

A Custom Fit

Bows are most effective when fitted to the individual user. They need to be of the correct size for the archer’s height and the correct power to match the user’s strength. Matching a bow to the archer is one of the primary skills of a bowyer.

Arrows must also be the correct length and stiffness to fly straight from a given bow. This means that archers cannot use just any old arrows if accuracy is important. Feudal armies sometime mass produce arrows, but this is because they rely on the blanket effect of massed archers rather than individual accuracy.

Crafting a Crossbow

Although covered here under the Bowyer/Fletcher specialty, the crossbow is a bit of a crossover weapon. The metal bow arms and wooden stock are generally manufactured by weaponsmiths, while the bow string and quarrels are made by a bowyer or fletcher. The complete weapon can be found for sale by either type of weaponcrafter.

Crossbows can be found in a range of weights but, unlike other bows, do not need to be matched to the user. Those found in western Lythia are drawn by hand and do not require a windlass to cock.

Hunting Bows

The bows typically made by guilded weaponcrafters are intended for war and need to be effective against heavy armour and usable at long range. Because these same considerations don’t apply when hunting, bows crafted for that purpose tend to be lighter in terms of draw strength and thus easier to use.

Of the weaponcrafter specializations, the armourer has one of the broadest ranges of technical skills. They need to be able to work cloth, leather, and metal, from very small pieces such as individual links of mail to large and intricate constructs like a great helm. A good armourer must also be able to effectively fit the armour to the wearer with precision.

Armour Materials

Armour is classified into eight material types. They are available across Lythia but some cultures favor some types over others. Although many armourers work primarily with one or two material types only, almost all are skilled in the manufacture of quilted and leather armour. In addition to being forms of armour in their own right, these types are the base for ring or scale armour and are worn under plate and mail.

• Cloth: Heavy, coarse cloth can be worn alone or as an additional layer over or under other armour types. The armourer cuts cloth to standard patterns, adjusts to fit, sews pieces together, and fastens with straps and lacing. Armourers make cloth garments specifically designed to provide protection in combat. Clothing for everyday wear is usually obtained from a clothier or made in the home.

• Quilt: Quilt armour consists of two layers of thick cloth with tightly packed straw, linen, or wool wadding sewn between them. It is usually worn under mail but is often worn alone by light foot troops.

• Leather: Armour made from thick rawhide leather can be worn alone or as a base for ring or scale. Although clothiers and hideworkers may also make leather garments, these are often made of thinner grades of leather and are not designed for protective purposes.

• Kurbul: This hard, resilient, but lightweight armour is made by boiling pieces of leather in oil or wax and shaping them in molds while still hot. The style and its name are of Azeryani origin.

• Ring: Leather or cloth armour augmented with bits of metal to deflect edged weapons. When making ring armour, the armourer first cuts rings, strips, or studs from sheets of iron or bronze, then sews these pieces to an underlying garment of flexible leather or heavy cloth.

• Mail: Mail is made from iron wire that has been cut into short lengths and looped around a form to make rings. These are interlocked, often with each loop connecting to four other rings. While in low-quality mail the end of the loops are just butted together, in high-quality mail, the ends of the loops are flattened, overlapped, and riveted together to form a far stronger suit of mail. Mail is lighter and more flexible than other metal armours but of limited value against blunt impact.

• Scale: A continuous layer of overlapping plates of metal, or sometimes horn, sewn to a cloth or leather garment. The scale plates are carefully overlapped and fastened on the upper edge only, making the armour both flexible and protective.

• Plate: Plate armour is the pinnacle of the armourer’s craft. It is expensive and used mainly for helms and spot protection. To craft a piece of plate armour, a sheet of metal approximately 1/16th of an inch thick is cut to shape following a custom pattern, then carefully hammered into the correct three dimensional shape. Straps and buckles are affixed to fasten the plates in place.

Armour Terminology

There are many common pieces of armour to cover various body parts. Not all are customarily made from each of the armour types. The common combinations are listed on the Armour Manufacturing table at the bottom post of this article. 
• Ailettes: Shoulder guards.
• Backplate: Sheet armour that covers back of torso.
• Breastplate: Sheet armour that covers front of torso.
• Byrnie: Shirt covering upper arms to upper thighs.
• Coudes (Couters): Elbow guards.
• Cowl: Hood covering the head and neck.
• Gambeson: Padded jacket covering whole arms and torso.
• Great Helm: Helmet covering the complete head, face, and neck.
• Greaves: Calf guards.
• Halfhelm: Helmet covering the crown of the head only.
• Hauberk: Shirt that covers the neck, all of the arms, and to mid-thigh.
• Kneecops: Knee guards.
• Leggings: Trousers covering groin and legs.
• Mittens: Fingerless gloves that cover the hands.
• Rerebraces: Upper arm and shoulder guards.
• Three-quarter Helm: A helmet that covers the head and face.
• Tunic: Shirt that covers upper arms, torso, hips, and groin.
• Vambraces: Lower arm guards.
• Vest: Shirt covering whole of torso but none of the arms.

Traveling Forge

Armourers are often seen as “tied to the forge” and not very useful away from their workshop. In fact, many repairs can be made to armour, and weapons, without a forge, from repairing straps to beating out dents in plate armour.

To give their armourers more mobility and greater value in the field, some fighting orders and feudal armies have taken to mounting a portable forge onto a horse- or ox-drawn cart. The forge is insulated from the wood of the cart by a thick layer of ceramic tiles. The cart also transports the charcoal, raw metal bars, and heavy tools needed by the armourer.

This idea has proved effective and other weaponcrafters and farriers often have traveling forge carts of their own or share one with the armourer.

Quality and Embellishment

Armour quality, in terms of protection, is a matter of the materials used and the effort and skill put into its construction. Better materials, such as rust-resistant steel rather than iron, improve durability. Smaller, tighter stitches produce stronger results, and riveted chain links are superior to butted ones. These better materials and labor add to the cost.

The appearance of armour can be improved by decoration. For metal armour, pieces can be plated in precious or colored metals, such as gold-plated links used around the neck of a mail byrnie or scale armour alternating plain iron and copperplated scales. Plate armour can also have patterns engraved into the plates, a practice called chasing. Patterns can be the owner’s heraldry, have religious significance, or just be free-form. Chasing decoration can double, or more, the cost of the armour. Leather and kurbul can be embossed with designs and abstract patterns, while cloth and quilt can be dyed or embroidered in elaborate designs.

Sindarin armour is always beautiful and incomprehensibly expensive. It is both resilient and light and made up of much smaller links than normal mail. These links are often made of alloys of different colors, allowing the armourer to weave elaborate designs in the armour. Such mail has been known to sell for ten times the cost of the best-quality human mail.

Shields are made in a variety of shapes and sizes, often according to regional preferences. Nobles of the feudal kingdoms prefer kite and knight shields, the legions of the Thardic Republic use tower shields, and roundshields are popular with Ivinians and feudal commoners. A good shieldmaker will be familiar with the techniques used to construct and repair them all but will typically master only those types common to their culture. Shields may incorporate elements of wood, leather, and metal, and a shieldmaker needs the skills to work with each material.

Constructing Shields

Basic shield construction consists of cutting strips of wood to form the desired shape, then cross-laminating two or more layers and clamping or weighting it down while the glue dries to prevent warping. In some styles, a hole is cut out for the boss, a dome hammered out of sheet metal to protect the hand. The boss and a bar for the grip are riveted to the shield. Other styles have no boss but have leather straps affixed to the back as a handle.

The basic construction may be enhanced in many ways. A facing of leather or thick buckram is often stretched over the front of the shield to reduce splintering and make the shield more durable, while also providing a better surface for painting heraldic devices. A thick leather or metal strip riveted around the rim of the shield improves durability and reduces the chance of an opponent’s weapon getting lodged in it, which would make the shield unusable. Some warriors like to have a spike fixed to the center of the boss so the shield can be used as a punching weapon.

Shields often have a sling strap so that they can be carried over the shoulder when not in use to free up the hands. They may also have a cloth cover to protect the face and the design painted on it from the weather. Both strap and cover can be bought from a shieldmaker, although they rarely make such items themselves.

Shieldmaker Skills

Shieldmakers need skills in woodcrafting, metalsmithing, and hideworking. Many are also skilled limners (painters).

Workshop

A shieldmaker’s shop appears much the same as any other workshop. They have no particular need for outdoor space or specialist facilities. However, they generally require a lot of space and will have many workbenches. Shields are bulky, and several will be worked on at once. Space is needed to leave clamped shields while the glue dries or to have leather or cloth stretched over them. Shieldmakers keep large stocks of wood, leather, cloth, and sheet metal.

Tools of the trade

Shieldmakers need woodworking tools (saws, planes, and chisels), hideworking tools (knives, punches, needles, and awls), light metalworking tools (hammers, clippers, pincers), clothiers’ tools (clippers and needles), and a painting kit (brushes and pigments). Laminating shields and fixing the facing also requires the correct jigs, forms, and clamps.

Materials and Trade

Shield makers require quality timber, buckram and thin hides, leather straps, glue, paint pigments, and sheets, bars, strips, and fitments of metal. They trade with timberwrights, weavers, hideworkers, metalsmiths, and other trades for these.

Some shieldmakers make their own shield bosses and grips while others buy them from weaponsmiths.

• Roundshield: The roundshield is the most common type of shield used throughout Hârn and Ivinia. They are typically 20–30” in diameter and often feature a central metal boss. While the circumference is often bound with metal or thick leather, some warriors leave the edge of their shields unprotected in the hope that the bare wood will catch and break the opponent’s weapon.

• Buckler: These small and lightweight round shields are often worn strapped to the secondary arm. Their small size makes them very maneuverable and good for blocking but they will not stand up to too many hits. They are sometimes faced with metal.

• Kite Shield: The kite shield’s inverted teardrop shape covers most of the body. They are heavier than knight shields but afford better protection, especially for a mounted warrior who can’t swing the arm around as much to block blows. Kite shields are considered chivalric.

• Knight Shield: As indicated by its name, the knight shield is closely associated with knights and is considered chivalric. It developed out of the kite shield but its shorter length makes it more maneuverable and its squarer proportions are better suited to be emblazoned with the owner’s heraldic achievement.

• Tower Shield: The traditional tower shield is a large rectangular shield around 5’ high and deeply curved along its length to wrap around the holder. They are designed for mass infantry defense and are particularly effective when interlocked as a shield wall, but are encumbering in individual combat. Tower shields originated in Trierzon, but on Hârn are seldom used outside the Thardic Republic. While some cohorts of the Thardic Legions use the traditional shape, units less likely to fight in shield walls, such as city guards, have adopted a newer style with an oval shape and much shallower curve.

Shield Decoration

In addition to being used for defense, shields are often decorated to identify the owner or to show off their status and wealth.

Knights of the feudal kingdoms typically have bright, often complex heraldic designs on their shields. A noble’s retainers or militia often carry shields displaying the lord’s badge or at least painted in its principal colors. Knights and men-at-arms of the fighting orders all bear the arms of their order on their shields.

Shields carried by rich knights or nobles will feature the lord’s achievement painted by a limner, an artist who specializes in painting signs. Limners can often be found located near a college of heralds, working in partnership with a shieldmaker to decorate the newly manufactured shields with the correct designs.

One of the worst chivalric crimes is to carry the arms of another knight. For a knight to do this is great dishonor and may lead to trial by combat. A commoner found displaying a knight’s arms without permission can expect to be flogged or branded, if not executed.

Practices are similar outside the feudal realms. Sindarin shields are known for their finely painted designs, which often feature embossed designs or the application of metal foils. In clan-based cultures such as those of Ivinia or Azadmere, warriors display the badge of their clan or clan leader. Some Jarin and Ivinians decorate their shields with knot-work beasts, either painted on or as metal fretwork appliqués.

Shields used by tribal warriors are often left as plain wood but may be covered with raw hide or decorated with metal plaques, tassels, animal heads, totems, or the scalps of defeated enemies.

Weaponcrafters have the skills to make, enhance, repair, and alter almost all types of armour and weapons. The rules and tables on this and the following pages can be used to determine the quality and value enhancements of crafted items, as well as the effort in days and cost of raw materials to make standard and custom versions of them. The rules here complement those in HÂRNMASTER Third Edition (COL #4001).

Where no customization or additional detail is required, use the Base Price, Materials, and Base Effort as listed on the Weapon Manufacturing table (next page). Repairing or altering an item typically costs 20–50% of the Base Price, depending on the level of damage or nature of the alteration; the effort required is the same proportion of the Base Effort for that item. When making a custom item, the weaponcrafter will typically charge double for the extra materials and at least 1d per hour for labor.

The rules for crafting armour or weapons assume the use of a wellsupplied and outfitted workshop. Crafting in other environments will require negative modification to the rolls or result. It is also assumed that the primary crafter (a master, journeyman, or equivalent) has a more junior assistant (often a journeyman, senior apprentice, or similarly skilled person). The lead crafter’s skill, represented by Effective Mastery Level (EML) and Skill Index (SI), is used in determining the success of the crafting, as the assistant is just following their lead.

Quality

The quality of an item is determined by the materials and workmanship of the build. Better materials and skilled craftsmanship can improve quality, allowing weapons to do more damage, armour to absorb more impact, and both to be less likely to break.

The Product Quality table at right gives adjustments to Weapon Quality or Armour Protective Values based on the weaponcrafter’s SI and the result of their skill roll when making the item. Note that SI is always based on ML, not the EML resulting from any bonuses or penalties in these rules.

The resultant weapon or armour quality is not negotiable, but the price is. Better-quality items cost many times their base value (as much as double per +1 quality) and are almost always custom orders. Khuzdul and Sindarin weapons and armour are renowned for their quality, but lesser copies are sometimes passed off as their work. Gargun arms are often of poor quality.

The overall quality of armour and weapons can rarely be improved significantly, as the original workmanship and materials are intrinsic to the item. If a higher-quality item is required, it is usually better to start anew.

Enhancement Value

Crafters can enhance their goods through good design and decoration, such as punching or engraving. Skilled crafters offer spectacular ornamentation such as inset gems, gold-chased runes, or silver fittings. This work is often done in conjunction with jewelers. Enhancements can be included as the item is made or can be added later. When a crafter attempts to enhance the appearance of a product, use the Value Enhancement rules at right. Prices for such commissions are agreed to up front. As the result is variable, the purchaser may get a bargain, or something not meeting their expectations.