Proposed skill generated by a wish

["dizza_dylan" <dizza_dylan@hotmail.com>]

I came up with this proposal for a characters wish to become a shaper.

L exp

0 3500
1 7000
2 14000
3 21000
4 28000
5 35000
6 42000
7 49000
8 56000
9 63000
10 70000

TOTAL: 388,500 exp for level 10

Rank 0: Instantly learn what any magic item does.

Rank 1: May destory item to learn how it can be made (although does
        not grant the ability to remake it.) Just grants knowledge
        The pieces remaining are considered destroyed and are not
        reuseable

Rank 2: Grants Witch talent for creating amulets and potions. Always
        works. IE BC=100 but for rank dependant effects = double
        rank in this skill

Rank 3: Same as Binder investment ritual. Always successful and level
        dependent effects count as double rank in this skill. May
        "invest" any talent or spell.

Rank 4: May invest skills in an item using the same methods as rank 3.

Rank 5: May "shape" an item by placing in a spell or talent at a cost
        in sp equal to the exp required to obtain the current
        level in the spell or talent. Ie if the EM is 1000 and the
        current level being invested is 10 then the cost is 10,000.
        Since that is what is required to get rank 10 from 9. This
        would "shape" one charge in which can be used once per day.
        BC=2*MA + 5% per rank. Half materials are wasted if you fail.
        May shape level/3 (round up) effects into a single item.

Rank 6: May "shape" a skill into an item. Only one level of the skill
        can be invested per "shaping". IE cure headaches and cure
        would both have to be invested seperatly. Must have the skill
        to be invested.

Rank 7: May "shape" own ideas. Base chances not effected by more than
        twice level. Damage and protection not effected by more than
        rank/3 round up. Attributes not effected by more than rank/2.
        Armourer and weaponsmith upgrades may be included either as
        per the normal skill or as a "shaping" but you cannot gain the
        same advantage by doing it both ways. Ie. Only the highest
        protection bonus counts for any single item.

At each rank after 7 you may pick one ability from the list.

1:) Learn how to make something without destroying it.

2:) May teach this ability to another PC.

3:) always pays lower FT costs. (5 Fatigue per rank)

4:) May shape effects enhanced by enhance enchantment

5:) May shape an extra effect into each item


General rules:

level 0 costs 4 FT. Each other ability costs 5-10 FT per rank which 
must all be paid at once. This can lower you to as low as negative 
half your FT. But no further. This makes many of the abilities 
impossible to use unless you can find ways around this restriction.

Costs of construction of truely shaped items (rank5+) should be high 
but not prohibitive. I'd recommend that you make it about 9 times the 
cost you'd value the item at and divided by the rank in this ability. 
Technicaly at rank 10 you could make a living via this but then again 
I'm sure you could do it much earlier given supply and demand. This 
is costs for magical materials and there should be at least one 
ingredient that is quested for or bargained for. Never give out large 
amounts of this ingredient as the idea is not to start mass 
production. Lesser shapings don't need to be to hard but certainly 
powerful ones and master works should be almost impossible to 
reproduce.

Reccomended that any rank 9/10 masterwork produced for going up a 
level either be confiscated to the guild vaults or destroyed in the 
adventure. These are epic level shaped items and would unbalance the 
game. If they don't then they aren't worthy of the kind of masterwork 
needed to gain these levels.

All items created are at the GM's discretion and so is their final 
cost and fatigue requirement.

I'd really appreciate any feedback and any possible ways to make this 
skill harder to use. I was considering a philosophy cap with some 
rules along the lines of:

This skill cannot be higher than your rank in philosophy and you must 
have the Shaping realm(non standard). To find necesary ingredients 
you make a philosophy check at difficulty of hard. This will tell you 
where or how to obtain the ingredients necesary which may still 
require a quest. The "required materials" field reduces difficulty by 
one and a sub field of the effect generated will lower difficulty of 
the philosophy check by another level. IE to make a flying carpet 
would require a carpet, the ritual materials and an extra ingredient 
determined by a hard philosophy check. It would be standard if I had 
the "required materials field" and easy if I had the "shaping flight" 
sub field.

This whole skill is a first draft and granted via a wish granted by a 
deity. I'd love feed back on it. Both positive and negative but try 
to give advice on how to fix problems rather than just criticise. 
Also I'd love suggestions on level 8+ abilities to choose from and 
suggestions for different abilities at low levels. 1 to 4 seem a 
little weak and boring to me.

Dylan