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Dart Weapons
These are clockwork weapons relying on enhanced
springs to propel long darts with ranges and deadliness
equivalent to a crossbow. A typical dart weapon has a
revolver-like chamber containing up to six darts. As each
dart is fired, the chamber revolves and the next dart is
loaded into the firing mechanism. The rate of fire is one
dart per round; loading a set of darts is a 200% action
(30% per dart and 20% to reset the mechanism). Less
bulky than crossbows, dart pistols and dart rifles are
quieter and more reliable than gunpowder pistols and
muskets.
Dart Pistol (looks like a revolver with a six-inch
barrel).
Use Light Crossbow Attack Table except it fumbles on
01-03 UM and has the following ranges (in feet, modifiers
in brackets): Point-Blank (+10) 10, Short (+0) 25,
Medium (-25) 50, Long (-50) 100, Extreme Range (-100)
150.
Requires Enchant Device I, cost 5gp. Time: 2 weeks.
Dart Rifle (looks like a rifle but has a six-dart
chamber).
Use Heavy Crossbow Attack Table except it fumbles
on 01-05 UM and has the following ranges (in feet,
modifiers in brackets): Point-Blank (+10) 20, Short (+0)
50, Medium (-25) 100, Long (-50) 200, Extreme Range (-
100) 300.
Requires Enchant Device I, cost 10gp. Time: 2 weeks.
The Amplify Empowerment may be used as a damage
multiplier (e.g. Lesser Amplify doubling damage). The
Improved Operation Empowerment can be used to increase
rate of fire (e.g. Lesser Improved Operation would
allow 2 darts to be fired and loaded each round).
Alternative designs exist which are much closer in
form to standard crossbows. Some artificers have also
constructed “crossbow repeaters” which have the same
attack, fumble, and damage capabilities as light or heavy
crossbows but fire up to five bolts simultaneously. Reloading
crossbow repeaters is a 200% action (30% per
bolt and 50% to reset the mechanisms). Price and time
costs are as for dart rifles.
Diving Apparatus
This is based on a now-proven design by Leonardo da
Vinci. The apparatus has three major components: a
waterproof suit, a mask and breathing tube, and a hollowed-out
cork dome. For deep-water work, the suit is
made of coiled armor plate under a sealed tunic to
protect against pressure compression. The long leather
breathing tube contains two (or more) hollow rods to
keep it rigid and has coiled springs between the rods to
prevent kinks occurring. The diver breathes through one
end of the tube; the other feeds into the air stored in the
cork dome (which has small holes just above its bottom
to allow the air to replenish naturally). In normal use, the
dome floats on the surface. The diver can pull it underwater,
whereupon the dome acts as a compressed air
supply.
In its mundane form, the apparatus is limited by the
available air in the dome (perhaps 5 minutes) and only
protects marginally against increasing pressure with increased
depth (safe to 100 feet). Enchant Device I will
increase the underwater time to 10 minutes and only
require the dome to remain above water for 1 minute to
replenish the air. Pressure and Purification
Empowerments would be useful additions – the latter
could increase underwater time indefinitely.
Cost (mundane version) 10gp plus 200gp for plate
mail. Time: 2 weeks plus 4 months for plate mail.
Flame Thrower
This weapon consists of a hollow pipe connected via
valves to a small tank of oil. The fuel is forced into the
pipe and squirted out under pressure. As the jet leaves the
pipe, it is ignited. In the mundane form, the pressure is
insufficient for the flame to spread more than a few feet
from the pipe, and the tank will be exhausted quickly. If
enchanted, the flamethrower can generate a 5' long and
1’ wide flame from a single pint of oil (treat as a +0 Fire
Bolt). Flame Bolt is the obvious empowerment.
Cost: 25gp (plus 1bp per pint of oil). Time: 2 weeks.
Hand Tools
This is actually a whole category of clockwork handheld
tools, including the hand pulverizer (a powerful drill
with a steel or diamond bit), automatic lockpicks, the
hull breaker (a device for puncturing ship’s hulls by
forcing a prong inside the planking), automatic saws,
mechanical fans, smoke generators, etc. Enchant Device
I obviates the need to wind up their clockwork mechanisms.
The Fine Manipulation Empowerment is often
used to improve their effectiveness.
Cost: up to 50gp. Time: 1 week.
Leyden Jars and Electrometers
Leyden jars have been described above. One Leyden
battery actually had an adjustable dial giving four settings:
detonating cannon by igniting sparks, altering a
compass needle, killing animals, and melting metal wire.
Electrometers may be used to measure the stored charge.
Enchant Device II is required to use electrical gadgets in
Automata.
Cost: (electrometer) 1gp. Time: 1 week.
Puzzle Boxes
Whereas a self-locking chest merely demonstrates the
artificer’s skill, a puzzle box is designed to be difficult to
open for security or entertainment. Complicated locks,
movable parts (requiring the “box” to be adjusted or
rotated into distinct physical configurations before locks
etc. are revealed), extraneous mechanisms (to confuse),
and in some cases, booby traps (such as poisoned needles,
gas, tool-breakers and so on) all contribute to keeping
the contents of the puzzle box safe and secret.
38 CONSTRUCT COMPANION