The Magic of MakingIt is easy to think of the Metal Gods just as mighty warriors and sorcerers who struck out against the Elder Races, but devotees of the Metal Gods also remember that without the dwarf-trained first smiths of Man making arms and armor for those warrior gods, Man would still live in bondage. Learning the secrets of metallurgy, these first smiths unlocked the mysteries of shaping Man's will into weapons, figuratively if not literally; the importance of this analogy is not lost on the mortal practitioners of magic who look to the Metal Gods for inspiration. By creating objects of enduring and pervasive power, beauty and utility, mages devoted to Metal Gods seek to perfect their art and, through it, their own souls; through the act of making, they make themselves. Through tempering their steel, they temper their spirits. Through honing their blades, so too do they hone their minds.
Wizards and elves who follow the Metal Gods often find themselves inspired to learn the secrets of the Magic of Making; in game terms, whenever the devotee is able to learn a new spell, he may learn a spell from the following list, provided he can cast spells of that level: (1) Runic alphabet, mortal, (2) Wizard staff, (3) Sword magic, Write magic, & (4) Transmute Earth. The devotee may learn these spells without chance of failure. Furthermore, if a devotee of the Metal Gods chooses to be inspired by the smiths of that pantheon, he is considered trained in metalsmithing, armorcrafting and weaponsmithing for the purposes of skill rolls (and thus may roll a d20 rather than a d10 when tested).
Spellburn: The Metal GodsThe Metal Gods willingly offer to lend their strength to those mortal magic users who petition them for power, but even their support can come with a price. In order to bridge the gulf in space and time between the mortal world and the celestial realm of the Metal Gods, wizards must channel immense energies. Sometimes these energies put additional strain on the caster, sapping his vitality as it ebbs out from his body. Sometimes, these energies are insufficient and require more arcane momentum and the caster supplies this with his own life force. For inspiration on Spellburn effects for wizards and elves who claim the Metal Gods of as their patron, roll 1d4 and consult the following chart.
Roll | Spellburn Result
1 - You channel the sorcerous might of the Metal Gods to fuel the flame of your arcane efforts. Though the gods are generous with their support, as their influence passes through your body, a small portion of your life essence follows it, leaving you drained and weak. Make a Fortitude save (DC 15); if you succeed, you suffer no ability score loss as part of the spellburn.
2 - The Metal Gods offer you power, but require that you pay a price. As they rend a hole in the fabric of reality, they anchor themselves to your physical body through that hole and you're nearly pulled through the rift. You brace yourself against the tension, but it takes a very real toll on your body.
3 - The blare and thunder, clang and crash of the Metal Gods' eternal war course through your ears as one of the Lost Hymns flows through your body to bolster your magic, but leaves your ears ringing, throwing you off-balance and dulling your reactions. If you fail a Fortitude save (DC 13 + spell level), you are deafened for 1d4 + spell level rounds.
4 - The Metal Gods demand a demonstration of your devotion. For every point of spellburn you invoke, roll 1d3. If you recite a number of lines of Lost Hymns equal to the total of this dice roll, you will have pleased the Metal Gods and they will supply additional arcane energy to cast this spell. From here on, whenever you cast this spell, you do so at +1. You can only gain this bonus once per spell.