Artifacts of Power, Because not all swords are Masamune’s

So in my recently re-undertaken quests to recreate Nanoha in Anima I came across the most difficult part of her Character, Raising Heart.

So artifacts of power are the most complex and recent addition to the game, requiring an entire book (although small) to explain and list.  The problem doesn’t lie with the system but rather with the lack of any coherence between anime characters and there universes and the infinite amount of effects that a certain thing could be interpreted as.  To that end were going to have to  be as grounded as possible when recreating it so that it can fit into the system without taking too many liberties or giving too much free power to the character.

Power Levels
So first lets look at the proses for artifacts in Anima.  If you recall the Advantage: Artefact, it says nothing about how powerful it should be, what capabilities it can have or anything at all and because of that players had to sit down and come to an agreement there GM or make it up as they went as to what it could do and such.  well not any more.

This here is the power level based on CP’s invested by level according to the book. Now let me give you a slight guide as to what these numbers mean.

1) These are minor objects that have effects that are minute  or insignificant.  These don’t even need to have powers as just having an elevated mystical presence is enough to be denoted as an artifact.  Some examples are a coin that always lands heads, a candle that never burns down, or a flint and tinder that always works on the first try.

2) This is the most common type of artifact in any universe and is mostly composed of weapons and armors that poses some noticeable power such as being able to damage any creature, granting immunity to certain elements and other such things.

Linas magic amplification talismans would fall under rank 2

3) Similar to level 2 artifacts except that these truly stand out.  It is at this point that they start to make true differences to the character that wields it and can give its user and advantage in battle.  Artifacts capable of modifying the environment or power magical foci tend to land in this category

4) These artifacts are amongst the most dangerous as it is at this point that, in the right hands, they can allow a character to destabilize the world.  Even certain “divine” objects fall into this category.  Artifacts of this nature are invaluable and are generally either abused or locked away due to their power.

5) These artifacts pose a real threat to the world itself and are only labeled as such since their power is immeasurable.  Artifacts of this grade are rare, if not non-existent, since there very presence is nigh impossible to prove.
There are only 3 level five objects listed in the book, each of them granting it’s “wielder” almost divine power,
•The Book of the Dead, Destroyed an entire city with a undead army simply by being
• Megas Therion, an entire city that grants it’s owner the knowledge of every spell in the game
• The Key of Yygdrasyll, Modifies reality to the whim of the owners subcontious

+) This means that the object is on the very limits of its level and is almost considered part of the next.  Wether this be because of some weakness or drawback or because it just isn’t powerful enough is up for debate.

So with that in mind we can now get a ballpark idea as to what level Raising Heart is (at least by the end of the original series).  So from what i remember Raising Heart is what allows Nanoha to use magic but apart from that all it has is a minor personality so this gives us good room to make it functional within the system.  In order to do this we’ll have to take a look at how artifacts are created.

Creation and Power Points

So almost every conceivable effect has had two things assigned to it, an amount of Power Points and a Power Level, it is these two things that will limit what we can add to an item and that in turn is limited by the presence of an object.

As you can see each power takes up a certain amount of presence within the object depending on their level, thus the more powerful the effect the more quality is required of the base object to contain it.  This is generally not an issue with weapons and armor as any of those worth empowering would usually already be of a certain quality (remember that every +5 a weapon or armor has grants it 50 presence)

IMPORTANT: pp can be “downgraded” by 1 level in order to grant twice the amount (50 lvl 2 pp become 100 lvl 1 pp) but NEVER upgraded.

Materials
So how do we get PP?  well that depends on what we are using as raw materials to create them.  Here is a list of the most common “materials” used:

• Power attribute:  Indeed, the simplest way to create an artifact is to sacrifice ones power attribute.  In order to calculate how many you get and of what level here is an equation:
  pp= [amount of points sacrificed] X (presence / PP level)
  There is a limit though, and that is that one required to have reached a certain amount of power in order to be able to create higher level points as listed below
  1 Power :6+
  2 Power: 8+
  3 Power: 10+
  4 Power: 14+
  5 Power: 16+
• Zeon: The second most common form to obtain PP is to infuze and object with Zeon, however creating pp this way has a very big drawback.  In order to calculate how many pp you get here is the equation:
  pp= [zeon infuzed] / 5
  These pp are ALWAYS of level 1 and have the additional rule of extinguishable.
• Other Mystic Artefacts: It is not uncommon to “sacrifice” one object to aid in the creation of another.  When this is the case the lesser artifact can be used in one of two ways
  pp= half the pp of the highest level
  or
  pp= same amount of points but of 1 level lower for each level

Those are the three most common materials used in the creation of Artifacts but that is far from all of them.  We all know that there are materials in this world of superb value and it is these materials that will most likely be used in the creation of more powerful  artefacts

Rare Materials
These materials are much more powerful  but also that much more rare to obtain, if not deadly.

• Fairy Dust: While it may seem a simple manner to obtain it Fairy Dust is the very life essence of fairies, and it takes them years in order to replenish the few grams that they can spare without putting their life at risk so obtaining enough for the process is rare.  The dust needs to either be placed in a receptacle within the object or sprinkled over the vestment being enchanted:
  • 50 grams: 50 PP of level 2.
  • 100 grams: 100 PP of level 2.
  • 250 grams: 20 PP of level 3.
  • +1 Kg.: 50 PP of level 3.
  
• Mystic Gems: These are not just precious gems but gems that are truly mystical in nature and origin.  In order for these to function they need to be encrusted in a visible area of the object (swords hilt, necklace, armor decoration) and the power depends on the size of the gem:
  • Small Gem: 100 PP of level 2.
  • Large Gem: 250 PP of level 2.
• banshee Tears: The silvery metal that forms from Banshees tears can be a powerful material and the more tragic the lament the more power they will possess:
  • Minor Lament: 20 PP of level 3.
  • Major Lament: 60 PP of level 3.
• Mandragora: The roots of the Mandragora, the cursed plant that grows at the fee of the dead,  are commonly used in lesser artifacts.  They always confer 100 pp of lvl 1 no matter how many Mandragora are used.
• Star Metal:  Any artifact made partially or completely of this metal naturally gains a certain amount of pp.
  • Decorations: 100 PP of level 1.
  • At least half of the artifact: 100 PP of level 2.
  • Made entirely of: 100 PP of level 3.
  
• Dragons Heart: Within their heart lies the supernatural essence of the Dragon thus it makes for a powerful material.  The age of the dragon determines the power it can give:
  • Drake: 50 PP de Nivel 3.
  • Adult: 100 PP de Nivel 3.
  • Ancient: 20 PP de Nivel 4.
  • Ancestral: 50 PP de Nivel 4.
• Seed of Ramalen: The seeds that grow into the trees of Ramalen as commonly used by the Duk’zarist in the creation minor artifacts, most commonly crushed and used in the creation of Zeba (Swords made from wood of Gesta that are as hard as steel that they can also light on fire without harming the weapon due to its hardness) but they have also used entire seeds in the creation of more powerful weapons.
  • Seed Fragments: 100 PP of level 2.
  • Complete Seed: 50 pp of level 3.
  IMPORTANT: These seeds only serve to power magical effects relating to fire, otherwise they are useless.
• Horns of Oni: These horns provide a great amount of magical energy, especially if one acquires both horns from the same creature.
  • One horn from a minor Oni: 50 PP de Nivel 2.
  • Both horns from a minor Oni: 100 PP de Nivel 2.
  • One horn of a major Oni: 50 PP de Nivel 3.
  • Both horns from a major Oni: 100 PP de Nivel 3.
• Elements of Absolute Purity:  In certain zones of the world, where elementals are born, a lot of mystic energy naturally gathers.  These elements such as the coldest snow from the highest peak, the hottest lava from the largest volcano, or the hardest elements from the core of the earth all provide 50 pp of level 3, BUT these can only be used for power relating to the element that is used.
   
• Blood of an Emperor of Ancient Lineage: Probably amongst the most powerful of the rare materials.  The amount and level of pp depends on how much blood is used.
  •Small Amount (less than a litre): 50 PP of level 2.
  • Large Amount (Just under half of his blood): 250 PP of level 2.
  • All of his Blood: 150 PP of level 3

That’s quite a list isn’t it? also remember that you are not limited to what the book lists but should use it as a guide when using custom materials.

But where not done!  now is for the actual process of making the object.

Creation
In order to create an artifact we can use any of the following secondary skills: Occultism, Runes, Alchemi, Animism
The difficulty of the act depends on the type of skill used and the highest power level within the artifact:

So yes, the ritual itself can be easy or rock hard depending on what you’re trying to make.  And how will you know how hard it is? well that is where the large section of effects comes into play.  And that is where i can’t really help you out, since the list is so big and after that comes the pre-made artifacts which is something that would take waaaaay to long to do.

Something you could do is pool together some money between your entire table and pay the 20$ that the pdf costs, I’ve looked for a pdf torrent online but no one seems to have shared it so I’m afraid i can’t help you out.