A spellsoul weapon can be any type of melee weapon, from a rapier to a scythe. The spellshaper chooses the weapon's type upon gaining the weapon, and once chosen, it can't be changed. As the master of a spellsoul weapon increases in shaper level, her spellsoul weapon becomes more powerful and gains new abilities.
A spellsoul weapon is independently conscious, but features some personality traits reflecting its wielder. A spellsoul weapon always has the same alignment as its master and even changes its alignment if its master does. The weapon typically works towards its wielder's goals, but not always without argument or backlash. In some cases, a spellsoul weapon might have a mission or goals of its own. In such a case, the spellsoul weapon might be either open or secretive about its goals.
Spellsoul Weapon Basics: Use the statistics for a normal weapon of the spellsoul weapon's kind, but make the following changes.
Saving Throws: A spellsoul weapon uses its master's base saving throw bonuses and ability modifiers on saves, as well as any other bonuses she might have (from magic items or feats, for example). It uses her saving throws even if she is not currently wielding the spellsoul weapon.
Abilities: As an object, a spellsoul weapon has no Strength score, Constitution score, or Dexterity score. However, it does have mental ability scores, which increase as you advance in shaper level (see below).
Languages and Skills: A spellsoul weapon starts with Common as a language. As it increases in Intelligence, it manifests knowledge of languages and arcane lore. Upon reaching an Intelligence score of 12, it gains a bonus language of your choice, and gains 1 rank in Knowledge (arcana). Each time the weapon gains a bonus to Intelligence, it gains another language and another rank in Knowledge (arcana).
Shaper Level | Lamen Bonus | Int | Wis/Cha | Ego | Special |
4th | +2 | 11 | 7 | 5 | Alertness, channeled manifestation, personality, sighted, telepathic speech |
5th-6th | +3 | 12 | 8 | 8 | Spellsoul strike |
7th-8th | +4 | 13 | 9 | 10 | -- |
9th-10th | +5 | 14 | 10 | 12 | Arcane parry, call weapon |
11th-12th | +6 | 15 | 11 | 14 | -- |
13th-14th | +7 | 16 | 12 | 16 | Spellsoul focus |
Spellsoul Weapon Ability Descriptions: All spellsoul weapons have special abilities (or impart abilities to their owners) depending on the shaper level of the owner, as shown on the table above. The abilities on the table are cumulative. A spellsoul weapon normally refuses to use any of its abilities when wielded by anyone other than its master, and acts as a masterwork weapon of its type.
Lamen Bonus: A spellsoul weapon has an innate connection to the power of its master, granting it an unassigned lamen bonus equal to the value shown on the table. As the weapon's master increases in shaper level, this bonus increases accordingly. The master of a spellsoul weapon can use this unassigned bonus to enhance the weapon as though she possessed the Craft Spellshape Items feat, except that the process takes only one minute for every 1,000 gp in the base price of the applied enhancement and the weapon's master need not know the prerequisite formulae (if any) to apply a lamen property to her spellsoul weapon. Similarly, it takes only one minute for the weapon's master to convert existing bonuses or properties to unassigned bonuses.
Any enhancement bonus granted to the spellsoul weapon in this way applies both to attack rolls and to shaper level checks made to overcome spell resistance. Unlike a spellheart weapon, lamen enhancements possessed by a spellsoul weapon are constantly in effect, even when the weapon is not being used to shape a spellshape attack.
A spellsoul weapon's lamen bonus represents its attunement to spellshaping magic and the powers of its master, and it prevents the weapon from being enchanted in any other way.
Int: The spellsoul weapon's Intelligence score.
Wis/Cha: The spellsoul weapon's Wisdom and Charisma scores.
Ego: A spellsoul weapon starts with an ego of 5, and that ego increases as the weapon becomes more powerful, as shown on the table above. In cases where a wielder and the spellsoul weapon come into conflict, like any intelligent item, a spellsoul weapon can attempt to exert its dominance.
Alertness (Ex): While the weapon's master is wielding her spellsoul weapon, she gains the Alertness feat.
Channeled Manifestation (Ex): A spellsoul weapon's attunement to its wielder allows it to act as a perfect conduit for its master's magical attacks. Whenever its master channels a spellshape attack through the weapon, she can choose to fully manifest that spellshape attack.
Channeled attacks with a fully-manifested spellshape attack do not use the weapon's normal properties. Instead, such an attack is a melee attack that deals damage equal to that normally dealt by the spellshape attack (including extra damage or effects from class features or feats), and it has the same critical threat range as the spellshape attack does. The weapon's lamen enhancements apply normally to the spellshape attack, and the attack benefits from any feats or effects that would normally affect the manifested spellshape attack (except for effects that apply only to spellshape attacks made as ranged attacks).
A spellsoul weapon represents a perfect balance between weapon and magic. The wielder of a spellsoul weapon adds her Strength bonus to damage rolls with the weapon normally, even when using it to channel a fully-manifested spellshape attack.
Personality (Ex): Like a psicrystal, every spellsoul weapon has a personality. See Psicrystal Personality, page 23 of the Expanded Psionics Handbook.
Sighted (Ex): Although it has no physical sensory organs, a spellsoul weapon can telepathically sense its environment as well as a creature with normal vision and hearing would. Darkness (even supernatural darkness) is irrelevant, as are areas of supernatural silence, though a spellsoul weapon still can't discern invisible or ethereal beings. A spellsoul weapon's sighted range is 40 feet.
Telepathic Speech (Su): A spellsoul weapon can communicate telepathically with any creature within 30 feet. The spellsoul weapon must share a language with a creature in order to communicate with it in this way.
Spellsoul Strike (Ex): Upon reaching 5th level, the wielder of a spellsoul weapon can expend one of her prepared formulae in order to gain a competence bonus on attack and damage rolls with her spellsoul weapon equal to the expended formula's level. This bonus lasts until the end of the wielder's turn. Once the spellsoul weapon's wielder has used this ability, she must wait 5 rounds before doing so again.
Arcane Parry (Ex): At 9th level, as an immediate action, the wielder of a spellsoul weapon can expend one of her prepared formulae to gain a competence bonus to AC against a single attack equal to the expended formula's level. The wielder can choose to use this ability after an opponent resolves his attack but before he determines damage. Once the spellsoul weapon's wielder has used this ability, she must wait 5 rounds before doing so again.
Call Weapon (Sp): Starting at 9th level, as a standard action, a spellsoul weapon's master can call her spellsoul weapon from as far as 1 mile away, causing it to instantly teleport to her hand.
Spellsoul Focus (Ex): At 13th level, as a swift action, the wielder of a spellsoul weapon can expend one of her prepared formulae in order to increase the save DCs (if any) of any formulae that she shapes during her turn. Expending a 1st- to 3rd-level formula increases the save DCs of the wielder's formulae by 1, expending a 4th- to 6th-level formula increases the save DCs of her formulae by 2, and expending a 7th- to 9th-level formula increases the save DCs of her formulae by 3. This bonus lasts until the end of the wielder's turn, and it stacks with the benefits of Circle Focus and similar effects. Once the spellsoul weapon's wielder has used this ability, she must wait 5 rounds before doing so again.