Mercurite Alloy (3.5e Equipment)

Mercurite Alloy
Summary::Used for starship hulls, mercurite alloy is a dull gray silver metal which has the curious aspect of retaining speed and inertia from previous motion, and redirecting it via energy currents and magnets. They are used as "inertia batteries" whose inertia can be flipped, thus slowing down with the same energy used to speed them up.  This leads to highly efficient spacecraft, but it can also be used for weapons and armor.

Any weapon primarily composed of metal can be made as a mercurite alloy weapon. Mercurite alloy weapons retain some of the impact from previous swings, reducing in a decrease in any attack penalties for attacks beyond the first attack with that weapon (such as from extra attacks due to BAB or haste). For example a Fighter with BAB 20 would have an attack bonus of +20/+16/+12/+8 instead of 20/15/10/5. It also counts as a silver weapon for bypassing damage reduction. Weapons made of mercurite alloy gain a 10% discount on the CollisionMIC, Dancing, Distance, Speed, and Throwing enchantments.

Armor and shields can also be made with mercurite alloy, wrapped with bands and veins of brighter, almost liquid-looking quicksilver. The silvery material seems to have excess inertia that throws people off, doubling the armor check penalty for anyone not proficient in the armor. It's designed to absorb the kinetic energy of blows and disperse the energy in an "echo" back at the offending weapon, as well as enhance your own constant movement. For light armor, light shields, and bucklers, attackers striking in melee with an unarmed or natural attack rebound 1 point of damage onto its attacker of the same type as the attack. Medium armor and heavy shields rebound up to 3 points of damage onto its attacker, or equal to the damage taken, whichever is less. Heavy armor and tower shields rebound up to 5 points of damage, or equal to the damage taken, whichever is less. All armor and shield types ignore the armor check penalty when using jump checks, and on a charge attack you gain +10 speed. Benefits from multiple mercurite alloy armors and weapons overlap, they do not stack. Armor and shields made of mercurite alloy gain a 10% discount on the Animated, Arrow Deflection, Reflecting, MobilityMIC, NimblenessMIC, and QuicknessMIC enchantments.

Mercurite alloy is so costly that weapons and armor made from it are always of masterwork quality; the masterwork cost is included in the prices given below. Thus, mercurite alloy weapons and ammunition have a +1 enhancement bonus on attack rolls, and the armor check penalty of mercurite alloy armor is lessened by 1 compared to ordinary armor of its type.

Mercurite alloy has 15 hit points per inch of thickness and hardness 10.