What it looks like

A MasterSmith engaged in the creation of an Artifact is a study in precision and patience. He may spend days or weeks in study before making a single stroke, then, at other times, his hand may move so fast as barely to be visible. At all times his workspace will have a sacred air about it. He must not be disturbed during the Crafting. He will sleep in his workspace, and his meals will be brought to him by silent apprentices, who will also bathe him and change his clothes. Though he will use the tools of his trade, they will be the finest available. Many burn incense or have apprentices keep time on a quiet drum.

The Knowledge

The secrets of ArtCraft are passed from Master to Apprentice and are never written down. Apprentices learn much from merely being present during a Crafting, which is an honor beyond measure. An actual Crafting can never be duplicated, nor would it be tried, but the techniques can be studied. For the most part, CraftMasters receive their guidance from dreams and trancevisions. The overall plan will come as a vision, and the Master will spend many years acquiring the supplies and honing his skills. Once begun, further instructions will come as dreams form the nights spend in the workspace.

Supplies and Ingredients

As much as possible, a CraftMaster much make or harvest the base materials himself. If he is to work with Weirwood, he is expected to grow the tree from a seedling. If he works with Metal, he must mine and refine it himself. In all cases, the materials must be of the highest quality, and often must be of an unusual nature. Likewise, he must create all the tools he will use himself.

An Example

Kulgarash is an Oread Jeweler. He has achieved perfect mastery of his craft and several related skills, and has the Taught by a Master advantage. Each year for fifty years he has undergone a VisionQuest, and finally he has received his Vision. He sees a Bracelet whose wearer will have a fist as hard as Adamantium. He must mine the Argentium himself, from a vein that has never seen sunlight. He will forge the Bracelet in totally darkness and inset in it five Sunstones which he must find in the sands of the Burning Desert. The stones must be polished into perfect spheres by hand, using diamond dust. Thus created, the Bracelet must be exposed to the sun for the first time at Midday Noon and then quenched in the smith's own blood. It will work for no one but him and his blood relatives. The total Crafting will take many years, but  will result in a unique Artifact that cannot be affected by the Antimagics of Lorecraft.  If he succeeds, he will receive another vision and spend the rest of his life doing the work of an Artificer.