Hi all,
My magus has the Craft (goldsmith) ability, how would this apply to crafting with silver? I'm not sure if it should be treated as the same, or have a slight penalty (-1 or -2), or they are completely separate skills.
For me, it seems so nuanced an issue that I wouldn't penalize the player.
Agreed.
I've actually worked with both. There are some differences, but those differences are not great for what any medieval character might use them for. Within the scope of the game, I would not penalize the player.
-K!
Technically, there is a big difference when it comes to creating complex pieces - in melting temperatures, tempering, malleability, etc etc - but in a game where "etiquette" can range from the Pope to the head of a thorpe, and Single Weapon covers everything from star-and-chain to scimitar to flanged mace, I'd call it good.
I'd say you could have taken the skill "metal smith", with a specialty in gold or silver, but decided to go a slightly different way.
Blacksmith to copper/bronzesmith? I'd buy that. Bronzesmith to goldsmith- maybe. Blacksmith to goldsmith? Tougher call, and now my stomach is starting to hurt. 
I took the blacksmith as a separate skill. The way I saw it was that goldsmith was really fine work, engravings, all delicate stuff. Blacksmith was more of a "rough" sort of work. I know that blacksmiths do very fancy and delicate works, but that is at the extreme end of the scale.
A level 4 goldsmith can make pretty rings, earrings etc.
A level 4 blacksmith can make ploughs, horseshoes, basic swords etc.
We just use metalworking in our campaign.. there are plenty of ability xp sinks as it is.. and being unable to work different metals is sucky, especially when you start getting into all the weird metals a mage is likely to use in items 
I think the division between blacksmith en goldsmith is a good one, blacksmiths can create all the large iron things like swords plows etc and the goldsmith can make jewellery and such. They are only alike in the fact that they work metal but different enough to make it into 2 crafts. More divisions are unwanted for I think.
Als specialty for goldsmith you could take any metal, gold, silver etc. or a kind of jewellery like rings, necklaces or for example engravings.
I'd also toss in as a third, and final addition, "weaponsmith" to that list. A blacksmith does the large, physical work, in any metal (tho' the term "blacksmith" specifically refers to one working in black iron), the "metalsmith" is decorative, and the weaponsmith has the craft to achieve the fine weapons.
Anyone can pound out a sharp edge with no training (I did in my first 10 minutes), but to create something that is both balanced and will hold that edge requires a certain training.
But these are all just different interpretations- any are perfectly reasonable.
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