There appears to be a pretty big disconnect with how much the game thinks I should value my masterpieces and how I actually value my masterpieces. Masterpieces are announced, tracked in Legends mode, and cause large amounts of distress when they're destroyed.
The problem is that masterpieces really aren't all that special or important. In fact, my stonescrafter is usually cranking out masterpieces within the first year for the first Fall caravan. Secondly, while masterpieces are 2x stronger/more damage/etc. vs. a normal weapon, it's only .2 better than Exceptional, the one below it. The difference between two soldiers wielding a Exceptional vs. a Masterpiece or even a Superior vs. a Masterpiece is so negligible I can not picture myself caring enough to min/max their weapons.
I want to care about masterpieces. Here are a few of my ideas...some might work in tandem with others, some might not, but I think they all serve the purpose of making masterpieces more interesting and worthwhile.
-Dramatically decrease the % chance of generating a masterpiece item. Any skill level below "Master" should have a <1% chance to produce a masterpiece item. Even legendary dwarves should only have a 5-10% chance.
-Make them a more obvious stepping stone between "normal" items and artifacts. Increase their value modifier to x30 (1/4 of an artifact) and increase their weapon and armor modifies to 2.5.
-Masterpiece items should come with images, text, and other decorations by default. A dwarf should get "inspired" and grab other items when they are making a masterpiece much like they would in a strange mood, only they cannot "fail" these.
-Dwarves should be able to differentiate themselves by their masterpieces. A "Is happy to be the proud owner of a <Dwarf Name> designed item!" thought when a dwarf owns a masterpiece, for example. Nobles can demand items from a specific worker if said worker is the known creator of a lot of master pieces.
Any other ideas to make masterpieces worth having or keeping?