Post by AJ on May 4, 2013 18:39:47 GMT -5
The theme for these is 'Self Cursed', which means, the items could be harmless if used with caution, but when in the hands of your average player character, they can be quite dangerous.
First, there is the Life Powered Weapon, which can be any basic magical item of an appropriate level for the player characters to find, but has the added ability to heal another, or spit a fire ball, or turn the wielder invisible for a while, at the cost of one healing surge.
And here is the kicker.. this is not a limited ability, the character could spend all of the healing surges they have on shooting fire balls or trying to heal others.
This has two immediate effects on game play.
First, the character can become an awesome force in the game world, cleaving through enemies while hurling balls of fire, giving that tactical edge all players crave.
Second, the more awesome the characters behavior, the higher the risk that it could all go horribly wrong.
After all, this weapon is powered by their own life force, each use of it's special powers has a cumulative weakening effect, increasing the chance that the character might be left with no healing surges left, far sooner than they normally would be.
And all they had to do to avoid this, was not use the item excessively.
The second type of item is the Phylactery Weapon, which allows the wielder to drain additional hit points from wounded enemies, store them within a gemstone set into the weapon, and use those points later to heal others, or themselves, or, most importantly, to inflict even greater damage with the weapon.
Let us say you have a level 2 item, a +1 dagger which drains 2 additional hit points whenever it strikes a living target, so, the damage is 1d4+3, two points then go into the gem, and the wielder can use them next round, as a minor action, to heal their own wounds, or touch the gem to another ally to heal them, or empower the weapon on it's next strike to do 1d4+5 damage.
The limitations on this sort of weapon that you could apply might include an upper limit on how many points the gem can store, or that the gem can only store points for a short time (enough for one or two combat encounters).
Or even better, that the wielder must Bond with the weapon by investing an entire healing surge into it, in order for it to work at all.
All subtle tweaks that can blunt the edge this sort of item can have, particularly when the players figure out there is nothing stopping them from using the weapon on themselves, to charge it up before combat.
Once again, the weapon is fine and very handy, if the player doesn't use it excessively.
In this way, the items are not exactly cursed, unless the horrible side effects are self inflicted by the player on their own character.
Trust me, it happens far more often than you would think.
And if it all goes terribly wrong, the players show the utmost restraint and the weapon becomes a real thorn in your side.. tell them the gem has been expended, or the character's 'pure' life force has been completely expended and replaced (that should give them something to worry about) and the item is reduced to an average, handy, magical tool, without the life draining powers.
Third is an item I am quite fond of, as one of my characters was based around it from creation.. The Possessing Soul Exchange Item is basically a soul swapping Phylactery that stores a complete personality (and some times a complete physical form) like a Djinni in a bottle. This is great for role playing, as the player has a completely different personality to deal with each time the powers of the item come into play. In my case, I essentially had two characters, one a young Genasi adventurer and the other was the grizzled old fighter who simply called himself Sword, and they exchanged places, physically and mentally, each time the daily use of the magical sword was released.. it was fairly symbiotic as Sword saw it as his eternal duty to inhabit the weapon and prevent it from falling into the wrong hands, but, you can imagine how this could go horribly wrong for an unsuspecting character grabbing a Drow rapier or Githyanki silver sword right?
Ok, moving on from items that focus on living force..
The Slightly Moving Rod is a level 5 Wondrous Item, it has a market price of 1000 gp.
Power (At-Will): Minor Action. Place the Slightly Moving Rod into it's position. It remains in place. It can be repositioned as another minor action if using the button located on it's end, otherwise any force applied to it will see it slowly move at a maximum of one square per round, in the direction it is forced. If the force exceeds 4000 lb's, the rod will fail and completely release, as though the button had been pushed to switch it off.
The Inside Out Bag of Holding is a level 3 Wondrous Item, it has a market price of 680 gp.
Property: This bag can hold up to 200 pounds (90kg) and a seemingly unlimited volume, yet the bag always weighs only a single pound (450g). Drawing an item from the Inside Out Bag of Holding is a minor action, but, there is chance that what was placed inside a short time ago, is now gone, and the more valuable the item, the higher the chance that it will vanish once placed inside. For every 200 gp of value, there is a 1% chance the item will vanish, and the Dungeon Master will make one roll per hour to see if this event occurs.
However, there is also a 50% chance that the missing item has been replaced by a small item of food, crude art or even a ritually sacrificed animal of some kind.
You see, the bag is not really a bag, it is an opening to a specific location, somewhere else. Exactly where that place is, I leave up to you, but it should be inhabited by some sort of living beings that occasionally decide to take one of these odd offerings that appear from nowhere, by means of a mysterious hand which reaches out from thin air.
If you want to truly freak out your players, once or twice, tell them that as the character reaches in for an item, they feel something alive, briefly touch their hand.
In my campaign, the idea turned into an actual person from another dimension, who was summoned by turning a bag inside out (known, very creatively as "bag man"), I had great fun with this character, like when he appeared wearing nothing but a damp towel, or when he performed tasks like cutting an adamantine pillar into sections and storing them in his own dimension, then off loading them for the player characters later on.. the mental image of them stuffing the pillar slowly into the bag with the grinding scream of metal saws is a lasting one.
So, turning a bag of holding with a personality into an inside out man who you hand an item to for safe keeping is a good example of making a truly wondrous item.. and having to negotiate with that guy can be considered a minor curse at times.
Alright, next is Serums.. these things have become infamous in my games, but the players love/hate relationship with them always has me making more..
What character would not kill for the chance to move like lightning across the dungeon floor? The Quickling serum offers the means to unlocking the characters inner maniac, but as with any metabolism super-charging magical concoction, one should look closely before they leap at the opportunity.
Quickling Serum
Primary Ingredients: The milky white eye fluid of the nefarious speedsters of the Feywild, around twenty Quickling eyes are required to produce one draft of serum. As Quicklings are intelligent, highly resourceful humanoids who have thrived even under the tyrannical rule of the evil Fomorians, there is no abundant supply of their eyes, and so the Serum, along with the recipe to make it, is rare indeed.
Initial Consumption: The serum is slimy and horrid tasting, as you would expect, but drinking it is not any more difficult than downing a large glass of raw eggs (DC 17).
Immediate Effects: Gain 2 squares of movement speed each turn, also add +1 to Initiative and Perception.
Ongoing Cost: The increased speed takes its toll, the character has a -2 penalty to Insight checks and requires more frequent extended rest, and of a longer duration than normal. In the first week, the character needs to rest for an hour longer on any extended period, and take five more minutes on any short rest, plus, they can not build up more than four milestones in any period of time without requiring an extended rest, or they will reach Burn Out and Detox, also, they will be tremendously hungry, requiring twice as much food as they used to.
On the second week, and afterwards, the character will have the full effects of the serum, but require two hours longer on any extended rest, and a full twenty minutes of rest after any encounter, or they will not recover any spent encounter powers. The character has a -4 penalty to Insight checks and even a -1 to History, Arcana, Religion or Nature checks, simply because they are too hyper to concentrate like they used to. They will be more aggressive, less patient and more prone to rash decisions, leaping into action on the merest excuse, plus they require three times as much food every day, to avoid starvation and Burn Out, resulting in Detox.
Full Effects: Gain an additional 4 squares of movement (so a Human would now have a base speed of 10), add +4 to Initiative (total of +5) and +2 to Perception (total of +3), the character can leap from a standing position as though they had taken a running jump, and they gain one additional healing surge each day.
Detox Effects: Titanic Fatigue! The character has reached a point of Burn Out, will be last on any initiative order and will be Slowed for the entire day, as well as Weakened. The following day, they are -5 to initiative, will last for four rounds of combat before they become Weakened again and movement speed is halved, the next day, they will have close to normal movement, only suffering a -2 penalty, but from day four onwards, they will be back to normal.. if perhaps a little shaky and on edge for a while.
Market Value: Level 8 item, sells for 2,600 gp.
OK, thats a good start, I have a few more things to post, but I have a D&D game to get ready for!
Enjoy
First, there is the Life Powered Weapon, which can be any basic magical item of an appropriate level for the player characters to find, but has the added ability to heal another, or spit a fire ball, or turn the wielder invisible for a while, at the cost of one healing surge.
And here is the kicker.. this is not a limited ability, the character could spend all of the healing surges they have on shooting fire balls or trying to heal others.
This has two immediate effects on game play.
First, the character can become an awesome force in the game world, cleaving through enemies while hurling balls of fire, giving that tactical edge all players crave.
Second, the more awesome the characters behavior, the higher the risk that it could all go horribly wrong.
After all, this weapon is powered by their own life force, each use of it's special powers has a cumulative weakening effect, increasing the chance that the character might be left with no healing surges left, far sooner than they normally would be.
And all they had to do to avoid this, was not use the item excessively.
The second type of item is the Phylactery Weapon, which allows the wielder to drain additional hit points from wounded enemies, store them within a gemstone set into the weapon, and use those points later to heal others, or themselves, or, most importantly, to inflict even greater damage with the weapon.
Let us say you have a level 2 item, a +1 dagger which drains 2 additional hit points whenever it strikes a living target, so, the damage is 1d4+3, two points then go into the gem, and the wielder can use them next round, as a minor action, to heal their own wounds, or touch the gem to another ally to heal them, or empower the weapon on it's next strike to do 1d4+5 damage.
The limitations on this sort of weapon that you could apply might include an upper limit on how many points the gem can store, or that the gem can only store points for a short time (enough for one or two combat encounters).
Or even better, that the wielder must Bond with the weapon by investing an entire healing surge into it, in order for it to work at all.
All subtle tweaks that can blunt the edge this sort of item can have, particularly when the players figure out there is nothing stopping them from using the weapon on themselves, to charge it up before combat.
Once again, the weapon is fine and very handy, if the player doesn't use it excessively.
In this way, the items are not exactly cursed, unless the horrible side effects are self inflicted by the player on their own character.
Trust me, it happens far more often than you would think.
And if it all goes terribly wrong, the players show the utmost restraint and the weapon becomes a real thorn in your side.. tell them the gem has been expended, or the character's 'pure' life force has been completely expended and replaced (that should give them something to worry about) and the item is reduced to an average, handy, magical tool, without the life draining powers.
Third is an item I am quite fond of, as one of my characters was based around it from creation.. The Possessing Soul Exchange Item is basically a soul swapping Phylactery that stores a complete personality (and some times a complete physical form) like a Djinni in a bottle. This is great for role playing, as the player has a completely different personality to deal with each time the powers of the item come into play. In my case, I essentially had two characters, one a young Genasi adventurer and the other was the grizzled old fighter who simply called himself Sword, and they exchanged places, physically and mentally, each time the daily use of the magical sword was released.. it was fairly symbiotic as Sword saw it as his eternal duty to inhabit the weapon and prevent it from falling into the wrong hands, but, you can imagine how this could go horribly wrong for an unsuspecting character grabbing a Drow rapier or Githyanki silver sword right?
Ok, moving on from items that focus on living force..
The Slightly Moving Rod is a level 5 Wondrous Item, it has a market price of 1000 gp.
Power (At-Will): Minor Action. Place the Slightly Moving Rod into it's position. It remains in place. It can be repositioned as another minor action if using the button located on it's end, otherwise any force applied to it will see it slowly move at a maximum of one square per round, in the direction it is forced. If the force exceeds 4000 lb's, the rod will fail and completely release, as though the button had been pushed to switch it off.
The Inside Out Bag of Holding is a level 3 Wondrous Item, it has a market price of 680 gp.
Property: This bag can hold up to 200 pounds (90kg) and a seemingly unlimited volume, yet the bag always weighs only a single pound (450g). Drawing an item from the Inside Out Bag of Holding is a minor action, but, there is chance that what was placed inside a short time ago, is now gone, and the more valuable the item, the higher the chance that it will vanish once placed inside. For every 200 gp of value, there is a 1% chance the item will vanish, and the Dungeon Master will make one roll per hour to see if this event occurs.
However, there is also a 50% chance that the missing item has been replaced by a small item of food, crude art or even a ritually sacrificed animal of some kind.
You see, the bag is not really a bag, it is an opening to a specific location, somewhere else. Exactly where that place is, I leave up to you, but it should be inhabited by some sort of living beings that occasionally decide to take one of these odd offerings that appear from nowhere, by means of a mysterious hand which reaches out from thin air.
If you want to truly freak out your players, once or twice, tell them that as the character reaches in for an item, they feel something alive, briefly touch their hand.
In my campaign, the idea turned into an actual person from another dimension, who was summoned by turning a bag inside out (known, very creatively as "bag man"), I had great fun with this character, like when he appeared wearing nothing but a damp towel, or when he performed tasks like cutting an adamantine pillar into sections and storing them in his own dimension, then off loading them for the player characters later on.. the mental image of them stuffing the pillar slowly into the bag with the grinding scream of metal saws is a lasting one.
So, turning a bag of holding with a personality into an inside out man who you hand an item to for safe keeping is a good example of making a truly wondrous item.. and having to negotiate with that guy can be considered a minor curse at times.
Alright, next is Serums.. these things have become infamous in my games, but the players love/hate relationship with them always has me making more..
What character would not kill for the chance to move like lightning across the dungeon floor? The Quickling serum offers the means to unlocking the characters inner maniac, but as with any metabolism super-charging magical concoction, one should look closely before they leap at the opportunity.
Quickling Serum
Primary Ingredients: The milky white eye fluid of the nefarious speedsters of the Feywild, around twenty Quickling eyes are required to produce one draft of serum. As Quicklings are intelligent, highly resourceful humanoids who have thrived even under the tyrannical rule of the evil Fomorians, there is no abundant supply of their eyes, and so the Serum, along with the recipe to make it, is rare indeed.
Initial Consumption: The serum is slimy and horrid tasting, as you would expect, but drinking it is not any more difficult than downing a large glass of raw eggs (DC 17).
Immediate Effects: Gain 2 squares of movement speed each turn, also add +1 to Initiative and Perception.
Ongoing Cost: The increased speed takes its toll, the character has a -2 penalty to Insight checks and requires more frequent extended rest, and of a longer duration than normal. In the first week, the character needs to rest for an hour longer on any extended period, and take five more minutes on any short rest, plus, they can not build up more than four milestones in any period of time without requiring an extended rest, or they will reach Burn Out and Detox, also, they will be tremendously hungry, requiring twice as much food as they used to.
On the second week, and afterwards, the character will have the full effects of the serum, but require two hours longer on any extended rest, and a full twenty minutes of rest after any encounter, or they will not recover any spent encounter powers. The character has a -4 penalty to Insight checks and even a -1 to History, Arcana, Religion or Nature checks, simply because they are too hyper to concentrate like they used to. They will be more aggressive, less patient and more prone to rash decisions, leaping into action on the merest excuse, plus they require three times as much food every day, to avoid starvation and Burn Out, resulting in Detox.
Full Effects: Gain an additional 4 squares of movement (so a Human would now have a base speed of 10), add +4 to Initiative (total of +5) and +2 to Perception (total of +3), the character can leap from a standing position as though they had taken a running jump, and they gain one additional healing surge each day.
Detox Effects: Titanic Fatigue! The character has reached a point of Burn Out, will be last on any initiative order and will be Slowed for the entire day, as well as Weakened. The following day, they are -5 to initiative, will last for four rounds of combat before they become Weakened again and movement speed is halved, the next day, they will have close to normal movement, only suffering a -2 penalty, but from day four onwards, they will be back to normal.. if perhaps a little shaky and on edge for a while.
Market Value: Level 8 item, sells for 2,600 gp.
OK, thats a good start, I have a few more things to post, but I have a D&D game to get ready for!
Enjoy