Saturday 18 January 2020

Unique Treasures

For use when you have to roll up one of those pesky 'Art Items' in a treasure hoard. Treasure is part of the adventure, so it's always a pet peeve of mine when a published book says 'gold earrings' or something for treasure. Even a boring description would be better than nothing!

Prices are given in SP, but use whatever increment equals 1 experience point in your game. Or don't, because honestly keeping the difference is a pretty good way to split high-power from more gritty-feeling games.

I really should be crediting the artist on some of these, but I've been working on this post so long and in such a piecemeal fashion that I've totally lost track. If you know any of them, tell me!



1. Angular Raven Mask - 1,000 sp 
Carved of Pure Obsidian, magicked to be as strong as steel. Can be used as a regular helm, and the beak can be used to attack in a grapple (or very close combat- knife vs. knife for example) for 1d6 damage (no bonus for Str or Dex, as this is not exactly an optimized weapon)

2. Armillary Ring - 100-250 sp 
Marked with xodiac symbols, as well as planets. With it, one can calculate astronomical events- for example, knowing which day of the year it is, one could determine when the sun or moon would rise and set, what stars might hold sway, and so on. This being a small device, it should not be so relied upon as a proper full sized instrument. Intricate, magical versions of this, where the rings fold out and out again to form a impossibly-large sphere, could be worth up to ten times as much (depending on the DM's needs when you roll this)


3. Opalsidian Blade- 500 sp
Surprisingly sharp and durable. Hits vs. ghosts and spirits, but also breaks on a natural 1.



4. Nine-barreled Gun - 500 sp
Extraordinarily impractical in most situations but, like, SO dope. With it, attack rolls can be made against up to nine targets in a 15-ft square area, however all attacks are made with disadvantage. When fired, the wielder must make a DC 15 Con saving throw or break their shoulder from the recoil. As stated, rather impractical, but worth a considerable amount to a collector.




5. Tea Party Weapons - 1,000 sp
Created by a warrior culture deeply invested in ritual and ceremony. Even meals must be accompanied by a weapon, therefore these ceremonial weapons provide recourse without impinging the honour of either warrior or guest. We'll say the thing that coincidentally looks like a grenade is a potion or a very large tea pot...



6. Nymph Earrings - 100 sp
These tiny elementals chew through rock, secreting minerals like gold and silver, along with precious stones, to make their shells. In earring form, the insect is still alive, tricked into clamping down on an adamantium loop which it cannot bite through. It tenaciously hangs on, while accompanying it's host through interminable dinner parties, dungeon crawls, etc.



5. Moss Agate Garden - 200 sp
this naturally-occurring slice of rock seems to contain a miniature painted scene. Magical versions might be portals to tiny pocket dimensions, which are worth up to ten times as much. Because this is not a crafted magic item, the stone provides no natural way to access the inner world, but a simple teleport or dimension door spell will suffice.

6. Scarab Teacup & Saucer - 150 sp (1,500 for the whole set!)
Used traditionally for the 'last supper' for noble prisoners before they were executed, these designs took on a macabre popularity among the dwellers of the ancient city (insert ruined civilization as appropriate). Players should be awarded only when these fragile items are safely escorted out of the dungeon.


3 comments:

  1. The Tea Party Weapons are awesome. A little glimpse into culture. I love rituals that have become sanitized over time until they don't really make sense anymore. Try explaining to your grandchild why there is an unusable porcelain axe in the centre of the 'fancy' dining room table when company comes over for dinner!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Or try explaining to them why they're not a toy, and it's inappropriate to run around your dining room smashing things in the middle of dinner 😂

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