Useful Magic Items
by Andrew W. Ragland
originally published in Earthdawn
Journal #5
Hey! Welcome to Mosta Verdeen's elemental goods shop! Are you enjoying
your stay in Servalen? No? Well, you've found a bright spot, and I don't
mean my outfit. Oh, mind that -- never mind, they're cheap. Yes, it's kind
of cluttered in here, but I know where everything is, and besides you'll
never find this much variety under one roof anywhere else. If it's got
true anything in it, I have it. Or I can make it. You want to discuss maybe
some custom work? No? Sure, let me show you some of the latest stuff.
Light Pack
A pack with elemental air woven into it. The weight of the pack stays the
same regardless of how much stuff is loaded into it. You'll probably want
to add elemental water to keep the contents dry. That's more silver, but
let me tell you, it's well worth it. No, you can't load everything you
own into it. It's a pack, not a bottomless pit. However, if you're smart,
and you look like a clever person, you'll load your smallest and heaviest
items in the light pack, to concentrate all the weight where you won't
feel it.
Mechanics:
The pack weighs the same as an empty normal pack of the same size.
Its volume is the same as a normal pack.
| Pack Size |
For |
Weight |
Cost |
| Small |
Windlings |
2 |
225 |
| Medium |
Dwarf |
3 |
250 |
| Large |
Elf, Human, Ork, T'skrang |
4 |
280 |
| Extra Large |
Troll, Obsidiman |
5 |
325 |
Theft-Proof Bag
Ever have your pocket picked or your purse cut? Never happen again. This
belt pouch has true earth woven into the lining. On purchase, the bag is
linked to the buyer with blood magic. If anyone else handles the bag, the
true earth makes it heavier than a thundra beast. Only the rightful owner
can pick up and handle the bag without difficulty. Someone else touching
the bag while it's in the rightful owner's possession will not trigger
the effect.
Mechanics:
Cost: 150
The pouch takes 1 point of blood magic, which can be recovered by unlinking
it (thread weaving by the owner against a 6, by anyone else against a 14).
An unlinked pouch doesn't trigger the weight effect. Theft-Proof Bags weigh
1 to the owner but 800 when triggered.
Flight Boots
Those boots are heavy, aren't they? That's because they've got true earth
woven into the soles. Obsidimen wear them when they have to travel by air.
Lets them maintain a link with earth no matter how far away the ground
is. Disadvantage is they're heavy, and can't be worn by anyone save obsidimen
and trolls. Flight boots will make you harder to knock down, but they'll
weigh down your feet and slow you in combat.
Mechanics:
Cost: 300
Flight boots increase the knockdown step by 4, but tack on an initiative
penalty of -2.
Long Singing Lyre
This lyre has elemental air woven into the frame. It'll double the effective
range of the performer's voice and playing. Every now and then you'll find
one you can weave a thread to, but the effects will vary according to the
history of the instrument. Other musical instruments with true air amplification
are also available. I've also used the same technique to make signal pipes.
You can hear a whistle from the pipes halfway across the mountain range.
Mechanics:
Cost: 400 to 5000 depending on instrument, complexity, history,
etc. Named instruments will of course be more expensive than instruments
with no history.
The lyre or any other long singing instrument doubles the effective
audible range of musical performance. Troubadour Talents that involve performance,
such as Emotion Song, have their effective radius extended similarly. Signal
Pipes can be heard clearly for many miles, although their volume at the
point of origin is not apparently that loud.
Scarless Pitons
For Name-Givers who care about preserving the natural beauty of cliff faces,
or are concerned for other reasons about leaving traces of where they've
been, these pitons are a fusion of metal and true earth. On a command word,
they fuse into any stone they are held against, no hammer required. On
another command word, the piton being held emerges from the stone, leaving
no mark behind.
Mechanics:
Cost: 150 per piton.
The pitons will hold up to 2000 pounds each before breaking. Weight
is normally distributed among pitons in a group of climbers.
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