Was going through my old stuff from my
previous games, looking for stuff that would translate into my new campaign,
and found a few 10GP gems...honestly, most have been archived for so long I
don't know if some were cribbed from old Dragon magazines or not, but I think
these are my own ideas, or at least my versions of ideas I saw elsewhere. Just wait, it'll happen to you, too.
1.
Ring of Recall: Upon death, PC is
instantly transported to a particular temple or shrine, hopefully to be
Healed/Raised by the Clerics there.
Provided only to the members of the sect, or possibly those performing a
special mission for the order. PCs get
fixed up, but have to trek back to the rest of party, if there's a time limit
involved, maybe they're out, but it beats dead... used this in an
"introductory adventure" for new players, 'cause I thought for sure
someone was gonna get killed simply because they would make "newbie"
mistakes, but they were so cautious I don't Recall it being used!
2.
Great Green Axe: inspired by
Gawain & the Green Knight, massive headsman's axe of greenish bronze (?),
req STR of 16+ to wield, does 1-10/1-10 dam, +2, does dbl damage to green
things. I loved this 'cause ya never
know when something green will show up!
I suggest that it be wrested from the cold, dead hands of a wickedly
jolly green Giant of some sort
3.
Shield Ring: as Spell; AC 4 vs
most attacks, AC 3 vs missiles, AC 2 vs thrown weapons, negates Magic Missiles,
but does not protect from the rear! The particular ring I recall generated an
actual, though ghostly, shimmering shield when struck, and I think there was
some sort of roll to see if MM were reflected back at the caster... 50/50 each
seems reasonable
4.
A Scroll of a random Clerical or MU Spell "addressed" to a
particular PC, which they can use regardless of Class... "Dear Tremaine, this may come in handy
one day..." Maybe its only Hold
Portal, but look how happy the Fighter is!
I dunno. It was surprisingly well
received. I just rolled randomly to
determ whose name was on it, but it became a temporary obsession to the PC who
ended up with it, "Who left this?
How do they know me?!"
5.
"Skully": a sage-like
talking skull which can be consulted for information, % chance to know answer:
Common Knowl 75%, Uncommon 50%, Unusual 20%, Specialized 10%, Esoteric 5%. Can also "Legend Lore" famous,
legendary, specific persons/places/magic, and relate legends/stories, 30%. When owner dies, all factual knowledge of
this person is gained by Skully, so as he is passed on, he becomes increasingly
knowledgeable. Looking back, think this
was inspired by Land of the Lost Library of Skulls... anyhow, great way to have an NPC that isn't
expected to help in combat! and, it just
now occurred to me, maybe useful somehow in restoring another's memories, you
tell me
6.
Stone of Invisibility: just a
small stone which renders one invis when held.
Because it must be held, certain actions are not possible while invis,
like most Thief Abilities, Spellcasting, etc.
Can render several people invis if they link hands with PC holding the
stone. The thinking player's version of
the all-too-abused Ring o' Invis. The
party used it to remain unseen in a cavern, against the wall, all holding hands
(and their breath!), while Lizardmen trooped on by, and "popped out"
to ambush them, looking like a death-dealing line of preschoolers being led to
the cafeteria
7.
Vorpal Gurkha: just a simple +1
dagger, but a roll of natural 20 gives the Magic-User the thrill of
decapitating a (man-sized) foe! (who
else is going to end up with it, the Fighter?
he already got a Scroll of Hold Portal)
It's desperation time when the Wizard reaches for a dagger, anyway!
8. Pit Pellet: rune-inscribed clay token, when tossed to the
ground, creates a 10ft diam, 10ft deep Pit, one use only. Oh, the fun that was had... and yes, you can
toss one into a pit you already made and make it 10' deeper, and screw up what
should have been a pretty challenging encounter, killing some poor schmuck by
dropping him 10'/rnd until your pellets run out, dumping in some flaming oil,
and listen to him crying out "I knew I should have taken that Levitation
spell!!"
9.
Bloody Bestiary: sprinkling the blood of a creature on one of the
(limited) blank pages produces a "Monster Manual" style entry, the
bloody script informing readers of relative strength, powers, weaknesses,
etc. May or may not come with the first
few pages "filled in"
10.
"Mirror-Mirror" of Opposition:
tortoise shell (?) framed hand mirror, creates duplicate identical in
all respects, except the duplicate has a goatee. Duplicate attacks original, and if any others
interfere, their Mirror-Mirror duplicate appears as well. If a duplicate kills an original, the corpse
disappears, and the duplicate immediately ceases attack, explains that he/she
is no longer hostile, and play continues with the duplicates assuming the roles
of the departed as if nothing had happened!
The only difference is that the PC will forever after sport a goatee,
and be subject to looks of suspicion!
The look on their faces when I said, "Gimme your character
sheets", and quickly added a "II" after "player name",
and a goatee to their "sketch", then handed them back and said,
"OK, is the party continuing to search?"... hilarious (for female characters, I suggest a Marilyn
Monroe-style "beauty mark")
Oh, and somewhere down the road, say, "Remember when you were
replaced by a duplicate?" and see the look of dread. Then say something innocuous, like,
"Well, you're stroking your goatee, and you notice the faint outline of a
secret door" The rest of the party
will be soon be whispering about your "magical beard".
11.
Ring of Regeneration, While You Sleep:
regen 1 HP/hr, but only while asleep!(4+1d4 hrs/night?) Like a daily Cure Light Wounds Odd bonus side effect: gain 1d8 HP if subject
to a Sleep Spell, which of course the party immediately exploited by using
Sleep Spells as Cure Lt Wounds!
"Nap time!"
12.
Hand o' Glory: just thought it
was creepy cool. 10ch (two per
digit? dunno why I chose 10) Three effects:
Find Treasure, Sleep Spell, Dark 15'
radius (only the bearer can see by the light of the Hand), one ch ea (What if you put a Magic Ring on it? hmmm... and what if you found a Ring of
Regeneration and the Hand of Vecna?
"Just a side project, but don't open that box... it's not finished...
yet")
13.
Seasoning of Edibility: when
sprinkled upon any organic material (wood, bone, clumps of peat), becomes
edible and nutritious. In no way affects
flavor. My campaign had a
"never-ending shaker", and a
freezer-burnt Mammoth haunch from a long-dead specimen frozen in a glacier was
devoured, among other nasty things...
14.
Pincushion Arrow: +1, becomes 1d4
additional arrows once in flight, roll TH for each
15.
Suture Spider: brooch/pin shaped
like a spider, limited charges, uses fangs, claws and webs to "stitch
up" open wounds, healing for 1d4.
Anesthetizing venom is a nice touch.
Damn scary the first time, though!
Be sure to ask, "I just want to be clear - you are placing this
metal spider directly over your open wound?" Try to look worried. That will teach them for dumping your evil
wizard down that pellet hole!
16.
Scoobies: compressed bars of
mysterious origin and material (wood, bone, clumps of peat?), the smell of
which is irresistible to carnivorous (animal INT) monsters. Found sealed in an air-tight, screw-top tin,
Scoobies will attract such an encounter from the current table w/in 1turn, and
dbl such encounter rates for as long as the tin remains open. Also, if tossed into the path of a ravenous
beast intent on devouring the party, it will distract the beast long enough to
chomp down the crunchy treat, maybe a rnd or two to locate and devour it. Come in fun shapes, like stylized
"bones", "hearts", and what the party may or may not
recognize as "livers". Great
for guard dogs, too
17.
X (Enigma) Hole: dark, one foot
diam, impossibly thin "hole" in time and space, similar to the famed
Portable Hole. If any item is put in,
another may be drawn out, 1/day. The
catch: no item may ever be repeated; after tossing in a copper once, a copper
will no longer produce an effect, but anything can be tossed in; an iron spike,
a rock, a banana, whatever. Where this
stuff goes, no one knows (but I thought it might be fun if years and XP lvls
later, the Party discovers a "treasure" chest. what's in it?
well, there's an iron spike, a rock, a mummified black wrinkly
thing...) What do you get back for
tossing out all this junk? The first
time it is used, a Healing Potion comes out!
Thereafter, I tried to convince my Players that I had the weirdest table
of all time hidden away in my stash, 'cause I rolled a concealed die and said
things like "a 10inch diam stainless steel salad bowl" or "a
pile of bones, maybe from a bird".
I was rolling a d30, but simply saying whatever weird item came to mind
from my last few days, the version I was using tending to produce items totally
unfamiliar to a fantasy world, like a butane lighter, "transistor
radio" *... However, if a 30 was
rolled, the I'd roll for a minor magic item, like a minor Potion or Scroll of
one 1st lvl Spell, which I think only happened once. Planned on 100 uses, started a list of INs
and OUTs, never got there. Have to
reintroduce one! Maybe I'll make a table
of odd bits from around my house (bongo drum, caulk gun, box of rubber
bands) Sooner or later, I guarantee,
someone will actually bring up the idea of flushing a Magic Item down this
thing, and someone will take a dump in it.
Oh, and what comes out of an X Hole cannot be put back in the X
Hole. Words to live by
18.
Robe of Useless Shit: someone,
somewhere, must have done this one.
Exactly like a Robe of Useful Stuff, or whatever, but every item is
flawed somehow; torches sputter out, ladders snap under weight, war dogs piss
themselves and whimper... Gag becomes
apparent quickly, but its fun! I
probably nicked this idea!
19.
Dart of Deadlacy: only misses on
TH of 1, and if a natural 20 is rolled, it embeds right between the eyes,
damage is 6HP. Not much for doing
damage, but damn useful when you really need to hit, like when that robed guy
is raising his arms and chanting... (basically a Magic Missile)
20.
Pick the item you like best from the Comments below. :)
* received only one station, which
played only Casey Casem's Top 40 Metal Show from an alternate universe, and had
some sort of malfunction which caused it to "turn on by itself",
allowing me to say things like, "scrrrrrchhh... This one goes out to
Thongor and Company, who have just disturbed a sleeping Blue Dragon, somewhere
below the Caverns of Quasqueton, its Black Sabbath with another metal monster,
'Electric Funeral'. Good luck
boys!" (cue music, Breath Weapon)
