Hey there space cadets! This series is all about magic items for your game table. Most will be Pathfinder, but a few from other game systems may crop up from time to time.
Each item will have a unique name, history, and treasure horde in which you may find it, as well as relevant crafting information and cost.
The goal of this series is to present a number of helpful and interesting items GMs can drop into a treasure horde or have ready for that random encounter on those days where you just don’t have a bunch of prep time. Or, maybe the item will spark a bit of story or an adventure!
NAME: Shatterproof (+4 light fortification sonic resistance heavy steel shield)
Aura Strong abjuration; CL 13th; Craft Magic Arms and Armor, resist energy, limited wish; Price 43,170 gp; Identify Spellcraft DC 28
DESCRIPTION: Shatterproof is a sturdily built heavy steel shield with reinforced leather straps. It’s slightly bigger than the average heavy shield, but weighs no more. The front is emblazoned with a picture of a stone tower.
Shatterproof provides sonic resistance 10, and when a critical hit or sneak attack is scored on the wearer, there is a 25% chance that the critical hit or sneak attack is negated and damage is instead rolled normally.
HISTORY: The original creator of Shatterproof has been lost to time. The shield is ancient, and much of it’s history is forgotten. But one warrior named Shatterproof and catapulted the shield into the realms of the legendary, and that warrior was a half-orc named Sar.
Sar was a striking figure; tall, imposing, powerful, deadly. Gaining renown for deeds no mortal could hope to match, the half-orc is the central figure in many a tall tale. The details differ, and the tales grow more exaggerated as time goes by, but all hold a kernel of truth.
One such story gave rise to the name Shatterproof. Sar was travelling the broken lands, and was set upon by a spine dragon. This dragon had been carving a swath of destruction, sundering towers, killing livestock, and eviscerating all who stood before it.
Sar had recently obtained a new shield, and was still testing it’s usefulness, when the dragon approached. The two did battle, for even when caught by surprise Sar was a warrior to be feared. The battle raged for hours, and in the end both retreated, injured and exhausted, to fight another day.
In this battle, Sar found that the spine dragon’s shouts were somehow muted, reduced in power, particularly when the shield was brandished; and a blow from an errant claw that should have disemboweled the warrior caused a fairly minor injury instead.
Emboldened, and wary, Sar continued travelling, purchasing equipment and learning of the attacks along the way. Resolving to deal with the problem, the warrior tracked the beast, and finally came upon its lair.
Inside, Sar waited, and when the dragon returned they again did battle. But the beast was cunning, and it lured Sar into a trap. Sensing that the shield afforded Sar special protection, the dragon trapped the warrior in a narrow space. Using one of the items from its horde, the spine dragon attempted to shatter Sar’s shield, hoping to gain the upper hand.
When the spell fizzled and failed, Sar leaped upon the spine dragon and slew it. Thereafter, the warrior called the shield Shatterproof, and it saved Sar’s life time and time again.
SAMPLE TREASURE HORDE: 3000 gold pieces in a fine leather sack, six hand-woven antique rugs (a bit frayed, each fastened with twine) worth ~100 gp each, and Shatterproof. This sample horde could belong to any CR 13 creature that uses standard treasure.
Now for the legal stuff:
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Sources Used: Core Rulebook and Ultimate Combat
Jandor’s Magic Item Series by Anthony Borzotta is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
Based on a work at www.d20pfsrd.com.
Permissions beyond the scope of this license may be available at http://www.d20pfsrd.com/extras/community-use.
Captain Jandor's Grimoire 