Inexpensive Magic Items
Enchantment is typically pretty expensive (and time consuming). However, under a certain energy threshold, some items are relatively cheap. Here are some items that are typically less than $100 or so.
Gambeson Leggings: $162/$212
Linothorax: Only the 10% variability is available for Q&D enchanting; $400. Linothorax armor is, by it’s nature, fairly size flexible, due to the way it’s cinched up and tied together, so this actually works out to about 25% variability.
Deathtouch Arrow, 1d ($82). 2d ($182). 3d ($302). Armor does not protect against this damage. If you hit the target at all, the Deathtouch does the damage. Useful when the enemy is all armored up and your arrows are shattering against their armor.
Concussion Arrow, 1d ($182). Causes an explosion at the point of impact, which has a good chance of stunning anyone within 10 yards.
Stench Arrow, 1 yard ($82), 2 yd radius ($182), 3 yd radius ($302). Creates noxious gas cloud upon impact, much like mustard gas.
Fireball Arrow, 1d ($82; causes a fireball to hit at point of impact). 2d ($182), 3d ($302).
Explosive Fireball Arrow, 1d ($182). Causes an explosive fireball to explode at the point of impact. Targets hit take full damage, others take damage equal to the damage of the fireball/distance (in feet). Thus, the explosion is at most 6' in radius.
Darkness Arrow, 1 hex ($182; creates a hex of darkness centered on the impact point).
Blackout Arrow, 1 hex ($182; creates a hex of utter blackness centered on the impact point.)
Sunlight Arrow, 1 hex ($182; creates a hex of sunlight.)
Sunbolt Arrow, 1d-1 imp ($82) 2d-2 imp ($182) 3d-3 imp ($302). Creates what amounts to a laser beam upon impact. Reach out and touch through someone.
Shatter Arrow, 1d ($82) 2d ($182) 3d ($302). The damage from the Shatter spell only affects inanimate objects, and if the Shatter spell doesn't do enough damage to break the object, it does no damage. A plate cuirass has 20HP, so unless it was damaged first, a Shatter spell won't do anything to it. B558 has the Object HP table.
Rive Arrow, 1d ($82) 2d ($182) 3d ($302). An improvement over Shatter, this arrow just damages the object; there is no threshold effect as with Shatter. (Side note: there is no upward limit on how much energy you can put into the spell when cast...if you have a 50pt powerstone, you can do 50d damage to the target.)
Explode Arrow, 1d ($182). Acts much like Shatter, but if the object is destroyed, it explodes, doing fragmentation damage. Not terribly useful on armor, but might be useful to target objects around your foe (such as vases, crockery, etc).
Disintegration Arrow, 1d ($82) 2d ($182) 3d ($302). As for Shatter, but if the object "breaks" it turns to dust.
Dispel Magic Arrow, 1 hex ($302). Dispels any active spell in the target hex; spells resist with their Power (usually the skill of the mage who cast it).
Curse Arrow, -1 to rolls ($302). Casts Curse on the Target, and all of their rolls are at -1. There is no resistance roll. Not as cost effective as the Temporary Enchantment version.
Pollen Cloud Arrow, 1 hex ($82), 2 hex radius ($182), 3 hex radius ($302). Fills the area with a cloud of pollen that causes sneezing, weeping, and coughing. Everyone in the area failing a HT roll is at -2 DX for as long as they are in the area and for 3d Turns afterward.
Force Wall Arrow, 1 hex ($182). Creates a 4 yard high, 1 yard wide invisible force wall that only light and non-missile spells can cross. Good for blocking doorways from a distance, or creating cover.
Ice Sphere Arrow, 1d cr ($82), 2d cr ($182), 3d cr ($302).
Water Jet Arrow, 1d Knockback ($82), 2d Knockback ($182), 3d Knockback ($302).
Dehydrate Arrow, 1d-1 ($82), 2d-2 ($182), 3d-3 ($302). Armor does not protect; damage is limited to the part the arrowhead hits. Useful against heavily armored opponents.
Ice Dagger Arrow, 1d-1 imp ($82), 2d-2 imp ($182), 3d-3 imp ($302).
Icy Touch Arrow, or Icy Shell Arrow, ($182). Creates a 1/4" shell of ice around the target. ST-1 roll to break free. There is also a HT roll to prevent FT loss due to thermal shock.
Frostbite Arrow, 1d ($82), 2d ($182), 3d ($302). Freezes the tissues of the target. Damage is limited to the part touched.
Snow Jet Arrow, 1d Knockback ($82), 2d Knockback ($182), 3d Knockback ($302). There is also the chance to blind a target for a few seconds.
Create Steam Arrow, 1 hex ($182). Creates a cloud of steam that acts like an area of fire, except it can't set anything ablaze. Can last up to 5 minutes, if indoors with little ventilation (outdoors it may only last 10 seconds or so).
Rain of Acid Arrow, 1 hex ($302). Droplets of acid rain down from the sky, doing 1d-1 acid damage to anyone in that hex. Only works outdoors.
Steam Jet Arrow, 1d-1 scalding damage ($82), 2d-2 scalding damage ($182), 3d-3 scalding damage ($302).
Acid Ball Arrow, 1d acid damage ($82), 2d acid damage ($182), 3d acid damage ($302).
Acid Jet Arrow, 1d-1 acid damage ($82), 2d-2 acid damage ($182), 3d-3 acid damage ($302).
Rain of Ice Daggers Arrow, 1 hex ($82) 2 hex radius ($182) 3 hex radius ($302). Causes ice daggers to fall from the sky; it only works outdoors. The sharp daggers of ice do 1d-2 per second to anyone in the area.
Fog Arrow, 1 hex ($182). Creates a hex of fog.
Rain Arrow, 10 hex radius ($82) 20 hex radius ($182) 30 hex radius ($302). Causes 1" of rain to fall in the area (over an hour's time).
Lightning Arrow, 1d-1 burning damage ($82), 2d-2 burning damage ($182), 3d-3 burning damage ($302). Treat metal armor as DR1.
Explosive Lightning Arrow, 1d-1 burning damage (explosive) ($182).
Shocking Touch Arrow, 1d+1 burning damage ($82), 2d+2 burning damage ($182), 3d+3 burning damage ($302). Armor does not protect. Note that this is more effective than the Lightning Arrow. Another way to get "trick' arrows is to use Temporary Enchantment with a spell that lists as its item "any item, always on". These can work even if the arrow doesn't fully penetrate armor. If the arrowhead lodges in the target, it works. (Assume the arrowhead is "worn" if it deals any damage past the DR, or if it does exactly DR in damage (which means it just barely penetrated the armor, and is stuck in the hole). It is no longer "worn" if the arrow is removed. In many cases, the target may get a resistance roll against the effect of the spell.
Examples of "trick" arrows:
Odor Arrow, 1 use ($8; scent is set at time of creation).
Itch Arrow, 1 use ($11; victim itches and is at -2 DX).
Spasm Arrow, 1 use ($17; causes victim to drop items, twitch involuntarily, and must make a HT roll any time they want to do anything delicate).
Pain Arrow, 1 use ($47; causes victim pain, requiring a HT roll).
Clumsiness Arrow, 1 use ($17 for -1 DX, $32 for -2 DX, $47 for -3 DX, $62 for -4 DX, $77 for -5 DX).
Hinder Arrow, 1 use ($32 for MV/Dodge -1, $62 for -2, $92 for -3).
Rooted Feet Arrow, 1 use ($92; ST-5 roll to be able to move, every turn).
Debility Arrow, 1 use ($17 for -1 ST, $32 for -2 ST, $47 for -3 ST, $62 for -4 ST, $77 for -5 ST).
Frailty Arrow, 1 use ($32 for HT-1, $62 for HT-2, $92 for HT-3).
Stun Arrow, 1 use ($77; physically stuns foe and must roll HT each turn while "worn").
Fumble Arrow, 1 use ($227; victim fumbles any action he is taking...yes, that may involve the critical failure tables).
Strike Dumb Arrow, 1 use ($77; victim is unable to speak; good against mages).
Strike Blind Arrow, 1 use ($77; victim is blinded; good against anyone).
Strike Deaf Arrow, 1 use ($62; victim can no longer hear).
Hair Growth Arrow, 1 use ($17; victim's hair grows at an inch of hair every 5 seconds and victim's nails grow an inch every 30 seconds. The longer the arrowhead is in the victim, the longer the hair will grow. 1 hour delay before hair starts and stops growing.)
Sensitize Arrow, 1 use ($47; gives the Low Pain Threshold to victim).
Agonize Arrow, 1 use ($77; incapacitates foe with agony).
Strike Numb Arrow, 1 use ($47; target loses the sense of touch, gaining the Numb disadvantage).
Curse Arrow, 1 use. -1 to rolls $7. -2 to rolls $17. -3 to rolls $32. This version of the weapon is better than the Spell Arrow version.
Dull Vision Arrow, 1 use. -2 to Vision Perception ($17) -4 to Vision Perception ($32) -6 to Vision Perception ($47). Makes target's vision blurry.
Dull Hearing Arrow, 1 use. -2 to Hearing Perception ($17) -4 to Hearing Perception ($32) -6 to Hearing Perception ($47). Makes target partially Deaf.
Dull Smell Arrow, 1 use. -2 to Smell/Taste Perception ($17) -4 to Smell/Taste Perception ($32) -6 to Smell/Taste Perception ($47). Makes target unable to smell or taste as well.
Dullness Arrow, 1 use. -1 Per ($32) -2 Per ($62) -3 ($92). Reduces overall Perception of the target.
Fear Arrow, 1 use. ($32). Target must make a Will roll or be affected by the Fear spell.
Foolishness Arrow, 1 use. -1 IQ ($17) -2 IQ ($32) -3 IQ ($47) -4 IQ ($62) -5 IQ ($75). Good arrow to use on a mage.
Daze Arrow, 1 use. ($62). Target is affected by the Daze spell. in effect, target will basically ignore everything around themselves except for the arrow sticking out of them, which will be their primary focus. Everything else around them will be irrelevant. The effect will last until the arrow is removed, they get attacked again, or successfully resist a spell.
Mental Stun Arrow, 1 use ($77). Target must make HT rolls each Turn or be Stunned.
Forgetfulness Arrow, 1 use ($77). What is forgotten must be specified when the arrow is created.
Sleep Arrow, 1 use ($92). Roll vs HT or fall asleep.
Weaken Will Arrow, 1 use. -1 Will ($17) -2 Will ($32) -3 Will ($47) -4 Will ($62) -5 Will (77). Weakens the Will of the target. Useful for when you need to hit him with a spell later. Or you are trying to convince him of something. Or you just want them more pliable, and you don't mind putting a hole in them first.
Drunkenness Arrow, 1 use. -1 to IQ and DX ($32) -2 to IQ and DX ($62) -3 to IQ and DX ($92). Makes target drunk, reducing both IQ and DX (and all of the skills based on them).
Madness Arrow, 1 use. ($77) The type of madness may be selected at time of creation, or they can be random. Catatonia is a good one, although Berserk, Bestial, and Hallucinations could be fun, too.
Sickness Arrow, 1 use ($47). Subject suffers from the Sickness spell: nausea, vomiting, MV is halved, may maintain existing spells but can do nothing else.
Suggestion Arrow, 1 use ($62). The suggestion must be set at the time of creation.
Slow Arrow, 1 use ($77). Target suffers from 1 level of Decreased Time Rate. Perceived time is halved; target gets 1 Turn every 2 seconds (or a half Turn every second).
Steal Vitality Arrow, 1 use, -1 HP ($32) -2 HP ($62) -3 HP ($92). Target has fewer HP until arrowhead is removed.
Slow Healing Arrow, -1 ($12) -2 ($22) -3 ($32) -4 ($42), -5 ($52). The arrow makes a wound that is difficult to heal (all attempts are at the penalty listed). Note that these arrows are not technically single use (although it's likely they will break upon contact with anything rigid).
This is resisted by a HT roll. but still could be useful. Also, being a Regular spell, there is a distance penalty for casting. The item really isn’t useful here. b) Make it difficult or impossible to wear certain types of clothing or tight-fitting equipment (e.g., grow out a foe's beard to break the seal on his gas mask).
This is resisted by a HT roll. but still could be useful. Also, being a Regular spell, there is a distance penalty for casting. The item really isn’t useful here. c) Make friends by curing baldness or bad haircuts.
Well, yeah; this is basically the point of the spell, or the item. Basically, take them to the barber or salon, where they will likely have a Hair Hat to use. Then take 2 hours of your time to sit with the hat on your head, wait for the hair to stop growing, and then get it cut. Making a bad haircut shorter will take less time and not require the Hair Hat. d) Make enemies by turning people into Jo Jo the Dog-Faced Boy.
Not really a problem; the hair is no more permanent than “regular” hair. It can be trimmed as required, and unless the Hair Hat is cursed and can’t be taken off, it’s not a problem. e) Good as a potential disguise. (If the bad guys are looking for a bald, clean-shaven man then they might not suspect someone who looks like a hippie.)
True. And a good idea. Especially if many barbershops and salons have one, and they would. f) Mend torn fingernails.
Good idea, and salons will likely have one. Note that it’s not a quick fix; there is a one hour delay before the item starts working, and a one hour period of time where there is hair and nail growth. So there will then be some time required to trim the hair and nails. The Haircut spell requires a mage to cast, and there aren’t very many of those. g) Possibly mess with opponents' ability to wear gloves or similar items or to grasp items when their nails grow out to the length of a Chinese emperor's.
The spell could do this, but the item has a one hour delay, so it’s not useful in this way. h) Torture foes by growing their hair and fingernails out and then tear them out at the roots. Repeat as desired.
Yep. But the wearer gets a resistance roll, which could help for a while until they fail one. i) Make heaps of money in the wig, rope, or wool trades.
Not really. These items are common, and thus the disruption to the economy happened long ago, and the economy has adjusted to this new normal. Wigs, rope, and woolen items are less expensive, since the material costs are very low. The effort to create those items haven’t gotten any easier, labor costs and manufacturing time are unchanged. Economic benefits if cast on a human: a) Instant recovery of hair loss.
Per the spell description, this will last a month before the hairs all fall out again. b) Hair for wigs becomes incredibly cheap. (People with naturally great hair, or hair of unusual color, might make a living being hair donors.)
Yes. c) Human hair actually makes very good rope. There are stories of women in besieged towns donating their hair to make skeins for ballistas or catapults. As you point out, a 480' single strand of hair is far longer than any plant-based material which potentially makes it even more valuable.
Yes. Human hair was used for the torsion springs in catapults. If the GM allows the spell to be cast on animals it becomes utterly ridiculous.
There is no reason that it wouldn’t work on animals, assuming you can get the Hair Hat to fit on them. The spell works on them just fine (albeit with a resistance roll). In combat, growing out an opponent's horse's hair might make it fall or panic.
Good idea; and the horse may have a lower HT than the rider, making it a more likely target. Forget sheep you can shear every 8 seconds (with a combination of Hair Growth and Haircut). Instead, make real money by using the spell on angora goats or rabbits, beavers (high quality felt for hats), vicuna, eider ducks, or critters whose hair or feathers are valuable magical ingredients.
All good ideas. But again, the money made will be low, because the economy has adjusted. All of those resources are very inexpensive, but the labor to turn them into useful things has remained the same. The CF for “luxury” materials has decreased. If the GM rules that the spell affects any part of a living being which is made from keratin, raise unicorns or rhinos for their horns, pangolins (or dragons!) for their scales, or silkworms for their cocoons. Grow out silkworm cocoon silk by a factor of 1 million and you've got the world's longest fiber. Grow spider silk from spider egg sacs into long fibers suitable for making very tough, light garments which are potentially bulletproof.
Silk (silkworm or spider) isn’t just keratin, so if this were to become a thing, it would be a spell/enchantment variant. So silk prices will remain “normal”. Pangolin scales might be useful. Makes a heavy DR 3 armor though; people would be better just wearing heavy gambeson. Harvesting critters for alchemy/enchantment components will be a thing, though. Depending on the campaign, the GM might embrace some or all of these ideas with the understanding that wool, silk, and other natural fibers are now dirt cheap. (Add the M&B college spells Clean and Reshape to quickly process and weave raw fiber into cloth. Add a permanent variant of Dye to quickly dye lots of fabric.)
Reshape doesn’t work that way. There isn’t any standard spell that will weave fibers into cloth. Shape Plant won’t do it either. Even Shape Earth (for asbestos fibers) won’t spin them into thread or weave those threads into cloth. Clean will be used, though, and a Clean Item is pretty cheap to make, too. So a fiber comb enchanted with Clean would be a very common item owned by people who produce these cheap fibers. Sure, the first Body Control mage to think of using Hair Growth on a captive phoenix in order to harvest bales of magical fireproof feathers will make serious bank, but after a while phoenix feather suits will just become the magic version of Nomex fabric - still useful but not unreasonably expensive.
True. See the notes above about the “adjusted economy”. Upon reflection, I don’t think the Hair Growth spell will work on feathers. Yes, they are keratin, but they are also organized in a very specific, complex way that the magic likely wouldn’t be able to account for. There may be a variant called Feather Growth perhaps, but there may not be a market for it. Yes, the first one made will flood the market, but making more will only drive the price of feathers down as well as fibers. Which isn’t a problem, but since people are already living with the results of inexpensive fibers, the feather traders may fight the “industrialization” of feather harvesting via such an item. So the question is: how long until someone develops a Feather Growth spell, and figures out how to “enchantify” it? So, for the moment, no one has developed this spell.
Adjustable Clothing
One size fits most (10% size adjustment). $50. These aren’t terribly common, as there isn’t a large demand for them (most clothing is made locally, by people who know who will be wearing them). So the clothing that would be enchanted with this is already going to be very expensive even without the enchantment. However, the clothing may be made and enchanted for people who plan on handing the clothing down to younger siblings or future generations. More often the enchantment will be used on an item of clothing with several other enchantments on it. The clothes with this enchantment on it will likely be clothes that aren't worn day in and day out, as those will more likely wear out before they are outgrown or need to be handed down.Adjustable Armor
Gambeson Vest and Sleeves: $283 for a 10% size variability; $333 for 25% variability. As an example, a gambeson built for a 6’ tall human could be made to be usable by someone only 4’2” tall.Gambeson Leggings: $162/$212
Linothorax: Only the 10% variability is available for Q&D enchanting; $400. Linothorax armor is, by it’s nature, fairly size flexible, due to the way it’s cinched up and tied together, so this actually works out to about 25% variability.
Alarm Bracelet
$60, vibrates every hour. Used for watch standers and naval navigators, amongst others. Common enough that many of the middle classes have them as basic timepieces, especially when coordinated with church bells rung in town (whose bell ringers will likely be wearing one in order to know when to ring the bells).Beneficial Charms
These include Talismans and Amulets. Talismans are one-shot protections that provide a bonus to your defense roll (resistance roll, attribute check, defense roll, whatever). +1 to the roll costs only $15. +2 is $45, +3 is $90. Amulets give a bonus to your resistance roll against a specific spell (although an Amulet can have multiple spells enchanted into it). +1 defense, per spell, is $50.Bless Charm
Costs $100, and gives a +1 (beneficial) to all die rolls until a triggering even happens (see page M129). These are highly useful items that are in high demand, and thus rarely available before being bought up. Worth every penny.Cook Pots
$30 for a pot that can cook 1 meal per day, or $60 for a pot that can cook two meals per day. The military makes a lot of these for it's soldiers, because morale is important.Darkness Strips and Blackout Strips
Strips of carpet (typically 6” wide, and up to 10’ long for Darkness, or 6” wide and 8’ long for Blackout) that project Darkness of Blackness as a wall 6’ high. Typically unrolled and laid on the ground to provide cover, or to protect campfires and candles from being visible from the other side of the walls. A Darkness strip costs $12 per square foot, and will dim campfires on the other side; $15 per square foot for Blackout, which will make a camp fire nonvisible.Enchanted Armor
Armor can be enchanted in two different ways: as one whole set, or piece by piece. Piece by piece is much cheaper. $5-$80 per piece. Fortify (adds Damage Resistance) +1, +2, or +3; Deflect (adds a defensive bonus) +1, +2, or +3, depending upon area. Lighten (25% or 50% reduction in weight) is also available, ranging from $3-$60, depending upon area.Enchanted Missiles
+1 to hit and +1 damage are relatively cheap at $25 per arrow, bolt, or sling bullet. (Accuracy, and Puissance). This is an area where Temporary Enchantment comes into it's own, since many missiles will only really get one use anyway. One charge is 15% of the normal Enchantment cost; 2 uses is 30%. Penetration Arrows (AP2), 1 use, costs $4 extra (or $6). For those archers who might want to maybe get a second shot with that arrow, a 2 use Penetration (AP2) arrow costs an extra $8 (or $10 for the arrow). Penetration (AP3), 1 use, costs an extra $11. 2 uses at that level of Armor Piercing is an extra $23. Penetration (AP5), 1 use, costs an extra $38 (2 uses is an extra $75). But when you really need a Holepuncher, this is an inexpensive solution. Spell Arrows are arrows that have a spell contained in them that "detonates" when it hits a solid object. Any appropriate spell that costs up to 3 mana is eligible for this list, as the enchantment cost is less than $100. The arrow or bolt must contain a gem worth $50 for a 1 point spell, $120 for a 2 point spell, and $210 for a 3 point spell. The enchantment is cheap, but the material cost is a bit steep. But when you want trick arrows.... Also note that the user must activate the spell by Concentrating for the same amount of time as if they were casting it. This time cannot be shared with Aiming; it's extra time that must be taken to arm the spell. Since these are "cheap" versions (ie, made by Quick and Dirty enchantment rather than the months long process of Slow and Sure enchantment) this time will likely be only 3 seconds at most, and will vary by the spell and the amount of power used. And note that for the area spells and explosive spells, targeting a hex is at +4. Examples:Deathtouch Arrow, 1d ($82). 2d ($182). 3d ($302). Armor does not protect against this damage. If you hit the target at all, the Deathtouch does the damage. Useful when the enemy is all armored up and your arrows are shattering against their armor.
Concussion Arrow, 1d ($182). Causes an explosion at the point of impact, which has a good chance of stunning anyone within 10 yards.
Stench Arrow, 1 yard ($82), 2 yd radius ($182), 3 yd radius ($302). Creates noxious gas cloud upon impact, much like mustard gas.
Fireball Arrow, 1d ($82; causes a fireball to hit at point of impact). 2d ($182), 3d ($302).
Explosive Fireball Arrow, 1d ($182). Causes an explosive fireball to explode at the point of impact. Targets hit take full damage, others take damage equal to the damage of the fireball/distance (in feet). Thus, the explosion is at most 6' in radius.
Darkness Arrow, 1 hex ($182; creates a hex of darkness centered on the impact point).
Blackout Arrow, 1 hex ($182; creates a hex of utter blackness centered on the impact point.)
Sunlight Arrow, 1 hex ($182; creates a hex of sunlight.)
Sunbolt Arrow, 1d-1 imp ($82) 2d-2 imp ($182) 3d-3 imp ($302). Creates what amounts to a laser beam upon impact. Reach out and touch through someone.
Shatter Arrow, 1d ($82) 2d ($182) 3d ($302). The damage from the Shatter spell only affects inanimate objects, and if the Shatter spell doesn't do enough damage to break the object, it does no damage. A plate cuirass has 20HP, so unless it was damaged first, a Shatter spell won't do anything to it. B558 has the Object HP table.
Rive Arrow, 1d ($82) 2d ($182) 3d ($302). An improvement over Shatter, this arrow just damages the object; there is no threshold effect as with Shatter. (Side note: there is no upward limit on how much energy you can put into the spell when cast...if you have a 50pt powerstone, you can do 50d damage to the target.)
Explode Arrow, 1d ($182). Acts much like Shatter, but if the object is destroyed, it explodes, doing fragmentation damage. Not terribly useful on armor, but might be useful to target objects around your foe (such as vases, crockery, etc).
Disintegration Arrow, 1d ($82) 2d ($182) 3d ($302). As for Shatter, but if the object "breaks" it turns to dust.
Dispel Magic Arrow, 1 hex ($302). Dispels any active spell in the target hex; spells resist with their Power (usually the skill of the mage who cast it).
Curse Arrow, -1 to rolls ($302). Casts Curse on the Target, and all of their rolls are at -1. There is no resistance roll. Not as cost effective as the Temporary Enchantment version.
Pollen Cloud Arrow, 1 hex ($82), 2 hex radius ($182), 3 hex radius ($302). Fills the area with a cloud of pollen that causes sneezing, weeping, and coughing. Everyone in the area failing a HT roll is at -2 DX for as long as they are in the area and for 3d Turns afterward.
Force Wall Arrow, 1 hex ($182). Creates a 4 yard high, 1 yard wide invisible force wall that only light and non-missile spells can cross. Good for blocking doorways from a distance, or creating cover.
Ice Sphere Arrow, 1d cr ($82), 2d cr ($182), 3d cr ($302).
Water Jet Arrow, 1d Knockback ($82), 2d Knockback ($182), 3d Knockback ($302).
Dehydrate Arrow, 1d-1 ($82), 2d-2 ($182), 3d-3 ($302). Armor does not protect; damage is limited to the part the arrowhead hits. Useful against heavily armored opponents.
Ice Dagger Arrow, 1d-1 imp ($82), 2d-2 imp ($182), 3d-3 imp ($302).
Icy Touch Arrow, or Icy Shell Arrow, ($182). Creates a 1/4" shell of ice around the target. ST-1 roll to break free. There is also a HT roll to prevent FT loss due to thermal shock.
Frostbite Arrow, 1d ($82), 2d ($182), 3d ($302). Freezes the tissues of the target. Damage is limited to the part touched.
Snow Jet Arrow, 1d Knockback ($82), 2d Knockback ($182), 3d Knockback ($302). There is also the chance to blind a target for a few seconds.
Create Steam Arrow, 1 hex ($182). Creates a cloud of steam that acts like an area of fire, except it can't set anything ablaze. Can last up to 5 minutes, if indoors with little ventilation (outdoors it may only last 10 seconds or so).
Rain of Acid Arrow, 1 hex ($302). Droplets of acid rain down from the sky, doing 1d-1 acid damage to anyone in that hex. Only works outdoors.
Steam Jet Arrow, 1d-1 scalding damage ($82), 2d-2 scalding damage ($182), 3d-3 scalding damage ($302).
Acid Ball Arrow, 1d acid damage ($82), 2d acid damage ($182), 3d acid damage ($302).
Acid Jet Arrow, 1d-1 acid damage ($82), 2d-2 acid damage ($182), 3d-3 acid damage ($302).
Rain of Ice Daggers Arrow, 1 hex ($82) 2 hex radius ($182) 3 hex radius ($302). Causes ice daggers to fall from the sky; it only works outdoors. The sharp daggers of ice do 1d-2 per second to anyone in the area.
Fog Arrow, 1 hex ($182). Creates a hex of fog.
Rain Arrow, 10 hex radius ($82) 20 hex radius ($182) 30 hex radius ($302). Causes 1" of rain to fall in the area (over an hour's time).
Lightning Arrow, 1d-1 burning damage ($82), 2d-2 burning damage ($182), 3d-3 burning damage ($302). Treat metal armor as DR1.
Explosive Lightning Arrow, 1d-1 burning damage (explosive) ($182).
Shocking Touch Arrow, 1d+1 burning damage ($82), 2d+2 burning damage ($182), 3d+3 burning damage ($302). Armor does not protect. Note that this is more effective than the Lightning Arrow. Another way to get "trick' arrows is to use Temporary Enchantment with a spell that lists as its item "any item, always on". These can work even if the arrow doesn't fully penetrate armor. If the arrowhead lodges in the target, it works. (Assume the arrowhead is "worn" if it deals any damage past the DR, or if it does exactly DR in damage (which means it just barely penetrated the armor, and is stuck in the hole). It is no longer "worn" if the arrow is removed. In many cases, the target may get a resistance roll against the effect of the spell.
Examples of "trick" arrows:
Odor Arrow, 1 use ($8; scent is set at time of creation).
Itch Arrow, 1 use ($11; victim itches and is at -2 DX).
Spasm Arrow, 1 use ($17; causes victim to drop items, twitch involuntarily, and must make a HT roll any time they want to do anything delicate).
Pain Arrow, 1 use ($47; causes victim pain, requiring a HT roll).
Clumsiness Arrow, 1 use ($17 for -1 DX, $32 for -2 DX, $47 for -3 DX, $62 for -4 DX, $77 for -5 DX).
Hinder Arrow, 1 use ($32 for MV/Dodge -1, $62 for -2, $92 for -3).
Rooted Feet Arrow, 1 use ($92; ST-5 roll to be able to move, every turn).
Debility Arrow, 1 use ($17 for -1 ST, $32 for -2 ST, $47 for -3 ST, $62 for -4 ST, $77 for -5 ST).
Frailty Arrow, 1 use ($32 for HT-1, $62 for HT-2, $92 for HT-3).
Stun Arrow, 1 use ($77; physically stuns foe and must roll HT each turn while "worn").
Fumble Arrow, 1 use ($227; victim fumbles any action he is taking...yes, that may involve the critical failure tables).
Strike Dumb Arrow, 1 use ($77; victim is unable to speak; good against mages).
Strike Blind Arrow, 1 use ($77; victim is blinded; good against anyone).
Strike Deaf Arrow, 1 use ($62; victim can no longer hear).
Hair Growth Arrow, 1 use ($17; victim's hair grows at an inch of hair every 5 seconds and victim's nails grow an inch every 30 seconds. The longer the arrowhead is in the victim, the longer the hair will grow. 1 hour delay before hair starts and stops growing.)
Sensitize Arrow, 1 use ($47; gives the Low Pain Threshold to victim).
Agonize Arrow, 1 use ($77; incapacitates foe with agony).
Strike Numb Arrow, 1 use ($47; target loses the sense of touch, gaining the Numb disadvantage).
Curse Arrow, 1 use. -1 to rolls $7. -2 to rolls $17. -3 to rolls $32. This version of the weapon is better than the Spell Arrow version.
Dull Vision Arrow, 1 use. -2 to Vision Perception ($17) -4 to Vision Perception ($32) -6 to Vision Perception ($47). Makes target's vision blurry.
Dull Hearing Arrow, 1 use. -2 to Hearing Perception ($17) -4 to Hearing Perception ($32) -6 to Hearing Perception ($47). Makes target partially Deaf.
Dull Smell Arrow, 1 use. -2 to Smell/Taste Perception ($17) -4 to Smell/Taste Perception ($32) -6 to Smell/Taste Perception ($47). Makes target unable to smell or taste as well.
Dullness Arrow, 1 use. -1 Per ($32) -2 Per ($62) -3 ($92). Reduces overall Perception of the target.
Fear Arrow, 1 use. ($32). Target must make a Will roll or be affected by the Fear spell.
Foolishness Arrow, 1 use. -1 IQ ($17) -2 IQ ($32) -3 IQ ($47) -4 IQ ($62) -5 IQ ($75). Good arrow to use on a mage.
Daze Arrow, 1 use. ($62). Target is affected by the Daze spell. in effect, target will basically ignore everything around themselves except for the arrow sticking out of them, which will be their primary focus. Everything else around them will be irrelevant. The effect will last until the arrow is removed, they get attacked again, or successfully resist a spell.
Mental Stun Arrow, 1 use ($77). Target must make HT rolls each Turn or be Stunned.
Forgetfulness Arrow, 1 use ($77). What is forgotten must be specified when the arrow is created.
Sleep Arrow, 1 use ($92). Roll vs HT or fall asleep.
Weaken Will Arrow, 1 use. -1 Will ($17) -2 Will ($32) -3 Will ($47) -4 Will ($62) -5 Will (77). Weakens the Will of the target. Useful for when you need to hit him with a spell later. Or you are trying to convince him of something. Or you just want them more pliable, and you don't mind putting a hole in them first.
Drunkenness Arrow, 1 use. -1 to IQ and DX ($32) -2 to IQ and DX ($62) -3 to IQ and DX ($92). Makes target drunk, reducing both IQ and DX (and all of the skills based on them).
Madness Arrow, 1 use. ($77) The type of madness may be selected at time of creation, or they can be random. Catatonia is a good one, although Berserk, Bestial, and Hallucinations could be fun, too.
Sickness Arrow, 1 use ($47). Subject suffers from the Sickness spell: nausea, vomiting, MV is halved, may maintain existing spells but can do nothing else.
Suggestion Arrow, 1 use ($62). The suggestion must be set at the time of creation.
Slow Arrow, 1 use ($77). Target suffers from 1 level of Decreased Time Rate. Perceived time is halved; target gets 1 Turn every 2 seconds (or a half Turn every second).
Steal Vitality Arrow, 1 use, -1 HP ($32) -2 HP ($62) -3 HP ($92). Target has fewer HP until arrowhead is removed.
Slow Healing Arrow, -1 ($12) -2 ($22) -3 ($32) -4 ($42), -5 ($52). The arrow makes a wound that is difficult to heal (all attempts are at the penalty listed). Note that these arrows are not technically single use (although it's likely they will break upon contact with anything rigid).
Enchanted Wands, Rods, and Staves
A tool that allows a mage to extend his reach an extra foot (wand), three feet (rod), or six feet (staff) are easily enchantable for $30 using the Staff Enchantment. This is most useful for Regular spells, which are cast at negatives depending upon how far away the target is. Often the wizards' staffs will have other enchantments as well, but that drives up the price. Some are ornate. Note that a spear can be enchanted with the staff spell (as long as the total length is 6' or less), for those mages that prefer long pointy things. Sometimes, mage staves are enchanted with the Staff of Power spell, which costs $75 for the first level, which gives you your IQ in mana points as a fatigue battery. This battery is only good for "refilling" your lost fatigue; it won't give you more mana. So it's good for endurance, not power.Enchanter’s Staff (from Magic Items 1)
This is a rumored device that gives bonuses to enchanting. There are a few Elven enchanters who reputedly have one of these and regularly enchant with it. They will typically have it strapped to their backs under their clothes (they require skin contact, as they must be “held” to work), giving rise to the adage “stick up their butts”, and giving them a rather stiff posture. In the Empire, there are supposedly a total of four Enchanter Staves: (+1, +2, +2, +4). Where these mythical enchanters are, however, is anyone’s guess, and like most things Elven, the Elves aren't talking.Find Weakness Item
Costs $100, and is used for diagnosing problems with devices, bridges, roads, aqueducts, buildings, etc.Fireproof
No item, but an area can be made fireproof. Costs: $1100, including the ruby dust. Often used for the inside of stationary safes and strongboxes, to protect the contents. Prankster enchanters may waste some time making fire pits fireproof. The wealthy may have an enchanter cast this spell multiple times, making larger areas fireproof.Food Preserving Box or Bag
Protects up to 3 lbs of food for $20 per lbs, using the Preserve Food enchantment. Works on whatever food is placed in the container, up to it’s limit. Useful when you want fresh food, instead of the local equivalent of MREs.Forest Warning
Costs $100 for a 1 hex area. Elves will often have this set up in rings around their settlements, in addition to their bio-tech defenses (all those plants they developed over the years that make getting to an Elven settlement difficult).Hair Growth Hat or Headband
Usually a hat or headband (costs $100), and usually used by salons and barber shops. Causes hair (including body hair) and nails to grow a million times faster than usual, resulting in hair that grows 0.2 inches per second, and nails that grow at 0.03 inches per second. Hat must be placed on head for an hour, then removed, giving 1 hour’s worth of growth. Cousin It, with long curly nails. Hence the use in salons, where they can trim the hair and nails to something normal when it all stops growing. Putting it on someone’s head while they are asleep is…mean, resulting in hair that’s 480 feet long and weighs 70 lbs, and nails that are 80 feet long (assuming 8 hours of sleep). And they look like Bigfoot, or Cousin It. Human hair rope! Ropemaking just got more interesting. A head of hair weighs 10lbs for each 70 feet. So the poor schmuck who woke up with this hat on his head has about 70lbs of hair. A human hair rope a finger thick can support 2.5 million pounds, or about half the strength of steel (this is ideally; a head of hair compressed into a rope about a half inch in diameter, and can support 12 tons according to actual testing). So a human hair rope will likely be more like human hair cordage (one eighth the linear size of your finger, or less than about 1/8” in diameter). Assume 200 yards long, about 1/8” diameter, and weighing 4 lbs, and supporting 500lbs. It will need to be treated to protect it from environmental effects, but that’s doable. And that’s not all. Put it on a sheep, and get really long strands of wool, very quickly. Wool is the cheapest cloth out there, even if it has to be shipped in. All shepherds will have one of these things, otherwise it isn’t cost effective to harvest the wool. Human hair can make yarns, but it needs to be blended with something softer. A soft wool, for instance. So human hair cloth is indeed possible, although there will be a bottleneck at the weaver side of things. So clothing won’t be much cheaper; the cost of a garment is primarily the weaving and sewing, not the thread. Treat human hair cloth as basically the same materially as linen. Game mechanical effects, with an indulgent GM (Not RAW): a) Blind, distract, or trip foes (mentioned in RAW, but no game mechanics).This is resisted by a HT roll. but still could be useful. Also, being a Regular spell, there is a distance penalty for casting. The item really isn’t useful here. b) Make it difficult or impossible to wear certain types of clothing or tight-fitting equipment (e.g., grow out a foe's beard to break the seal on his gas mask).
This is resisted by a HT roll. but still could be useful. Also, being a Regular spell, there is a distance penalty for casting. The item really isn’t useful here. c) Make friends by curing baldness or bad haircuts.
Well, yeah; this is basically the point of the spell, or the item. Basically, take them to the barber or salon, where they will likely have a Hair Hat to use. Then take 2 hours of your time to sit with the hat on your head, wait for the hair to stop growing, and then get it cut. Making a bad haircut shorter will take less time and not require the Hair Hat. d) Make enemies by turning people into Jo Jo the Dog-Faced Boy.
Not really a problem; the hair is no more permanent than “regular” hair. It can be trimmed as required, and unless the Hair Hat is cursed and can’t be taken off, it’s not a problem. e) Good as a potential disguise. (If the bad guys are looking for a bald, clean-shaven man then they might not suspect someone who looks like a hippie.)
True. And a good idea. Especially if many barbershops and salons have one, and they would. f) Mend torn fingernails.
Good idea, and salons will likely have one. Note that it’s not a quick fix; there is a one hour delay before the item starts working, and a one hour period of time where there is hair and nail growth. So there will then be some time required to trim the hair and nails. The Haircut spell requires a mage to cast, and there aren’t very many of those. g) Possibly mess with opponents' ability to wear gloves or similar items or to grasp items when their nails grow out to the length of a Chinese emperor's.
The spell could do this, but the item has a one hour delay, so it’s not useful in this way. h) Torture foes by growing their hair and fingernails out and then tear them out at the roots. Repeat as desired.
Yep. But the wearer gets a resistance roll, which could help for a while until they fail one. i) Make heaps of money in the wig, rope, or wool trades.
Not really. These items are common, and thus the disruption to the economy happened long ago, and the economy has adjusted to this new normal. Wigs, rope, and woolen items are less expensive, since the material costs are very low. The effort to create those items haven’t gotten any easier, labor costs and manufacturing time are unchanged. Economic benefits if cast on a human: a) Instant recovery of hair loss.
Per the spell description, this will last a month before the hairs all fall out again. b) Hair for wigs becomes incredibly cheap. (People with naturally great hair, or hair of unusual color, might make a living being hair donors.)
Yes. c) Human hair actually makes very good rope. There are stories of women in besieged towns donating their hair to make skeins for ballistas or catapults. As you point out, a 480' single strand of hair is far longer than any plant-based material which potentially makes it even more valuable.
Yes. Human hair was used for the torsion springs in catapults. If the GM allows the spell to be cast on animals it becomes utterly ridiculous.
There is no reason that it wouldn’t work on animals, assuming you can get the Hair Hat to fit on them. The spell works on them just fine (albeit with a resistance roll). In combat, growing out an opponent's horse's hair might make it fall or panic.
Good idea; and the horse may have a lower HT than the rider, making it a more likely target. Forget sheep you can shear every 8 seconds (with a combination of Hair Growth and Haircut). Instead, make real money by using the spell on angora goats or rabbits, beavers (high quality felt for hats), vicuna, eider ducks, or critters whose hair or feathers are valuable magical ingredients.
All good ideas. But again, the money made will be low, because the economy has adjusted. All of those resources are very inexpensive, but the labor to turn them into useful things has remained the same. The CF for “luxury” materials has decreased. If the GM rules that the spell affects any part of a living being which is made from keratin, raise unicorns or rhinos for their horns, pangolins (or dragons!) for their scales, or silkworms for their cocoons. Grow out silkworm cocoon silk by a factor of 1 million and you've got the world's longest fiber. Grow spider silk from spider egg sacs into long fibers suitable for making very tough, light garments which are potentially bulletproof.
Silk (silkworm or spider) isn’t just keratin, so if this were to become a thing, it would be a spell/enchantment variant. So silk prices will remain “normal”. Pangolin scales might be useful. Makes a heavy DR 3 armor though; people would be better just wearing heavy gambeson. Harvesting critters for alchemy/enchantment components will be a thing, though. Depending on the campaign, the GM might embrace some or all of these ideas with the understanding that wool, silk, and other natural fibers are now dirt cheap. (Add the M&B college spells Clean and Reshape to quickly process and weave raw fiber into cloth. Add a permanent variant of Dye to quickly dye lots of fabric.)
Reshape doesn’t work that way. There isn’t any standard spell that will weave fibers into cloth. Shape Plant won’t do it either. Even Shape Earth (for asbestos fibers) won’t spin them into thread or weave those threads into cloth. Clean will be used, though, and a Clean Item is pretty cheap to make, too. So a fiber comb enchanted with Clean would be a very common item owned by people who produce these cheap fibers. Sure, the first Body Control mage to think of using Hair Growth on a captive phoenix in order to harvest bales of magical fireproof feathers will make serious bank, but after a while phoenix feather suits will just become the magic version of Nomex fabric - still useful but not unreasonably expensive.
True. See the notes above about the “adjusted economy”. Upon reflection, I don’t think the Hair Growth spell will work on feathers. Yes, they are keratin, but they are also organized in a very specific, complex way that the magic likely wouldn’t be able to account for. There may be a variant called Feather Growth perhaps, but there may not be a market for it. Yes, the first one made will flood the market, but making more will only drive the price of feathers down as well as fibers. Which isn’t a problem, but since people are already living with the results of inexpensive fibers, the feather traders may fight the “industrialization” of feather harvesting via such an item. So the question is: how long until someone develops a Feather Growth spell, and figures out how to “enchantify” it? So, for the moment, no one has developed this spell.
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