Re: Rick's Magic items for Horses (and other riding animals).

[Thomas Fulmer <tfulmer1@gmail.com>]

Rick,

You note that human magic items can be made for horses, which makes me
think the magic is essentially universal and it is the form factor
that matters.

While I don't foresee most adventures (Perhaps Argunt except) to want
to carry around a saddle bag in place of a backpack, some of these
other items may be different.

For example, take the feedbag. Horses eat about 20 pounds of food in a
day. So let's say that this bag can hold about 20 pounds of food over
the course of its 5 feedings. Does anything prevent an enterprising
investor from selling  1/2 lbs corn meals to 40 people at $5 each and
making $80 per day? The economics of this don't matter much with
horses who can't pay, but it might be a rather cheap as healing magic
goes.

At that rate, this very high priced feed bag pays for itself in under a month.

The blanket of warmth, on the other hand, seems expensive compared to
relatively common heating stones, although it covers a larger area I
suppose.

--Thomas

On Mon, Apr 1, 2019 at 9:27 PM Rick <rick_ww@lightspeed.ca> wrote:
>
> Hi all,
>
>   I wrote up some magic items for horses. I’ve not yet created the # of weeks, # of apprentices, Cost of Ingredients, etc. yet.
>
>   I would appreciate some feedback on the prices given.  They are a bit off the top of my head, and thoughts on if any of them are too expensive / too cheap would be appreciated.
>
> Warm regards, Rick.
>
>
> TFT Magic Items for Horses:
>
> (C) 2019 by Richard W. Smith
>
> The prices given below are the base price (for a 1 hex animal). It must be doubled for 2 hex riding horses, or tripled for large draft animals & war horses.
>
>
> Bridle of Calmness $ 700
>
> A horse wearing this bridle becomes calm and tractable. This has two major uses, unbroken and barely broken horses can be ridden, and the animal is much less likely to spook if something frightening is happening around it. Wild animals are much easier to break (teach them how to be ridden) with this item.
>
>
> Bridle of Speech $ 20,000
>
> This is a complicated item that Shapeshifts the horse slightly (so that it has vocal cords) AND increases the animal's IQ by 2 with much of that IQ increase going into understanding language. Thus the animal gains the rudiments of the rider's language. It counts as two of the 5 items the animal can wear under the rule of 5. The animal is now able to speak with its rider, but it will take over a year to become a proficient in the tongue.
>
>
> Bridle of Training $ 1,200
>
> This does not actually increase the animal's intelligence, but rather it is a limited form of control spell which makes the animal WANT to learn. You won't be able to teach an IQ 5 animal anything that only an IQ 6 animal can figure out, but what it can learn, it will learn four times faster.
>
>
> Feed Bag of Purity $ 1,800
>
> This feedback is a limited form of Cleansing spell. It will up to 5 times a day (with at least 5 hours between use), cast a Cleansing on feed placed in it. This will kill off viruses, bacteria, parasites, and other biological dangers. It will not make the food taste better, or make unnourishing food wholesome.
>
>
>
> Grooming Kit of Health $ 2,000
>
> This is a complete grooming kit, of very high quality. When a half hour or more is spent grooming the animal, a spell will be cast on it which will remove parasites, and helps to heal wounds. (Healing rate is doubled for two days. Multiple uses replace the old spell effect, but reset the duration.) The low cost is balanced by the need to spend a significant amount of time and effort in the use of the item.
>
>
>
> Saddle Blanket of Warmth $ 500
>
> This blanket generates warmth allowing the animal to be comfortable in temperatures 15 degrees colder than normal. (There are tales of a 'Blanket of Cooling', but how to make such an item is lost.)
>
>
>
> Saddle Bags of Lightness $ 1,000
>
> While no wizard has (yet) created a saddle bag that is larger on the inside than on the outside, it is possible to make saddle bags which reduce the mass of items placed inside. This is a limited form of telekinesis; magic is used to lift up some of the weight. This is an A type magic item, with each doubling of price reducing the weight more. The base price lowers the weight of items placed inside the saddle bag by 15%. Each doubling in price of the item causes a 15% greater reduction in weight. (e.g. An item that cuts the weight by 60% would cost x8 as much, or $8,000.) This item only works when the bags are firmly lashed closed, with the items completely inside the saddle bags.
>
>
>
> Saddle of Lightness $ 3,000
>
> Exactly like the item above, but it reduces the weight of the rider, and the rider's armor & equipment. For purposes of the rule of 5, this counts as an item the rider is wearing. Many flying beasts can only carry human riders if they have a powerful Saddle of Lightness.
>
>
>
> Riding Crop of Speed. $ 300
>
> This casts a low powered Speed Movement spell on the animal. It is controlled by the rider and it triggered by whacking the crop against the flank of the horse. Note the cost of the spell is paid for by the rider, and the cost is multiplied by the number of hexes of the steed + rider. (e.g. So a 1 hex figure riding a 14 hex dragon, would need to pay 1 + 14 = 15 times the base fatigue cost to use it.)
>
> The base speed gain is +1 MA. Each doubling in price adds an extra MA to a maximum of +5 MA. The spell lasts for two turns.
>
>
> Shoes of Lighting As per w/a e but see below.
>
> A variation of a magic item that does extra damage when the horse kicks, this one causes each time the enchanted shoe touches the ground, (or when it kicks someone), it gives of bursts of sparks. No game effect other than looking cool, especially at night.
>
> Identical to the weapon / armor enchantment, but add 5% onto the price.
>
>
>
> Shoe of Long Legs. $ 800
>
> This magic item was created by a mad wizard, but surprisingly, other wizards were able to learn how to replicate the item. The horse when walking, will have its legs grow until they are a bit over twice as long as normal. (Thus the rider will be higher off the ground.) The legs will stretch, reaching further ahead, and stretch further behind the animal before the foot detaches from the ground. The animal's gait is uncannily smooth.
>
> The result of all this, is that the animal travels 3 times as fast when it is moving at a walk. (Triple its distance per day when traveling on the campaign map.) The spell does not know how to handle faster movement, and if the horse breaks into a canter, trot or gallop, the legs will shrink back to their normal length. Thus its running movement is not affected by this strange item.
>
> This is an uncommon item, many magic schools have no idea how to make this item.
>
>
>
> Shoe of Permanence. $ 200 / shoe.
>
> This is the item for people who don't like having to bother with horse shoes coming loose. Each shoe so enchanted magically glues itself to the horse's foot. (As the hoof grows, bits will flake off and be ejected, so the item only needs to be put on once.) The enchantment is very inexpensive, but fails when the horse dies. (Each such shoe counts as one of the 5 items the horse can use, but additional enchantments such as +1 kicking damage can be added as other enchantments on the shoe.) Additionally the shoes protect the frog of the foot, so the horse is immune to sharp stones and caltrops.
>
>
>
> Shoe of Walking on Water $ 500
>
> This item comes in 5 versions, each twice as expensive as the previous. The base version allows the horse (and rider it the rider's size is paid for), to talk on water. The hoof will depress the water a a little bit, but won't break through and won't get wet. However, waves make very unstable footing and it should only be used on glass smooth lakes.
>
> Each turn the horse must make a 2/DX, 3/DX or 4/DX or fall, if the water has ripples, moderate chop, or large waves respectively. The second version of this item allows the horse to ignore all but the largest waves (this second version is the one most commonly sold). The third version allows the horse to move at a canter, (less than 1/3 of its MA), the fourth version allows it to move at a trot (less than 2/3 of its MA) and the fifth version of this item allows it to gallop over water at its full MA.
>
>
>
> Spurs of “something” Varies.
>
> A number of magic items are called spurs of this-or-that. So spurs of Reverse Missiles would cast Reverse Missiles on the horse. They are items where an enchantment is cast on a horse for typically a single turn, or for a very few turns. The spurs are self powering, but typically have restrictions on use, (e.g. self powering, but only can be used once per day). The standard spurs are designed to handle any sized horse (so therefore up to 3 hexes).
>
> Spur items are controlled by and worn by the rider, so they take up one the rider's magic items slots. Not every time the rider uses the spurs trigger them, it takes an act of will to use them. Usually 'spur' items only enspell the horse, but not the rider. If they effect both animal and rider, the difference is advertised as an unusual advantage worthy of a higher price.
>
> Often these items buff the horse just as it is charging into battle, to allow it to survive the moment of maximum danger.
>
> Some sample items:
>
> --- Spurs of Stone Flesh.
>
> --- Spurs of Control Animal.
>
> --- Spurs of Blur
>
> --- Spurs of Hammer Touch (Anything the horse bumps into except the rider.), etc.
>
> Typical Modifiers, to make these items cheaper:
>
> --- Self Powering but once per day. 10% self powering price.
>
> --- Self Powering but twice per day. 20% self powering price. (Can use on consecutive turns.)
>
> --- Self Powering, but three times per day, etc.
>
> (Therefore at 10 times per day, it is the same cost as a general self powering.)
>
> --- Self powering but 12 hour recharge. (Use the twice per day cost, but halve price, so 10%.)
>
> --- Self powering but 8 hour recharge. (Three time per day cost, but halve price, so 15%.)
>
> --- Self powering, but 3 hour recharge. (Eight times per day cost, but half price, so 40%.)
>
>
> --- Powered for one turn. Normal cost.
>
> --- Powered for two turns. Double cost, etc.
>
>
>
> Trappings of Tangles $ 800
>
> These trappings, (light cloth barding that shows the rider's colors), must reach down so that more than half of the horse's legs are covered. The trappings will gives the horses' legs a limited insubstantiality so they won't be tangled by branches, vines, brambles, trip wires, and the like. Heavy undergrowth, which normally would lower a horses speed by up to 90%, may be ignored.
>
>
>
> Notes on magic items for riding beasts.
>
> Normal magic items can be made for horses. A stone flesh horseshoe could be created. Some points to consider...
>
> Many magic items are B types, which multiply their cost by the number of hexes of the subject. So a 3 hex warhorse will require a magic item that costs three times as much.
>
> Who controls the item, the animal or the rider? Normally if the item is worn by the animal, then the animal controls it. Therefore, a stone flesh item that is self powering, will result in fewer mistakes. It is possible for a magic item to be worn by a horse, but controlled by the rider, but the rider must be touching that item (say the saddle horn), and such items cost 5% more.
>
> Does the item want to affect just the animal or the animal AND the rider? Horse shoes of flying are easy enough to make. Let us say that you have a two hex riding horse and give it some horseshoes of flying. The spell is barely powerful enough to lift the horse. It won't be able to fly with a 1 hex figure on it. (Tho it could likely jump surprisingly well.) If the item is to affect both the horse and the rider, it must be large enough to cover the combined size of both. Additionally the rider must be touching the item (saddles are popular, horseshoes not so much). Note that an item that is effecting both the rider and the mount, is counted by the rule of 5 for both. (So if you are wearing 5 items already, and climb on a horse which has a flying item (which will work on its rider), you won't be able to fly with your horse, unless you remove one of your items.)
>
> Some items are called “Shoes of Flying” or whatever. However, normally only a single shoe is enchanted, since one is enough. If (say) the front left shoe is enchanted with a spell, often a Shoe of Permanence enchantment is also cast on that item, so that the shoe does not come off at an inconvenient time.



-- 
"Do not imagine that, if something is hard for you to achieve, it is
therefore impossible for any man: but rather consider anything that is
humanly possible and appropriate to lie within your own reach too." --
Marcus Aurelius