Dragons in the basement... LX

My Jawbones of Triple-Blessed Fortune are close to completed. The draft below has seen some minor tweaks and mechanical tinkering and it does sit better within the rules. My own assessment remains much the same: they are as mechanically sound as I know how to make them, they are pretty cool, I think, but essentially a Swiss-army knife of spells-in-a-can. More might be required by (a) tying the jawbones more closely to a desert theme; (b) going back to the drawing board and coming up with something new.
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JAWBONES OF TRIPLE-BLESSED FORTUNE

Aura: moderate abjuration; CL 5th
Slot: neck; Price 55,000 gp; Weight -

DESCRIPTION
This good luck totem is the aged jawbones of a large jackal worn about the neck on a string of woven animal hair. Anyone wearing this necklace gains DR 10/magic against ranged attacks and is immune to disease, including supernatural diseases. If the jawbone is brought within thirty feet of a creature, object or area that is poisonous, it's teeth will begin to chatter and will continue to do so until removed more than thirty feet from the source of the poison.

CONSTRUCTION
Requirements Craft Wondrous Item, detect poison, protection from arrows, remove disease; Cost 27,500 gp

Listening to: 'Babel (Music From And Inspired By The Motion Picture)' - Various Artists

Imagine: God Knows... III

NOW AVAILABLE IN IT'S SECOND PRINTING FROM AMAZON.
CAN YOU THINK OF A BETTER HOLIDAY GIFT...?

GOD KNOWS
AN EXPLORATION OF BELIEF, RELIGION AND THE EXISTENCE OF GOD
BY DOUG HARRIS & IAN HEWITT

Does a god exist in the manner in which it seems that the majority of Americans believe?

What proof exists to support the existence of god?

Must a Christian believe that god wrote the Bible and that it is literally the truth?

Do you believe Genesis’ account of the creation of the earth?

Without the Bible to direct one’s actions, how does the atheist remain moral?

Is it possible to maintain both christian beliefs and intellectual honesty?

God Knows explores the question of the existence of God.

This unique book offers two widely different points of view while attempting to answer that most persistent of questions: ‘Is God Real?’

What began as a late night discussion between two friends, one a Christian and the other a Humanist, evolved to become an earnest attempt to reconcile their differing beliefs. When that didn’t work the writers decided to take the discussion into deeper waters. It was clear that the friends would never agree… but could they offer up an explanation of what they did believe, and why that would withstand cross-examination from the other?

Unlike other one-sided bombastic and turgid discussions about the mysteries of existence ‘God Knows’ offers both points of view in a single collaboration. This unusual book mirrors countless millions of other conversations that try to bridge the gap between believer and free thinker: but the humor, irreverence, confrontation and honesty allows the conversation to be instructive to both sides alike.

In the end, the writers found that their common bond of humanity allowed for a respectful and thoughtful disagreement; that they shared much more in common than not; and that the path to true peace and understanding may indeed sidestep those who wield either the pen or the sword… which may well be a lesson for us all.

Listening to: 'Nebraska' - Bruce Springsteen

Dragons in the basement... LIX

Jawbones of Triple-Blessed Fortune... looking on them today, I'm actually still pretty happy with them - mechanics not withstanding (actually the mechanics are more than good enough for my table, just not for a professional entry). I think they're alright as a new magical item.

I'm not sure if they are exciting enough to pass muster in the RPG Superstar competition, but they're not bad. They seem guilty of being a spells-in-a-can, Swiss-army knife type of item which is fair and fine and doesn't make for a bad item necessarily. A winning entry might need more oomph, though. I'm not sure about the name, either.

I do like the look and feel of them, inspired by both the World of Llowellen's sibeccai and Stephen King's Dark Tower, I reckon the detect poison function is pretty cool. If I were a player I would want a pair of these jawbones.

Listening to: 'Fear the Boot' - Fear the Boot

Dragons in the basement... LVIII

This is my first idea. It's also a first draft and I'm aware the mechanics are a little ropey, particularly in the pricing and the cost, but that's as much of an art as a science in wondrous item design and so probably an intential hurdle.
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JAWBONES OF TRIPLE-BLESSED FORTUNE
Aura: moderate abjuration; CL: 5th
Slot: neck; Price: 44,000 gp; Weight -

DESCRIPTION
This good luck totem is the aged jawbones of a large jackal worn about the neck on a string of woven hair. Anyone wearing this necklace gains DR 10/magic against ranged attacks and is immune to disease, including supernatural diseases. If the jawbone is brought within thirty feet of a creature, object or area that is poisonous, the teeth will begin to chatter.

CONSTRUCTION
Requirements Craft Wondrous Item, detect poison, protection from arrows, remove disease; Cost 35,000 gp

Listening to: 'History' - Michael Jackson

Dragons in the basement... LVII

Paizo Publishing, who have since eclipsed Wizards of the Coast as the D&D publishing house, have announced their annual RPG Superstar competition. They have been doing this for a few years now, and the Grand Prize is essentially a chance to live the dream: freelance contracts and more exposure than you could ever hope for as a new writer.

I don't have much in the way of expectations, but I've decided to throw the dice and give it a shot. Round 1, open to all, will cull the herd from thousands (and then some) down to a lucky and talented 32, with the deceptively simple task of designing a magical item using the Pathfinder rules.

Listening to: 'Fear the Boot' - Fear the Boot

About a Boy... XLV

Ian..?

Listening to: 'The Moth' - The Moth Podcast

About a Boy... XLIV

Oswald..?

My great-grandfather's name, Nana's father, was Oswald Hogben.

Listening to: 'Night Songs' - Cinderella