I like unique magic items. It's one of those things that Earthdawn got really right with Threaded items - the story makes it so much cooler, and helps my character be more than just the sum of what they carry.
In her 2010 Ravenloft campaign, Vivian asked us to come up with three magic advantages we would like, one powerful, two minor.
On behalf of my Vodacce spy, I asked for:
Cool magic bow.An item that prevents me from being scryed upon.Something to help a quick getaway if someone spots me.She replied with:
This black +2 composite longbow is made to strike from the shadows. In addition to granting +2 attack and +2 damage, arrows show from this bow subtly waver on their course, making it difficult to determine where they are coming from. When using Stealth for Sniping (see skill description) the weilder of this bow takes only a -10 to maintain his obscured location after making a missile attack (instead of a -20).
These are two, silver rings decorated with carved swans. Most divination spells (the GM reserves the right to make exceptions) cast upon the wearer of one ring will give results based upon the wearer of the other ring, thus providing the other wearer's alignment, location, thoughts, etc. In order for the rings to function, both must be worn by living creatures that are not separated by more than 10 miles.
These magical boots can be activated once per day. They grant the following spell-like effects for 1 minute: Expeditious Retreat (+30 speed) and Jump (+10 Acrobatics).
Since then, I've loved the idea of unique magic items - leveled items, family heirlooms, items with stories. Some are mine, some are Viv's, some are inspired from others' works.
These magical devices are capable of appearing as any one of 13 complete sets of identification, complete with the House Sivis mark. Adding a new identity requires swapping one out, along with a Linguistics check made at a +4. When presenting the papers, the owner must state the name of their cover identity before opening the case for the correct papers to show, otherwise they display the set last shown. A detect magic only reveals the residual effect of a House Sivis arcane mark and a petty abjuration consistent with protecting the papers from the elements.
This livewood vine bracelet is set with fangs from different vipers. Each day, it injects trace amounts of various toxins into the wearer, building a resistance to ability damage caused by poison. +4 save vs. poisons. Effects last for 24 hours after removing the bracelet, but regaining the benefits require a full 24 hours of wear, during which the wearer is sickened.
Your master missed you after you became a Journeyman, so he created these gloves. There are two sets - one in Master's Brown, the other in Apprentice Black. When you wear the Master's set, the black gloves animate with a translucent image of your younger, apprentice self. They have the limits of the Unseen Servant spell, with the following changes:
* They add +2 to skill checks where their help can apply
* Like Unseen Servant, they must be given verbal instructions
* They have your strength score for purposes of lifting and holding things
* The gloves can become damaged - hardness of X, HP of y.
To activate the gloves, slap your hands together twice and rub them together. To deactivate, wipe the gloves on your pants.
This knee-length vest is coated in pockets, pouches, and loops, and ties off at the knees for ease of use. The accompanying oilcloth is used to cover a workbench or similar surface. Reaching through a pocket connects through the cloth to the workbench, retrieving them with an action, same as through a backpack. The cloth covers a 10' by 4' area.
A simple set of items (judged by the GM) can be retrieved easily. More clutter requires a successful INT check to retrieve the correct item. Extreme clutter may require a Reflex save to avoid moving items about. Returning physically to the oilcloth and rearranging items returns it to an uncluttered state. New items may be placed in the vest, up to the limit of the oilcloth.
These wide metal bracers are placed on your ankles rather than your forearms, and use the power of the minor stone elemental bound in them to aid your stability. When on solid ground (wooden floors, stone, earth, etc), you gain a +5 CMD vs. bullrush, trip, overrun, or similar effects to move you. You may still fall prone if knocked unconscious or given a condition like a broken leg, though is some circumstances, it may give you a reflex save vs. falling prone. They take up the bracers slot, and are always active.
On the battlefield, nearing the end, amidst the chaos, you saw piles of bodies fly up into the air, tossed to the winds by a flock of sharp. metal birds. As this maelstrom of fury passed overhead, a single feather dropped in front of you. Your artificer friend fitted it with a guard and hilt, working on it with thick gloves, because when you handed it to her, it cut into her hands and gave her frightening visions. It's never done that to you, even when you touch the blade with your bare hands. The Feather-blade is a +1 longsword of an unknown material. On a critical hit, the target must make a DC13 Will save or gain the shaken condition for d6+1 rounds.
This suit of +1 chainmail is made of interlocking rings of chitin punched out of some enormous creature's shell. Originally, you thought the dark black-bluish color would allow you to hide in shadows, but after much experimentation, you discovered that it had an even greater power. Once per day, for 1 minute, the senses of the former creature stretch from your mind down into the ground, sensing everything in a direct line within 30'. This is a function similar to both tremorsense, but with the added ability to sense non-moving objects.
(where the heck did I put that? Description is around here somewhere. Basic - put a scroll in the case, it allows you to counterspell anything in that school, and burn the scroll.)
Five interlocking rings of paper-thin silver, engraved with magical writing that fades off at each twist. When worn, it grants the effect of Invisibility, but when removed the wearer must make a DC15 reflex save to keep it in pattern. Reassembling the ring is a DC15 Intelligence test.
* I did not fully appreciate how freaking cool this one was until Strahd, who had been scrying on us for the whole freaking game, when we finally met, did not know who the hell I was, as one ring was on me, and the other was on a rat I kept in a lead-lined box on my belt.
** Viv should check this one, as she invented it before there was gmail, and I have no record of the actual write-up.