CHARMS

Charms are small items worn by characters to give them minor advantages. Charms are meant to be subtle, indirect, mystic magic that isn't too powerful. Wearing a protective amulet or hunter's necklace boosts your ability only rarely, it is never obvious to the characters in the universe if this hedge magic does anything or if it subtly manipulating fate.

Everyone can make use of charms. As long as your character has a Wisdom score of 8 or higher, you can make or keep a charm. Charms only work if made by yourself, your lover, your parents, or the person who provides you with spiritual succor. Typically this is the local priest, shaman, or your party's Cleric if you follow the same religion. Charms made by anyone must always come from self made or hand crafted ingredients and cannot be mass produced. The protective charm of wolfsbane must be cut with your own hand, for example. There is no direct limit of the number of useful or active charms a person can have, but to prevent people from “spamming” the trinkets a soft cap could be made of around equal to their level.

Offensive Charms – 1d8

[1] Cat Whisker Tassel- put on weapons. Grants +1 to hit on the first sneak attack you make each day.

[2] Octopus Curl. Pickled and shrunken octopus tentacle, curled up in necrosis. User gets advantage on the first grapple check, offensive or defensive, they make each day.

[3] Obsidian Chip. Tiny splinter of black stone, too small to be used as an arrowhead. Makes the first damage roll of 1 with a sharp weapon deal 2 instead per day.

[4] Brawler's Wrappings. Wrapped around arms and fists; old bandages that must have been taken from a fighter who never lost. Deal 1d4 damage with unarmed attacks if you couldn't already, or deal +1 damage on the first bare knuckle punch you throw with them, once per day.

[5] Beast Fang. The fang of any great or threatening monster, taken as a trophy. Bound to a necklace or bracelet, the first attack you make each day against a beast that misses by 1 hits instead.

[6] Nettle Loop. Unusual for a charm; as it must be placed on your target instead. Hidden between the pages of a book or tied into their hair. Makes the first damage die you roll from an attack against the target one size larger; Roll a d8 with a d6 sword for example. Only works once.

[7] Raven's Wing. Tied around your neck or the end of a staff. Enforces a penalty of -1 to saves against your curse or hex spells.

[8] Black Glass-Bead. Tied into a lanyard on a staff, embedded into a wand, or mixed in with a sack of sling stones. Turns a damage roll of 1 into a 2 for slings or the Magic Missile spell; once per day.

Protective Charms – 1d8

[1] Leaf Scroll. Small leaf rolled into a scroll, written with a prayer or well-wishes from your love. The scroll burns instead of you versus any fire spell that deals 1 damage.

[2] Chainmail Link. Bit of rusted chainmail, twisted into a charm or a ring to be worn. Increases your AC by +1 until it makes the difference, ie they hit by one point- this charm turning it to a miss instead. Once per day.

[3] Green Apple. Grants +1 to all saves vs disease or poison. If the apple starts to spoil or a bite is made out of it, the charm's power ends.

[4] Insect trapped in Amber. Has a 1 in 6 chance to extend the duration of a protective spell by 1 exploration turn. Only works on spells that have a duration of at least a turn. Works once.

[5] Feather Cap. Magic cap which will let you ignore the first arrow that hits you that deals 1 damage. The arrow knocks the cap off your head instead, and ruins the charm.

[6] Silver Nub. This melted nub of silver must have once been a part of a holy symbol, candle used in a church, or on the ring of a pious noble (hence its rarity). The ring grants +1 to saves vs death and/or level drain against the undead until you fail the roll; the silver tarnishes.

[7] Four Leaf Clover. Grants a 1 in 6 chance to help you find a minor, useful item worth 1c or less that you need in the moment. Only works in places where it would be plausible. Also grants +1 to saves vs death. Has a 1 in 6 chance each time it is used to lose its power forever, or when it starts wilting.

[8] Lucky Horseshoe. One of the most powerful charms; turns the first roll attack roll of 20 made against you into a 1 instead. This only works once per season. The horseshoe can also be nailed up on a door or passage to act as a ward against the fae.

Traveller's Charms – 1d6

[1] Clay Buddha. If it's too weird to have a real religion in your game, make it a clay fat man of good fortune instead. The small figurine is rubbed on the head or tummy. There is a 1 in 6 chance that the next place you stop has someone willing to share a nice, homecooked meal with you that will restore 1 hit point. Works once per journey.

[2] Cow's Tooth. This heavy molar can be worn on a necklace, bracelet, or even set in a ring. Whenever someone from your main group gets separated either due to an attack, weather event, getting lost, etc. It will take no more then 3 days to catch back up to them, with a lucky coincidence being how you find them again.

[3] Pig's Tail. Used mostly by merchants- often tied to a lanyard or cord for a sac or pack. Counts the trip as 1 day less for food spoilage and product's degrading over time. Also counts for rations or other goods, but only on overland travel and not in ships.

[4] Bent Nail. Taken from a vampire's coffin after being slain. This nail gives you a single reroll on the first wandering monster or random encounter check you take that hits a monster on a journey; the first time you get a wandering monster encounter reroll it to see if you avoid instead. Only works on creatures that come at night, like Vampires.

[5] The Lucky Log. Magic log that must be taken from a naturally fallen tree, usually in an elf forest. The log must be used in a fire, but can be dragged after after a short burn to get the effects. That night, your campfire is magically enchanted reducing the chance for whoever is keeping watch to be surprised by -1 in 6, or granting a +3 to a d20 roll to notice intruders, whichever system fits better. The log doesn't need to be fully burned each time but will eventually be reduced to ash; it can be used up to 6 nights before being used up.

[6] The Caravaner's Cricket. Grants +1 save on the first roadside hazard or saving throw you make that isn't against a monster or hostile spell. Works once per journey, but only if the cricket is alive. The cricket will probably die in a season.

Arcane Charms – 1d6

[1] Sandy Cog. This is a bunch of pure white beach sand that has been wetted and pressed into the shape of a cog. It's very fragile and must be intact when you wish to use it. The next time you cast Sleep, it also works on machines. The cog falls apart after one casting.

[2] Special Petrified Poop. Taken and dried only from a rare breed of dire bat, this guano can be used to cast a variant version of fireball. Upon spell cast, the spell rolls +2 damage die but rolls all die as d4 instead of d6. This makes the spell deal more minimum damage, but less maximum damage. When cast, the guano burns as a slow ember instead of sparking and exploding as normal.

[3] Lead Wing. This charm is made from lead, shaped into a bird's wing by a skilled craftsmen. Whenever you cast a Flight spell, it lasts twice as long and you move faster in flight, but you must touch the ground at the end of each round or else the spell effect ends and you take full fall damage from whatever height you were at. This charm is not used up when used to cast spells, but due to the fact it encumbers as a 2 unit item and is so situational is isn't too powerful of a trinket.

[4] Magic Marble. This glass bead is held to the head and filled with energetic waves of force created from the magic user's mind. Filling it requires the sacrifice of a 1^st level spell, gotten rid of during at least a turn of meditation and distillation. The marble can be squeezed to release the spell as a bright magical cloud; it is roughly shaped or reenacts the spell sacrificed to prepare it, but has no effect. This bright cloud expands quickly and can illuminate a whole room, plus it is an impressive display of magic that could full the superstitious into thinking far greater had just been cast.

[5] Summoner Socks. Purple, arcane socks worn in any matching pair of silly wizard shoes. Whenever you summon a creature, you have a 1 in 6 chance to increase it's HD by +1. The other stats of the creature do not change, nor does the duration or loyalty of the summoned monster change unless they scale off of the monster's HD. After use, one of the pair will turn gray and moth-eaten.

[6] Curseleaf. Usually made of a very dark green or brown leaf, pressed in the pages of a book for a long time and then glazed with a clear, sugary substance. Must be eaten when a curse spell is cast, and left to dissolve on the tongue. Gives the victims of your curse spells a -1 to their saving throws against them, but only if they have never eaten a Curseleaf. Tastes terrible.