The first item in question is a needle that, when attuned to, adds magical tattoos to the character's forearms. It can only be attuned to by a monk. Its effects are:
+1 to attack and damage rolls with unarmed attacks.
As a free action, the character can manifest spectral claws on each hand that change all unarmed damage made with them to slashing.
The claws stay on until the monk dies, falls unconscious or vanishes them with a free action.
When the character attacks with Flurry of Blows, the first hit forces the character and the target to make a DC 13 Wisdom saving throw.
If the monk fails, they have disadvantage when attacking any other target until it or the monk reaches 0 hit points. (curse)
If the target fails, it takes an additional 1d6 Psychic damage and cannot make opportunity attacks until the start of their next turn.
The second item is a tiny coin purse that can hold up to 3 coins, but it spits out anything that is not a gold coin. It imbues with magic up to that amount of gold coins once per long rest. It can only be attuned to by a rogue. Its effects are:
As a bonus action, the character can throw a gold coin from the purse up to a range of 30 feet, and then teleport to within 5 feet of that location.
On arrival, the coin dissolves and you gain the effects of the Invisibility spell until the start of your next turn.
You have advantage in Dexterity (Sleight of Hand) checks while you are invisible from this object.
The third item is a mask made of transparent glass. It can only be attuned to by a rogue. Its effects are:
You can take a utilize action to don the mask and a bonus action to doff it.
While you have it on, you gain the effects of the Etherealness spell.
While you are in the Border Ethereal, you are haunted by ghosts. Each turn you spend in there, you must succeed on a DC 13 Wisdom saving throw or suffer 1d6 necrotic damage.
While you are in the Border Ethereal, any living creature in the Material Plane who is within 10 feet of you hears ghostly wails and has disadvantage on Wisdom ability checks and Wisdom saving throws.
After doffing the mask and for 1 minute, the next time you hit with a Sneak Attack, for each turn you spent in the Border Ethereal using it you deal an additional 1d6 necrotic damage up to a maximum of 3d6. Also, when hit by this ability, the target must succeed on a DC 13 Wisdom saving throw or become frightened by you until the start of its next turn.
I'm thinking all 3 are Rare-ish? They're strong, but not enough for a higher rarity, I think. Even the mask has enough drawbacks to justify being Rare (maybe?). Also, feel free to steal them if you like them.
Item 1: Claws of the Honey Badger Tattoo. (Rare) Lore: In the time of the Yuan'ti empire, some of their human slaves refused to fully submit to their overlords. In secret, they trained their bodies and minds to defy their serpent overlords. A small band of rebel fighting the might poisonous snakes, they adopted the honey badger as their inspiration and emblem. To empower their warriors without their masters' knowledge they created magical tattoos to empower their bodies. This is one of their tattoos.
Item 2: CutPurse's Purse (Rare) Lore: A magical purse created for a tax-collector to protect their collecting, it became an instant target for thieves everywhere. Stolen and stolen and stolen again, the purse began to take on the aspect of the hunderds of pickpockets who have handled it over the years.
Item 3: Ectoplasmic Mask (Legendary) Lore: Created from the cystalized secretions from destroyed ghosts, this mask is a prize relic of the [Insert name of assassin's guild] granted to one of their elite lieutenants as their badge of office.
[Note: Etherealness is extremely powerful, with it you can get into the safest vaults in the world - only something protected by an anti-magic field would be safe, all other protections are ineffective. That mask allows the user to easily walk into the king's bedchamber and assassinate him.]
Thanks. And yes, the mask is the one I'm less sure about. I'll probably increase the DC and damage the ghosts make. I'm also adding a wail audible within 120 feet when coming out. I want it to be powerful, but mainly in combat.
Thanks. And yes, the mask is the one I'm less sure about. I'll probably increase the DC and damage the ghosts make. I'm also adding a wail audible within 120 feet when coming out. I want it to be powerful, but mainly in combat.
It is not useful in combat. Etherealness is pretty useless in combat because you can't harm other people while ethereal, just as they cannot harm you. Plus spending a whole action to take a defensive measure isn't efficient, it's just stalling for time, it isn't progressing the combat. The only think that is somewhat useful in combat is being able to give enemies DA on Wisdom saving throws, which is most useful for completely taking a creature out of the fight using something like Hold Person or Polymorph.
I know Etherealness is not useful in combat, but I wanted to try to come up with something that didn't use Invisibility. In the end I opted for the latter anyways, I was trying too hard to compensate for the PC not being able to act while in the Ethereal plane. It now gives greater invisibility, but the ghosts are still there and the DC goes from 10 in turn 1 to 20 in turn 10 of having the mask on.
For something that doesn't use invisibility, you could model it off the Ghost Walk ability from Phantom Rogue:
Ghost Walk
At 13th level, you can phase partially into the realm of the dead, becoming like a ghost. As a bonus action, you assume a spectral form. While in this form, you have a flying speed of 10 feet, you can hover, and attack rolls have disadvantage against you. You can also move through creatures and objects as if they were difficult terrain, but you take 1d10 force damage if you end your turn inside a creature or an object.
You stay in this form for 10 minutes or until you end it as a bonus action. To use this feature again, you must finish a long rest or destroy one of your soul trinkets as part of the bonus action you use to activate Ghost Walk.
Or the Ghost Step Tattoo:
Ghostly Form. The tattoo has 3 charges, and it regains all expended charges daily at dawn. As a bonus action while the tattoo is on your skin, you can expend 1 of the tattoo's charges to become incorporeal until the end of your next turn. For the duration, you gain the following benefits:
You have resistance to bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage from nonmagical attacks.
You can't be grappled or restrained.
You can move through creatures and solid objects as if they were difficult terrain. If you end your turn in a solid object, you take 1d10 force damage. If the effect ends while you are inside a solid object, you instead are shunted to the nearest unoccupied space, and you take 1d10 force damage for every 5 feet traveled.
Item 1: Claws of the Honey Badger Tattoo. (Rare) Lore: In the time of the Yuan'ti empire, some of their human slaves refused to fully submit to their overlords. In secret, they trained their bodies and minds to defy their serpent overlords. A small band of rebel fighting the might poisonous snakes, they adopted the honey badger as their inspiration and emblem. To empower their warriors without their masters' knowledge they created magical tattoos to empower their bodies. This is one of their tattoos.
Item 2: CutPurse's Purse (Rare) Lore: A magical purse created for a tax-collector to protect their collecting, it became an instant target for thieves everywhere. Stolen and stolen and stolen again, the purse began to take on the aspect of the hunderds of pickpockets who have handled it over the years.
Item 3: Ectoplasmic Mask (Legendary) Lore: Created from the cystalized secretions from destroyed ghosts, this mask is a prize relic of the [Insert name of assassin's guild] granted to one of their elite lieutenants as their badge of office.
[Note: Etherealness is extremely powerful, with it you can get into the safest vaults in the world - only something protected by an anti-magic field would be safe, all other protections are ineffective. That mask allows the user to easily walk into the king's bedchamber and assassinate him.]
I feel like the masks name should be less descriptive and more mysterious, as it strikes me as the most eldritch of the three. It should have the name of a long-forgotten figure who first discovered it or created it and wore it so much that it's appearance took on that of their own face and were lost forever to the haunted guardians of the border ethereal who are drawn to its energy. Some suggestions might be:
For something that doesn't use invisibility, you could model it off the Ghost Walk ability from Phantom Rogue:
Ghost Walk
At 13th level, you can phase partially into the realm of the dead, becoming like a ghost. As a bonus action, you assume a spectral form. While in this form, you have a flying speed of 10 feet, you can hover, and attack rolls have disadvantage against you. You can also move through creatures and objects as if they were difficult terrain, but you take 1d10 force damage if you end your turn inside a creature or an object.
You stay in this form for 10 minutes or until you end it as a bonus action. To use this feature again, you must finish a long rest or destroy one of your soul trinkets as part of the bonus action you use to activate Ghost Walk.
Or the Ghost Step Tattoo:
Ghostly Form. The tattoo has 3 charges, and it regains all expended charges daily at dawn. As a bonus action while the tattoo is on your skin, you can expend 1 of the tattoo's charges to become incorporeal until the end of your next turn. For the duration, you gain the following benefits:
You have resistance to bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage from nonmagical attacks.
You can't be grappled or restrained.
You can move through creatures and solid objects as if they were difficult terrain. If you end your turn in a solid object, you take 1d10 force damage. If the effect ends while you are inside a solid object, you instead are shunted to the nearest unoccupied space, and you take 1d10 force damage for every 5 feet traveled.
Item 1: Claws of the Honey Badger Tattoo. (Rare) Lore: In the time of the Yuan'ti empire, some of their human slaves refused to fully submit to their overlords. In secret, they trained their bodies and minds to defy their serpent overlords. A small band of rebel fighting the might poisonous snakes, they adopted the honey badger as their inspiration and emblem. To empower their warriors without their masters' knowledge they created magical tattoos to empower their bodies. This is one of their tattoos.
Item 2: CutPurse's Purse (Rare) Lore: A magical purse created for a tax-collector to protect their collecting, it became an instant target for thieves everywhere. Stolen and stolen and stolen again, the purse began to take on the aspect of the hunderds of pickpockets who have handled it over the years.
Item 3: Ectoplasmic Mask (Legendary) Lore: Created from the cystalized secretions from destroyed ghosts, this mask is a prize relic of the [Insert name of assassin's guild] granted to one of their elite lieutenants as their badge of office.
[Note: Etherealness is extremely powerful, with it you can get into the safest vaults in the world - only something protected by an anti-magic field would be safe, all other protections are ineffective. That mask allows the user to easily walk into the king's bedchamber and assassinate him.]
I feel like the masks name should be less descriptive and more mysterious, as it strikes me as the most eldritch of the three. It should have the name of a long-forgotten figure who first discovered it or created it and wore it so much that it's appearance took on that of their own face and were lost forever to the haunted guardians of the border ethereal who are drawn to its energy. Some suggestions might be:
The Mask of Elikan
Damathus' Reflection
Valia's Lost Visage
Something like that
Yes! I had completely forgotten about the Phantom Rogue, what an idiot. Yeah, that ability is very close to what I want. Thanks a lot! I think I got it (sorry for the machine translation, don't really have the time right now to do it myself, but I'll get to it once I've finished work):
Elikan’s Lost Visage Wondrous Item, very rare (requires attunement by a rogue)
At a glance, this mask appears plain, thin, polished, and fully translucent. It has no seams, bubbles, or signs of craftsmanship, resembling blown glass—though it is lighter, colder, and never reflects the face of whoever looks at it. No one knows who created it, or how, or when.
Spiritualists in Mordentshire believe the mask is made of crystallized ectoplasm, a substance that should not exist in solid form. According to their claims, the material comes from hundreds of ghosts stripped of form by unknown means, yet still bound to the mask. The name Elikan appears in some versions of the myth: a supposed medium, ritual killer, or deranged exorcist whose aberrant practices may have created the mask. Others claim Elikan was one of the spirits trapped within it.
Wailing Soul. As a Magic Action, you can don the mask. Removing it requires a Bonus Action. While wearing it, you become spectral: you gain a flying Speed of 10 feet, can hover, have Advantage on Attack rolls and Dexterity (Stealth) checks, and attack rolls made against you have Disadvantage. If you make a weapon Attack while in this form, you become solid and lose these benefits until the start of your next turn.
While wearing the mask, whenever you deal Sneak Attack damage, you also deal 1d6 necrotic damage for each full turn you have worn the mask, to a maximum of 3d6. This bonus ends if you remove the mask.
When the mask is removed, a deafening wail echoes up to 60 feet away. All creatures of your choice in that area must succeed on a DC 13 Wisdom saving throw or be Frightened until the end of their next turn.
Curse. This mask is cursed. Attuning to it extends the curse to you. While wearing the mask, you are haunted by spirits only you can see and hear. At the start of each of your turns, these ghosts torment you. You must succeed on a DC 10 Wisdom saving throw or take 1d6 necrotic damage. The DC increases by 1 for each full turn you have worn the mask, to a maximum DC of 20. The spirits vanish when you remove the mask.
This curse can’t be removed by any means short of destroying the mask.
The first item in question is a needle that, when attuned to, adds magical tattoos to the character's forearms. It can only be attuned to by a monk. Its effects are:
The second item is a tiny coin purse that can hold up to 3 coins, but it spits out anything that is not a gold coin. It imbues with magic up to that amount of gold coins once per long rest. It can only be attuned to by a rogue. Its effects are:
The third item is a mask made of transparent glass. It can only be attuned to by a rogue. Its effects are:
I'm thinking all 3 are Rare-ish? They're strong, but not enough for a higher rarity, I think. Even the mask has enough drawbacks to justify being Rare (maybe?). Also, feel free to steal them if you like them.
Item 1: Claws of the Honey Badger Tattoo. (Rare)
Lore: In the time of the Yuan'ti empire, some of their human slaves refused to fully submit to their overlords. In secret, they trained their bodies and minds to defy their serpent overlords. A small band of rebel fighting the might poisonous snakes, they adopted the honey badger as their inspiration and emblem. To empower their warriors without their masters' knowledge they created magical tattoos to empower their bodies. This is one of their tattoos.
Item 2: CutPurse's Purse (Rare)
Lore: A magical purse created for a tax-collector to protect their collecting, it became an instant target for thieves everywhere. Stolen and stolen and stolen again, the purse began to take on the aspect of the hunderds of pickpockets who have handled it over the years.
Item 3: Ectoplasmic Mask (Legendary)
Lore: Created from the cystalized secretions from destroyed ghosts, this mask is a prize relic of the [Insert name of assassin's guild] granted to one of their elite lieutenants as their badge of office.
[Note: Etherealness is extremely powerful, with it you can get into the safest vaults in the world - only something protected by an anti-magic field would be safe, all other protections are ineffective. That mask allows the user to easily walk into the king's bedchamber and assassinate him.]
Thanks. And yes, the mask is the one I'm less sure about. I'll probably increase the DC and damage the ghosts make. I'm also adding a wail audible within 120 feet when coming out. I want it to be powerful, but mainly in combat.
It is not useful in combat. Etherealness is pretty useless in combat because you can't harm other people while ethereal, just as they cannot harm you. Plus spending a whole action to take a defensive measure isn't efficient, it's just stalling for time, it isn't progressing the combat. The only think that is somewhat useful in combat is being able to give enemies DA on Wisdom saving throws, which is most useful for completely taking a creature out of the fight using something like Hold Person or Polymorph.
I know Etherealness is not useful in combat, but I wanted to try to come up with something that didn't use Invisibility. In the end I opted for the latter anyways, I was trying too hard to compensate for the PC not being able to act while in the Ethereal plane. It now gives greater invisibility, but the ghosts are still there and the DC goes from 10 in turn 1 to 20 in turn 10 of having the mask on.
For something that doesn't use invisibility, you could model it off the Ghost Walk ability from Phantom Rogue:
Ghost Walk
At 13th level, you can phase partially into the realm of the dead, becoming like a ghost. As a bonus action, you assume a spectral form. While in this form, you have a flying speed of 10 feet, you can hover, and attack rolls have disadvantage against you. You can also move through creatures and objects as if they were difficult terrain, but you take 1d10 force damage if you end your turn inside a creature or an object.
You stay in this form for 10 minutes or until you end it as a bonus action. To use this feature again, you must finish a long rest or destroy one of your soul trinkets as part of the bonus action you use to activate Ghost Walk.
Or the Ghost Step Tattoo:
Ghostly Form. The tattoo has 3 charges, and it regains all expended charges daily at dawn. As a bonus action while the tattoo is on your skin, you can expend 1 of the tattoo's charges to become incorporeal until the end of your next turn. For the duration, you gain the following benefits:
I feel like the masks name should be less descriptive and more mysterious, as it strikes me as the most eldritch of the three. It should have the name of a long-forgotten figure who first discovered it or created it and wore it so much that it's appearance took on that of their own face and were lost forever to the haunted guardians of the border ethereal who are drawn to its energy. Some suggestions might be:
The Mask of Elikan
Damathus' Reflection
Valia's Lost Visage
Something like that
Yes! I had completely forgotten about the Phantom Rogue, what an idiot. Yeah, that ability is very close to what I want. Thanks a lot! I think I got it (sorry for the machine translation, don't really have the time right now to do it myself, but I'll get to it once I've finished work):
Elikan’s Lost Visage
Wondrous Item, very rare (requires attunement by a rogue)
At a glance, this mask appears plain, thin, polished, and fully translucent. It has no seams, bubbles, or signs of craftsmanship, resembling blown glass—though it is lighter, colder, and never reflects the face of whoever looks at it. No one knows who created it, or how, or when.
Spiritualists in Mordentshire believe the mask is made of crystallized ectoplasm, a substance that should not exist in solid form. According to their claims, the material comes from hundreds of ghosts stripped of form by unknown means, yet still bound to the mask. The name Elikan appears in some versions of the myth: a supposed medium, ritual killer, or deranged exorcist whose aberrant practices may have created the mask. Others claim Elikan was one of the spirits trapped within it.
Wailing Soul.
As a Magic Action, you can don the mask. Removing it requires a Bonus Action. While wearing it, you become spectral: you gain a flying Speed of 10 feet, can hover, have Advantage on Attack rolls and Dexterity (Stealth) checks, and attack rolls made against you have Disadvantage. If you make a weapon Attack while in this form, you become solid and lose these benefits until the start of your next turn.
While wearing the mask, whenever you deal Sneak Attack damage, you also deal 1d6 necrotic damage for each full turn you have worn the mask, to a maximum of 3d6. This bonus ends if you remove the mask.
When the mask is removed, a deafening wail echoes up to 60 feet away. All creatures of your choice in that area must succeed on a DC 13 Wisdom saving throw or be Frightened until the end of their next turn.
Curse.
This mask is cursed. Attuning to it extends the curse to you. While wearing the mask, you are haunted by spirits only you can see and hear. At the start of each of your turns, these ghosts torment you. You must succeed on a DC 10 Wisdom saving throw or take 1d6 necrotic damage. The DC increases by 1 for each full turn you have worn the mask, to a maximum DC of 20. The spirits vanish when you remove the mask.
This curse can’t be removed by any means short of destroying the mask.