Collapsible Kite and Sky Glasses [items]

[talse]

This item is inspired by the the kites used in china for survelience and the fact that I've wanted to go kite flying during my summer break.

They could come in handy for scouting out terrain with poor maps, or getting the lay out of an enemy encampment. Or in dire straights, running away if you're willing to leave some men behind.



Collapsible Kite

A delta wing shaped kite with a harness that will fit a medium or smaller creature. A basket can fastened to the harness instead. The kite is several feet across. It can be used in strong, moderate or light winds. The Kite is maneuvered with 2 hands at ground level and to be launched must be extended 50 feet already and held by another person. When launched the kite has enough line for a maximum altitude of 400 feet. Should the kite have a rider either the rider or the ground side operator can have the lines disconnect.

At this point the rider may grab handles on the forward part of the kite and operate it like a glider with travel speed 35 mph relative to the wind and descending at at least 5 feet per second.

The kite and harness weighs 4 lb’s when expanded, it can collapse into 4 sticks wrapped in cloth weighing 1 lb and taking up 1 cubic foot.

Failed launch checks of greater than 5 have 10% chance of damaging the kite.

All landings without a pilot have a 10% chance of damaging the kite

A failed landing check does falling damage to the pilot for 1d6 per 5 it failed by. The kite has a 20% chance of being damaged per 5 of failure.

A damaged collapsible kite can not be used until repaired with a mend spell.

Details
{table=head]Wind Speed|Maximum Weight Lifted|Minimum weight of operator|DC of Launch*|DC of Landing**

Light|
100|
200|
10|
5

moderate|
125|
225|
5|
10

Strong|
150|
250|
5|
15

Severe|
200|
300|
15|
25
[/table]
*add +1 for every 5 pounds past half the maximum weight lifted, rounded up.
** different terrain for landing will modify landing DC, see other table.


Terrain DC mod
Flat grassy open plains -8
Flat rocky open plains -6
Swampy ground with few trees -4
Uneven open terrain -2
Flat corridor between trees 0
Light-medium thickness trees +2
Craggy terrain +6
Heavy wooded area +6

Cost to make: 200 GP 40xp

And while you're up there...

Sky Glasses

Apparently normal binoculars, and give +1 circumstance bonus to spot checks from normal ground, how ever at elevations of 100 feet or higher above the ground they give a +5 circumstance bonus to spot checks, this does not stack with other items.

Cost to make: 150 GP
DC 25 craft (gem cutting) check



Now problems I'm having with it is what skill should i use for the DC, because falling out of the kite would be mean it's helpful to have a good tumble, but landing it is a skill of piloting.

[Fizban]

I'm skeptical that you could get that much weight up in the air with only "several" feet of kite, but the rest of it seems okay. You could always use profession (pilot) for the checks, it's used for pretty much every vehicle published, land, sea, or air. Oh, and you should include a round by round speed, cause you know it's gonna get used for combat somehow.

[talse]

several is being specified as 8.

[talse]

is there an easy feet/round:mph conversion?

[Fizban]

I'm wondering where you got 35mph to start with. It's a little high for DnD. Judging from what I've seen, 1/10 the speed in feet gives you the DnD mph. Humans have a 30' land speed, and go 3mph over time. The dragonwings spell (name not exact) from the SC grants a 100' fly speed, and let's you go at 15mph over time as an extra effect.

Most glide speeds in DnD are pretty slow, going only 20-40' per 5' fallen. The hang glider in Arms and Equipment guide goes at 30' but only specifies that it may not gain altitude without some outside source.

[talse]

glider mechanics already handy eh? well then i guess in battle it behaves like one of those. but wind direction is relevant.

[Matthew]

Yep, the D&D Mile is basically 6,000', to judge from how they convert Feet per Minute to Miles per Hour. It may be assuming some sort of stop over time, drag or something like that, but there is no indication that such is the case. In any case, 6,000' to the Mile makes for easier calculations... except when you start looking at Acres and other complementary measurements, which you end up having to adjust for.