Cheapest Protective Items?

[Palanan]

What are some bargain-basement magic items that could protect a low-level character who doesn’t wear armor? I'd like to keep this around 50-100 gp or less.

I’m looking for anything from official 3.5 and Pathfinder books, along with Dragon magazine, 3.5 modules, Pathfinder APs, etc. Obscure items are fine, and in fact preferred—they just need to provide some sort of protective benefit, any kind whatsoever, and be as light on the budget as possible.

.

[Inevitability]

Why can't you wear armor? If it's because of ACF, mud armor (races of Faerun) is literally free and gives a small AC bonus.

[Vizzerdrix]

Earthsilk jersy. Gives a point of dr. Can be found in races of stone

[Flickerdart]

A buckler is an excellent investment - you can use special materials to get its ACP and ASF down to 0, and place all sorts of tasty shield enchantments on it. Even a +1 buckler gives +2 AC for a fraction of a +2 amulet of natural armor's price.

[Palanan]

Let me clarify: I am not looking for suggestions about armor.

I’m looking for inexpensive magic items which would provide protective benefits, especially in lieu of armor. I’m aware of things like bucklers; it’s the small, cheap, obscure magic items I’m interested in here.

As an example, Pathfinder has an item called a hex nail, from People of the North and the Reign of Winter Player’s Guide. Very modest situational bonus, but exactly the sort of thing I’m looking for.

[Shalist]

Would henchmen (1s/day) be considered 'protective magic item'? Alternately hire a 'mercenary leader' (DMG pg 106, an NPC with 2 levels of 'warrior') for 6s/day, +3s/day for every additional level he has. That's just 24g/day to have a pair of level 40 warriors protecting you! They don't even mooch experience.

Perhaps more usefully...these links have more than a few gems in them:

Bunko's Bargain Basement (magic items that are a steal!) (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?445114-quot-Bunko-s-Bargain-Basement-Magic-Items-That-Are-a-Steal!-quot-(from-Wizards-forum))

The Complete MacGyver (http://brilliantgameologists.com/boards/index.php?PHPSESSID=46jvrg2g3sb1ejfdi01os236h5&topic=11066) (good items sorted by price)

Shax's Indispensable Haversack (Equipment Handbook) (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?148101-3-x-Shax-s-Indispensible-Haversack-(Equipment-Handbook))

[Telonius]

Donkeys and mules are 8gp each. With a DC 15 Ride check, they can provide you with Cover.

[Palanan]

Originally Posted by Shalist
Would henchmen (1s/day) be considered 'protective magic item'?

Extra points for creativity, but I wouldn’t consider a standard hireling to be either magic or an item. :smalltongue:


Originally Posted by Shalist
Perhaps more usefully...these links have more than a few gems in them:

Yup, I’m familiar with these, but it’s nice to have the links all in one place.

I’m definitely planning to go through these, but would still appreciate suggestions from obscure sources. I know that there are some odd little magic items in the 3.0/3.5 modules, and things like the hex nail from the Pathfinder APs--those would be great to know about. The smaller and more obscure, the better.

[Stealth Marmot]

Assuming you cant wear armor or shields, get potions of mage armor. gp each and it's 1 hour of +4 armor. You could buy 20 potions for the cost of bracers of armor +1, and get quadruple the armor bonus.

That said, go for amulets of natural armor and gloves of arrow snatching. Twice a day you avoid a projectile shot t you no matter what the guy rolled.

All core.

[Zaq]

What exactly is your gp threshold? Magic of Eberron pg. 156 details the Shadow Sibling symbiont. Now, 8,000 gp isn't trivial at low levels, but the benefit you get in exchange (50% miss chance as an immediate action, usable CON times per day) is often more valuable than the protection you'd get from spending 8k gp on standard armor or AC-boosting items (Bracers of Armor, Amulet of Natural Armor, Ring of Protection, etc.), at least if you don't have ten encounters a day. So it's not a bargain-basement item that a standard level 2 adventurer can afford, but it's a lot more bang for the buck than you'd normally get. (Consider that a Major Cloak of Displacement, which offers a similar 50% miss chance, costs 50k gp and has a less favorable action required to activate it.) In that sense, it's a cheap protective item.

[Flickerdart]

What exactly is your gp threshold? Magic of Eberron pg. 156 details the Shadow Sibling symbiont. Now, 8,000 gp isn't trivial at low levels, but the benefit you get in exchange (50% miss chance as an immediate action, usable CON times per day) is often more valuable than the protection you'd get from spending 8k gp on standard armor or AC-boosting items (Bracers of Armor, Amulet of Natural Armor, Ring of Protection, etc.), at least if you don't have ten encounters a day. So it's not a bargain-basement item that a standard level 2 adventurer can afford, but it's a lot more bang for the buck than you'd normally get. (Consider that a Major Cloak of Displacement, which offers a similar 50% miss chance, costs 50k gp and has a less favorable action required to activate it.) In that sense, it's a cheap protective item.

Drow Shadow Cloak might be the preferable item - for 5500gp, it grants +1 AC and lets you teleport 10ft when you are attacked three times per day.

[Palanan]

Originally Posted by Zaq
What exactly is your gp threshold?

I don’t want to rule too many things out, but around 50-100 gp for any one item would probably be the limit.


Originally Posted by Zaq
Magic of Eberron pg. 156 details the Shadow Sibling symbiont. Now, 8,000 gp isn't trivial at low levels….

This is a really cool suggestion, but 8000 gp is way out of range at the moment.

And as it happens, I have other plans involving Shadow Siblings….


Originally Posted by Flickerdart
Drow Shadow Cloak might be the preferable item - for 5500gp, it grants +1 AC and lets you teleport 10ft when you are attacked three times per day.

Also a cool item, but also pretty far out of the price range for now.

The hex nail from People of the North is a one-use item, and I'm open to similar one-use items, preferably in the same price range. I'm aware of panic buttons, but those are a little too pricey for my purposes.

.

[Celestia]

Ring of Partial Protection: Grants a +1 deflection bonus to AC, but only to the small circle of skin directly underneath the ring.

Cloak of Minor Resistance: Grants a +1 resistance bonus to saves, but only to effects that are non-harmful.

Amulet of Inconsistent Armor: Grants a +1 natural armor bonus, but only 5% of the time.

[Flickerdart]

Cloak of Minor Resistance: Grants a +1 resistance bonus to saves, but only to effects that are non-harmful.

Cloak of Minor Resistance: Grants a +1 resistance bonus to saves, but only against minors.

[Stealth Marmot]

Ring of Partial Protection: Grants a +1 deflection bonus to AC, but only to the small circle of skin directly underneath the ring.

Cloak of Minor Resistance: Grants a +1 resistance bonus to saves, but only to effects that are non-harmful.

Amulet of Inconsistent Armor: Grants a +1 natural armor bonus, but only 5% of the time.

Just some of the fine products at Akbar's Discount magic items.*

*Not notCursed Items, we guarantee it!

[Celestia]

Cloak of Minor Resistance: Grants a +1 resistance bonus to saves, but only against minors.
Don't forget the knockoff Cloak of Miner Resistance. *nods*

[Flickerdart]

Don't forget the knockoff Cloak of Miner Resistance. *nods*

Much more useful than the Cloak of Mein Herr Resistance, effective only against German gentlemen.

[Braininthejar2]

hat of disguise is great, and still cheaper than some types of armor

[John Longarrow]

Much more useful than the Cloak of Mein Herr Resistance, effective only against German gentlemen.

Course there's also the cloak of My Hair resistance, normally found in barber shops. Mostly effective at keeping my hair off of me after its cut.

[Palanan]

Folks, please don’t derail this into a joke thread.

I’m asking for suggestions from 3.5 and Pathfinder content as described in the OP.

[John Longarrow]

What type(s) of items can this character use? Are scrolls on the table?

It may be a little expensive for your taste, but a scroll of Alter Self (2nd level spell at 3rd caster) can be used to take a shape with decent natural armor for 30 minutes.

[MaxiDuRaritry]

Feather tokens fall neatly into this category. It's surprising what you can do with a portable oak tree or huge boat, if it comes down to it.

[Palanan]

Originally Posted by John Longarrow
It may be a little expensive for your taste, but a scroll of Alter Self (2nd level spell at 3rd caster) can be used to take a shape with decent natural armor for 30 minutes.

Thanks. Lower-level scrolls are more or less in the price range, but ideally I’m looking for something that a non-caster could use.

Alternative magic items are a possibility, though. I seem to recall one alternate (from Complete Mage or Complete Arcane?) which involved a small tile that activated when it was snapped in two.


Originally Posted by MaxiDuRaritry
Feather tokens fall neatly into this category.

Thanks. This is very much the concept I’m looking for, although the core tokens are still a little pricey.

That’s the problem with panic buttons—nice single-use magic items, but way too expensive for the effect. Paying for convenience, I guess.

[thethird]

There are almost no magic items in that price range.

[Topaz]

The Talisman of Beneficial Winds is a one-shot Feather Fall for 50GP (Pathfinder, Occult Adventures)
Universal Solvent gets you out of a lot of Entangle effects for 50GP.
Potions of Mage Armor and Feather Tokens have been mentioned, but I'd second them as well.

[Palanan]

Originally Posted by Topaz
The Talisman of Beneficial Winds is a one-shot Feather Fall for 50GP (Pathfinder, Occult Adventures)

This is absolutely perfect, thank you. Exactly the sort of thing I'm looking for.

[MaxiDuRaritry]

Complete Psionic gives manifesters the option of burning their own power points when manifesting from a power stone so they can use their own manifester level in place of the power stone's. They can also augment up to full.

This means that, even though the power stone is still wiped when used, you get the equivalent of a 1-time-use power known. Choose power stones that augment well that you won't use that often, from instantaneous utility powers to long-duration powers, and then don't bother taking those powers as powers known. You only manifest Extended inertial armor once per day? Might as well spend 25 gp per day and take entangling ectoplasm as a power known, instead, since you use it in every fight.

It's also a great way for erudites to bypass their unique powers per day limitation.

[P.F.]

If alchemical items are on the table, 50gp will also buy you a pot of ghostwall shellac which temporarily renders any surface painted therewith impervious to ethereal and incorporeal passage.

For a paltry 5 gp, Insect Repellent makes you temporarily immune to tiny insects, and small-or-larger ones must make a will save.

There are lots and lots more besides these as well.

[Calthropstu]

As I recall, a wayfinder can be filled with cheap ioun stones to provide different bonuses.

But those are not cheap for the most part.

If you are able to do custom items, an irem of shield or mage armor is VERY inexpensive. A 1/day costs like 400ish - more in your price range but nowhere near the 100gp limit. A one use expendable item of shield would be about 50gp, but I doubt that is what you want. I'll do some digging when I get home.

Please note: Any 1st level protective spell can be a 50gp potion.

[barakaka]

Drugs bro. BoVD and LoD have drugs that are cheap and can provide useful effects.

Katakuda could be nice for the +3 AC, but it's a secondary effect, so you need to time it. Rhul could be useful in certain cases, but it turns you into a melee only character unless you can succeed on the will saves. Sezarad Root can give temp hp which is sick.