Magic items in the hands of animals?

[ZeroGear]

We all know of encounters where the baddies are equipped with magic items like flaming swords, armor that lets them fly, cloaks of invisibility, and things that generally are a boon in the hands of goblins, orcs , cultists, and minotaurs, but what of other creatures?

Feel free to share your weird, funny, strange, and quirky ideas as to what would happen if something other than a regular villain got their hands on something powerful.

Here is my contribution:
"There is a monkey playing with a neckless of fireballs in that tree behind you."

[leakingpen]

Well, my first thought is an intelligent item controlling an animal!

Alternately, an animal that has gotten a ring of invisibility stuck on a body part.

collars make good places to intentionally put things as well.


as for by happenstance, a LOT of the more... interesting, magic items require a code word, iirc

[Mercenary Pen]

I'm thinking in terms of some of the more acquisitive critters (for example the magpie that flew off with a Ring of elemental resistance)

[endoperez]

Ioun Stone can be acquired by anything that can "hold it and then release it". That could be a monkey, or a bird as well, especially something like the magpie mentioned before. Other animals might be able to accidentally activate the item as well, but would be less likely to do so. A cat might play with one, a pig might be digging at the ground next to a deceased adventurer. A bear might pull it out of a rotten tree where bees are nesting.

The one that gives +2 Intelligence would do interesting things to animals, since intelligence score above 3 marks sentient life. The animal is now sentient, and might realize just how important its new bauble is to it. The ones that negate spells are interesting, since using spells to catch the animal is not only impossible, and also weakens the stone.


Anything with pones would be memetic.


Elixir of Truth might be fun if 1) your party can somehow ask an animal a question but 2) it either can't talk, or the party won't understand it. "What's the monkey doing? It's pointing at the barn? What are you trying to tell us, monkey?"


Elemental Gems summon an elemental if they're broken. That could result in all kinds of nasty stuff.


Speaking of nasty stuff, Mirror of Mind Switch. Without weird shenanigans, it'd require a monkey... but can you just imagine the party chasing a monkey running around in the body of a human?

[Pokonic]

My god, the idea of a bear with some sort or magic ring is terrifing and funny at the same time.

"Holy crap, did that bear just grow back a arm!"
Or, of course, invisable bears. Heck, I think I now know what my next druid is going to do with every animal it sees...

[Cespenar]

A cat fooling around with an Efreeti Bottle?

[NowhereMan583]

A somewhat senile noblewoman uses a chunk of her considerable fortune to commission a magical collar for her beloved cat, Lord Tibblesworth. It has a permanent fly effect -- the birds Lord Tibblesworth loves to chase kept getting away from him, and she felt sorry for the poor cat. Of course, she was fully aware that putting such a valuable magic item on a cat was just asking for someone to steal it, so it has some fairly dramatic anti-theft measures (use your imagination).

There are a variety of ways this could provide entertainment for your players:

• Lord Tibblesworth and his owner can be interesting background NPCs in their own right.
• The PCs could meet the wizard who MADE the collar -- who is generally looked down upon for "selling out" and expending eldritch energies on such a foolish thing. (The money was just TOO GOOD.)
• Thieves incapacitated by the collar's anti-theft contingencies could be used for all kinds of hooks.
• The collar also boosts Lord Tibblesworth's intelligence to humanoid levels (or higher). The cat is behind some of the more sinister political machinations in the city.
• Background element. As the players go about their business in the city, casually inform them of the obese tabbycat chasing pigeons above their heads.

[ZeroGear]

Other funny ideas:
-Monkey with a Chime of Opening...in a zoo
-Stag with a ring of Blink (that would annoy hunters)
-Cat with a collar of Waterbreathing (for hunting fish)
-Boar with flaming tusk-caps

Quotes along those lines:
-"I'll marry you the day pigs fly."
"Like that one wearing a Winged Cape?"

-"How did that rabit get its paws on a Potion of Fire Breathing?"

-"Why are there pig tracks on the ceiling?"
"Spider-pig, spider-pig, does whatever a spider pig does..."
"Did you feed it a Potion of Spider Climb again?"

[Elyssian]

Well in one of the RL games I play my character was given an enchanted collar as a gift for helping save several children from the BBEG.The item used to belong to an NPC's familiar(a tiger), and it was inchanted to give the wearer a +6 to charisma. Pretty kitty...

[Cieyrin]

Rhinos with Rhino Hides?
Gorilla colony with a Horn of Fog?
Squirrels with a stash of Quall's Feather Tokens (Tree)!

"My, I don't remember that forest being there yesterday..."

[Jay R]

I've never done this before, but I certainly will next time I run a game. Consider a bag of Dust of Disappearance broke open in the wilderness, and a Tiger has rolled around in it.

"Why are there pig tracks on the ceiling?"
"Spider-pig, spider-pig, does whatever a spider pig does..."
"Did you feed it a Potion of Spider Climb again?"

There was actually a comic book called "Peter Porker, the Spectacular Spider-Ham"

[Coidzor]

Obligatory Link.