Homebrew Challenge: Magic Items from Descriptions

[Catullus64]

Here's a little challenge I hope some of you will find fun: brew up the magical properties of an item whose physical appearance and characteristics are described below, if any of them strike your imagination. Be sure to include a name, a rarity, whether or not the items require attunement, and if there are restrictions on who can attune. Minor properties, sentience, and curses welcome!

If the description includes words inscribed on the item, or words that can be heard from the item, you decide in what language.

Spoiler: Weapons

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A quiver of twenty arrows. The fletchings are five different colors (red, blue, green, purple, and white) and there are four head shapes (broadhead, bodkin, barbed, and crescent). There is one arrow for each permutation of color and head shape.

A rapier with a cup hilt wrought of some translucent, yet metallic-feeling green substance. The pommel is a hollow sphere of the same material, and is half-filled with some clear, viscous liquid.

A pair of daggers, whose gilded handles are shaped like the forms of a man and woman, respectively. When the hilts are placed together, the two figures embrace and the daggers click together. On the blade of the woman-shaped dagger is written "Giver" and on the blade of the man-shaped dagger is written "Taker"

A heavy crossbow with a bipod which unfolds out of the stock. Its steel bow is detailed to look like a rampart, with a gatehouse just above the stirrup. Engraved on the stock are the words "Siege Perilous"

A sling made from red leather and twine. On either side of its pouch is painted an eye: open on one side, closed on the other.

A ceremonial mace, gilded and studded with gems. Presumably not intended for use in combat, yet there is a single noticeable dent at the head, where it seems to have been used to strike something very hard.

Spoiler: Armors and Shields

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A chainmail hauberk that appears fretted with rust and split rings. However, it can be turned inside-out, and when this is done it appears fresh-made and immaculate.

A gambeson (padded armor) of green wool, which changes its precise hue in accord with the seasons. In springtime a bright pea-green, in summer a vibrant emerald, in autumn a bluish teal, and in winter a dark pine-needle green.

A breastplate, polished to a mirror finish, sculpted like the anatomy of the female torso.

A round, center-gripped shield. In a curious reversal of typical shield construction, it is mostly made of metal, while the boss is made of leather-faced wood.

A mostly ordinary-looking buckler, but with a functioning compass affixed on the inside of the boss and directional markings painted along the inside of the rim.

Spoiler: Potions

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A clay pot just small enough to fit in the hand, with a cork stopper sealed by green wax. Written on the stopper in small inked letters: "Take with food. DO NOT drink under sunlight."

A simple glass vial of what looks exactly like blood, yet has the aroma of a delicious meal when whiffed.

A conical flask of slightly blue-tinted liquid. When held up to the light, translucent conic sections (parabola, hyperbola, ellipse) become visible in the liquid.

Spoiler: Wands, Rods, and Staves

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A staff of wood with green shoots still sprouting near the head. The staff is surprisingly springy and pliable in the hand, and gives a great whooshing sound when swung through the air.

A rod of bone, with a large fang at its head. When touched, it vibrates slightly in the hand and emits low growling noises.

A slender ivory wand with seven black ribbons attached at the tip. Upon very close inspection, they are not ribbons at all, but long flatworms which cling to the wand with tiny, white-toothed mouths.

Spoiler: Rings & Amulets

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A silver amulet set with a spherical crystal. The crystal grows bright and dull in succession which resembles and matches the phases of the moon.

A silver ring sculpted like two hands clasped in a handshake. Keen-eyed observers will notice that some of these rings feature two right hands, while others feature two left hands.

A choker of black lace studded with garnets. Tiny, sharp hooks of steel are concealed on the inside of each of the stones.

A plain ring of obsidian which shape-shifts to fit different body-parts: it can be a finger-ring, arm-ring, ear-ring, or nose-ring.

A double-band of pale gold wrought like ocean waves, set with a single turquoise. When worn on the hand, it feels less than weightless, as if it would fall upwards if it slipped off the finger.

Spoiler: Wondrous Items

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A pair of dice carved and polished from lodestones. The faces are carved to align with the magnetic poles, such that sixes and ones attract, while ones repel ones and sixes repel sixes.

A harp of a deep reddish-brown wood. Fine patterns of gold inlay have been wrought upon it, which outline the natural swirling patterns of the wood. There are tuning pins for ten strings, but only five are strung.

A black steeple hat with a silver buckle shaped like a shield & lance. Very small runes are stitched along the band; if examined with a magnifying glass or similar instrument they repeat the same alliterative verse line over and over: "No rest while wrongs unrighted do remain."

A lady's parasol in white taffeta embroidered with pale pink, with an ivory handle shaped like an adder's head. The adder's mouth opens and closes when the parasol does.

A funeral mask of painted alabaster. It shows a woman's face set with a wry grin, with a beauty mark on her left cheek. It has no eye-holes.

Bit, bridle, and reins, though to expert eyes they are plainly not of the right shape for a horse. Writing along the bands gives the names of famous constellations.

A black iron cauldron, whose four legs are sculpted like a human's foot, a lion's paw, an ox's hoof, and an eagle's talon.

And when you've done one, post a new item description of similar length and detail for others to tackle!

[Jervis]

Lets take a crack at it.

A clay pot just small enough to fit in the hand, with a cork stopper sealed by green wax. Written on the stopper in small inked letters: "Take with food. DO NOT drink under sunlight."

Potion of Vampiric Ascendance
[Very Rare]

Drinking the potion gives the imbiber a limited form of vampirism. Anyone who drinks the contents of this potion with an equal or greater amount of human blood gain the following benefits for 24 hours, drinking at least one pint of human blood extends the effects of this potion for another 24 hours for each pint consumed, this duration cannot exceed 96 hours at one time, but the effect can remain for longer with frequent meals. They gain resistance to nonmagical bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing weapon that aren’t silvered, and resistance to necrotic damage as well as immunity to poison. They always act as if under the effects of the spider climb spell and can cast charm person as an action without expending a spell slot, charisma is their spellcasting ability modifier for this spell. When below half health and above 0 health, they recover 5 hit points per turn. However, they gain vulnerability to radiant damage and take 10 damage per turn while in sunlight. Their type changes to undead for the duration of the potion.

[brian 333]

A double-band of pale gold wrought like ocean waves, set with a single turquoise. When worn on the hand, it feels less than weightless, as if it would fall upwards if it slipped off the finger.

Ring Of The Ocean King

When placed on a finger this ring functions as a Ring of Swimming, granting 20' swim speed, (30' run equivalent, or 40' sprint for a maximum of Con rounds, after which a like number of rounds must be spent at rest.) The wearer need not know how to swim, and may drive, holding breath for 1 round per point of Con at normal speed or slower, half that for run equivalent, and one quarter (1 round per 4 points of Con,) in a sprint. A dive must end in a location filled with air, or drowning follows.

When attuned, the ring also bestows Water Breathing. This function has no time limit.

The ring may be used, when attuned, to create a Vortex. This is an aquatic version of the Earthquake spell, cast at 12th level. This function may be used once per day.

Once per week, the ring so attuned, may be used to Command a single Water Elemental or other denizen of the sea. Those able to resist the command do not attack the ring-wearer unless attacked or otherwise provoked first.

Finally, the ring may be used to summon Dloopslurooshah, the self-styled Ocean King. Dloop is a Marid of great power, who will most likely be angry at being summoned. The elemental created the ring for the bard Zathel ibn Mogua, who it rescued from the open sea after the ship he was on foundered in a storm. Dloop was entertained by the bard's songs and stories as Zathel slowly died on his bit of flotsam being used as a raft. When the flotsam was within sight of land, Dloopslurooshah gave the ring to the bard along with a promise to aid the bard if he ever needed help at sea. Zathel never went back to sea, and never got into water deeper than a bathtub after that, but the ring survived him.

At the least, Dloop will take the ring and destroy it. It may aid the owner if dire need is present, but if summoned for what it considers frivolous reasons it may toss the ringless PC as far out to sea as it can.

Spoiler: Beryl Ring

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A thin gold band, such as might be worn by a lady, sports a 3/8 inch (9mm) green cat's eye beryl.