Publication:Complete Gear/Tilgrath

New Look at Role-playing Equipment
Tilgrath, an orphaned child produced out of an unfortunate mating between his orc father and the orc’s human slave, had known a hard life. His father had been killed in battle three years after he was born. The orcs around Tilgrath divided up his father’s possessions between them, including his mother. However, none of the tribe wanted anything to do with a half-breed produced from a fit of passion with someone who obviously came from a weaker race. While the tribal elders decided on a fitting end for Tilgrath, his mother snuck away from the tribe.

The orcs hunted the woman for weeks. Eventually they tracked her down, but not before she was able to secure Tilgrath into a local monastery. Her only son was saved, but she knew that she couldn’t stay at the monastery without endangering her son. She continued to flee, and when the orcs who were tracking her found her they showed her no mercy. She was killed, cowering from those who had oppressed her for most of her life.

Tilgrath grew up in the monastery and learned that he could be more than an outcast. He grew in power, tapping into his orc heritage and learning his strength. He also tapped into his human lineage and learned that he had a good aptitude for learning new skills. Soon he was not only a decent fighter, but a good woodsman and hunter. He had studied long and hard with the monks, and today was the day that he decided to avenge his mother’s death.

Tilgrath woke in the morning several hours before the sun came up. He turned to the blade that rested on the wall beside him. There was nothing special about the weapon, but he knew the blade well. He had used the sword often enough that when he gripped the weapon it felt like an extension of his own arm. But he knew that today he would need to give the blade a special purpose. He would meditate with the weapon and focus on using the blade to hunt down the orc tribe that slaughtered his mother.

Tilgrath also lifted up several small glass flasks Three of them were blue, and one of them was green. The monks had shown Tilgrath that by using the focusing power of meditation he could take the ordinary water within those flasks and impart a special power within them. The blue ones he would focus on turning into potions that could cure his wounds; the green one he would turn into a potion to enhance his strength. He had picked the color of the glass intentionally.

There was one more item that Tilgrath pondered over. When his mother had left him at the monastery, she had also left a gold ring that she had stolen from the collection of possessions his father had left behind after his untimely death. Tilgrath had learned to focus on the ring and call forth a blessing of protection from his mother. The ring continued to link Tilgrath to her memory, and today he would turn the ring into something more than a simple piece of jewelry. Today that ring would become part of his defense.

Beside his bed, Tilgrath assembled a few pieces of bread, some cheese, a collection of grapes, and a small pitcher of water. He walked to the door of his room and made sure that the lock was engaged. He did not want to be interrupted with what was about to happen. When he was sure that he was ready, Tilgrath sat upon his bed and focused his mind. He looked at each of the items around him and was attentive to his thoughts. His anger raged through him as he looked at the sword and thought of the orcs that he would kill with it. Peace flowed through his mind as he looked to the vials and imagined the refreshment of a cooling river. Thoughts of the comfort that he vaguely remembered from being in his mother’s arms passed through his mind as he glanced at the ring.

The sun rose while Tilgrath meditated. The sun descended after the day was spent, but Tilgrath continued to meditate. Occasionally he ate from the food as he sat beside his bed, but for 18 straight hours Tilgrath focused his thoughts on the equipment he needed. When the 18 hours were spent and his task complete, Tilgrath opened his eyes, stood up, and stretched. He lifted the equipment and smiled. His work was done; he was ready to go hunting. Tilgrath unlocked the door and explained to his mentor what he was planning. His mentor smiled and wished Tilgrath luck on his journey to find himself and the vengeance he sought. That night, Tilgrath walked into the world a different man. He knew that his equipment would last for as long as he needed it.

The Account Explained
With the above account, it is possible to see how the meditation could take place within a campaign. The influences that Tilgrath attuned that day would carry with him until spent (as in the potions), dismissed (should Tilgrath want a different influence than he already has), temporarily suppressed (should Tilgrath come up upon an opponent who uses a dispelling attack), or disjoined (should Tilgrath come upon a truly powerful adversary). In any of those cases, Tilgrath would merely need to attune again to fill whatever needs he had at the time.

To look at the illustration exactly, Tilgrath used his influence to make several magical items. The mundane sword was influenced so that whenever Tilgrath wielded the weapon it would become a +1 Orcbane sword. The price of the magical portion of the sword is 8,000 gp (8,300 gp with the masterwork cost assumed). This would translate into 8,300 IPs.

There were four potions that Tilgrath wanted to influence Of the three healing potions, two of them were potions of Cure Moderate Wounds and cost 300 IPs each. The third healing potion was a potion of Cure Serious Wounds which cost Tilgrath 750 IPs. The fourth potion was a potion of Bull’s Strength which would cost Tilgrath 300 IPs. The total IPs spent on potions is 1,650 IPs.

The final item that Tilgrath wanted to influence was a gold ring. This ring, when worn by Tilgrath, would become a +2 Ring of Protection. This item costs 8,000 IPs, bringing Tilgrath’s cumulative total to 17,950 IPs for the day. This translates into a meditation period of 18 hours that is needed for Tilgrath to complete his attunements.

Of course, this does not constitute all of Tilgrath’s equipment. This is the equipment that Tilgrath desired to influence on this particular day. Since influences last until removed for one reason or another, Tilgrath only needs to make influences during the meditation for those that he wanted to change. Below is Tilgrath’s full character sheet, built using the rules of Complete Control and Complete Gear.

Influences (IP Cost, Mundane Focus):
 * 1 Cure Serious Wounds potion (750 IPs, flask)
 * 2 Cure Moderate Wounds potions (300 IPs x2, flasks)
 * 1 potion of Bull’s Strength (300 IPs, flask)
 * 3 Elixirs of Hiding (250 IPs x3, vials)
 * +1 Orcbane sword (8,300 IPs, scimitar)
 * +1 Breastplate (1,150 IPs, breastplate)
 * +1 Blinding Shield (2,150 IPs, steel shield)
 * +2 Amulet of Health (4,000 IPs, amulet)
 * +2 Belt of Ogre Strength (4,000 IPs, belt)
 * +2 Gloves of Dexterity (4,000 IPs, gloves)
 * +2 Ring of Protection (8,000 IPs, gold ring)
 * +1 Cloak of Resistance (1,000 IPs, cloak)