Iridia
Number 48
September 24, 2007
Iridia
role-playing games and miniatures, old and new
by Christian Walker
On Point
My computer died a few weeks ago. After reinstalling the OS, trying new RAM and new hard discs, my wife
and I simply decided to fill the tower with brand new components. As a result of the meltdown, I lost the list
of .pdf subscribers. I hope they read this and re-subscribe. Fortunately, no other Iridia data was lost.
The Create Fetish feat in this issue is one of my favorite third party d20 creations. It reminds me of the
street mage I used to play in Shadowrun 2e. Instead of scrolls, street mages could store spells in fetishes,
which they wore as bracelets, necklaces and so on. I used a spell fetish against the PCs in my campaign once
and they were pretty surprised.
Until next time,
Christian
Create Fetish
d&d 3.5
design by christopher jones
art by dan smith
A rat’s skull decorated with feathers and beads, a string of polished stones with
runes carved on them, a desiccated lizard stuffed with medicinal herbs – not
exactly what comes to mind when a wizard ponders disposable spell storing
devices. The scroll is the most common vehicles for such purposes in 3.5, but it
shouldn’t be the only means. Surely, primitive cultures and spell casters with
strong ties to nature should have a means to store magical energy? Enter the
fetish!
Fetishes are most often created by primitive spell casters, or those without
A sorceress wears a fetish
access to more traditional methods of magic item creations. Fetishes are also
she crafted that contains a
employed by those who appreciate their artistic appeal.
Scare spell.
Create Fetish [Item Creation]
The spellcaster may create primitive, mystical charms.
Prerequisites: Caster level 1st
Benefit: A character can create fetish of any spell that she knows. Creating a fetish takes one day for each
1,000 gp in its base price. The base price of a fetish is its spell level multiplied by its caster level multiplied by
25 gp. (spell level x caster level x 25 gp) To create a fetish, she must spend 1/25 of this price in xp and use up
raw materials costing half of this base price.
Any fetish that stores a spell with a costly material component or an xp cost also carries a commensurate
cost. In addition to the costs derived from the base price, the character must expend the material component
or pay xp when creating it.
Special: Fetishes are the spell scrolls of primitive cultures. Like scrolls, the spells contained in a fetish may
be released when certain conditions are met. In the case of scrolls, it’s when they are read aloud. For fetishes,
however, it’s when a specific chant, dance or ritual is engaged. The fetish maker determines at the time of
creation the exact nature of the triggering requirement. For example, Hartsbow the Green creates a beaded
rattle fetish that will allow him to cast Control Weather. At the time of creation, he decides the trigger will be a
rain dance popular amongst his people’s shamans. As with scrolls, once the spell has been cast the fetish be-
comes useless.
Faces in the Crowd
exploring the freelands of mirrym
art by dan smith
“Well aren’t you a pretty little thing. Why don’t you come over here
and give Samuel a kiss?”
Samuel Snells
Samuel Snells is a disgusting pervert with a long list of revolting sexual
pleasures he likes to indulge. When not satisfying his grotesque urges, Sam-
uel works as a blackmailer and informant. He has managed to acquire dirt
on many prominent citizens in the Freecity of Mirrym. Samuel parlays this
information into gold he uses to fund week-long binges of alcohol and sex.
There is considerable speculation as to how Samuel comes by such ac-
curate – and scandalous – information. One theory is that Samuel encoun-
ters some of the same escorts that cater to wealthy clientele. It’s possible
that he bribes them into sharing juicy gossip with him. Alter-
Samuel Snells, male human Rog3; Medium
natively, Samuel may simply be a very good burglar who
humanoid (5’ 6”, 155 lbs); CR 3; HD 3d6+3;
breaks into peoples’ homes in order to spy on them.
hp 15; Init +2; Spd 30 ft; AL NE;
Good-aligned characters might be looking to apprehend
Armor: AC 14 (+2 padded armor +1, +2
Samuel for a number of reasons. Since his sexual appetites
dex), touch 12, flat-footed 12.
often shock the conscience, Samuel might be wanted because Attacks: Base Atk +2, Grp +3;
his exploits are deemed criminal by city officials. The city’s
Melee: Dagger +3 (+2 BAB, +1 str) (d4+1, 19
elite might grow weary of Samuel’s blackmailing. They might -20/x2);
hire the party to arrest Samuel so that he can be jailed.
Ranged: Dagger +4 (+2 BAB, +2 dex) (d4+1,
Criminal-minded characters might use Samuel as a con-
19-20/x2).
tact. They could purchase information from Samuel that they Saves: Fort +2, Ref +5, Will +2.
could use in their own blackmailing schemes. Conversely,
Abilities: Str 12 (+1), Dex 14 (+2), Con 12
victims of Samuel’s smear campaigns might hire the party to
(+1), Int 15 (+2), Wis 13 (+1), Cha 8 (-1).
kill him.
Languages: Common.
Skills and Feats: Appraise +7, Bluff +4,
Disable Device +7, Forgery +8, Gather Infor-
mation +10, Knowledge (freecity of mirrym)
+8, Listen +9, Move Silently +7, Open Lock
+7, Search +10, Spot +8; Alertness, Investi-
gator, Skill Focus (gather information).
Special Abilities: Sneak Attack +2d6, Trap
Sense +1, Evasion, Trapfinding.
Possessions: Padded armor +1, dagger,
belt pouch x 2, scroll case, parchment, ink,
quill, thieves’ tools, spyglass, thunderstone,
anti-toxin, magnifying glass, 3 x 50 gp gems,
15 gp.
Iridia copyright Christian Walker, 2007. All Rights Reserved. ISSN 1930-0891. Dungeons and Dragons
is a trademark of Wizards of the Coast. To obtain a free copy of Iridia, send a SASE to Christian Walker
9903 Santa Monica Blvd. #245 Beverly Hills, CA 90212. Please visit Iridia online at www.IridiaZine.net.
