Three Ideas for New Implements

In which Dyo proposes a few off-beat implements she'd like to see implemented in the next edition...

Do you have a home-brew RISE rule or convention that you think deserves to be widely adopted? RISE encourages players to submit their rule ideas, which can then become part of RISE canon!* So, in that spirit, I would like to present a few additional Implements that I hope will someday appear officially. Implements, as you know, are "the keys to magic" in RISE, the tools through which spellcasters ply their trade. Implements all possess a bonus or penalty to range and initiative, as well as to acumen checks for Acrobatics, Endurance, Stealth, and Thievery. Implements usually offer a bonus when used in combination with Concentration, as well as a bonus to Thaumaturgy. Implements' weight, cost, and properties provide additional information for a spellcaster to consider as he chooses his tool(s). The tools, in turn, lead to the acquisition of related powers, but that’s a post for another day.

Currently, the available implements are reasonably typical: tomes, wands, orbs… with a few less obvious choices, such as mirror, jewelry, and hat. [SEE HAT POST] It is the latter category that interests me, objects not inherently magical that are co-opted for magical means. Let me propose three:

1) Thieves' tools-- Oh, sure, it doesn't seem inventive. But a suite of lock-picking devices comes in handy for characters with high dexterity, who are criminally minded, highly inquisitive, or content to be the brains that open the doors for the brawn.

• The range of Thieves' Tools would be -1, as the physical demands of usage would complicate spellcasting (and, let's face it, keys are more fragile than many implements).

• The initiative would be -1 as well, which would hurt a rogue but be true to reality.

• Since the level of concentration required has hogtied our implement's range and initiative bonus, I would render a generous concentration bonus: the target enemy suffers a +1 to Vulnerability: All. Thieves' tools make something guarded more accessible, so your target, whose aim is, at least partially, to resist you, should be more susceptible to damage.

• Thieves' Tools would offer a +3 Thaumaturgy bonus, as a nod to the complexity of casting with a set of tools rather than a single wand. (As a magical implement, distinct from its usual purpose as non-magical, there would likely be a fixed configuration of the keys to transition into spellcasting mode.)

• The acumen check penalty would be 0, because while Thieves' Keys require focus and time, they are designed to enhance Stealth and Thievery.

• The weight of a standard suite of Thieves' Tools would be 0.1 lbs., the cost 15 gp because of specificity of shapes, sizes, and likely a mixture of metals for keys of differing hardiness and intent.

I especially like the practicality--multi-purpose use-- of Thieves' Tools as an implement, and the potential to convert more rogues into spellcasters...and more spellcasters into rogues.

2) Sextant: As a shout-out to my nautical friends, and those particularly interested in gazing Heaven-ward, let's consider getting more sextants in circulation in RISE. There is something particularly neat about conducting magic through a navigational tool.

• The range of the Sextant should be +1, as it extends your line of vision, grants focus, and directs your eye.

• The initiative granted to Sexton would be +1, as an experienced user would be able to get her line of sight squared up readily.

• When a player concentrates while using a sextant, he should receive a +2 bonus to Passive Perception.

• The sextant would demand a -2 acumen check, because it is a heavy, somewhat cumbersome piece of metal.

• A sextant would weigh 5 lbs. and cost 25 gp.

• Sextants would take the Boundary weapon property, limiting movement towards the user. Enemies cannot use the Charge power against the user, and the user gains a +1 bonus to the Armor defense against melee attack rolls.

The sextant should be attractive to characters who value precision, and rewards a character who has invested the gp into such a machine and lugged it around during the campaign. As an additional bonus, a custom miniature of your character with his sextant would be ridiculously cool and add some diversity to all the usual rods and staves of your comrades.

3) Makeup-- Already, makeup should have some non-magical power to aide in diplomacy, disguise, etiquette, and presence. Why not up the ante by using makeup as an implement?

• The range of makeup should be +0. We don't know how complicated your spellcasting makeup regimen would be, or whether it would differ from usual makeup.

• Initiative: -1: you would have to have applied it, and if you only put it on for battle, that would certainly affect your readiness. Moreover, you would be subject to the availability of your chosen makeup materials. (I envision the pattern of makeup on your character as the source of power, not the tincture itself that makes up the makeup, per se.)

• Concentration bonus: +1 bonus to the Physical defense. Currently, the implement Totum claims that bonus, but Makeup is a more appropriate guarantor of physical protection. Alternately, Concentration would allow you to gain small cover, except you do not suffer the usual penalty to attack. (Note: I thought about a +1 bonus to Conceal, but that would make it too powerful in comparison with other implements' concentration bonuses.)

• Makeup would possess a higher Thaumaturgy bonus, as it becomes almost inherent to your person once applied. I would humbly suggest a +4 (see Properties, below). Plus, the high Thaumaturgy would encourage folks to embrace makeup as a choice.

• Makeup grants no penalty to acumen check, as it would neither help nor hinder the acumen under discussion (unless it was applied on the fly and especially complicated).

• Weight: nil, cost 10 gp.

• For Properties, Makeup should possess the Embellished property, meaning that it doubles its implement-granted Thaumaturgy bonus. So, that +4 becomes a +8, making Makeup the most powerful implement for thaumaturgical purposes at the present.**

I see a lot of benefits for players in choosing Makeup as an implement, not the least of which is deciding exactly what "makeup" is for them, and when it's applied, and how much, and to what effect. When a mechanic of the game demands further creativity of the player, we all win.

I like the opportunity to play with my own RISE rules, both because it allows me to appreciate the complexity of the existing RISE apparatus, and it gives me the opportunity to think through what "justice" is in the sense of poetic justice. By "poetic justice," I mean that the function of an implement should complement its form, and the consequences of its use seem logically derived. After all, fantasy is best rooted in some logic. Sound mechanics lead to great opportunities for purposeful, and often even fanciful, creation. Most importantly, I hope to model the ease and process of looking for ways to expand the current RISE system, so that you will join me in proposing your own changes and innovations.

*RISE's editors reserve the right to tweak the rule or otherwise modify it-- see the Submissions page for guidelines and disclaimers.

**Technically, Tome can exceed Makeup's thaumaturgy bonus if the player concentrates.