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Archives of Nethys

Archives of Nethys

Pathfinder RPG (1st Edition) Pathfinder RPG (2nd Edition) Starfinder RPG

Rules Index | GM Screen | Player's Guide

Trappings of Power

Source Treasure Vault pg. 101 1.1
Contained within this chapter's pages are items and equipment whose magic and effects are intended to serve a character over the course of an entire adventure or even an extended campaign. Robes, staves, wands, grimoires, and much, much more can be found here to ensure your adventurers are fully equipped for whatever trials await them!

This chapter expands upon the existing types of permanent magic items first introduced in the Core Rulebook, particularly apex items, staves, wands, and worn items. This section also includes expansions to the assistive items presented in Pathfinder Guns & Gears, with both expansions of existing prosthetic and mobility aid categories as well as entirely new types of assistive aids. The grimoires, magical tattoos, and spellhearts introduced in Pathfinder Secrets of Magic are also expanded upon here.

Among the new assistive items presented in this chapter are a variety of options tailored for companion creatures. Just like in real life, an adventurer's trusted companion may suffer an injury that would impede their ability to continue exploring the world alongside their master, or a character might choose to adopt a companion who would otherwise struggle with the demands of an adventuring career. These items help ensure that whatever difficulties you face, your animal ally can always be by your side to help you along the way.

Characters who cast spells using Focus Points will also find the Worn Items section particularly helpful, as it includes a variety of new focus items similar to the druid's vestments but tailored to a wider array of classes and roles.

Assistive Items

Fantasy gaming is for everyone. It’s incredibly important for all people, regardless of what unique circumstances they may face in life, to be able to see reflections of themselves inside the world of the game. You can find assistive items for a variety of disabilities here, in Guns & Gears, and in Pathfinder Lost Omens Grand Bazaar. Representation in gaming is essential to creating open and welcoming communities, so respectful use of assistive items has a place in all games and stories.

Am I Playing?

Many instruments in this chapter, as well as some presented in Wondrous Consumables, give you a bonus or effect while you’re playing the instrument, sometimes improving you in ways not directly related to your performance, such as getting a bonus to Perception checks. Usually, the GM can easily determine whether you’re playing the instrument. If you need concrete rules, you’re considered to be playing an instrument as long as you spend at least 1 action each round playing it. This includes playing the instrument for Performance checks, playing it for material or somatic components of spells, or just spending a single action to play it. If you just want to play just to keep up the benefit, you can usually take the Perform action for this purpose and forgo your roll.

Coda Instruments

Source Treasure Vault pg. 136 1.1
While many spellcasters prefer standard magic staves, bards often quest to find or create magical instruments to help supplement their songs. Instruments with the coda trait work mostly like staves, and have the staff trait. There are two differences: Coda instruments are in the form of musical instruments, and they can be prepared only by bards. Because they're not physically staves, you can't attack with a coda instrument nor can you etch it with weapon runes.

The process of preparing a coda instrument involves playing significant portions of songs related to the spells within the instrument—either old standards or ones of your own creation. This leaves magical reverberations within the instrument that allow you to complete the songs by playing their coda later in the day.

Animal Companion Mobility Aids

Source Treasure Vault pg. 106 1.1
While the following items are generally tailored for animal companions and similar creatures, some of them are equally useful to player characters and NPCs.

Tails

Source Treasure Vault pg. 108 1.1
While a simple prosthetic tail can be represented by a basic prosthesis, the below options come with many useful added functions. Using a prosthetic tail effectively generally requires being a member of an ancestry or species that typically has a tail, though creatures from tailless ancestries or species may be able to learn to utilize one under appropriate conditions.