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Lord Karick · Posted: Tue Nov 06, 2012 8:23 am Post subject: Crafting: Wyvern Hide

I recently threw a couple of wyverns at my players, which they dispatched with their customary aplomb. They decided to take some of the tough hide for making leather armour with, which I allowed them. Now I'm looking for some guidance regarding how strong to make the resulting leather armour. An additional +1? +2? We're low magic fantasy with magic items relatively rare. Any ideas or suggestions?
I should add that they didn't tan it themselves, they gave it to a local tanner to work.
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Rÿche · Seasoned Joined: 10 Apr 2010 Posts: 196

I would say a +1, since it moves it in the category of chain armor at that point. So over all +2 to Toughness, but the weight of leather which should give it a fair bonus in that regards.

Zadmar · Heroic Joined: 10 Nov 2010 Posts: 1382 Location: Munich

Perhaps treat it as reinforced leather (from the FC); +2 armour, or +1 if you're hit with a raise.

Or you could treat it as regular leather, but give them some other benefit - perhaps +1 Charisma in when dealing with military types, or a +1 bonus when making a Vigor roll against Cold hazards, etc.

Or treat it as chainmail, but slightly reduce the weight and upkeep costs (it doesn't rust).

VonDan · Legendary Joined: 08 Jul 2008 Posts: 3252

If they go visit the tanner before he said it was done have them roll a guts check against the vats of urine, liver and brains
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Lord Karick · Posted: Tue Nov 06, 2012 9:10 am Post subject:

ValhallaGH · Legendary Joined: 25 Apr 2010 Posts: 4482

You could do something really interesting with it, and give them normal leather armor with a +2 to resist Poisons. Mr. Green

The benefit doesn't always have to be what the players expect.
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steelbrok · Veteran Joined: 07 Aug 2005 Posts: 792 Location: UK

ogbendog · Heroic Joined: 29 Jul 2004 Posts: 1916

If wyverns are really dangerous, +1 cha, or +1 intimidate.

jpk · Posted: Tue Nov 06, 2012 2:16 pm Post subject:

Depending on your wyverns, it could give them Berserker for free while they're wearing that armor...whether they know it or not...

Virgobrown72 · Posted: Tue Nov 06, 2012 3:33 pm Post subject:

Are your wyverns kinda like the creatures the wraiths were riding in Lord of The Rings? How a out giving the a Hindrance instead? Pehaps Bloodthirsty?
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Baiyo · Posted: Tue Nov 06, 2012 6:47 pm Post subject:

Do they really want to trust that hide for armor? It clearly didn't protect the wyverns.
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VonDan · Legendary Joined: 08 Jul 2008 Posts: 3252

From the left overs they should make over sized playing cards or a spell book
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SeeleyOne · Seasoned Joined: 29 Sep 2010 Posts: 229

In a GURPS campaign our group of adventurers wore suits of wyvern hide. It was about as light as leather but tougher. I can't recall the actual armor rating, but it would probably be whatever the wyvern has. My character was an archer of awesome skill level and he killed them all with arrows to the eyes. In GURPS if you can get an eye shot it will go straight to the brain and do something like x4 damage. Their hides were left intact.

As people are suggesting, giving a benefit to wearing armor made out of the wyverns is cool. But merely wearing something's skin does not give powers, so maybe it would come out as a side effect if the armor is enchanted. Or maybe an alchemical process will bring it out; curing the leather with a certain chemical can give it wyvern powers. Some wyverns have a poisonous stinger, and their hide could provide resistance, or maybe even immunity, to poison.
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Takeda · Heroic Joined: 28 Apr 2009 Posts: 1342

I like making it Reinforced Leather but it eliminates AP2. +2 Intimidation while worn and visible would be cool too. It's obvious it was made from some nasty monster and not just pedestrian gear.
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supercOntra · Posted: Wed Nov 07, 2012 10:31 am Post subject:

Or maybe the inside of Wyvern hide is poisonous *evil grin*
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SeeleyOne · Seasoned Joined: 29 Sep 2010 Posts: 229

Lysander · Posted: Sun Nov 11, 2012 1:16 pm Post subject:

We'll, it'd have to be lighter than typical leather; my reason being is that Wyverns fly and Cows do not (normally... pigs maybe...)

Razz

If it's a low magic campaign, I wouldn't give the hide much more than the regular stuff (+1 toughness?) but I like the the thought of + to intimidate. I might also allow it to enrage other Wyverns they might encounter.

(Hello, Mama Wyvern... My armor? Hmmm, it is the skin of your son Reginald I'm wearing, how about that... oh dear...)
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VonDan · Legendary Joined: 08 Jul 2008 Posts: 3252

Doing work research on You tube i came across mention of using dog poop in the first stage of tanning hides. Send the party on a quest to find magical dog poop from a cerberus that is needed to finish the Wyvern hide
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Wirelizard · Novice Joined: 24 Oct 2012 Posts: 19

The Dread Polack · Posted: Mon Nov 12, 2012 11:41 am Post subject:

I think the most basic thing is to either make it tougher than leather armor, but just as light, or like regular leather armor, only lighter. Maybe the process of converting it to armor doesn't necesarily make it tougher than regular leather armor. If it was my campaign, I'd make sure the players had to put in at least some effort to find the right person to make it. They could quickly get regular toughness leather armor that was lighter, but finding a better craftsman would mean better armor.

As for other effects? My first thought is, like SeeleyOne, that simply wearing a creature's hide doesn't give you special powers, but that depends on your campaign. You could justify almost anything. Pulling a surprise negative side-effect isn't the sort of thing that happens in D&D/Pathfinder, but if your players/PCs don't know everything there is to know about this sort of thing, then you can get creative.