A backpack to carry all their stuff.
I'd much rather make a personalized package for different characters, a wizard probably has no desire to carry a crowbar, 50 ft rope or grappling hook.
character gear :
bedroll, coldweather outfit, explorer's outfit and trail rations are all good, a torch, lamp oil, flint and steel, a piece of chalk.
party gear : (divide as they wish)
might give them a tent for every two persons, a single crowbar, a 50 ft rope with grappling hook, two hooded lanterns.
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Character creation at level 1 or later? Against their starting funds or free?
Water skins, even if the cleric has create water, the cleric could die.
I like a hook for each end.of the rope. More rope, and more after that, at least 3 coils for the party. I hate players who say I didn't but rope because I knew some else would. Then eaftwr cutting it up to use, we no longer have enough.
Belt pouches, blankets, flint and steel, torches, candles, dagger, parchment, ink, pen, small mirror, whistle, chalk, sacks, backpacks, art., tent.
Self propelled rations are live animals. Got that from the Comic Knights of the Dinner Table.
Appropriate gear by class like spell component pouch , holy symbol, thieves tools.
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Let them hire a halfling porter with the Well-Prepared feat.
Well-Prepared
Somehow, you always seem to have the right tools or supplies close at hand.
Prerequisite: Halfling.
Benefit: Once per day, when confronted with a situation that calls for a particular mundane item of equipment, you may make a Sleight of Hand check with a DC of 10 plus the item's cost in gold pieces to “happen” to have such an item on your person. For example, having a crowbar would be DC 12, whereas a flask of acid would be DC 20. The item must be something you can easily carry—if you are on foot and have only a backpack, for example, you could not have a large iron cauldron. You cannot have magical items using this feat, nor can you have specific items, such as the key to a particular door. If you are stripped of your equipment or possessions, you lose the benefits of this feat until you have at least a day to resupply and “acquire” new items. You must pay for these items normally.
Special: At the GM's option, a character can substitute the Survival skill for Sleight of Hand with this feat. Such a choice is permanent.
While the wizard may be no good at throwing a grappling hook or climbing himself, if he lacks rope and his party runs short they're probably going to be pretty unhappy that they can't add his share to their own.
Especially since your typical Wizard would need several extra feet of rope just to be tied around his waist so he could be hauled up by those who made the climb.
While I agree that it might well be useful, I'd let them buy additional gear later on rather than supplying them with all they might need from the start, besides with all that gear and essentials some strength 7 characters might already be encumbered.
bedroll 5 lbs, 50 ft rope 10 lbs, week's rations 7 lbs, outfits 15 lbs, grappling hook 4 lbs, crowbar 5lb, backpack 2lbs.
About 48 lbs, this means that anyone with strength less than 13 already has medium encumbrance, if you are unlucky enough to have strength 7 you are heavily encumbered instead.
I imagine quite a few characters will want to lose some weight especially since most characters will want some weapons, and armor/shield and other items to function properly according to their role.
While the wizard may be no good at throwing a grappling hook or climbing himself, if he lacks rope and his party runs short they're probably going to be pretty unhappy that they can't add his share to their own.
Especially since your typical Wizard would need several extra feet of rope just to be tied around his waist so he could be hauled up by those who made the climb.
My wizard scoffs at your need for silly rope.
My wizard scoffs at your silly "environmental challenge".
Nothing personal, my wizard just scoffs a lot.
He doesn't, however, carry rope.
I hate leaving home without alchemist's fire.
You never know when you'll run into a swarm of something...
lol, makes sense. He might not live to regret it, but it makes sense :P
In a pinch, if the party has allowed the situation to devolve into such dire straits, my wizard will deign to allow you to loan him YOUR rope, but that's about as far as he'll go.
I hate to leave home without alchemist fire too. My flaming sphere catching things on fire is just too wonderful to ignore. And I like keeping a grappling bolt and rope on me to help that guy in plate get up who forgot his.
On another note, I keep a personal list of cheap mundane items that I give all my characters if and when I can. The one thing I never forget to bring is a towel, and masterwork survival book with Don't Panic on the cover.
Note to self: if I adventure with that wizard and such a scenario comes up, just leave him hogtied in the rope he 'allowed me to loan him.'
Get your kicks while you can, eventually my wizard will be level 7 and then we'll see who hogties whom...
Don't forget plaster powder.
Pitons. They are extremely useful. Use them to prevent doors from shutting, use them to help climb. I've always found a use for pitons in every campaign.
Extra sacks/bags for carrying treasure.
Chalk for drawing warnings on walls, or for helping leave a trail.
Roll of string or twine. Useful for leaving a trail in a dungeon or for tying something together (especially when rope is too much or too thick).
Paper, ink, and a pen. Being able to write something down on a moments notice is invaluable.
People have already mentioned a crowbar; a hammer would also be useful. Especially for nailing in those pitons.
Multiple holy symbols. Never know when you need to make an emergency prayer or need to pretend to be of a certain faith.
A whistle or horn for giving warnings to your allies, a la Boromir.
Flint and steel for starting fires.
Whetstone for sharpening blades.
Water. And something to carry the water. :)
A wagon and an animal or two to pull it. With this you can carry a lot more. I usually purchase a couple of chests and eventually the best locks. Useful for carrying the wizard's alchemy set, for carrying extra weapons, armor, clothing, and of course all your treasure.
Henchmen. You will need someone to watch over your wagon and gear while you are spelunking or adventuring in an area your wagon can't go. They also can help carry treasure out, set up camp for you, cook, bear torches in dungeons, clean your equipment, and give a perfect excuse for your new character showing up after your last one died.
Gotta be careful with Henchmen. Most DMs I know don't like having them at all, and you never know when they turn into a(possibly dead) plot hook. On the upside, if they had chainmail you have a good payment plan for your next henchman!
There is always a risk with henchmen turning into plot hooks, but it's no different a risk than any other NPC. The biggest fear I have with henchmen is the gm deciding that your henchmen will betray you.
Paying them well and treating them right will reduce the chances of them turning on you. Also, if you investigate them in their town (combined with spells), you can insure you get good aligned henchmen, which reduces the chance of them betraying you.
Henchmen have a set cost, so just pay them 1.5x or 2x to ensure they are paid well. Also give them bonuses for doing the right thing or for bravery, such as valuable gems, magical items, or artwork and other odd valuables found while adventuring. If they die, give their share and some extra to their families, and if possible, return their body to their home for a proper funeral. This will let your other henchmen know that if they die, they will be treated with honor and their loved ones will be taken care of. Even at normal pay, that should be enough to ensure loyalty in your men. If your GM isn't taking all that into account when they design a plot hook that involves your henchmen betraying you, then they might not be a good gm (especially if they keep using that plot hook).
And while using your henchmen as a plot hook can be useful, a good GM won't screw you over for doing what has been a part of d&d since pre-first edition (if don't believe me, then read some modules from early on, such as keep on the borderlands - it not only assumes the group will have henchmen, in some parts it flat out refers to them).
Of course, if having henchmen scares you, you could always just leave your wagon alone, and just pray or hope that someone doesn't stumble upon it and steal it. Or just ditch the wagon entirely and carry everything yourself, but really, who wants to do that? Have you ever walked for miles upon end with 100+ pounds on your back? As an army veteran, I can tell you that it ain't pleasant. :)
While the wizard may be no good at throwing a grappling hook or climbing himself, if he lacks rope and his party runs short they're probably going to be pretty unhappy that they can't add his share to their own.
Especially since your typical Wizard would need several extra feet of rope just to be tied around his waist so he could be hauled up by those who made the climb.
If one of my party members gave one of my casters hell for not carrying a rope, I would have to tell them to pull one out their ass; that is where one should be shoved. The barbarian could carry 20 of these easier than I could carry 1.
To the original question, I find a drill and pitons sometimes useful and always cheap. Again not on a caster.
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I don't think anyone should leave home without the basics, many of which have been covered already. Backpack, bedroll, tent, flint & steel, a whetstone, writing supplies and paper/parchment, a couple of waterskins, rations, rope, hammer & pitons, chalk, alchemist's fire...all good ideas. Myself, I always ensure that my characters have a tankard handy as well. More than once, I've found barrels or kegs in a variety of places, and it's a little tough to discern what's in them if you haven't got something to pour a bit of the contents into. a good drinking mug is just the thing.