what's the best 10 pounds of gear?

[ohako]

An average halfling male weighs 35 pounds.
An exotic riding saddle, regardless of size, weighs 30 pounds.
A 1st-level wolf animal companion (or a pony) can carry up to 75 pounds of stuff without being encumbered.

So, what's the best 10 pounds you can carry and be an effective melee or ranged combatant?

If the saddle for a wolf isn't 'exotic', then it's a 25 pound saddle, which gives you 15 pounds net.

If the saddle for a Medium creature is half the weight of a saddle for a Large creature, then it's either 15 or 12.5 pounds.

So, strictest rules: 10 pounds
Non-exotic saddle: 15 pounds
Saddles to scale: 25 pounds
Non-exotic saddles to scale: 27.5 pounds

There are other tricks you could pull to free up weight, either by being smaller than average, or by rolling a female halfling, or somehow getting ahold of a fantastically expensive darkleaf saddle. Leaving those aside...

What are the best 10 pounds?

[Corvino]

The best 5 pounds are a Handy Haversack, but that'll be off the table for the moment.

[blahpers]

10 pounds of diamonds. : D

[Imbicatus]

A large size pack horse and a lead rope?

[Velix Okah]

10 foot pole
Rope
Bombs
Lamps
Lamp Oil

Or just slap a Belt of Strength onto the companion.

[Castarr4]

Just a side tip, but learn to be creative with gear of negligible weight, such as candles. I'm not suggesting you carry around a billion candles (DMs hate that), but if carrying capacity is an issue you should load up on a variety of "- lb" weight items.

Your most important weight will be weapon/armor/spellbook, depending on your class. Consider your other adventuring gear after accounting for those.

[Gregory Connolly]

10 lbs of platinum are worth 5,000gp, that's a lot of money. Seriously though at low level food and water usually take up any extra capacity until everyone has a ring of sustenance.

[Fomsie]

Clothes are always a good start... pretty sure you get an outfit for free, but I don't think it is encumbrance free.

Also armor and weapons should be considered.

Waterskin is pretty vital.

[Ascalaphus]

Yeah, the clothes weigh something.

[Imbicatus]

Ascalaphus wrote:

Yeah, the clothes weigh something.

Loincloths are negligible. Just Sayin'

[Melvin the Mediocre]

Fomsie wrote:

Clothes are always a good start... pretty sure you get an outfit for free, but I don't think it is encumbrance free.

I had a wizard with a strength of 6 who started out in a monks outfit just because it used less weight. :)

But what class are you looking at? That will help us suggest gear. My wizard carried a few flasks of alchemical potions, a spell book, and that oriental tummy armor (I forget the name now.) Luckily he stayed in the city for a few levels and didn't need to worry about food.

[Lincoln Hills]

I think you mean a haramaki, but in honesty, now that you've said that, I wish UE had simply called it "Oriental tummy armor."

[Velkan]

If the encumbrance is only an issue in combat you can always carry thing in the saddlebags and unknot them at the start of the combat it shouldn't be mora than a move action TOPS.

[Kalridian]

rich parents trait + muleback cords would solve the problem. Wouldn't leave an awful lot of money for the actual gear 'though.