Just came across These Photographs which show the gear english military personnel have carried over the years.
Looks like a lot to drag about, don't it?
It got me thinking about the gear adventurers carry around. Think about it all laid out like that, and how an adventurer might pack for maximum efficiency.
Makes you appreciate Handy Haversacks and Bags of Holding doesn't it?
This thread is for discussing what adventurers carry, how they carry it, what living out of a backpack is really like, and ways of making lugging all that junk around easier.
As an exorcise for my characters, and as a means of adding something interesting to what is usually just a boring list, I think I'm going to start drawing out my inventory on the back side of my sheet.
Fun With Gear-
Better Adventuring Through Magnets!
I had a rogue that ended up poisoning himself once by putting a dagger in his teeth after he'd used it on a door that had, apparently, been coated in contact poison. (I was wearing gloves when I worked on it, but the GM kept careful track of the equipment that had come in contact with the door and what I did with them) After that I learned that putting equipment in your mouth is a bad idea.
So, I added a Loadestone/Magnetic plate to my 'tactical vest' and the under side of my bracers. Being able to just stick a tool or dagger to your chest or arms while working is very handy.
Quick Release Knots and Straps
A lot of the gear a character has isn't very useful in combat. When the swords are swinging things like bedrolls and tents are really just things pushing your towards the next level of encumbrance.
Keeping non-combat gear in a pack that can be dropped as a Free or Swift action is handy. There aren't actually mechanics for this sort of thing, but I've yet to run into a GM who wouldn't allow a feature like that built into a Masterwork backpack.
Upside-down Sheathes and Pouches
Modern soldiers carry knives upside down on their shoulder straps. Field bandages are carried the same way. Grenade pouches are often worn upside down as well.
The reason for this is simple. Some objects you can't spare a hand to carry but when you need them, you need them right now.
So soldiers have learned that when gear is in an upside down pouch, all they need to do is unsnap the button and the needed object just falls into their hand.
In-game, this trick would be handy with potions, wands, feather tokens and all kinds of other small consumables.
In my home games I treat this idea with the same mechanics as the Spring Loaded Wrist Sheath (for obvious reason it only works while gravity is on your side. Being upside down, weightless or prone means you have to fish things out normally).
Extra-Dimensional Sheathes
Combine the magic of Rope Trick and a Wrist Sheath and you can make an item that will allow you to wear very large weapons in the same space you would normally wear a dagger.
No more questions like "how are you going to get your longspear into the kobold tunnels?"
There's also a lot of coolness factor to be gained by pulling a two handed sword out of your sleeve.
Shields are Gear Racks
It was a common trick among archaic foot soldiers to keep a backup weapon strapped to the back of their shields. In a fantasy setting this concept can be taken even further.
Using Sovereign Glue you can glue any pouch or container you want to the back of your shield. Fighters could glue an Efficient Quiver to their shield and use it as a 'golf bag' for their specialty weapons. Paladins can keep divine scrolls close by for when they need to double as a caster. Even Wizards can use this trick with a Mithril Buckler and keep a bunch of wands handy.
Shrink Item Is Awesome
Big objects are sometimes really useful, but are a logistical pain. For a surprisingly little gold you can enchant an unwieldy piece of equipment with a toggleable Shrink spell. (At least 2x per day is important so that you can shrink it back down again after you use it)
A 4 person battering ram is actually only about 8 cubic feet. Shrink it down and you could use it as a weapon (club or light mace perhaps? Enchant as a Rod of some kind?)
A Siege Bombard is about the size of a cauldron (8 cubic feet). Enchant it with Shrink Object and you can use it as a soup bowl. Carry ammo around in a Bag of Holding.
A Ballista is about 18 cubic feet. Shrink one down, use it as a heavy crossbow until you really need to get down to business.
A Bag of Holding is a valid target for Shrink Object. Think about that. The possibilities are impressive. You could smuggle an entire armory into a prison. You could fill the bag full of controlled undead and keep it in a Glove of Storing (snap your fingers and dump a skeletal horde down onto some poor sucker). You could even combine it with a Bottle of Air and carry all the not-stealthy people in your party wherever you need them.
A 9 cubic foot lead block weighs about 6300 pounds. When Shrunk it weighs about a pound and a half and will sit in your palm. Pull it out when you need to do things like block a door, drop something heavy on someone from above, create an anchor point or stop a wagon rather abruptly. For maximum fun, pull it out when something swallows you whole.
One of my characters (wizard with a few levels in pale master) found a bag of devouring and spent a bit of cash on black gems to create what I called the Servant's Embrace: an oversized black greatcoat stitched from human and outsider flesh. Each internal pocket was slightly enhanced with extra-dimensional storage and contained a reanimated arm. The arm (plus hand) would accept the creator's mental commands and retrieve the desired item. Each pocket could only accept a certain number of magical items before consuming the oldest magical item stored. The garment had no buttons or zippers; the Embrace remained closed thanks to a series of fingers lining either side that interlaced when closed (a minor bonus against pickpockets). Additionally, a pair of arms would emerge and allow the Embrace to move on its own at a speed of one foot per round if the command phrase was spoken.
One of my favorite items, now that I look back on it.
That is creepy and awesome!
Capital One.
Extra-Dimensional Sheathes
Combine the magic of Rope Trick and a Wrist Sheath and you can make an item that will allow you to wear very large weapons in the same space you would normally wear a dagger.
No more questions like "how are you going to get your longspear into the kobold tunnels?"
There's also a lot of coolness factor to be gained by pulling a two handed sword out of your sleeve.
The more I read this, the more I really like the possible visuals this could offer. The idea of an unarmored swordsman walking into combat and throwing his arms wide, short swords fly out from his sleeves, then he catches both and wades into melee.
There's also the possibility of cursed extra-dimensional sheathes; mundane weapons might return with wooden blades, unsheathing could produce a weapon covered in dried clay that had to be cleaned off before use, etc.