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Black Guard Armory

Volume 1

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Written by James Abendroth All Art by Jake Ekiss

Compatibility with the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game requires the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game from Paizo Inc.. See http://paizo.com/pathfinderRPG for more information on the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game. Paizo Inc. does not guarantee compatibility, and does not endorse this product. Pathfinder is a registered trademark of Paizo Inc., and the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game and the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Compatibility Logo are trademarks of Paizo Inc., and are used under the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Compatibility License. See http://paizo.com/pathfinderRPG/compatibility for more information on the compatibility license. Open Game License v 1.0a Copyright 2000, Wizards of the Coast, Inc. System Reference Document. Copyright 2000, Wizards of the Coast, Inc.; Authors Jonathan Tweet, Monte Cook, Skip Williams, based on material by E. Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson. Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Core Rulebook. Copyright 2009, Paizo Inc.; Author: Jason Bulmahn, based on material by Jonathan Tweet, Monte Cook, and Skip Williams. The Book of Experimental Might. Copyright 2008, Monte J. Cook. All rights reserved. Tome of Horrors. Copyright 2002, Necromancer Games, Inc.; Authors: Scott Greene, with Clark Peterson, Erica Balsley, Kevin Baase, Casey Christofferson, Lance Hawvermale, Travis Hawvermale, Patrick Lawinger, and Bill Webb; Based on original content from TSR.

2015 Black Guard Press Black Guard Armory 1 and the characters contained herein are copyright 2015 and trademark of Black Guard Press. All Rights Reserved.

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Contents Black Guard History ........................................................................................................... 3

Weapons .............................................................................................................................. 4 Rapid Fire Crossbow .................................................................................................................... 4

Spider Gloves ............................................................................................................................... 5

Rings ................................................................................................................................... 6 Ring of Binding ............................................................................................................................. 6

Staves .................................................................................................................................. 7 Black Guard Staff ......................................................................................................................... 7

Wondrous Items .................................................................................................................. 7 Amulet of Warning ...................................................................................................................... 7

Boots of Immovability ................................................................................................................. 8

Centipede Belt ............................................................................................................................. 8

Cloak of Elemental Protection (Minor, Major or Greater) .......................................................... 9

Divine Wrappings ........................................................................................................................ 9

Elixir of Lycanthropy .................................................................................................................. 10

Helm Lights ................................................................................................................................ 10

Vestment of Mystic Might ......................................................................................................... 11

Wandering Eye .......................................................................................................................... 11

Wandering Eye, Darkvision........................................................................................................ 13

Wandering Eye, See Invisibility.................................................................................................. 13

Wandering Eye, Omnivision ...................................................................................................... 13

Wandering Eye, Fiery ................................................................................................................. 14

Wandering Eye, Greater ............................................................................................................ 14

Artifacts............................................................................................................................. 15 Shedenheim ............................................................................................................................... 15

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Black Guard History There are any number of menaces that threaten the peaceful inhabitants of the world.

Many of these threats can be fended off by a determined, organized group of average

people. A marauding band of Orcs or Goblins can be turned aside by a well prepared

group of villagers or a band of mercenaries. Even a bulette or young dragon can be slain

if the citizens are brave enough, though they will undoubtedly take heavy losses.

However, there are threats that no amount of bravery and organization can overcome.

There are creatures whose very skin will turn aside a mundane sword or spear, creatures

who exist in a parallel dimension that can’t be affected by physical force. Only weapons

made of certain materials or enchanted with magic have a true chance of harming, let

alone vanquishing them. Other monsters can turn invisible at will or turn a man’s brain

into so much pudding with nothing more than a thought. Some fiends come from other

planes and have abilities that allow them to make easy prey of whole villages without the

citizens being able to defend themselves.

Only those with the proper weapons and magic items or their own spells and supernatural

abilities can face up to and stop such challenges. Champions with these abilities rise and

fall constantly, blazing a path of glory for a time before age, or more often, bad luck

catches up to them and their careers are ended. Even a legendary hero can find himself

facing a challenge too overwhelming for his abilities.

Realizing this and knowing they could do more as an organization than any of them could

hope to do alone, a group of such men and women decided to band together to protect

those who could not protect themselves. To make themselves more efficient and

effective, they began collecting information on their foes and developing magical tools

and weapons specifically designed to fight and destroy the kinds of evil creatures that an

army of average soldiers could not overcome but a few properly supplied and skilled

adventurers could. Taking the name the Black Guard, they roamed the land helping

villages, towns and even individual farms fend off the attacks and machinations of

supernatural dangers.

For hundreds of years, the Black Guard was the bane of dark forces and rescued countless

people from death and worse. Their ranks grew with their fame as others with the skill

and desire to fight the forces of darkness flocked to their banner. At their height, they

were known throughout the land and their membership numbered in the hundreds.

Unfortunately, the more their fame grew the more interest the very forces they fought

took in them. Every plan they foiled, every fiend they vanquished earned them the

enmity of more dark forces. Eventually, an unholy alliance of undead, fiends and

lycanthropes who had declared vengeance on the Society gathered together to destroy

them.

The Black Guard’s remote mountain citadel was assaulted by a veritable army of evil

creatures of all sorts. Legions of the attacking forces were slain in the assault but there

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seemed to be no end to their numbers and the citadel was eventually overrun and

completely destroyed, leaving only shattered ruins. The vast majority of those within

were slaughtered. Only a few escaped, but the forces arrayed against them were

tenacious and they, as well as the members who were away on missions when the attack

occurred were systematically hunted down and slain.

The dark forces arrayed against the Black Guard were exceptionally determined and

lethally effective and it is said that not a single member survived their attacks. Of course,

other rumors claim that the Black Guard members who remained simply went into hiding

and still exist as a secret organization, depending upon their anonymity to prevent a

repeat of the devastation they suffered in the past while still carrying out their vow to

fight the forces of darkness.

Only legends, ancient texts and rumors still speak of these noble men and women, but

they have left a far more enduring legacy. Though their own powers were formidable,

they also developed a number of magic items to augment their abilities and give them a

further edge over the dark forces they battled. Few of these original items still exist, and

many of them were plundered by their enemies in the downfall of the Black Guard

stronghold, but they have been copied and duplicated numerous times by men and

women who recognized the power and efficiency of these magical tools.

Weapons

Rapid Fire Crossbow Highly prized by clerics, sorcerers, wizards and especially rogues, these +1 heavy

crossbows allow the wielder to fire as quickly and accurately as a proficient bowman but

with the increased damage capacity of a heavy crossbow. Each Rapid Fire Crossbow is

ornately carved and inlaid with precious metals and is accompanied by a bolt case of

equal beauty and elegance with matching markings.

Like any common case, the one associated with a Rapid Fire Crossbow holds ten bolts.

However, as long as there is a bolt in the case, the magic of the crossbow will almost

instantaneously reload the weapon, freeing the wielder from the need to take any sort of

action to do so. Each shot depletes the ammunition in the case as usual and once it is

empty, the crossbow has to be loaded as normal until the case is reloaded. Loading five

bolts into the case requires a full round action that provokes attacks of opportunity,

allowing a user to reload the entire thing in two uninterrupted rounds. Taking the Rapid

Reload feat specifically for Rapid Fire Crossbows (not simply heavy crossbows) reduces

loading five bolts to a move equivalent action that provokes attacks of opportunity,

allowing a user to reload the case fully in one turn.

Faint Transmutation; CL 5th

, Craft Magic Arms and Armor; creator must have Rapid

Reload feat; Price: 10,350 gp. Sample

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Spider Gloves Originally

developed by a

drow clan that

had closely

aligned and

interbred with

fiends over the

generations, the

Black Guard

discovered the

secret to making

these weapons

when they

destroyed the

cabal of dark

elves and their

demonic cohorts.

These seemingly

ordinary gloves

appear to be

made of rough

silk and have

ivory rivets on

the knuckles.

When a

particular gesture

is made while

wearing the

gloves, a razor

sharp talon

magically springs

from the tip of each finger. These talons can be used as a simple, light, melee weapon

with the following statistics:

Dmg (S) Dmg (M) Critical Type

1d3 + 1 + Poison 1d4 + 1 + Poison 19-20/x2 Slashing

The gloves have a +1 magical bonus and each successful strike has a chance of poisoning

the target. Initial and secondary damage are 1d10 Con and the fortitude save DC to resist

is 13.

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