gallery of rejection 4

My second attempt at Piazo's RPG superstar came to an end yesterday as I didn't make through the initial harrowing process. No hard feelings, the contest has 1000+ entrants and making it into the top 32 is a pretty long shot even if you're a game design genius. Anyway, as before I'll share my entry this year:

Boots of Trailblazing

Aura: Faint Transmutation; CL 5th
Slot feet; Price 15,000 gp; Weight 3 lbs.
Description
These heavy, travel-worn boots warp terrain around the wearer creating a smoother, flatter path for travel. Beneath the soles of the boots muddy ground dries and firms, dead wood and branches decompose and living plants shrivel or squirm out of the way.

This trail forms immediately in front of the wearer's feet and extends 10 feet to both sides. The trailblazing affects any areas of undergrowth, rubble or bog making them one level less difficult (for example, heavy undergrowth is treated as light and light undergrowth is removed). This effect is permanent until reversed by outside forces such as plant growth or natural erosion but it is impossible to blaze the same trail over again (so you cannot walk over Heavy undergrowth twice to remove it completely). The trailblazing effect does not provide any protection against magically created growth or barriers such as entangle or wall of thorns and will not alter man-made terrain features.

When traveling overland the wearer treats all Trackless terrain as though they were traveling along a trail. Since the trail is permanent any companions benefit from this as well so long as the wearer takes the lead.
Construction Requirements Craft Wondrous Item, Diminish Plants, Stone Shape; Cost 7,500 gp

Gallery of Rejection: Self-Rejection edition

So just a few days ago was the end of the first stage of Piazo's RPG Superstar contest. I submitted an entry there and so later this month I'll learn whether or not I'll be one of the lucky 32 entrants to move on to the next round or whether or not the Gallery of Rejection will have a new entry.

But before that happened I figured I'd throw out the ideas that I rejected. The contest requires that you design (in 300 words or less) an interesting and useful Wondrous Item suitable for Piazo's Pathfinder system (i.e. D&D 3.75 for those of you who somehow have not come across it). In addition to creativity and utility the item is also judged by how well it follows the magic item creation guidelines and accurate pricing.

You get only one entry each year and it's got to stand on it's own (so no creator hyping or explanation) so obviously there's a lot of pressure to make sure that your item is the very best you can come up with. Which makes it pretty odd that the item that actually got submitted was one I came up with in the shower the night before the contest ends. Obviously since the contest is still ongoing I'm not going to go into that idea just yet.

But here are the item concepts that didn't make the cut. These are not complete magic items...rather they're prototypes that never quite got off the drawing board. There's two reasons I'm sharing them. One because I think it's interesting and I haven't made enough posts recently. The other is the fact that by posting these ideas I'm disqualifying them from future Superstar contest entries. This means that in the future I'll be forced to come up with a fresh idea rather than mulling over a bunch of previous ideas that I've already rejected.

1) Alchemical Scabbard 
 
This is a heavy scabbard decorated with shining copper and alchemical symbols. The scabbard's magic is activated by pouring alchemical substances into the mouth of the scabbard. It can accept either alchemist's fire, acid or liquid ice. When the substance in question is poured into the mouth of the scabbard it will vanish with an audible gurgle. Attempting to mix multiple alchemical substances or filling it with any alchemical substances other than the three listed above causes a cloud of foul-smelling smoke and a nasty sputtering sound. Filling it with any other liquids simply makes a mess.

When the scabbard has been filled with 100 gp worth of the appropriate liquid then it will become active and the symbols will emit a dull glow. When a weapon is placed inside (the scabbard resizes itself to fit any sword) an active scabbard then it will become infused with elemental energy and add +1d6 damage of the appropriate element to the weapon (which does not stack with bonuses like Flaming or Frost) for 5 hours. If the weapon is not magical then it also gains a +1 enhancement bonus but the elemental energies ravage it and it gains the broken condition at the end of the duration.

Why I rejected it: Not sure. It just never struck me as "great" in any way. The mechanic was clunky and didn't really jive with any existing mechanic and I didn't see it as being too popular with players considering the expense (by the time the players can afford to toss out several alchemical items they can probably afford to just use a spell to enchant their weapon). These were probably fixable problems but I was short on time and this one just didn't inspire me.

2) Spare Heart

This is a small, mummified rabbit's heart wrapped in a web of black iron wire and worn as a necklace. The device will activate itself if the wearer is damaged by a successful critical hit or sneak attack or if they are reduced to 0 hit points or below by any damage source. The heart only activates if the wearer survives the attack. Once activated the heart bursts

First, when activated the heart casts the spell Cure Serious Wounds on the wearer, healing 3d8+5 damage immediately. Secondly, the heart creates a detailed illusion of gruesome wounds and dramatic damage. The form of the illusion is appropriate to the attack that triggers the heart: a sword slash will produce a deep cut and a spray of blood while a fireball will produce the stench of charred flesh and burns covering the wearer's body. The wearer may "play dead" as an immediate action, making a Disguise roll at +10 to appear mortally wounded by the attack (the illusion will even mute the wearer's pulse and breathing). Alternatively they may make a Bluff roll (also with a +10 bonus) as an immediate action to appear alive but critically wounded. This Bluff roll can also be used as a Feint against the attacking opponent.

Why I rejected it: I think the idea is cool and interesting...but when I think about how this item will work in play I think it'd be really annoying. As a player if you run into an NPC villian with one of these it'll probably just be used as a cheap ploy to get out of a losing fight (and if there's one thing I've learned it's that players don't tend to appreciate it when a bad guy they think they've beaten vanishes). If it's used by the players it'll be too uncontrollable and unpredictable...good for a life-saver in some situations but most players would probably just prefer a protective amulet that's always useful over this one shot device.

3) Bottled Storm

A large bottle of black glass plugged with a thick cork. Very faint sounds of rainfall and the distant rumble of thunder can be heard from inside. Unplugging the bottle releases the torrential rainstorm held inside. The effect of the storm depends on how long the bottle remains uncorked (see below). Replacing the cork requires a DC 18 Strength check to overcome the intense force of wind and rain that pour out.
1^st round: Intense gusts of wind and pounding rain spew from the opening in the bottle and continue for three rounds, in addition to the effects of the following rounds. The wind and rain fill a 60’ cone emanating from the mouth of the bottle (every round anyone holding the bottle can choose to change the direction as a free action once per round). The storm produces gale force wind and heavy rain in that area.
2^nd round: A bolt of lightning emanates from the mouth of the bottle (10d6 damage, DC 14).
3^rd round: An intense blast of thunder duplicating a Shout spell emanates from the mouth of the bottle.
4^th round: The wind and rain calm, producing no significant effect and dropping the DC to cork the bottle to 12
5^th round: The storm pours out and rises into the sky. This creates an area of thunderstorm weather conditions in a 3 mile radius, lasting 8d12 hours. 
            If the bottle is not recorked by the 5^th round then any magical properties are permanently lost when the storm is released. 

Why I rejected it: I really, really liked this item. It had a unique mechanic, it was potentially very useful in a wide variety of situations  and it was cool. That said I honestly had no idea how this item should be priced and that was just as much a part of the contest as the item idea itself. Not to mention the item's odd mechanics produced a ton of "what-if" situations and potentially abusive techniques and the item was already pushing the 300 word limit. 

Gallery of Rejection 3

The newest entry into the gallery was submitted to Somethingawful's Next Top Module contest. Sadly I did not win, but looking at some of those who did win I completely understand. There were some amazing entries. Since they still seem to be planning to merge all the submissions into a single "megadungeon" style adventure I'll just post the art I submitted for now and I'll update it later with the room I submitted. Click the picture for the full sized version.

Gallery of Rejection 2

The second entry in the Gallery of Rejection comes from an art contest I entered in the Cracked.com forums a few weeks ago. The contest started with 32 artists, pairing them up in "duels" against one another based on a short "inspiration" phrase. After the art is produced there's a vote to see who continues.

This isn't a proper Gallery of Rejection entry because I actually made it to the third round and I'm thrilled about that. There were a lot of great artists in the competition and a lot of people far worthier than I got eliminated in the early rounds. This is more of an excuse to post the art I created.

In order, the inspirations were: It's Good to Be Back, Secret Places, and Regret. Click the images to see the full size versions.

Looking at the final entry it's pretty obvious why I lost. Well, actually I lost because my opponent did really great work, but clearly the last one is not the top of my game. Had far too much on my plate that weekend including finishing up the latest Beyond Reality update and submitting an entry to Somethingawful's Steve's Next Top Module contest (which I'm sure will be showing up in the Gallery once the results for that contest come through).

Some art comparison and the first entry in the gallery of rejection

So I've been drawing Beyond Reality now (off and on obviously) for about 8 years and although the progress with the story has tended to falter I've always enjoyed seeing how my ability to draw has evolved. I know many artists are immensely critical of their own work but for some reason the art style I've cobbled together is one I've always enjoyed. Sure I can see it's full of technical flaws and I know there's lots of room for improvement but I seem to be in the rare position of actually being able to enjoy my own art. Of course that's probably just self-delusion considering I thought most of my first drawings were pretty good. Lets take a look:

 

Hopefully eight years from now I can look back on my current art and see that I've improved just as much. Anyway, that's the last old art I'll force on anyone here. Which brings me to my second item:

THE GALLERY OF REJECTION

For the last several years most of my energy has been going into finding and keeping a job that can pay the bills and help me knock a few chips out of my student loans. Fortunately I've recently gotten a new position which has not only better pay but more freedom so I'm left with a lot more energy I can devote to my other interests: attaining internet fame and making a living from my writing. Along with restarting Beyond Reality and creating this blog I've resolved to get involved in more events, contests and schemes to help hone my skills and spread myself around. That way I seem less like a crazy person speaking into the cold, endless void of the internet. Yelling into an endless well of advertisements and pornography. 

As part of this I'm creating the Gallery of Rejection showcasing all of my failed attempts and rejected submissions. Please understand this isn't meant to be a place where I gripe about how "I should have won" or complain about those who rejected me. It's the internet and there are thousands and thousands of immensely talented people out there trying to do the same thing, many of them much more talented and deserving of recognition than I am. Rejection is inevitable and I can't deal with it I have no business trying in the first place. Instead this is more of a place where I, and hopefully others, can look back on what I've tried in the past without feeling angsty or discouraged. Some of these entries will be for contests or events with major stakes, others might be nothing more than friendly competitions. In the Gallery, all are equal.

The first item in the Gallery comes from a contest at Piazo publishing called RPG super-star. I entered, along with hundreds of other aspiring RPG writers. The first stage of the competition involves the creation of an original magical item, complete with stats. It's worth noting that as part of the terms of the contest this item does belong to Piazo now. My submission was the Cape of the Night Stalker.

Cape of the Night Stalker

Aura: Moderate Evocation and Transmutation; CL: 11th

Slot: Shoulders; Price: 27,000 gp; Weight: 1 lb.

This lightweight cape is fashioned from pitch-black cloth and has a clasp decorated with obsidian. The cape grants the wearer 60 foot darkvision so long as the cape is worn and also draws upon the power of darkness and shadow to enhance the wearer’s physical and mental abilities. When the wearer is in an area of dim light they receive a +2 enhancement bonus to both Strength and Charisma. In areas of darkness the bonus increases to +4. Treat these as temporary ability bonuses. 

 

Once per day the wearer may speak a command word that causes the cloak to dissolve into an insubstantial fog of pure shadow. This functions as a deeper darkness spell which radiates from the wearer continually until a second command word is spoken, causing the cape to reform around the wearer’s shoulders. While transformed the cloak ceases to grant any other bonuses to the wearer.

Construction

Requirements: Craft Wondrous Items, Deeper Darkness, Darkvision, Bull's Strength, Eagle's Splendor; Cost: 13,500 gp 

There you go, the first of many to come. By the way, if anyone knows of any other interesting writing or art contests, especially those related to webcomics or role-playing games feel free to let me know.