The Baldric Briar

Thorny vines grow from this earthen belt, culminating in singular rose reaching from the quiver. Hung over the shoulder or around the waist, the quiver reshapes itself into the form of a scabbard as weapons are sheathed into it.

Nonlegacy Game Statistics: broken greenwood endless quiver, Aura moderate conjuration; CL 9th; Slot —; Price 1,425 gp; Weight 2 lbs.; Hardness 5; HP 10;

This appears to be a typical arrow container capable of holding about 20 arrows. It has three distinct portions, each with a nondimensional space allowing it to store far more than would normally be possible.

The first and smallest one can contain up to 60 objects of the same general size and shape as an arrow. The second slightly longer compartment holds up to 18 objects of the same general size and shape As a javelin. The third and longest portion of the case contains as many as 6 objects of the same general size and shape as a bow (spears, staffs, or the like). Once the owner has filled it, the quiver can quickly produce any item she wishes that is within the quiver, as if from a regular quiver or scabbard. The efficient quiver weighs the same no matter what’s placed inside it.

CONSTRUCTION REQUIREMENTS

Craft Wondrous Item, secret chest; Cost 900 gp

Greenwood: The secret of greenwood lies in its harvesting. Each length is taken, with leaves still attached, from a tree animated by a treant and cut with care to avoid the death of the tree. A dryad then speaks to and shapes the wood, coaxing the living green of the leaves into the grain of the wood itself. The resulting wood remains alive as long as it is doused with at least one gallon of water (plus 1 gallon for every 10 pounds of the item’s weight) once per week and allowed to rest for an hour in contact with fertile soil. Any wooden or mostly wooden item (such as a bow or spear) made from greenwood is considered a masterwork item. Items not normally made of wood or only partially of wood (such as a battleaxe or a mace) either cannot be made from greenwood or do not gain any special benefit from being made of greenwood.

When damp and in contact with fertile soil, living greenwood heals damage to itself at a rate of 1 hit point per hour, even repairing breaks and regrowing missing pieces. If the weapon has the broken condition, it is repaired during the first hour of contact with fertile soil. Greenwood items take only one-quarter damage from fire.

Greenwood can be altered or enhanced with wood-shaping magic such as ironwood, shape wood, and warp wood. The duration of any such effect on a greenwood item is doubled.

Special: The Baldric Briar cannot be destroyed by being reduced to 0 HP or by being starved of nutrients. However, it is relatively fragile, and often found in the broken condition.

Omen: The Baldric Briar grows a rose when an arrow is stowed or a weapon is sheathed (over the course of a day). Drawing the arrow or weapon inevitably severs the rose.

History

The belt commonly known as the Baldric Briar was once named Xanřruža, the Measure of Men. It was created by devout worshipers of Qwasvàra, Goddess of Mercy and Peace, to serve as a reminder that their order should uphold the principles of honor, wisdom, grace, and generosity. For generations Knights of the Rose wielded weapons drawn from the Baldric Briar against ruthless tyrants and the merciless hordes of the dead. But as faith in the infallible goddess declined after the Cataclysm, so too did the strength of their conviction, and, as they say, the measure of men.

So it was that Sir Kaleval, Knight of the Rose and protector of the Wryllenic Realms, took up the Baldric Briar against Lorlotha, the Evil that Dares. As Lorlotha and his demonic armies invaded the lands of the fey, Sir Kaleval rode with the survivors of the Cataclysm to meet them. The favor of battle swung back and forth, with both sides losing countless numbers in the melee. Seeking to end the slaughter, Kaleval challenged Lorlotha to a duel for the fate of the Realms. The Evil that Dares accepted. It is said they fought for twelve days without rest, and that on the thirteenth day the Knight of the Rose proved superior. With his sword at the demon lord’s neck, Kaleval chose mercy, sheathing his sword in the Baldric Briar and sparing the life of his mortal enemy. However, over the course of the duel the battle had been lost by the fey, and Kaleval found himself surrounded. To his surprise, Lorlotha acknowledged Kaleval’s honor, and declared that his people could leave unharmed. The fey could one day decide the ultimate fate of the Wryllenic Realms, if they dared to challenge the demons. Until that day, the forests would burn. With his proclamation ended, the demons descended on Kaleval and tore him limb from limb. Though badly burned, the Baldric Briar survived….

Today it is known as one of the Arms of Answering, sought by students of the Devoted Spirit and Mithral Current disciplines, as well as worshipers of Qwasvàra.

...

(more of the belt’s history remains to be discovered)

Penalty Table: 4-2 (-3 attack, -4 saves, -10 HP, 40,000 gp)

Character Level	Attack Penalty	Single Save Penalty	Hit Point Loss
5^th	-	-	-
6^th	-1	-	-
7^th	-	-1	2
8^th	-	-	2
9^th	-	-2	-
10^th	-	-	2
11^th	-	-	-
12^th	-2	-	-
13^th	-	-	-
14^th	-	-	2
15^th	-	-3	-
16^th	-	-	2
17^th	-	-	-
18^th	-3	-	-
19^th	-	-	-
20^th	-	-4	-

Ritual Costs: least 1500 gp; lesser 13,000 gp, greater 40,000 gp

Legacy Rituals:

Least Legacy Ritual: The wielder must grant mercy or quarter after defeating a worthy opponent single-handedly (one of the same level or higher).

Wielder Requirements: BAB +3, at least one Devoted Spirit and Mithral Current maneuver or stance, must worship Qwasvàra.

Least Legacy Abilities:

5^th Level, First Awakening (Su): Upon completion of the least legacy ritual, The Baldric Briar awakens for the first time. It effectively gains sentience, can communicate with you empathically, and can hear and see out to 60 feet. As a sentient item, it has 10 Intelligence, 13 Wisdom, and 13 Charisma. The Baldric Briar’s Ego score is calculated as normal for an intelligent item (include the item’s enhancement bonus, telepathy, if any, and ability bonuses, but not its legacy abilities), except that it has an additional 2 Ego points at the time of its First Awakening. If the Baldric Briar is effectively sentient from another source (such as the Item Familiar feat or an Awakening spell), it passes it knowledge onto you in the form of the Quick Stow feat. If you already know this or a similar feat, you may select any other combat feat as a bonus feat instead.

6^th Level, Many Blades (Su): As you learn to better use the Briar, you gain the Fast Draw talent of the equipment sphere as a bonus talent. If you already know this or a similar feat (such as Quick Draw), you may select any other combat feat as a bonus feat instead.

In addition, you learn how to access an additional extradimensional space within the Briar. This space can hold up to four two-handed weapons, including those that would not normally fit in any kind of scabbard or sheath. Two one-handed or light melee weapons can fit in each two-handed weapon slot, for a maximum capacity of eight one-handed or light melee weapons. Only weapons designed to be used by creatures the same size as you or smaller can be kept in this fourth extradimensional space. This space can’t be used to store shields (even if they can be used to make melee attacks), gauntlets, improvised weapons, wands, rods, or magic staves.

When you draw a weapon from the Briar, if you do not lose your grip on it (keeping it in your hands at all times), as a move action or swift action you can have it switch places with another weapon in the Briar. If you lose your grip on a weapon drawn from the Briar, that weapon can’t switch places with another weapon until it has been sheathed in the Baldric Briar and drawn again.

7^th Level, Last Blood (Su): If blood must be drawn, let it be the last. You gain the Finger Cutter talent of the duelist sphere as a bonus talent. If you already know this or a similar feat (such as Improved Disarm), you may select any other combat feat as a bonus feat instead.

Anytime you would suffer a bleed effect, the Baldric Briar automatically stanches it. This has no effect on bleed damage from effects that require a DC 16 or higher caster level or Heal check.

8^th Level, Blind Devotion (Ex): Qwasvàra asks only that her servants keep their inner eye open. You gain the Blind-Fight feat as a bonus feat. If you already know this or a similar feat, you may select any other combat feat as a bonus feat instead.

When a weapon is sheathed into the Baldric Briar, you may make both it and the weapon become invisible (as the invisibility spell) until the weapon is drawn, at which point it and the sheath become visible again. The invisible sheathed weapon can still be detected by touch, but you gain a +5 bonus on Sleight of Hand checks to conceal the weapon, and casual inspection does not reveal it at all. Other effects that detect or reveal invisible things work normally on the sheathed weapon.

9^th Level, Raw Karma (Su): The Briar has seen the cycle of many ages, and has a developed a reputation for breaking convention. You gain the Barbaric Throw talent of the berserker sphere as a bonus talent. If you already know this or a similar feat (such as Throw Anything or Two-Handed Thrower), you may select any other combat feat as a bonus feat instead.

Whenever you draw a weapon from the Baldric Briar and throw it before the end of your next turn, the weapon teleports back to its original space within the Briar immediately after the attack is resolved.

10^th Level, Second Awakening (Su): Upon completion of the lesser legacy ritual, The Baldric Briar awakens for the second time. In addition to the abilities gained during its first awakening, it can communicate with you telepathically and speak Wryllene (any single dialect), plus one additional language per point of Intelligence bonus. Its vision improves to darkvision (same range), it gains +4 Wisdom and +4 Charisma, and it gains +2 Ego score (in addition to bonuses from its other new abilities, such as telepathy). Finally, it confers upon you the Improved Quick Draw feat. If you already know this or a similar feat, you may select any other combat feat as a bonus feat instead.

11^th Level, Briar’s Mercy (Ex): You may attack for nonlethal damage without penalty with any weapon, and you get +1 to attack and damage when doing so for every three levels you possess (this benefit even applies to weapon-like spells, supernatural abilities in the form of attacks, breath weapons, or parries, etc.). In addition, three times per day any weapon drawn from the Baldric Briar may gain the Keen special quality as a free action, as though the spell Keen Edge was cast upon it by a spellcaster of your level.

12^th Level, Wisdom of the Rose (Su): Gain +5 competence bonus on Knowledge (Nobility) checks. Twice per day, when you succeed at such a check, you may make an augury as the spell cast by a spellcaster of your level as a free action. The question asked must always be in the form of a historical anecdote, proverb, or law from the teachings of Qwasvàra.

13^th level, Inner Peace (varies): Once per day as an immediate action, the wielder may ignore any amount of damage from a single source (one attack, spell, or effect). He or she can only ignore hit point damage in this fashion. This counts as a counter maneuver from both the Devoted Spirit and Mithril Current disciplines (5^th level, as an initiator of the wielder’s level). When this ability is activated, a sphere of shard-like rose petals envelopes the wielder momentarily. The type of this ability matches the source it counters (Ex, Sp, Su, etc.).

14^th level, Final Awakening (Su): Upon completion of the greater legacy ritual, The Baldric Briar awakens for the final time. In addition to the abilities gained during its first and second awakenings, its vision improves to darkvision and blindsense (120 ft.), it gains +4 Wisdom and +4 Charisma, and it gains +4 Ego score (in addition to bonuses from its other new abilities, such as telepathy). Finally, it confers upon you the Mixed Combat feat as a bonus feat. If you already know this or a similar feat, you may select any other combat feat as a bonus feat instead.

15^th level, Arrow Charming Arrow (Su): With the help of the Briar, you can “convince” arrows to fly straight and others to heed your words. You gain the Charming the Arrow feat as a bonus feat. If you already know this or a similar feat, you may select any other combat feat as a bonus feat instead.

Three times per day, as part of an attack, you may have any arrow drawn from the Baldric Briar explode in a small cloud of red dust, dealing nonlethal damage. The creature struck must succeed at a DC 22 Will save or be charmed by the wielder as charm monster. Alternatively, you can inscribe the name of another creature into the arrow shaft; in this case, the arrow’s victim instead becomes charmed by the named creature on a failed save. Inscribing the arrow takes 10 minutes.