VeggieTech

Symbiotic Equipment

• Boot Grafts (Artifact •)

• Green Eyes (Artifact •)

• Green Iron Dust

A symbiotic fungus growing on Ironwood Trees and Iron Bushes,

• Knife Spores (Artifact •)

• Roots of Life (Artifact ••)

This vegetative Artifact takes the shape of a knot of roots, with wich the bearer need never fear starvation or thirst in any outdoor location. To use it, the owner must stand upon the ground (floors, roads, and other unnatural surfaces do not count) and concentrate deeply upon the Artifact. As he does so, the character's feet begin to grow small roots and tendrils, which burrow into the ground, fixing him fast in place. For as long as the character wishes, these roots will draw water and food out of the ground, providing all the nutrition needed; each hour spent doing so allows the character to go without a single meal during the following day. In addition, being rooted into the earth is a relaxing and energizing experience; each hour spent doing so counts as three hours of regular sleep. The character is totally unaware of the outside world while rooted into the ground, however; he may reflexively uproot himself if he is attacked or otherwise harmed, but by that point it may be too late.

Hearthvines

• Hearthvine Collar (Artifact •)

Made from the spun vines, twigs and branches of various special plants on a Demesne, this Amulet is capable of socketing a single Hearthstone. The Hearthvine Collar works exactly like another Hearthstone Amulet made out of magical materials, but without the special magic material bonus. Instead, the Hearthvine Collar halves the time for attuning to the worn Hearthstone if it is from a Manse standing on the Demesne its coponents came from. It can also be outfitted with special seeds and crystals instead of a Hearthstone to convey the inherent magical abilities of these special Artifacts to the wearer. The most common uses were made of Essence Storage crystals. This practicf most certain stood model for the ultimate use of human Hearthstone Amulets.

• Viridian Essence Bloom (Artifact ••)

This unusual vegetative Artifact appears, at first glance, to be two pieces: a pale green flower, and a shimmering amber sphere around which the flower's petals are tightly wrapped. Only careful examination reveals that the flower is no more alive than the stone, and both are a single construct. When placed into a Hearthstone socket on an attuned artifact, the "flower" portion of the stone rapidly sends out tiny vine-like runners that criss-cross the artifact. Two more blossoms burst forth, their petals stand open and waiting. These two additional blossoms can be used in every way as additional Hearthstone sockets. When a Hearthstone is placed into the open petals, they close tightly around the stone, holding it in place and granting the attuned user all the usual benefits of attunement. In addition, the Viridian Essence Bloom can be placed on an artifact lacks a Hearthstone socket. The Flower melds itself seamlessly with the artifact, appearing to have grown right out of it, and produces its runners as normal, but only one additional blossom. Regardless of construction, a given artifact can only support one Viridian Essence Bloom at a time; placing a second such Artifact into a socket (whether original or via the secondary blossoms) causes all the vines and secondary blossoms to wilt and disintegrate to dust as the divided Essence flows starve both Hearthstones into uselessness. The same thing occurs if the artifact becomes unattuned, leaving only the Hearthstone still in the socket. Unfortunately, the Bloom will not remain if planted on a artifact without natural sockets that becomes unattuned - it wilts and drops off, as most flowers do in autumn.

• Moss-Body Stone (Artifact •)

Emerald splotches gleam upon the surface of this grey-brown stone. Although it works like a Hearthstone this is a product of Dragon King technolgy fusing crstals and orgnic matter. An artifact set with this stone in one of its Heartstone settings quickly grows a layer of green moss. By concentrating, the bearer of the stone may cause this moss to spread. In about a minute, the moss covers her body and the rest of her possessions, providing three additional dice to all Stealth rolls involving hiding among verdant surfaces. This additional mossy growth withers and falls off at the end of the scene. The Stone may be activated as a reflexive action by spending three motes, or on Willpower.

• Tree's Heart Gem

This Hearthstone-like Artifact looks like a polished sphere cut out of rich, close-grained wood. It is always covered in a thin layer of fragrant sap. This stone turns the blood in its bearer's body to sluggish sap, and makes him grow like a plant, uncaringly and continuously; this prevents him from suffering the effects of bleeding, and doubles the speed of bone regeneration. These benefits only apply to wounds recieved since the stone was last attuned; one cannot recieve a wound, remove the stone, then don it once more and enjoy its effects. Unfortunately, the price of this is the lingering memory of pain: while the bearer is under its effects, he feels the wound penalty of an injury at the same intensity as when he recieved it until it heals completely. Lunars suffer from this lingering pain effect, but not from the stone's main benefit, which is an external shapeshifting effect.

• Seed of Divine Constitution (Artifact ••)

Another Artifact intended for the Hearthvine Collar is the Seed of Divine Constitution. It reached the pinnacle of its production during the hot phase of the Primordial War, when the Dragonkings realized, that without the healing properties of the human Exalted, they could not survive the ongoing campaigns of battle, but by then it was already to late. The seed itsself appears like an egg-sized knot of tight-packed roots, slightly glowing from within with a warm yellow light. As long as 2 motes remain committed to this Artifact, the bearer gains the ability to soak L damage with half his Sta, heal and resist poisions and diseases like an Exalted. For twice its commitment cost, the Seed may also be socketed into an non-vegetative Artifact.

• Healing Orchid (Artifact ••)

Tools

• Pipe Lianas

Carry fresh and waste water to and from buildings. These wrist to thigh-thick plants normally grow down into or away from carved stone basins.

• Carpet Grass

Delicate-looking but exceedingly tough. It is extremely soft to lie and walk on, and it absorbs and digests dirt and spills. This grass cleans the floors of Dragon King buildings and keeps the structures clean and fragrant.

• Living Furniture

Reshapes itself to the comfort off anyone who uses it.

• Seed of Craftsman's Perfection (Artifact •••)

This transparent Seed appears to have golden swirls of light within it, and is an oblate spheroid approximately the same size as a grown man’s thumb. Its real power comes to the fore when it is planted in the ground together with an example of mortal craftsmanship of an item that the Exalted wishes to make many of. Over the course of the next year a strange tree grows from the ground where the Seed was planted, a tree that must be carefully nurtured and tended to until it finally bears fruit. When these fruit are picked and peeled, inside each will be found a copy of the item that the Exalted planted a year ago, but the magic of the Seed will have improved them. At the end of the year the Exalt who planted the tree (he need not have looked after it personally), makes an Intelligence + Craft (Arboriculture) or Survival roll. Each success means that the tree produces a crop of 1 perfect and 5 exceptional items of the type planted. The Seed itself will be found when the tree is harvested, in a pool of clear, sticky sap at the top of the trunk.

• Seed of Efficacious Duplication (Artifact •••)

The basic form of this vegetative artifact looks like an avocado pit. Once attuned, its owner can cause it to germinate into an artifact plant. The seed's power allows it to duplicate an existing artifact, to which the character must be attuned at the time he activates the hearthstone. Upon activation, the stone pops out of its setting and cracks open, revealing a rapidly-growing sprout. Over the course of the next 24 hours, it will grow into a perfect copy of the target artifact. The seed can only duplicate artifacts of rank 3 or less. If planted in fertile soil or water, it will send out roots and mature into a Motherplant bearing up to three new seeds if carefully attended to, in the duration of half a year.

Weapons

• Sword-Club (Res •/Res •••)

Spd 5, Acc +0, Dam +4L, Def +1, Rate 1, Mins Str3, Tags

Lacking the aptitude for metalwork possessed by humanity, the Dragon Kings created weapons quite similar to chopping swords. The best are made from ironwood that either have chipped obsidian blades slotted into their sides, or are carved so that a row of jutting razor sharp blades project from each side of the weapon. The weapon looks much like the jaw of a sawfish and is able to rip terrifying wounds.

• Swordstick (Artifact •)

Spd 5, Acc +1, Dmg +5L*, Def +1, Rate 2, Mins Std3, Tags

This deadly weapon consists of a long, flat club of semi-living wood. Along either side, just like the teeth in jaws of a sawfish, a single row of iron-hard thorns as long as a woman’s palm transform this club into an extremely deadly weapon. Swordsticks are the ultimate expression of one of the Dragon Kings’ oldest weapons. The first swordsticks were simply branches of ironthorn wood cut to an appropriate length. However, the Dragon King’s vegetative technology allows them to grow low bushes that produce a cluster of three or four swordsticks every two years. Unfortunately, all efforts to grow the bushes outside of Rathess have failed. When empowered with 4 motes of committed Essence, the swordstick comes to life. At this point, the thorns ooze a sap that causes all wounds to be exceptionally painful, and the club-like blade bends itself to the user’s will, aiding him in his attacks.

In addition to the damage cause by the swordstick, the thorn’s sap causes a painful burning. Characters wounded by a swordstick increase their wound penalties by +1 for the rest of the scene. A target can only suffer this penalty once per scene.

• Vine Klaive (Artifact •)

Spd , Acc , Dmg , Def , Rate , Mins , Tags

• Verdant Sower of Retribution (Artifact •••)

Unique Vineklaive

Spd 4, Acc +3, Dmg +4L, Def +1, , Mins Str3 Dex3, Tags

Commitment: 6 motes

The Verdant Sower of the Seeds of Retribution seems very fragile in its dormant state, taking the form of a delicate lattice of green Leaves arranged roughly in the shape of a curved sword. However, when essence is committed to the blade it suddenly sprouts into life. Roots wind themselves around the hilt, providing a good grip and a sturdy crosspiece. The spaces in the lattice of the blade are filled in with leaves and vines, and along the cutting portion a series of wedge-shaped, hard-edged seed pods. The plant grows back as fast as it is damaged, and gains its sustenance from essence iterated and flavoured by the enchanted lattice, making it functionally equivalent to a daiklave made from more traditional materials. However, the Verdant Sower has one power that sets it apart from other weapons. As a simple action, its wielder can sweep the sword over an area and cause it to drop a handful of seeds. Within a few seconds, the seeds have sprouted into Woodhome Defender warriors armed with thorny blades rather than the normal clubs. With a snapping sound, these plant-men detach from their stalks and advance, ready to fight for their master. It costs 3 motes per warrior summoned, and the wielder of Verdant Sower can summon no more than three in one scene. The warriors grow during the turn in which they are sown, and join combat in the next round. For the stats of the creatures see the "Woodhome Defender Vine" Artifact.

• Clinchvine Bracers (Artifact ••)

Spd 5, Acc +2, Dam +3L(P), Def +1, Rate 1, Mins , Tags

These paired bracers, which appear as half-inch-thick vines wrapped around the user’s hands and wrists, are the Dragon King's vegetative equivalent to the more familiar crushfist. It costs 2 motes to attune a pair of bracers. In addition to serving as powerful clinch enhancers, an attuned user may spend a mote of Essence when he wins a clinch roll to cause the bracers to sprout three-inch-long thorns. For the remainder of the clinch, the user's opponent must either accept a +2 difficulty penalty to her clinch roll or allow the thorns to penetrate her skin. If the opponent does not accept the penalty, then whenever the clinch ends, the opponent takes 3L damage from the thorns (this damage is considered environmental, but may only be soaked by natural soak). This damage occurs no matter which combatant chooses to end the clinch. Once the thorns have entered the skin, the opponent need no longer concern herself with the +2 difficulty.

• Schock-Gauntlet (Artifact •••)

Spd 6, Acc +0, Dmg 16L*, Rate 1, Rng 30, Mins , Tags

Spd 6, Acc+0, Dmg +8B, Def +0, Rate 2, Mins Str1, Tags

The shock gauntlet is a large gauntlet covered in what appear to be metallic leaves. Unlike more traditional gauntlets, the shock gauntlet covers nearly the entire arm of the wearer, going almost to his shoulder. Shock gauntlets were used by Dragon King troops before the fall of Rathess, especially those associated with the worship of Leeayta, the Lizard Queen. Even so, they were never very widespread, since their construction was expensive and, in the hands of an untalented soldier, could be quite disruptive to typical battle formations. The usefulness of the shock gauntlet is that it is a ranged melee weapon, as contradictory as that seems. The wearer expends 1 mote of Essence and punches in the direction of his intended target, his player making a normal Brawl or Martial Arts roll, just like an ordinary unarmed attack. The target can be as far as 30 yards away from the wearer. If the attack roll is successful, the gauntlet transmits the strength of the wearer’s punch to the target, who suffers damage exactly as if he had been hit with a normal unarmed attack. The shock gauntlet also enhances the wearer’s punches, making them far deadlier than they otherwise would be.

The character must spend 1 mote per ranged attack made.

• Thorn Thrower (Artifact •••)

Spd , Acc +2, Dmg 8L(P), Rate 2, Rng 20, Mins , Tags

Spd 4, Acc +1, Dmg +6L(P), Def , Rate , Mins Dex3, Tags

This unusual weapon consists of a thin flexible branch four feet long that holds many large thorns near one end. The user must commit 6 motes of Essence to use this weapon. The user can then cause the thorn thrower to curl up into a six inch coil that can be easily and safely carried on a belt. To use this weapon, the wearer normally flicks it like a whip at a target. Several of the large, sharp thorns fly off of the end and strike the target. These thorns are coated with an azure sap that promotes blood loss. In addition to throwing thorns, the user can also use this weapon like a short whip or chain to strike nearby opponents. Halve the target’s armor soak. Natural soak is counted normally. Anyone wounded by this weapon loses one health level every 10 turns due to bleeding, and all attempts to stop this bleeding are at +1 difficulty. A character must invest 6 motes to activate the thorn thrower and must spend 1 additional mote for each ranged thorn attack the character makes.

• Ironleaf Throwing Blade (Res ••)

Spd , Acc , Dmg , Rate , Rng , Mins , Tags

Made from the hardened, strong, dark green leaves of the Iron Bush these very light and elegant throwing knives are each a masterpiece of mystical tribal- or Dragon King craftwork.

• Bitter Wind Roses (Artifact ••)

Spd , Acc +1, Dmg +3L, Rate 4, Rng 25, Mins , Tags

At first glance, a Bitter Wind Rose is a delicate green-enameled throwing knife with a blade shaped like two leaves, two short leaf-shaped crossgaurds, a short handle resmbling a stem, and a red, yellow, white, blue, or black flower bud on the pommel. The Bitter Wind Rose is, in fact, a flower, its leaves rendered as hard and sharp as steel by centuries of careful selective breeding. In addition to behaving in combat as an exceptional throwing knife, every Bitter Wind Rose contains whithin it the seed of more of its kind. If planted and watered with a small amount of blood (one health level), a Bitter Wind Rose will blossom overnight into a small rose bush with up to ten new knives, ready to be plucked. Thus, the owner of even one of these flowers need never worry about being rendered weaponless by lost or broken knives. Bitter Wind Roses are also poisonous. The poison comes in five varieties, one for each color of rose. Each variety and its breeding is associated with one of the magical materials: red with jade, yellow with orichalcum, white with moonsilver, blue wirth starmetal, and black with soulsteel. If any attack with a Bitter Wind Rose deals damage, its victim must roll Sta + Resistance at dif 3, or suffer the roses poisonous effects as described below. Each penalty gained through the roses only affects the victim only once per combat. - Red: The red poison effects its victim’s nerves, causing weakness and confusion. Victimsloose one point of strength until the end of the scene. Anyone reduced to zero strength collapses, conscious, but unable to move. - Yellow: Yellow flowers employ a simple, but brilliant, poison that induces pain, shock, and death. The Victim immediately takes four aditional dice of damage. - White: White flowers deliver a poison that effects its victim’s circulatory system, promoting bleeding and imairing the body’s ability to defend itself. Victims loose one point of stamina until the end of the scene. - Blue: The poison of the blue flower effects its victim’s brain, bringing on strange, sometimes prophetic, hallucinations. Victims receive a +1 difficulty penalty to all physical and mental actions until the end of the scene. - Black: The black poison effects its victim’s brain as well, causing dizziness, cold numbness of the extremities, and, eventually, death. If the victim fails its test, he immediately looses one point of dexterity until the end of the scene.

Armor

• Barkcloth Skin (Res •/Res •••)

Soak: 4L/4B, Mob Pen 1, Fat 2

Fabric of living vines used by the Dragon Kings for clothing, robust protective, or light armor not unlike a Buff Jacket from very thick twine.

• Skin of Leafes (Artifact •)

Soak 5L/5B, Mob. Pen. -0, Fat 0

This suit of armor consists of an interlocking and overlapping garment of palm-sized living leaves that appear to be ribbed with shining gold. The Dragon Kings treat these leaves so that they are each as hard and flexible as the finest steel. When not worn, this hauberk appears to be made from unusually resilient autumn leaves and is both roughly made and somewhat misshapen. However, if the wearer commits 3 motes of Essence to the armor, the armor instantly changes so that it appears to be made of an exquisitely made garment of green and living leaves that fits the wearer exceptionally well. If worn by a Dragon King or one of the Solar Exalted, the Skin of Leaves gains an additional +1 to both Bashing and Lethal soak.

• Chamäleon Skin (Artifact ••)