Winterbark Barding

Armor (studded leather), rare

This flexible armor is crafted of hammered cedar fibers, woven with overlapping scales of hardened bark. Typically crafted to fit a horse, reindeer, or similar Large quadruped, though they can magically resize to fit a Small, Medium, or Huge quadrupedal animal of any sort. It protects the wearer as +1 studded leather.

An animal wearing winterbark barding leaves no tracks and can move through trees and natural undergrowth without impediment, ignoring difficult terrain from vegetation, snow, and ice. The animal can survive comfortably in environments as cold as -50 degrees Fahrenheit and has advantage on Constitution saving throws to avoid exhaustion from extreme cold environments colder than that. When the wearer is attacked by a plant creature or a non-magical weapon made entirely from wood, as a reaction it can gain resistance to bludgeoning, piercing, or slashing damage from that attack. Once used, this ability cannot be used again until the wearer completes a short rest. While magic items vary in power and rarity, artifacts and relics are items that are truly unique, often with a lineage and history that spans from ancient times or a legacy of unearthly power or origin. Artifacts and relics are always unique and, touched by the hand of divinity (often literally being fashioned by the hand of a god) or epic magics and mysteries, they are almost impossible to destroy. The terms artifact and relic are functionally synonymous in terms of game rules, generally being distinguished only in the sense of their origin. Relics are typically divine or religious in origin, carrying some spark of divine essence and sometimes the very living remains of deity, demigod, or saint. Artifacts are typically the work of mortal crafters, applying the totality of their talents into creating a magical masterwork whose name has become legend.

This chapter also includes items from the other end of the spectrum, whose very name has become a watchword of anathema and woe. Cursed items can be unique, and for that matter some artifacts may grant benefits but also carry a terrible price for their power, but other cursed items are simply malfunctions, accidents, and misbegotten magical errors of the enchanter’s art. Their effects may always be dire, or they may function beneficially for a time (or at least deceive their user into believing they are helpful) before inevitably betraying them and bringing disaster.