Ruidium armor is a set of metallic armor infused with ruidium, which thereby conveys a variety of magic benefits but also the risk of ruidium corruption.
Description[]
Appearance[]
Ruidium appears as a slick, oily, crystalline mineral with blood-red streaks or veins.[4] It is stronger than iron, and if left unchecked it festers and grows as if organically.[5] As it spreads, it penetrates and bonds with everything it touches[6] for a prolonged time, including both the organic and inorganic[7] parts of armor. The result is armor with a dull, rusty color or with veins of ruidium running across it.[8]
Properties[]
Any kind of medium or heavy armor other than hide—that is, all types of armor made predominately of metal—can be infused with ruidium. Those who attune to a set of ruidium armor gain the abilities to breathe underwater and to swim as fast as they can walk. They gain resistance to psychic damage. However, if they roll a natural 1 on any saving throw, they must succeed at a DC 15 Charisma saving throw or suffer one level of exhaustion and, if they are not already suffering from ruidium corruption, they become corrupted.[8]
Wearing ruidium armor protects the wielder from the crushing pressure in the Netherdeep.[9]
If all the world's ruidium is destroyed due to the death or redemption of the Apotheon, the armor becomes +1 armor.[8]
History[]
In the adventure module Critical Role: Call of the Netherdeep, set in 836 PD, three factions in Ank'Harel end up seeking ruidium-infused equipment for related but competing reasons. The Consortium of the Vermilion Dream, the Allegiance of Allsight, and the Cobalt Soul all have goals that require access to the Netherdeep.[10] The Consortium can arrange to have a set of ruidium armor made for those who prove themselves.[11] The Allegiance of Allsight, soon after gaining access to the Netherdeep and learning that ruidium can be acquired there, perfects the crafting of ruidium armor and weapons.[1] And Maggie Keeneyes, whose party might join either of those factions,[1] after exploring Cael Morrow and the Netherdeep and experiencing dozens of battles and near-death scrapes,[12] is revealed to have acquired a set of ruidium armor.[3]
Trivia[]
- Ruidium weapons and ruidium shields can be found by the player characters (PCs) in Call of the Netherdeep in Cael Morrow or the Netherdeep, having been created incidentally, by exposure of ancient equipment to ruidium. The PCs cannot find ruidium armor in this way.
- Maggie Keeneyes's set of ruidium armor requires her to succeed at a DC 20 (not DC 15) Charisma saving throw to avoid ruidium corruption.[3]
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 See Call of the Netherdeep, p. 103.
- ↑ See Call of the Netherdeep, p. 110.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 See Call of the Netherdeep, p. 194.
- ↑ See Call of the Netherdeep, p. 7.
- ↑ See Call of the Netherdeep, p. 219.
- ↑ See Call of the Netherdeep, p. 10.
- ↑ See Call of the Netherdeep, p. 100.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 See Call of the Netherdeep, p. 215.
- ↑ See Call of the Netherdeep, p. 140. See also p. 103.
- ↑ See Call of the Netherdeep. See Chapter 4, "The Jewel of Hope".
- ↑ See Call of the Netherdeep, p. 110. This occurs after a successful Mission 3. See also p. 116: the Cobalt Soul's Jamil A'alithiya suspects this development after that faction's Mission 3.
- ↑ See Call of the Netherdeep, p. 121.
Art:
- ↑ Depiction of Maggie Keeneyes wearing a suit of ruidium plate armor, by Nikki Dawes (source). This file is a copyrighted work. Its use in this article is asserted to qualify as fair use of the material under United States copyright law.
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