Mandible Guards

From: Hive 7384 of the Firewing

Small, curved pieces of armored chitin that fit snugly over the avatar’s mandibles, protecting this vulnerable area during combat.

Lore: Strength of the Bite

• Insect mandibles are incredibly powerful tools, used for both gathering food and self-defense. However, even strong mandibles can crack or chip in the heat of battle.
• Avatars have learned to protect this vital asset by adapting smaller pieces of chitin, often from powerful beetles or hard-shelled insects. These are carefully shaped to fit their own mandibles without hindering movement.
• Some believe wearing Mandible Guards imbues them with a fraction of the original insect’s ferocity, making their own bites a force to be reckoned with.

Uses: The Unbreakable Fangs

• The primary function of Mandible Guards is protection. They shield the avatar’s mandibles from injuries that could impede their ability to eat or defend themselves.
• The reinforced mandibles provide an additional offensive edge. Bites can deliver a more powerful impact, potentially disarming foes or cracking tough hides.
• In some cultures, Mandible Guards might be seen as a badge of experience, worn only by those who have proven themselves in combat.

Game Stats

• Tier One Stats: +1 Armor Class to Head/Mouth
• Skills: +1 to Intimidation rolls made by displaying mandibles (baring teeth, etc.), OR +1 to grapple/disarm attempts using a bite.
• Slots: 1 Armor Slot (or classified as part of existing headwear)
• Cost: Moderate (Requires locating suitable chitin pieces, some skill at crafting)
• Tags: Armor, Natural, Insect, Protective, Offensive
• Appearance: Two curved plates of chitin, often a darker hue than the avatar’s main coloration. They fit snugly over the upper and lower mandibles, potentially featuring small spikes or ridges inspired by the original insect.

Additional Notes

• Higher tier Mandible Guards could exist, made from even tougher insect exoskeletons, offering a greater armor bonus.
• Some versions might be enchanted to deliver a venomous sting with a bite, or other magical effects.

Enchantments

• Types: Enchantments in Saṃsāra could range from subtle to powerful, drawing on various magical energies found within the world. Here are some examples:
  • Elemental Attunement: Weapons or armor imbued with fire, frost, lightning, etc., dealing additional damage or granting resistances.
  • Empathic Resonance: Items that amplify emotions or allow for limited mental communication (similar to Hivemind Nectar effects).
  • Nature’s Boon: Enchantments tied to Flameflowers or other plants, aiding healing or granting temporary boosts to stats.
• Application: Enchantments could be woven into items during crafting, applied through potions or rituals, or even be innate powers of certain creatures or locations within Saṃsāra.

Protective Aura

• Source:  Protective auras could have various origins:
  • Divine Gifts: Auras granted by deities or powerful spirits in the world.
  • Magical Rituals: Spells or rites that create a temporary protective field around the target.
  • Inherent Abilities: Certain creatures might naturally possess an aura that disrupts attacks or weakens foes.
• Effects: Protective auras could offer:
  • Damage Reduction: Reducing the impact of physical or magical attacks.
  • Condition Resistance: Protecting against poison, paralysis, or fear effects.
  • Barrier: A physical or energy barrier that deflects projectiles or certain types of attacks.

Significance

• Quest Objects: Enchantments or auras could be key elements in specific quests or adventures. A weapon with a unique enchantment might be needed to defeat a powerful foe, or a lost artifact with a protective aura might be sought after.
• Cultural Heritage: Different cultures within Saṃsāra might have unique enchanting traditions or value specific auras, reflecting their beliefs and relationship to magic.

Symbolism

• Elemental Symbolism: Fire for passion/destruction, water for healing/fluidity, earth for stability, etc. Enchantments and auras can take on these meanings.
• Creature Symbolism: Enchantments drawing power from specific creatures (i.e., a Jewel Beetle enchantment representing resilience) imbues items with a deeper meaning.
• Personal Representation: Auras or enchantments could reflect the avatar’s personality or beliefs (a fiery aura for a hot-headed fighter, or a calming aura for a healer)

Other Information

• Rarity: Powerful enchantments or auras could be rare, creating a sense of awe and making their possessors stand out.
• Limitations: There should be limits to the power of enchantments to avoid imbalance. This could be cost, the need for specific materials, or even potential side effects.

Song of Shattered Teeth

Once, there was only the hunger, the endless hunger for sweetness the Flameflowers held. We were small, and the world was full of teeth larger than ours. Even the armored beetles, who seemed unbreakable, could be pierced by a stronger beak or talon.

There was Bitter-Wing, who wept not for herself, but for the many younglings whose mandibles were cracked before their first flight. “Why,” she asked the wind, “must our tools for eating also be our weakest parts?”

The wind, it carried no answer, only the scent of crushed leaves. Yet, beneath the leaves lay a beetle, broken not by hunger, but by the fall of a heavy branch. Bitter-Wing saw its shell gleam even in death.

With care, she took the hard plates that had guarded the beetle’s jaws.  They were dark and strong. With Flameflower silk and her own clever weaving, she made them fit her kind.

At first, the others only stared. But the next hunt, one brave one wore the guards. He returned, mandibles whole, carrying twice his share.  Soon, all the hunters wore the gift of Bitter-Wing, and their song was less of sorrow, and more of victory.

Moral: Sometimes, the tools of life can also become the tools of survival.

Suggested conversions to other systems:

Call of Cthulhu

• Description: These chitin guards look unsettlingly like the jaws of a much larger insect. They feel surprisingly sturdy beneath your touch.
• Skill Bonus: +10% to Intimidation, particularly when baring your teeth.
• Sanity Cost: Initial equip -1 Sanity. There’s something primal and disturbing about enhancing your own mouth for combat.
• Notes: Call of Cthulhu focuses less on hard stats and more on the psychological toll of the unnatural. This version fits that tone.

Blades in the Dark

• Armor Rating: 1 (Provides moderate protection against physical harm)
• Special Quality: Ferocious – Adds +1d to Skirmish actions where you utilize a bite attack.
• Entanglement: Wearing Mandible Guards makes you seem dangerous, even monstrous. May deter some, but attracts the attention of rivals or those who see you as a potential threat.
• Notes: Blades in the Dark is about action and consequences. The Mandible Guards make you more effective in a fight, but also subtly change how others perceive you.

Dungeons & Dragons (5th Edition)

• Item Type: Mandible Guards (Uncommon Wondrous Item)
• Properties: Requires attunement. While wearing the Mandible Guards, you have advantage on Strength (Athletics) checks made to grapple a creature. Additionally, your unarmed strikes can use your Strength modifier and deal 1d4 piercing damage.
• Notes: Standard D&D magic item format. The emphasis is on enhancing the wearer’s grappling potential and giving them a unique unarmed combat option.

Knave

• Defense Bonus: +1
• Trait: Biter – If an enemy fails their Defense roll against a melee attack from you, you have the option to forgo regular damage and attempt to Grapple them instead (rolling as if it were a normal attack)
• Notes: Knave keeps it simple. The Mandible Guards boost survivability and offer a thematic way to control the battlefield.

Fate

• Aspect: Fangs of the Beetle.  This aspect can be invoked when trying to intimidate someone with a display of your mandibles, or when making a grappling/disarm attempt that utilizes your bite.  Compelling this aspect might represent the guards making you seem overly aggressive, or interfering with delicate tasks that require fine mouth control.
• Stunt (Optional):  Savage Bite – Once per session, spend a Fate point to automatically create an advantage like  Pinned Foe or Knocked Prone when successfully grappling with your bite.

Numenera/Cypher System

• Artifact (Level 2): Mandible Guards reduce the difficulty of Might-based tasks related to grappling, disarming, or resisting those actions by one step.  Depletion roll of 1 in 1d20 (or higher if overused).
• Special Property (Cypher): Piercing Bite – Can be activated as an action (Might check, difficulty 3) to deal 4 points of damage directly to an opponent’s Speed pool (representing the pain and momentary disorientation).

Pathfinder (2nd Edition)

• Item Type: +1 Mandible Guards (Uncommon)
• Traits: Magical, Insect
• Special Property:  Ferocious Bite – While wearing the Mandible Guards, you gain the Improved Grapple  and  Disarm  feats. Additionally, you can make unarmed strikes with your bite that deal 1d4 piercing damage.

Savage Worlds

• Armor Bonus: +1 (head/face region only)
• Special:  Biter –  Wearer must make a Fighting roll to successfully grapple an opponent with a bite. Success means normal grapple rules.  A Raise means the foe also suffers a Shaken condition as the bite inflicts unexpected pain.

Shadowrun (6th Edition)

• Type: Armor Modification (can be added to existing helmets or headwear)
• Armor Bonus: +1 Ballistic/Impact Armor (Face/Mouth Region)
• Capacity: 2
• Essence Cost: 0.1 (While mostly natural, the enchantments used to strengthen it have a weak magical signature)
• Special Feature: Intimidating Display – As a simple action, you can make an Intimidation + Willpower (4) opposed test  to momentarily unnerve a foe, causing them to suffer -1 dice on their next  action.
• Notes:  Shadowrun balances gear with potential drawbacks like Essence cost.  This version makes the Mandible Guards a solid defensive boost with a tactical edge that fits the world’s tone.

Starfinder

• Item Type:  Hybrid Armor Augmentation (Tier 1)
• Armor Bonuses:  Not applicable, provides bonuses to other areas
• Special Property:  Ferocious Bite –  You gain a Bite unarmed attack that deals 1d3 Kinetic damage.  You also gain a +2 circumstance bonus to Athletics checks made to grapple a creature.
• Upgrades:  Can have 1 Upgrade slot for additional effects (venomous saliva, integrated sensors, etc.)
• Notes:  Starfinder emphasizes versatility and customization. This version focuses on making the avatar better at grappling and giving them a unique unarmed option.

Traveller (Mongoose 2nd Edition)

• Tech Level: TL9-11 (Depending on how much magical alteration is involved in its creation)
• Type: Mandible Augmentation – Often fitted alongside other helmets or breathing masks.
• Armor Value:  2
• Effect:  +1 to any Intimidation task and +1 to Strength when grappling.
• Special Feature: The Mandible Guards could have the Unreliable quirk, given their delicate construction (they might become dislodged on a critical failure, etc.).
• Notes: Traveller often has gear with downsides to offset their power. This keeps them interesting but with built-in tradeoffs.

Warhammer (Fantasy or 40K)

• Warhammer Fantasy:
  • Type: Chitin Mandible Guards (Primitive Armor Attachment)
  • Armor Points: 1 (Head)
  • Special Feature: Fearsome – Enemies charging the wearer must pass a Leadership Test or suffer -1 to their Weapon Skill for the first round of melee.
• Warhammer 40K:
  • Type: Xenos Mandible Guards
  • Armor Value: 3 (Head)
  • Special Quality: Disturbing – While interacting with Imperial citizens or similar groups, suffer -20 to Fellowship-based tests due to the unsettling appearance of the guards.
• Notes: Warhammer focuses on battlefield impact. The Fantasy version is straightforward, while the 40K version leans into the strange, scavenged nature of such an item.