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Artificers Focus Harness 241

—

by

Dale
in

From: Lineage 913 of the Tideglass Artificers

Rather than a saddle, this is an intricate harness of water-repellent leather and silver fittings that wraps around the avatar’s upper torso and shoulders. It is designed for both utility and status. It features numerous reinforced loops and clasps for holding specialized crafting tools, alchemical vials, and collection pouches. Set squarely over the sternum is a large, perfectly clear shard of Tidal Glass in a silver bezel. This shard acts as a magical focus; when the avatar channels their innate “Wave-Sight,” the crystal resonates, allowing them to perceive magical auras with greater clarity and detail than they could with their eyes alone.

Lore

This harness is Caelia’s most personal possession, more a part of her than any armor or weapon. The large, perfectly clear shard of Tidal Glass set over the sternum is, in fact, the very first piece she ever successfully created during her apprenticeship. It was an accident—a flawed attempt at a larger commissioned piece that resulted in a small, yet optically perfect, shard. While her mother, Elara, dismissed it as a failure, Caelia saw a deeper potential in its flawless clarity. In secret, she spent months polishing and attuning it, pouring her own innate magical resonance into the shard until it became a perfect lens not for light, but for magic itself.

Recognizing her own limitations in leatherworking, she took the finished focus shard and a pouch of saved coin to an old, retired Apsaran navigator in Port Aqua-Vel known only as “Kaelus.” Kaelus, a master leatherworker who now outfits aspiring adventurers, crafted the harness to her exact specifications. The leather is from a Reef-Stalker, known for its resilience to saltwater, and the silver fittings were sourced from the Ironback Range, smelted with a small amount of powdered pearl to improve their magical conductivity. The harness is therefore a synthesis of Caelia’s secret ambition and the practical, worldly wisdom of a seasoned adventurer—a tool designed for the workshop but built to withstand the rigors of the world.

Item Values

  • Tier One Stat Modifiers:
    • Intellect: +1 bonus to all checks involving the analysis or identification of magical items, potions, or runes.
    • Perception: +1 bonus to all checks made to passively notice or actively search for magical phenomena (auras, traps, illusions).
  • Skills Gained:
    • Arcane Appraisal: The wearer gains proficiency in this skill. When handling a magical or alchemical item, they have an intuitive sense of its general purpose and power level, even before a detailed analysis.
  • Passive Magical Effects:
    • Focused Resonance: The Tidal Glass shard passively dampens “background noise” from ambient magic. When the wearer uses the “Mind’s Eye” ability on an object, the information gleaned is clearer and less prone to misinterpretation from outside magical interference.
    • Utility Attunement: The silver fittings and reinforced loops are lightly enchanted to create a sympathetic link with the items they hold. The wearer can unerringly retrieve any tool, vial, or pouch from the harness by touch alone, without needing to see it.
    • Artisan’s Mark: The flawless quality of the central focus shard is a clear and undeniable mark of a highly skilled Artificer. The wearer gains a situational advantage on social checks when interacting with other artisans, scholars, enchanters, or members of a craft guild.
  • Activatable Magical Effects:
    • Aura Sight (At Will): As a main action, the wearer can channel their innate “Wave-Sight” through the focus shard. For the next minute, they can perceive active magical effects on creatures and objects within 30 feet. These auras appear as shimmering, colored halos of light. The intensity of the light indicates the power of the magic, though this does not reveal its specific function or school.
    • Resonant Analysis (Once per Long Rest): The wearer can perform a 10-minute ritual by placing a single, non-resisting object smaller than a helmet directly against the focus shard. The shard sends out a pulse of magical resonance, mapping the object’s properties. At the end of the ritual, the wearer receives a complete and accurate understanding of all the object’s magical properties, how to activate them, and the nature of any curses it may hold.
  • Specific Slot:
    • Harness
  • Tags:
    • Harness, Focus Item, Apsaran, Tidal Glass, Utility Gear, Artificer, Magical Analysis, Tier 1, Sentimental, Bespoke, Non-Armor, Divination, Identification, Sensory Enhancement, Ritual Component, Kaelus’s Craft, First Shard, Journeyman’s Focus, Reef-Stalker Hide, Silver-Wrought, Tool Bearing, Non-Combat

An object like the Artificer’s Focus Harness 241 is a bespoke tool, a highly specialized piece of equipment that is as personal to an artisan as a musical instrument is to a master bard. It would almost never be found for sale in a conventional shop. Its transaction would be a matter of specialized commission, academic trade, or desperate measures.

1. The Artisan’s Guild Commission

  • Type of Shop: The most legitimate way to acquire such an item would be to commission it directly from a master artisan’s guild, such as the Tideglass Artificer’s Guild itself or a similar high-status craft hall in Tidehaven. This is not a storefront but a professional institution where patrons and artisans negotiate formal contracts. The environment is one of quiet professionalism, surrounded by showcases of the guild’s finest works.
  • How it is Bought/Sold: A prospective buyer cannot simply purchase a focus harness of this quality. They must submit a formal petition, outlining their needs and proving their worthiness (and ability to pay). If the guild accepts, the client is paired with a master artisan. The process involves multiple in-depth consultations to design the harness, select the materials, and attune the focus crystal to the client’s specific magical signature. The creation process is lengthy, often taking months, and may require the patron to help source a particularly rare component.
  • Cost: This is the benchmark for the item’s true value, reflecting the bespoke craftsmanship and flawless materials.
    • Cost to Commission: Approximately 75 Platinum, with at least a one-third deposit required upfront.

2. The Specialist’s Bazaar

  • Type of Shop: In a major city like Port Aqua-Vel, one might find a specialized market district, such as the “Navigator’s Compass” or the “Enchanter’s Alley,” where individual master crafters and enchanting specialists have their own stalls. These are open to the public but cater to a knowledgeable clientele. Here, one could find generic, lower-quality focus items for sale.
  • How it is Bought/Sold: To acquire an item of the quality of Caelia’s harness, one would need to approach a stall run by a recognized master. A buyer would inspect the artisan’s existing work, discuss their needs, and negotiate a private commission. The transaction is less formal than a guild petition but still bound by professional reputation. It’s highly unlikely an existing, finished piece of this caliber would be for sale, as each is made to order. A buyer might be able to purchase a “standard model” focus harness with a lesser quality crystal and fewer enchantments immediately.
  • Cost: The cost varies by quality.
    • Cost to purchase a standard, non-bespoke focus harness: 30-40 Platinum.
    • Cost to commission a masterwork version (similar to Caelia’s): The price would be comparable to a full guild commission, around 70-80 Platinum.

3. The Scholar’s Auction House

  • Type of Shop: If Caelia’s harness were ever lost and rediscovered, it would likely end up in a high-end auction house like “The Antiquarian Exchange” in Tidehaven. These institutions specialize in academic artifacts, rare books, and unique enchanted items. The buyers are typically wealthy scholars, guild representatives, and mages who understand the tool’s true value for research and analysis.
  • How it is Bought/Sold: The harness would be the highlight of a specific auction, listed in a catalog with its known (or speculated) history. Interested parties would be invited to a private, pre-auction viewing where they could inspect the item under magical scrutiny. The sale itself would be a formal, tense bidding process among a small number of experts. The harness’s value here is determined not just by its function but by its unique origin and the potential to study its construction.
  • Cost: The price is determined by demand among a niche market and could be highly volatile.
    • Estimated Auction Price: Likely to sell for between 80 and 100 Platinum, potentially more if two rival institutions desire it.

4. The Black Market

  • Type of Shop: This venue is only relevant for selling the item under desperate or illicit circumstances (e.g., if it were stolen). The transaction would occur through a “fixer” or a shadow broker who deals in specialized goods. The buyers in this market are not artisans or scholars but spymasters, thieves’ guilds, or rival corporations who want the tool for a single, practical purpose: detecting magical security systems.
  • How it is Bought/Sold: The seller would be in a position of weakness. The broker, knowing the seller needs a quick and discreet sale, would offer a fraction of the item’s true worth. The buyer would not care about its lineage or artistic merit, only its “Aura Sight” capability. The transaction would be fast, anonymous, and dangerous.
  • Cost: The price is drastically reduced, reflecting the illicit nature of the sale and the buyer’s narrow interest in its function.
    • Value if Selling: A broker would offer no more than 25 Platinum.

The Artificer’s Focus Harness 241 is not a tool of direct conflict; it has no armor plating and cannot strike a blow. Its role in offense and defense is one of information and preparation. It’s an instrument of foresight, allowing its wearer to act as a strategic lynchpin by seeing what others cannot, turning knowledge itself into a potent shield and a subtle blade.

Defensive Roleplay (The Unseen Shield)

Defensively, the harness is used to identify and neutralize threats before they can manifest, protecting the wearer and their allies from magical dangers and deception.

In Hostile Territory (Ruins, Dungeons, etc.)

When exploring a dangerous or ancient location, the harness becomes the party’s early warning system for magical threats. You wouldn’t just be looking for physical traps; you’d be actively scanning for magical ones.

  • Roleplay Example: As your group enters a tomb, you’d narrate your actions: “I pause at the threshold, holding the focus shard on my chest as I concentrate. I’m extending my Wave-Sight, looking for anything that feels out of place.” A moment later, you could warn your allies, “Hold. The pressure plate for that dart trap isn’t the real danger. I see a faint, sickly green aura pulsing from the hieroglyphs carved around the archway. It feels like a curse, designed to trigger if anyone passes through. We need to find another way around or disable the runes.” You’re defending the party not by blocking a blow, but by preventing the attack from ever happening.

In Social Intrigue (Courts, Guilds, etc.)

In a tense social encounter, the harness defends against magical manipulation and hidden truths. Your Aura Sight is a silent lie detector for enchantments.

  • Roleplay Example: During a high-stakes negotiation, a rival offers you a contract to sign with an enchanted quill. You’d describe the scene: “As the ambassador pushes the treaty and quill across the table, his smile is perfectly reassuring. But I’m not looking at his face. I’m looking at the aura around the quill. It’s faint, but I can see the shimmering, coercive threads of a compulsion charm woven into its magic. I place my hand on the table and say, ‘I’ll sign with my own pen, thank you.’ “ You’ve just defended your group’s free will without revealing your methods.

Offensive Roleplay (The Unseen Blade)

Offensively, the harness is used to deconstruct an opponent’s strategy, identify their vulnerabilities, and turn their own magic against them. The attack is made with knowledge, not force.

Pre-Combat Triage (Strategic Planning)

The harness’s greatest offensive power is unleashed before a fight even begins. By using the Resonant Analysis ritual on a piece of an enemy’s gear—a cultist’s captured dagger, a goblin shaman’s fetish, an enchanted arrow—you can dismantle their entire battle plan.

  • Roleplay Example: After a brief skirmish, you recover a strange amulet from a fallen foe. You narrate the ritual: “I place the amulet against the focus shard and begin the analysis. For ten minutes, my mind is filled with the hum of its magic.” Afterwards, you can inform your party: “I understand their strategy now. This amulet doesn’t just protect the wearer; it acts as a magical beacon. Their commander is using these to coordinate their forces telepathically. If we can destroy the amulets, we can sever their communication and leave their squads isolated and confused.” You haven’t done any damage, but you’ve just crippled the enemy’s command structure.

Deconstructing an Enemy’s Defenses

In the midst of a battle against a magically protected foe, your Aura Sight becomes a targeting system for your allies, allowing you to offensively pinpoint weaknesses.

  • Roleplay Example: An enemy battle-mage is shielded by a shimmering wall of force. You would call out to your allies: “Ignore the center! The shield is a weave of three magical anchors. I can see them glowing at his shoulders and feet. The one at his left foot is flickering—it’s unstable! Concentrate all your attacks there!” You are using your unique perception to offensively guide your team’s power, turning a brute-force assault into a precision strike.

Perception of Activation:

When the Aura Sight ability of the Artificer’s Focus Harness 241 is activated, the perception is one of subtle shifts and newfound clarity, a quiet opening of a new sense rather than a dramatic surge of power.

User’s Perspective

For you, the activation is an intimate, internal process. It begins not with a sound or a flash, but with a deliberate act of will, a mental “opening” of your senses through the focus shard. The first physical sensation is a distinct coolness that spreads across your sternum from the Tidal Glass, as if a drop of cold, clear water has been placed on your skin. This is followed by a faint, high-frequency hum, a vibration so subtle it is felt in the bones of your chest rather than heard by your ears.

Your physical sight momentarily dims, as if a veil has been drawn over the world. A second later, this veil is replaced by a new, layered reality. This is your extra-sensory perception awakening. Through your Wave-Sight, you now see the world overlaid with the gentle, shifting light of magical auras. A healing potion on someone’s belt might exude a soft, green vapor; an enchanted sword might be traced with sharp, crackling lines of blue energy; a person consumed by rage might have a smoldering, chaotic red haze clinging to their form. You also gain a faint, synesthetic sense—the empathic echo of the magic. Protective wards might “smell” like clean ozone and cold stone, while a curse might carry the “taste” of ash and bitter regret.

Observer’s Perspective

To a mundane observer, the activation is almost entirely unnoticeable. They might see you briefly close your eyes or your gaze become unfocused for a second, as if you are lost in thought. If they are watching the harness closely in just the right light, they might catch a brief, internal shimmer within the Tidal Glass shard, a quick swirl of light that is easily dismissed as a simple reflection. There is no sound, no flash, no grand display.

An observer with magical senses, however, perceives the event clearly. They would see your personal aura, normally held close to your body, pulse gently outwards in a 30-foot wave of sensory magic. They would also see the focus shard itself glow with a soft, internal silver light, a clear sign that a divination effect is active. To them, it’s obvious that you are magically scrutinizing your surroundings.

Positives

The primary positive is its subtlety. You can activate this ability in the middle of a tense negotiation, while walking through a crowded market, or during a formal dinner, and no one without magical senses will be the wiser. This provides an immense information advantage in social and investigative situations. Because it is an at-will ability with no significant magical drain, it can be used frequently, allowing you to maintain a constant state of magical awareness. It is a non-fatiguing sense, as natural to you as sight or hearing.

Negatives

The greatest drawback is sensory distraction. While Aura Sight is active, you are processing two distinct layers of visual information. You might become so focused on the swirling aura of a magical trap that you fail to notice the mundane pressure plate right in front of you. Your perception of the purely physical world is diminished. Furthermore, the ability provides sight, not understanding. A “red, angry aura” could be a fire trap, but it could also be an illusion of one, or simply a sign of a person’s intense emotional state. Misinterpretation is a constant risk and can lead to disastrously wrong conclusions. Finally, because you are actively perceiving the magical spectrum, you may be more vulnerable to certain illusions or magical effects that are specifically designed to fool or overwhelm magical senses.

Guild Standard Formula: Diviner’s Utility Harness

This document outlines the approved process for crafting a Tier 1 magical focus harness in the Apsaran tradition. The resulting item is a durable and reliable tool for any individual engaged in magical analysis, enchantment, or academic research.

Materials Needed

  • Primary Hide (Half Hide): The treated, water-repellent leather of a mature Reef-Stalker. The hide must be sourced from the Sunstone Coastlands for optimal flexibility and durability.
  • Focus Crystal (One, Uncut): A raw, uncut shard of Tidal Glass of at least ‘High Clarity’ grade. While absolute flawlessness is not required for a standard model, the shard must be free of significant internal fractures.
  • Fittings (Three Ingots): Purified silver ingots, suitable for fine metalworking. Silver is required for its high magical conductivity.
  • Polishing Agent (One Pouch): Finely powdered and consecrated moonstone. This is used in the final stages of polishing the focus crystal to enhance its magical clarity.
  • Binding Thread (100 yards): A spool of silk thread that has been steeped in a silver nitrate solution, preparing it for later enchantment.
  • Runic Ink (One Vial): A vial of enchanter’s ink with a lapis lazuli base, used for inscribing runes of perception and focus.

Tools Required

  • Master Leatherworker’s Kit: A complete set of professional-grade knives, awls, stitching prongs, and burnishers.
  • Artificer’s Shaping Hammer: The specialized hammer with both a flat face and a pointed peen, necessary for the delicate work of forging the bezel and setting the crystal.
  • Glassworker’s Polishing Set: A series of grinding wheels, polishing cloths, and specialized grips designed for shaping and finishing delicate crystals without fracturing them.
  • Jeweler’s Anvil and Forge: A small, precision forge suitable for fine silverwork.
  • Runic Engraving Stylus: A fine-tipped stylus or calligraphy brush capable of inscribing incredibly small and precise magical runes.
  • A Well-Lit Workshop: Unlike many magical crafts, this process requires a clean, stable, and exceptionally well-lit environment, free from magical interference.

Skill Requirements

  • Primary Skill: Artisan Leatherworking (Fine Gear). The crafter must be skilled in creating intricate, fitted items, not just heavy armor.
  • Secondary Skill: Gem Cutting & Polishing. A steady hand and a deep understanding of crystal shaping are required to prepare the focus shard without shattering it.
  • Required Knowledge: Arcane Theory & Runic Inscription. The crafter must understand the principles of how magical foci work and be able to accurately inscribe the necessary runes to activate the item’s properties.

Crafting Steps

  1. Crystal Preparation (Duration: 2 Days): This is the most demanding step. The raw Tidal Glass shard must be painstakingly cut and polished. The artisan uses the grinding wheels to create the desired shape, then spends many hours with the polishing cloths and powdered moonstone, working the surface until it is optically perfect and magically clear. A single moment of impatience can shatter the crystal, wasting the entire project.
  2. Harness Construction (Duration: 1 Day): The Reef-Stalker hide is carefully cut to the desired pattern, with straps, tool loops, and pouches precisely measured. The pieces are stitched together using the silver-infused silk thread. The edges are then burnished and sealed for maximum durability and water resistance.
  3. Bezel Forging and Setting (Duration: 4 Hours): Using the jeweler’s forge, the artisan melts the silver ingots and forges a custom-fitted bezel designed to hold the finished crystal. This requires precise metalwork. Once the bezel is complete, the polished Tidal Glass shard is carefully set within it. The Artificer’s Shaping Hammer is used to gently secure the prongs of the bezel without putting direct pressure on the crystal itself. The finished bezel is then securely stitched to the sternum of the harness.
  4. Final Enchantment (Duration: 2 Hours): This final step awakens the harness’s magical potential. Using the Runic Engraving Stylus and the special ink, the artisan must inscribe a series of nearly-invisible runes of ‘Clarity,’ ‘Perception,’ and ‘Focus’ onto the silver fittings and the back of the bezel. The process requires immense concentration, as a single misplaced line can disrupt the enchantment. Once the runes are complete and the ink has set, the item is complete, and its magical properties become active.

Parable of Worthless Shard

And it came to pass, in the high city that floats upon the air, a young maiden of the glass-shaping line was put to her first great test. Her Matron, a woman whose countenance was as stern as a cliff-face, commanded her to create a window pane, one that could hold the light of the dawn without breaking. The maiden worked for a moon’s turning, her hands gentle, her heart full of focus. But she was young, and her will faltered for but a moment. The great pane she was coaxing from the water and light cracked, leaving only a single, small shard, no bigger than a child’s palm.

The Matron beheld the shard and her voice was cold. “You have failed,” she said. “This is a worthless thing, too small for a window, too flawed for a lens. It is a stone with no purpose. Cast it into the sea.” But the maiden looked at the shard, and though it was small, she saw that it was perfectly clear, holding no color within it, only a deep stillness. And in her heart, she felt it was not worthless. In secret, she kept the shard, hiding it away from the disapproving eyes of her kin.

She took the shard to a hidden place, a small workshop where the sound of the sea-wind could be her only teacher. She did not work on it with common tools of grinding and grit. She worked on it with her will. Each day, she would hold the shard to her sternum, closing her eyes and breathing the world’s secret breath into it. She polished it not with sand, but with the captured foam of a breaking wave. She smoothed it not with leather, but with the light of the rising sun focused through a drop of water. For a full year, she did this. The shard did not grow larger, but its inner stillness grew deeper and clearer, until it seemed to hold the quiet of the deepest ocean trench.

When her work was done, she knew the stone needed a worthy vessel. She traveled to the great port city, a place of many ships and many souls, seeking an old artisan. He was called the Stitcher of the Tides, for it was said he could sew leather with a thread spun from the currents. He had been a great navigator in his youth but now lived a simple life, mending the sails of sailors and the boots of travelers.

The maiden came before him and showed him the polished shard. “I need a harness for this,” she said. “One worthy of its clarity.” The old man looked at the shard, then at the maiden’s proud face. He sighed. “It is just a piece of glass, child. Clear, yes, but small. Why fashion a grand harness for such a small thing?” She replied, “Its worth is not in its size, but in what it can see.”

The Stitcher of the Tides, who had seen the pride of many youths, decided to test her. He reached into a pouch and pulled out three silver coins, laying them upon his bench. They looked the same. “One of these was given to me by an honest fisherman for mending his net,” he said. “One I took from the purse of a thief who tried to cheat me. And one has never left my own hand. If your stone can truly see, tell me which is which.”

The maiden smiled. She did not look at the coins with her eyes. Instead, she took her shard and held it against her heart, just as she had done for a year in her secret workshop. She closed her eyes and looked through the stone with her inner sight. The world of shape and metal faded, and in its place, she saw the inner color of the hands that had held the coins. She pointed to the first. “This one,” she said, “shines with a clean, bright light. It is the fisherman’s.” She pointed to the second. “This one has a dark, grasping shadow clinging to it. It is the thief’s.” She pointed to the last. “And this one feels of salt and leather and long years. It is yours.”

The old man’s eyes grew wide, for she was correct. He had tested her claim, and found it true. He picked up the shard and looked at it with new respect. “You are right, child,” he murmured. “This is no common stone.” And so, he agreed to make the harness. He took the finest hide, and with the thread that was like the currents, he stitched a harness of great utility and simple beauty. Together, they set the shard in a silver bezel over the heart, a testament not to a grand window, but to a small, perfect truth.

The moral of the story is: That which is dismissed as worthless may hold the greatest value, for true sight is not measured by what can be seen, but by what can be understood.

Suggested conversions to other systems:

Call of Cthulhu (7th Edition)

The Y’ha-nthlei Analytic Harness

This strange harness appears to be made from a non-terrestrial, waterproof leather, fitted with clasps of a silvery metal that does not tarnish. Set in a bezel over the chest is a large, perfectly clear crystal that feels unnaturally cold. It was recovered from the effects of a Deep One hybrid cultist. Investigators believe it is a tool of their alien science, allowing the user to perceive energies normally invisible to the human eye.

  • Function: When worn, an Investigator may attempt to activate the harness by passing a POW x5 roll. If successful, they can perceive the world through the crystal’s lens. This grants a Bonus Die on any Spot Hidden roll to notice magical or hyper-dimensional phenomena, such as invisible creatures, psychic residue, or shimmering gateways.
  • Cost of Sight: Activating the harness costs the user 1 Magic Point. Furthermore, the sights revealed are not benign auras, but rather the sickly, non-Euclidean energies that underpin reality and the true, hideous forms of disguised entities. Witnessing this forces an immediate Sanity roll (1/1d4 SAN loss). Prolonged use often leads to the development of a persistent belief that the mundane world is merely a thin veil over a horrifying reality, which may manifest as a new phobia or mania at the Keeper’s discretion.

Blades in the Dark

The Spirit-Lens Harness

A Leech-crafted harness of hardened ghost-leather with silver fittings that are cold to the touch. It has numerous loops for your tools, but its main feature is a large, polished shard of ghost-glass set over the sternum. It hums faintly when in the presence of strong spectral energy.

Special Item: Occult, Warded Load: 1

  • Functions: As a piece of specialist gear, the harness grants the following abilities:
  • When you Study a ghost, an echo, or an occult disturbance, you can use the harness to get a better look at its nature. You gain +1d to your action roll.
  • You can use the harness to perform a special action: Reveal Resonance. When you scrutinize a person or object, this action can tell you if they are possessed, haunted, or under the influence of a powerful spirit. This is always a Risky action, and the feedback can be jarring; on a 1-3, you take 1 Stress as you experience a flash of the spirit’s own trauma.
  • Once per score, you can perfectly attune the lens to a specific ghost you are observing. When you do, ask the GM for one specific detail about the ghost’s primary emotional anchor or a hidden weakness.

Dungeons & Dragons (5th Edition)

Artificer’s Amulet of Analysis

Wondrous item, uncommon (requires attunement)

This item consists of an intricate leather harness fitted with a large, perfectly clear crystal set in a silver bezel, designed to be worn over the chest. Despite its appearance, it is magically weightless and can be worn over armor.

  • While wearing this harness, you have advantage on any Intelligence (Arcana) check made to recall information about magical items, alchemical substances, or technological devices.
  • The harness has 5 charges. You can use an action to expend 1 or more of its charges to cast one of the following spells from it: detect magic (1 charge) or identify (1 charge).
  • The harness regains 1d4 + 1 expended charges daily at dawn.

Knave (2nd Edition)

Diviner’s Harness

An intricate leather harness with many loops for tools. A large, perfectly clear crystal is set in a silver fitting over the chest.

  • Slots: 1
  • Abilities:
    • When you look “through” the crystal (by concentrating on it), you can perceive active magic on creatures and objects as faint, colored auras.
    • Once per day, you may carefully study an item while touching it to the crystal for 10 minutes. At the end of this time, you learn all of its magical properties, curses, and any command words.
    • You have a bonus (roll with advantage) on any roll made to understand, appraise, or disable a magical trap or device.

Fate Core

Focus of the Truth-Seeing Shard

In Fate, this harness is not an item with a list of stats, but a significant part of your character’s identity. It is best represented as an Item of Power that grants a new character Aspect and several related Stunts.

Aspect: Bearer of the Artificer’s Focus

  • This is a central truth about your character. You can invoke this Aspect for a +2 bonus or a re-roll on any roll where perceiving hidden magical truths or demonstrating your status as a master artisan would be beneficial. This could apply to analyzing a strange artifact, seeing through a magical disguise, or negotiating with a powerful guild. The GM can also compel this Aspect to introduce complications; for example, your focus might reveal a terrifying truth you’d rather not know, or its sensitivity could cause you to become overwhelmed in a magically dense environment.

Stunts:

  • Aura Sight: Because I can perceive the inner color of things, I get a +2 to Overcome obstacles when I am trying to see through magical illusions or identify an active spell.
  • Resonant Analysis: Once per session, I can use my focus to study an object for a few minutes. I can ask the GM one specific question about the object’s magical nature, purpose, or history, and the GM must answer truthfully.
  • Artisan’s Mark: Because my focus is an undeniable mark of my lineage’s skill, I can use my Craft skill in place of my Rapport skill when I am interacting socially with other artisans, scholars, or enchanters.

Numenera & Cypher System

The Auric Resonance Scanner

This device is a relic of a prior world, a harness made of a supple, self-repairing synth-leather. Its fittings are silvered, conductive filaments, and a large, perfectly clear datasphere-linked crystal is set over the sternum. It allows the user to scan and analyze the complex energy signatures of the numenera.

Level: 1d6+2 Form: A wearable utility harness. Effect: This artifact allows the wearer to better understand and perceive the numenera.

  • Passive: The wearer’s tasks involving identifying the function or nature of the numenera are eased by one step.
  • Active: Aura Sight. Action to activate. For one minute, the wearer can perceive the energy signatures of active cyphers, artifacts, iotum, and creatures with strong energy fields (such as automatons) as shimmering, colored auras. This allows the user to know an object is a piece of the numenera without having to touch or analyze it first.
  • Active: Deep Scan. Action to initiate a one-minute scan of a single object within immediate range. At the end of this time, the user learns the object’s function, level, and depletion (if it is a cypher or artifact). Depletion: 1 in 1d100 (Check only when the Deep Scan active ability is used).

Pathfinder (2nd Edition)

ARTIFICER’S RESONANCE HARNESS – ITEM 3

UNCOMMON, MAGICAL, DIVINATION, INVESTED Price 60 gp Usage worn harness; Bulk L

This intricate harness is made of water-repellent leather with silver fittings. Set over the chest is a large, flawless crystal that hums with a faint magical energy when you invest the item. The harness has numerous reinforced loops for holding tools, vials, and pouches.

  • While wearing the harness, you gain a +1 item bonus to Crafting checks and to checks made to Identify Magic or Recall Knowledge about magical items.

Activate (envision) Frequency at will; Effect You focus on the crystal, gaining the effects of a 1st-level detect magic. You can Sustain this activation.

Activate (envision, exploration) Frequency once per day; Effect You touch the harness’s focus crystal to an object for 1 minute. At the end of this time, you learn all of the object’s properties as if you had successfully used the Identify Magic exploration activity with a result of critical success. This is a discovery activity.

Savage Worlds (Adventure Edition)

The Diviner’s Harness

This is a masterwork leather harness with numerous loops and pouches for tools. A large, clear crystal set in silver rests over the wearer’s sternum. It is a prized tool among scholars and artificers.

  • Weight: 2
  • Notes:
    • Artisan’s Eye: The wearer has a keen eye for craftsmanship and magical disturbances. They gain a +1 bonus to all Repair and Notice rolls made to examine or identify magical items, arcane devices, or hidden runes.
    • Guild Status: The harness is an obvious mark of a serious practitioner of a craft. The wearer gains a +1 bonus to Persuasion rolls when interacting with other artisans, scholars, or guilds.
    • Powers: The harness grants access to the following powers as Innate Abilities, requiring no Power Points to activate:
      • Detect Arcana: The wearer may cast this power at will.
      • Analyze Arcane: Once per day, the wearer may cast this power by touching an object for one minute.

Shadowrun (Sixth World)

Saeder-Krupp ‘Tiefsee’ Analysis Harness

This sophisticated piece of equipment is a favorite among corporate mages and paranormal investigators who can afford Saeder-Krupp’s exorbitant prices. The harness is made of ballistic cloth interwoven with fiber-optic sensors and fitted with numerous utility pouches. Its centerpiece is a large, flawless optical crystal, which is actually a complex dual-natured sensor and a low-grade Power Focus.

  • Type: Magical Focus / Utility Gear
  • Concealability: Worn over armor
  • Availability: 16F
  • Cost: 85,000 Nuyen
  • Effects:
    • Assensing Focus (Rating 2): When worn and active, the harness provides a +2 dice pool bonus to all Assensing tests.
    • Aura Window: As a minor action, the user can look through the crystal to get a narrow, focused view of the Astral Plane without fully projecting. This allows for making Assensing tests on objects and individuals in the physical world. Each use requires the user to resist 2 Stun Drain (Willpower + Logic).
    • Spectral Analysis: The harness includes a built-in magical scanner. The user gains a +2 dice pool bonus on any Arcana or Software tests made to identify the properties of a magical item, focus, or alchemical preparation.

Starfinder

AbadarCorp ‘Clarity’ Analysis Harness

Marketed to scholars, xenobiologists, and Starfinder agents, this technological harness is a high-end, multi-spectrum sensor suite. It consists of a durable utility harness with a prominent, crystal-lensed sensor unit that rests on the wearer’s chest.

CLARITY ANALYSIS HARNESS – LEVEL 6 CATEGORY Technological Item; PRICE 4,100 credits SLOTS 1; BULK L CAPACITY 20; USAGE 1/minute DESCRIPTION This advanced sensor suite is worn on the torso and grants the following abilities:

  • Enhanced Analysis: The harness’s passive sensors grant you a +2 insight bonus to Mysticism and Engineering checks made to identify magic or technology.
  • Aura Scan: As a standard action, you can activate the harness’s primary scanner. For the next minute, you automatically know whether any creature or object you can see within 30 feet is magical. This uses 1 charge.
  • Deep Analysis: By touching the sensor to an item for 1 minute, you can initiate a deep scan. This duplicates the effects of a 1st-level identify spell on that item. This uses 4 charges.

Traveller (Mongoose 2nd Edition)

SuSAG ‘Spectre’ Multi-Band Sensor Harness

A piece of restricted diagnostic equipment manufactured by Susumo-Sosei Astro-Genetics. The Spectre harness is a wearable sensor suite designed for field technicians and scientists needing to analyze complex energy and biological signatures without bulky handheld equipment.

  • Tech Level: 13
  • Weight: 2 kg
  • Cost: 80,000 Cr
  • Legality: Restricted (Advanced Corporate/Scientific Equipment)
  • Traits:
    • Multi-Spectrum Sensor: The harness is a sophisticated sensor package. The wearer gains DM+2 on any Electronics or Science check made to detect, scan, or analyze energy fields, active psionic activity, or unusual biological readings.
    • Contact Analysis: By holding the central sensor against a solid object for one minute, the device can perform a limited material and energy analysis, identifying the object’s primary composition and detecting any active power sources or unusual energy emissions within it. This grants DM+1 on any subsequent checks made to understand or repair the object.

Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay (4th Edition)

The Alchemist’s Aethyric Lens

A rare and valuable tool, sometimes crafted by Elven artisans or the most gifted masters of the Imperial Colleges of Magic. The device consists of a leather harness holding a large, perfectly polished crystal lens in a silver frame. It allows the wearer to peer into the dangerous and unseen world of the Aethyr.

  • Weight: 1
  • Qualities: Fine, Magical
  • Special Rules:
    • Aethyric Sight: The wearer can gaze through the lens to see the Winds of Magic. This grants them a +20 bonus to all Perception Tests made to Detect magical phenomena. However, gazing upon the raw Aethyr is unsettling; using this ability for more than a minute at a time, or in a place of strong magical corruption, requires a Challenging (+0) Cool Test to avoid gaining a Stunned Condition.
    • Artisan’s Eye: The lens reveals subtle flaws and hidden properties in fine materials. The wearer gains a +10 bonus to any Trade skill test made to appraise the quality of gems, alchemical ingredients, or metals.
    • Deeper Scrutiny: Once per day, the wearer can study a single object through the lens for 10 minutes. At the end of this period, they may make a Challenging (+0) Lore (Magic) Test. If successful, they learn the primary properties of the magical item. For each +SL they achieve on the test, they learn one additional piece of information, such as the number of enchantments, the item’s general purpose, or a hint about any curses it may bear.