Contract 313 of the Uncaged Fury

Looks Like        A jagged iron choker etched with symbols of broken chains and bestial rage

Lore      Whispers tell of a barbarian warrior who sought ultimate strength. He struck a pact with a demonic entity bound in iron, promising servitude in the afterlife in exchange for unbridled power in the here and now.

Slot       Neck

Roleplay            * Emphasis: Aggressive*

Costs  * Mana:* 8 * Upkeep:* 1 (1 point damage per round upon activation)

Magics               * Unbound Savagery:* Gain advantage on Strength-based attack rolls and intimidation checks. Your melee attacks deal an additional 1d4 damage.

Tags      Contract Magic, Demonic, Strength

Offense — The Contract 313 of the Uncaged Fury is an explicitly offensive implement. It pushes the wearer toward unyielding aggression and transforms them into a force of destruction. Here’s how it could be used in different environments:

• Open Battlefields: The wearer becomes a whirlwind of destruction, charging into the fray and striking down foes with boosted strength and damage. The bonus to intimidation can demoralize enemies, making them easier to rout.
• Tight Quarters: The berserker-like rage granted by the contract makes the wearer fearless in claustrophobic or crowded environments. They might even ignore minor wounds and obstacles to continue their brutal assault.
• Against Large Foes: The additional damage and unwavering aggression make the wearer a threat even to much larger creatures. While taking some hits is inevitable, the character can potentially land devastating strikes.

Defense — This item offers minimal direct defensive benefits. Instead, its “defense” lies in its overwhelming offensive power and ability to frighten enemies:

• Deterrent: The raw power and intimidating aura the wearer projects can make some enemies hesitate before engaging.
• Distraction through Pain: The wearer’s aggression and disregard for their own injuries might make them seem unpredictable and incredibly dangerous, buying them a few precious moments in a fight.
• Offensive Defense: The best way to survive while using this contract is to quickly and brutally subdue threats before they get the chance to fight back.

Considerations

• Roleplaying Impact: This contract heavily influences its wearer. The GM and player should collaborate on how the character grapples with the bloodlust and demonic taint it brings.
• Risk vs. Reward: The item offers great power but at a constant health cost. The wearer must carefully judge when it’s worth activating, lest they risk bleeding out to their own aggression.

Perception of Activation:

• Sight
  • Perceived: The iron choker glows red-hot, the symbols gleaming with an infernal light. Thin wisps of acrid smoke rise from it.
  • Description: The transformation from mundane to demonic is visceral, and the heat emanates in visible waves.
  • Positives: Intimidating display of newfound power.
  • Negatives: Makes stealth impossible and might even damage some clothing.
• Sound
  • Perceived: A low, guttural growl emanates from the choker, as if a wild beast was straining against its confines.
  • Description: The sound is both unsettling and invigorating, mirroring the wearer’s own heightened aggression.
  • Positives: Can strike fear into opponents.
  • Negatives: Could attract unwanted attention.
• Touch
  • Perceived: The choker sears with an almost unbearable heat, sending pulses of burning pain through the wearer’s neck.
  • Description: It’s more than discomfort, it’s a constant reminder of the price of power and the demonic entity fueling it.
  • Positives: Could be used as a focus to channel rage and pain into strength.
  • Negatives: The pain is relentless and distracting.
• Smell
  • Perceived: A pungent mix of sulfur, burning iron, and sweat.
  • Description: It’s an acrid, almost metallic smell that further reflects the dark nature of the pact.
  • Positives: None.
  • Negatives: Could make the wearer nauseous, especially in confined spaces.
• Taste
  • Perceived: A coppery, acidic taste floods the mouth, like biting into blood and rust.
  • Description: An unpleasant reminder of the demonic energy coursing through the wearer’s veins.
  • Positives: None.
  • Negatives: Might be hard to tolerate for extended durations.
• Extra-Sensory Perceptions
  • Demonic Presence: The wearer feels a surge of bestial rage, accompanied by a fleeting sense of a malevolent consciousness observing them.
  • Unnatural Strength: Their muscles thrum with unnatural power, a feeling both exhilarating and terrifying.
  • Heightened Bloodlust: The urge to inflict violence becomes overwhelming. Everything the wearer sees becomes a potential target.

Recipe: Contract 313 of the Uncaged Fury

• Materials Needed:
  • Brutal Iron: Forged from weapon fragments, this iron must have witnessed acts of great violence to be receptive to the pact.
  • Demonic Blood or Essence: A vital ingredient to bind the demonic entity. Even a small quantity is dangerous to obtain and handle.
  • Rage-Focused Reagent: This could be the heart of a ferocious beast, a powder made from volcanic rock, or a plant steeped in blood.
  • Binding Salts: Specially prepared salts used in rituals to seal pacts and contain energies.
• Tools Required:
  • Blacksmith’s Forge: To shape the iron and imbue it with the rage inherent in its origin.
  • Etching Tools: For inscribing the symbols of subjugation and channeling demonic power.
  • Enchanter’s Workbench: A designated space for the final steps of the contract ritual.
• Skill Requirements:
  • Blacksmithing (Intermediate): Ability to forge a durable choker that can withstand the intense magical energies involved.
  • Ritual Lore (Novice): Understanding the basic structure of a pact ritual and safety precautions when dealing with demonic entities.
  • Demonic Studies (Dangerous): Some knowledge of the nature of the demonic entity being bound is essential, though risky to acquire.
• Crafting Steps
  • Forge the Iron: Melt down the brutal iron and shape it into a thick, jagged choker. Quench it in the rage-focused reagent to imbue it with primal anger.
  • Etch the Symbols: Carefully inscribe the symbols of broken chains and bestial fury into the still-hot metal. Use binding salts to guide your etching tool and contain the power.
  • Blood Offering: At a secure ritual space, expose the choker to the demonic blood or essence. Recite incantations focusing on unchained strength and the dominance of will.
  • Seal the Pact: The demonic presence will attempt to resist or subvert the binding. The crafter must overpower it through sheer willpower and knowledge of contract magic. This is a dangerous spiritual struggle.
  • Cooling: Once the entity is bound, rapidly quench the choker to lock the contract in place. The iron will retain a glowing heat, signifying the pact.
• Important Notes:
  • Risk of Corruption: The demonic entity will constantly seek to twist the wearer’s will. Using the contract may lead to corruption, violence, and a loss of self.
  • GM Discretion: The exact nature of the demonic entity, incantations, and ritual process can be customized for your campaign.
  • Consequences of Failure: A failed ritual could have dire consequences, such as the crafter’s soul being forfeit or the demonic entity breaking free.

Collar of the Unleashed Fury
A Blood Pact Misunderstood

In the age before reckoning, when mountains scraped the heavens and men wrestled with demons, there existed a fearsome collar – the Collar of the Unleashed Fury. Legends whisper of its forging, a pact struck in the heart of a volcano’s fiery maw.

A warrior, Bragdalla the Unbroken, his village ravaged by monstrous raiders, sought vengeance. He descended into the fiery depths, seeking power from the beings of flame. The legends diverge here. Some speak of a pact with a cruel fire demon, others of a stolen ember imbued with rage. Regardless, Bragdalla emerged with the iron collar, smoldering and inscribed with strange symbols.

The collar, they say, granted Bragdalla strength beyond mortal measure. He became a whirlwind of fury, laying waste to the raiders’ camp. Yet, victory turned to ash in his mouth. The villagers, once terrified by the raiders, now feared their own champion. Driven mad by the collar’s rage, Bragdalla became a monster himself, a charred reflection of the inferno within.

The end is shrouded in whispers of forgotten times. Some say the villagers, fearing for their lives, slew Bragdalla. Others claim he wandered the wastelands, a lonely monument to the destructive power of vengeance.

The Collar of the Unleashed Fury, lost or hidden, remains a cautionary tale. It speaks of power at a terrible cost, and the fury within that can consume even the most noble warrior.

Moral: Beware bargains struck in anger, for the price of vengeance may be your very soul.

Suggested conversions to other systems:

Call of Cthulhu

• Description: This cursed iron choker throbs with demonic power. Its wearer becomes a force of destruction but risks losing their sanity and their very soul.
• Sanity Cost: Frequent use inflicts alarming Sanity loss (1D6/use). The demonic presence constantly whispers in the wearer’s mind, leading to acts of violence and a disregard for consequences.
• Magic:
  • Unbound Savagery: Spend 5 Magic Points to gain a +2 to Strength checks and damage rolls for a scene. Additionally, the wearer becomes Fearsome (2).

Blades in the Dark

• Affiliation: Tied to a demonic entity, perhaps a forgotten Skovlander demon associated with aggression and bloodlust.
• Tier: 1 (Powerful, but dangerous to the user)
• Type: Load Item (2-3 Load depending on how harsh the side effects are)
• Mechanics:
  • Unbound Savagery: Roll action dice with a Desperate position. On a success, deal +1d of harm and gain significant heat. On a partial success, the demonic taint manifests with minor, chaotic consequences (perhaps a sudden thirst for blood, a bestial snarl, etc.).
  • Heat (Downside): Filling the heat track represents the wearer losing control to the demonic urges. The GM should introduce major consequences like harming bystanders or rampaging uncontrollably.

Dungeons & Dragons (5th Edition)

• Rarity: Very Rare
• Attunement: Requires attunement, and the attunement process could be a dangerous ritualistic struggle in itself.
• Stats:
  • +2 to Strength and Intimidation checks.
  • Unbound Savagery (1/day): As an action, gain advantage on Strength-based attack rolls for 1 minute. Take 1d6 psychic damage at the end of each turn for the duration.
  • Downside: While attuned, the character risks bouts of uncontrollable rage triggered by seeing violence or taking damage. The curse might compel them to attack allies or ignore immediate threats in favor of the most violence-inducing target.

Knave

• Description: A cursed, smoldering iron collar pulsing with dark power.
• Mechanics:
  • +2 to Strength rolls.
  • Unbound Savagery: Activate expending a Use. Your Strength becomes 18 until the end of your next turn. Suffer 2d4 HP damage, and roll on a ‘berserk’ mishap table.

Fate

• Aspect: Bound by the Collar of Uncaged Fury – Represents both the power and the curse of the contract.
• Stunt: Unbound Savagery (3 Fate Points): When invoking the aspect, gain +2 to Might and Intimidate actions. You must succeed at a Willpower-based Overcome to avoid lashing out impulsively or causing collateral damage.
• Consequences:
  • Mild: Consumed by Rage – Suffer a temporary consequence “Driven by Fury,” making non-violent interactions challenging.
  • Moderate: The Beast Unleashed – Take a physical consequence representing the violence inflicted upon yourself or others.
  • Severe: Embodiment of the Demon – The wearer fully succumbs, becoming an NPC controlled by the demonic entity.

Numenera & Cypher System

• Type: Artifact
• Level: 4
• Depletion: 1 in d100
• Effect:
  • The user gains Asset to damage rolls and Intimidation.
  • Unbound Savagery (4 Intellect points): For one minute, the user’s attacks become incredibly powerful (equivalent to a level 4 cypher). However, they also take 2 points of damage per round (can be resisted with a Might defense roll). Additionally, their behavior becomes increasingly erratic.

Pathfinder (2nd Edition)

• Rarity: Rare
• Trait: Magical, Pact, Demonic, Cursed
• Investment: Major
• Stats:
  • +2 circumstance bonus to Strength-based attack rolls and Intimidation.
  • Unbound Savagery (Activate: Command, Frequency: Once per Day): The collar surges with heat. For one minute, you gain a +2 status bonus to attack damage and take a -1 penalty to AC. When activated, you must succeed at a Will save (DC escalating with each use) or be affected by a heightened form of confusion.

Savage Worlds

• Rank: Seasoned
• Power Points: 5
• Powers:
  • Boost/Lower Trait (Unbound Savagery – 2PP): Activate to Boost Strength and Intimidation by d6. You also gain the Berserk and Mean edges for one round.
  • Backlash: Using Unbound Savagery carries a significant risk of frenzy – if you’re Shaken or take a Wound while raging, you automatically go Berserk and must attack the nearest creature, friend or foe.

Shadowrun

• Type: Enchanted Focus (Force 3)
• Availability & Cost: Extremely Rare (18+), 60,000¥+
• Drain: 3 (Physical) when activating Unbound Savagery
• Effects:
  • Bound Spirit (Passive): The choker is linked to a demonic spirit, granting +2 Dice Pool bonus to Strength-based combat actions.
  • Unbound Savagery (Activated): Spend a Complex Action to channel raw demonic power. Gain +2 Strength and Intimidation, and your attacks become highly effective against supernatural threats. However, you become Reckless and may ignore orders.

Starfinder

• Item Level: 5
• Price: 9000 credits
• Type: Hybrid (Magical and Technological)
• Mechanics:
  • +2 to Strength-based attack rolls and Intimidation checks.
  • Unbound Savagery (Activated): As a full action, unleash a surge of demonic energy. You gain an additional +2 to Strength and Intimidation and add your item level as bonus damage on melee attacks. After a minute, the item must recharge for 8 hours, and you gain 1 level of fatigue.
  • Backlash: Overuse can cause mental instability. On a critical failure using Unbound Savagery, the wearer gains a temporary aberration or psychosis.

Traveller (MgT2)

• Tech Level: TL8-9 (with magical components)
• Price: Highly variable depending on societal views on magic. Could range from 10,000Cr+ to being virtually priceless.
• Description: An unsettling mix of primitive metalwork and potent demonic essence.
• Mechanics:
  • Skill Bonus: Provides +2 DM to Strength rolls and relevant Intimidation skills.
  • Unbound Savagery: Can be activated as a “Recharge” action. The wearer becomes filled with aggression and ignores up to 2 points of shock penalties for a short duration. However, they must make a Willpower-based check or temporarily lose control, lashing out at anyone nearby.
  • Side Effect: The demonic presence inflicts terrible nightmares and can lead to erratic behavior even when not activated.

Warhammer (Fantasy or 40K)

• Lore: A relic of Chaos, infused with the essence of Khorne or a similar daemonic entity.
• Mechanics:
  • Warhammer Fantasy: Grants Frenzy and +1 Strength. Unbound Savagery could temporarily grant an additional attack or ignore armor penalties, but risks attracting manifestations of Chaos or causing self-inflicted wounds.
  • Warhammer 40K: Grants +1 Strength and Fear (2). Unbound Savagery might make weapons temporarily gain the Fleshbane or Rending special rules but increases the chance to jam or overheat. Risks corruption and attracting the attention of Khorne’s daemons.