Slag Covenant
Hammered over decades in the forge-pits of Cindravoss, the fire giant city that swallowed itself into the deep earth, Slag Covenant was made not as a trophy but as a covenant with the stone: take the blow, hold the pain, return it tenfold. The giants who built it believed endurance was a form of debt, and that every wound owed interest.
Mechanics
Forged in fire giant furnaces, this half plate absorbs incoming damage to fuel eruptions of pressurized slag that punish enemies who dare strike its wearer.
Cinder Skin
While wearing this armor, you have resistance to fire damage and immunity to the effects of extreme heat environments. Additionally, the armor's base AC is 16 and does not require a Strength score to wear without penalty.
Slag Accumulation
Whenever you take bludgeoning, piercing, or slashing damage from a creature within 30 feet of you, the armor absorbs the kinetic force and stores it as pressurized slag. Record the damage taken in a running Slag total. The Slag total resets to 0 at the start of each of your turns after you spend it, and it cannot exceed 60 points at any time. Damage reduced to 0 by resistance is counted before reduction for the purpose of accumulation.
Eruption Strike
Immediately after a creature within 30 feet of you hits you with an attack, you may use your reaction to vent the accumulated slag. Each creature within 10 feet of you must make a DC 17 Dexterity saving throw. On a failed save, a creature takes fire damage equal to half your current Slag total (rounded down) and is restrained by cooling slag until the end of its next turn. On a successful save, it takes half as much damage and is not restrained. Your Slag total resets to 0 after this reaction resolves.
DM Notes
The key balance consideration is Slag Accumulation combined with Eruption Strike. In a fight with multiple attackers, the Slag total can climb quickly and a single reaction can deal up to 30 fire damage in a 10-foot radius while potentially restraining several creatures. This is intentionally powerful at legendary rarity but the DM should note that the wearer must actually be taking hits, creating meaningful risk-reward tension. The recharge-on-turn mechanic means a cautious player who never takes sustained damage loses the combo entirely. Consider pairing this item with encounters featuring swarms of moderate attackers rather than single large bosses, where the accumulation fantasy pays off most dramatically. The restrained condition from Eruption Strike is a significant crowd-control effect and the DC 17 save is high; be prepared for it to lock down multiple enemies in a single round. The immunity to Strength-penalty for wearing the armor is a minor quality-of-life note useful for Artificers and other classes with lower Strength scores.
Generated with: Level 17 · Artificer · Artillerist · Armor (Half Plate) · Fire giant city deep underground · Heroic · Fire · Legendary