d10 Treasures of great potential for science fantasy settings

These are powerful, perhaps potentially setting-changing artifacts which cannot be used – yet!

1. Stash of discharged but functional energy weapons, enough to arm a squad
2. Giant metal bird with broken wings, large enough to carry 20 men
3. Weapon of mass destruction, lacking its trigger mechanism
4. Recipes and formulae of miracle cures, written in undeciphered language
5. A portal of instantaneous travel to other realms, but the coordinates are unknown
6. Two dozen giant eggs, unhatched, but full of life
7. Treasure map engraved on basalt slab, vital fragment missing
8. Great sage or warrior in suspended animation on the verge of death from incurable disease
9. Air-generator or Water-purifier, sealed by mad curse
10. Satellite array and radar complex that, due to a malfunction, kills anybody who interfaces with it

Bonus: The local community’s relationship with the artifact:

1. Secretly researched by a small group
2. Actively and openly researched by all
3. Worshipped by all as a divine effigy
4. Feared, shunned and quarantined
5. Buried and hidden, unbeknownst to all (but rumors exists…)
6. Buried and hidden, guarded by a small group (but rumors exists…)

d30 things to find on an Illithid bioship

This request came up in a Facebook group, I wrote a dozen or so in the comments, here's an expanded list of thirty:

1. Tentacle grooming kit
2. Information crystals
3. Gene-modified snake-like creatures one can wrap around their body and gain special powers
4. Last light of a dead star, captured in a glass sphere
5. Aromatic spices that make brains taste even better
6. Nano-blade letter opener
7. A palm-sized levitating disc
8. Bioluminescent slugs
9. 6-dimensional gaming dice
10. Humming and vibrating dodecahedron
11. 100%-light blocking goggles
12. Invisible 1' cube, no discernible function
13. Carpet with psychedelic trance-inducing patterns
14. Art-deco jewelry with radioactive gems
15. Silver tablet with eldritch glyphs
16. Holographic ship blueprints
17. Small soap-stone sculpture, depicting an Illithid in Rodin’s “The Thinker” pose
18. Art-deco lamp, glowing fiery orange sphere suspended between twisting wires
19. Highly effective bone saw
20. Dried fragments of human skin with occult tattoos
21. Goblet shaped like a six-fingered hand holding a half-sphere
22. Amber rod, preserving six weird prehistoric alien insects
23. Psychotropic flower that can cause anatomical changes
24. Signet ring with hidden compartment, single dose of the universal antidote inside
25. Platinum tentacle ornaments that give off a calming chime when whirling around
26. Telescope with three eyepieces
27. Pet monster that feeds on body heat (and therefore snuggles a lot)
28. A perfect copy of a specific object that one of the player characters owns
29. Slimy oil in a vial
30. Space-spider silk cape

d30 ancient Near Eastern treasures

Adapted from the list of wedding gifts that Tushratta, king of Mittani, gave to Amenhotep III, as dowry for princess Tadu-Hepa. From the Amarna letter EA22 (The El-Amarna Correspondence. A New Edition... p. 160-183). Modified as needed...

1. Whip, overlaid with 5 shekels of gold. A large banded agate is inserted into the pommel. A banded agate seal is strung on it.
2. Horse adornments, genuine banded agates mounted on gold: 88 stones per string. 44 shekels worth of gold.
3. Set of bronze torques.
4. 12 good, sharp arrows.
5. Iron-bladed dagger; its haft decorated with ebony calf figurines, overlaid with gold; the pommel is of a precious stone. 6 shekels of gold has been used on it.
6. Longbow, overlaid with 4 shekels of gold.
7. Iron mace, overlaid with 15 shekels of gold.
8. Pair of gloves, trimmed with red wool.
9. Two multicolored shirts.
10. Horse-shaped bottle, made of iron, with eagles of gold and genuine lapis lazuli as inlays. 300 shekels in weight.
11. Golden fly whisk (3 shekels in weight), along with its linen cloth.
12. Hand-bracelet, of iron overlaid with gold, adorned with lapis lazuli bird inlays. 6 shekels of gold has been used on it.
13. Necklace with 35 genuine lapis lazuli stones, 35  dark red translucent stones, and one genuine banded agate in the center; all mounted on gold with a reddish tinge.
14. Head-binding, of gold, twisted like a torque. 14 shekels in weight.
15. Spoon, overlaid with lapis lazuli and dark red stones; its handle – an alabaster female figurine, with lapis lazuli inlays. 6 shekels of gold used on it.
16. Pair of leather shoes, studded with gold ornaments. Its buttons are of a translucent dark red stone. 13 shekels of gold have been used on them.
17. Pair of shoes, of blue-purple wool. Ornaments of gold and a genuine lapis lazuli inlay in the center. 4 shekels of gold.
18. Garment of blue-purple wool, Hurrian-style, for the city.
19. City shirt, Tukriš style, and a pair of red wool sashes.
20. Spear of bronze, with a double overlay of gold (10 shekels worth).
21. Helmet container, of malachite, overlaid with 4 shekels of gold.
22. Plaque with winged disks and Deluge monsters, of ebony, overlaid with 30 shekels of gold.
23. Set of salt containers, in the shape of bull-calves and lions, of a dark red stone.
24. Silver brazier, 66 shekels in weight.
25. Ebony chest without a lid, adorned with a winged disk and overlaid with 2 shekels of gold and 40 shekels of silver.
26. Colored loincloth.
27. Pair of wool leggings.
28. Stone container, with myrrh-scented oil.
29. 20 arrows to be shot flaming.
30. Shield, its middle overlaid with 10 shekels of silver.

[Secret Santicorn!!] All Aboard the Terrible Dogfish!

For this year's Secret Santicorn, Deus on the OSR discord server requested "a pirate ship, stocked with treasure, captained by something supernatural"

Without further ado...

ALL ABOARD THE TERRIBLE DOGFISH!

(click to download as .pdf)

a weird pirate adventure with a supernatural captain and treasure... Have fun! Happy holidays!

Treasure value house rule

Treasure is a big thing in OSR-type games. It's the incentive for going to dungeons, and the main source of XP (in gold = XP systems). So eventually, when the PCs leave the dungeon and go back to town, all the various non-magic items (gems, jewelry, artifacts, whatever) are converted to their respective base monetary value (as set by the DM / the adventure's author).

A good way to retain flavor is using a house rule:

The players can opt to "go the extra mile" when converting treasure to XP. They designate up to 5 items from their loot as "significant artifacts". The DM doesn't have to disclose the base value of the artifact. Then roll 2d6 for each item separately on the following table:

2	The item has no value or won’t be bought by anyone for some reason (superstition, disgust, prejudice?). No gold or XP is gained for it.
3-5	The item is sold for half its base value. XP is halved.
6-8	The item is sold for its base value. XP as normal.
9	The item is sold for its base value. XP as normal. However, the buyer is ready to pay double for the next identical or related item (but that item will still grant XP as base value).
10	The item is sold for its base value. However, the buyer shares a piece of historical or arcane information related to the item (+20% XP)
11-12	The item is sold for double base value. XP is doubled.

Optional rule: if the roll is a double (e.g. two 3's), in addition to the effect, the PCs attract the unwanted attention of a local criminal organization, tax collectors, other adventurers, etc.