Saddle Enclosed War

Ultimate Equipment Guide II

Author Greg Lynch, J. C. Alvarez
Publisher Mongoose Publishing
Publish date 2005

This device is even stranger-looking than the normal enclosed saddle, and was in fact initially designed as part of a drunken bet by Tandos Ravenfoot. It shares the same basic design as the enclosed saddle, but is intended for use by a rider who definitely expects vicious combat to take place beneath the waves. The entire outer surface of the enclosed war saddle is covered with foot-long serrated spines, filed to a razor edge and set four inches apart from one another. Even the top of the hatch boasts a half-dozen such spines. These spines are purely defensive, intended to keep hostile undersea creatures such as sahaugin from seizing the outside of the saddle and attempting to breach it or open the hatch. The enclosed war saddle is considered to have the same touch AC as the creature upon which it is mounted, and only the hatch provides an adequate handhold on the surface of the saddle (though it is possible to seize the goads or the lances). A creature who successfully grabs the hatch with an attack roll must succeed with a Reflex saving throw (DC 15 plus one per every ten feet of the saddle’s current movement speed) or be struck by 1d3 of the sharp spines for 1d6 damage each. This saving throw must be made every round the creature continues to hold on to the saddle.

In addition to its defensive measures, the enclosed war saddle has four lances mounted to it, two on the left front side and two on the right. The lances are mounted in the same way as the two goads, allowing the rider to use them to make Ride-By Attacks, albeit at a -4 penalty, as the mountings cause the lances to count as exotic weapons. The lance has a 50% chance of breaking on a successful hit. The enclosed war saddle is also more heavily armoured than its regular counterpart. The increased weight, along with the saddle’s bristling spines, makes it impossible to mount or unmount the saddle from a creature without using a crane. The enclosed war saddle has a hardness of 15 and 60 hit points. Between the inevitable leaks and the finite air supply, an enclosed was saddle can sustain a Medium-size individual for up to two hours.

Enclosed War Saddle: 1,000gp; 850 lb.