Boots, Paw

Ultimate Equipment Guide II

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

The best way to avoid being tracked and followed is to destroy a trail. When time and lack of equipment make that impossible, however, one must turn to other options, such as this creation by Jahlia. Paw boots are not actually boots at all, but are actually a thick sole intended to be strapped to the bottom of another pair of boots or shoes. On the bottom of the paw boot is the raised relief of a paw. Used correctly, someone walking in paw boots leaves behind a trail that looks on first inspection as though it were left by an animal.

Paw boots come with a variety of designs, mimicking the tracks of animals from dogs to bears. Generally, the purchaser of the paw boots is matched as well as possible, in terms of weight, to the animal represented by the design on the bottom of the boots. Trying to follow the trail left by someone who was using paw boots imposes a –5 penalty on the Survival Skill check of the person trying to track. This penalty only applies until the tracker makes a successful check, once he has determined the tracks his quarry left behind, the paw boots no longer impose a penalty. Though it is possible to run while wearing paw boots, moving at any speed faster than a walk will negate the penalty the paw boots impose on a tracker, as the toe and heel marks left on either side of the false paw print will be obvious.

Boots, Paw (pair): 10 gp