Nomad Cultural Gear

Nomads typically move between multiple areas where they set up for a season or two and then move on, typically on a circuit between grazing grounds and other useful locations. Because they are not constantly on the move, nomads value equipment that lets their temporary settlements and the often harsh environments around those settlements be made more comfortable, and, because nomads are not always welcomed with open arms, they often try to maintain at least some level of secrecy around their camps.

Beast Treads. These attachable boot accessories work very much like ice cleats or snowshoes, fitting over the wearer’s normal footwear. When worn, they disguise the wearer’s footprints to look like those of an animal, typically a larger creature such as a bison or a bear. If you are traveling through areas native to the creature in question, creatures attempting to track you suffer a –1d4 penalty on their Survival check to do so. However, you can’t travel at a fast pace while wearing the beast treads.

Swamp Sloggers. These heavy, waxed canvas leggings are hot, uncomfortable, and very good at keeping the wearer’s feet and legs dry while wading through water. This gear can be worn over medium or light armor and takes 1 minute to don or remove. While wearing the swamp sloggers, creatures attempting to track you through the water, even by scent, suffer a –1d4 penalty to their checks. At the Narrator’s discretion, swamp sloggers may grant you an expertise die on checks against relevant exploration challenges of 0th and 1st tiers. These leggings can’t be worn in conjunction with marshland gear.

Walking Tent. A strange middle ground between structure and clothing, a walking tent is worn much like a backpack and creates what is essentially a mobile tent covering the wearer’s torso; when worn, they look like giant hoods stretching out to cover the wearer’s shoulders and extending in front and behind like an awning. They typically have a bamboo frame and heavy waxed canvas interiors. Wearing one keeps the user reasonably dry in heavy precipitation. Travelers in areas with a lot of stinging insects may add a screen of mosquito netting or even a wicker weave to the front of the walking tent.

Wearing a walking tent can, at the Narrator’s discretion, provide an expertise die to saves against the effects of inclement weather. However, the extra bulk decreases your base walking speed by 5 feet. You also suffer disadvantage on weapon attacks, as well as Athletics, Acrobatics, Perception, and Stealth checks. They do not impede spellcasting, however, and are popular with druids and weather mages performing rituals in the rain.

Yurt. If tents had a monarch, it would be the yurt. These durable, comfortable, and portable circular structures can serve as a base camp or center of operations. Depending on the size, a yurt can take a few hours to a few days to put together, but once it is assembled, it is a proper building rather than a simple shelter, often with windows, doors, interior rooms, lighting, and ventilation for fire smoke. Like tents, yurts require a flat surface to rest on, but unlike tents, yurts are meant to be living spaces and can accommodate additional creatures for the purposes of gatherings. Even larger yurts than those listed here serve as the centers of settlements and can accommodate over 100 Medium-sized creatures for meetings and celebrations. A yurt can serve as a haven . The listed assembly time assumes 4 Medium-sized creatures.

Small: Suitable for 2 Medium-sized creatures on bedrolls or a gathering of 10 Medium-size creatures. It occupies a 10-foot by 10-foot space and takes 1 hour to assemble.

Medium: Suitable for 6 Medium-size creatures on bedrolls or a gathering of 30 Medium-size creatures. It occupies a 15-foot by 15-foot space and takes 4 hours to assemble.

Large: Suitable for 16 Medium-sized creatures on bedrolls and up to 50 Medium-sized creatures for a gathering. It occupies a 25-foot by 25-foot square and takes a full day to assemble.