Roaring with primal force, the inked bear charges across your skin!
Magical tattoos can be a fantastic addition to any campaign, serving as both an exciting reward for players and a tool for enhancing or cementing the unique setting of the campaign. These enchanted body markings carry various magical properties that give the player characters new abilities and powers.
As a game master, you can use magical tattoos as a long-sought prize for completing a major quest or use them to further immerse your players in the world you’ve crafted. For example, offering tattoos depicting Nordic animals, such as bears or wolves, in a campaign with a Nordic theme can help solidify the setting’s atmosphere. However, you can easily adapt the motifs to match other settings, like using tattoos featuring camels or lions for a desert-based campaign.
Adding magical tattoos to your campaign can refresh long-standing characters by diversifying their abilities and giving players new, exciting tools. As a game master, you can provide these tattoos as temporary or permanent bonuses, granting players new spells, skills, or attributes that may not typically be available to their character class. This approach can inject a fresh sense of novelty into a long-running campaign, keeping your players engaged and encouraging creative thinking.
Furthermore, you can use magical tattoos as plot devices, linking them to the characters’ backstories or creating new storylines where players must find specific tattoos to overcome challenges.
These tattoos are adapted to Adventurous, but you can easily tweak their effects to fit DnD, Knave or any other fantasy ttrpg.
10 Magical tattoos
From a rules perspective, no attribute test is required to active the abilities, they are auto-success.
| Tattoo motif | Magical Effect |
|---|---|
| Bear | Roaring with primal force, the inked bear charges across your skin! You gain +1 maximum HP |
| Raven | Two ravens flutter across your body, their dark forms shimmering with hidden knowledge! Once per day you can activate the ability "Raven Lore" which allows you to ask the GM one Yes/No question which he must answer truthfully |
| Wolf | A pack of wolves etched in your skin, their howls echoing the call of unity! Once per day you can activate the "Call of the Pack" ability which give the entire party Advantage on their next KNO initiative test |
| Salmon | A swift salmon swims upstream on your body, a mark of agility and wisdom! Once per day you can activate the ability "Mystic Flow" which gives you Advantage on your next three WILL tests |
| Elk | The majestic elk stands tall on your skin, its antlers reaching for the stars, symbolizing endurance and majesty! Once per day you can activate the ability "Wild Endurance" which cleanses you and all Near allies from any temporary negative effects |
| Falcon | The falcon dives on your body, its speed and precision encapsulated in ink! Once per day you can activate the ability "Speed of the Falcon" which allows you to take two actions on your next turn |
| Boar | A fierce boar charges across your skin, its tenacity imprinted forever! Once per day you can activate the ability "Indomitable Resolve" which allows you to roll 1D6 when you take damage, on a 5 or 6 you ignore the damage taken |
| Serpent | Coiled and ready to strike, the serpent's fangs gleam menacingly from your skin! Once per day you can activate the ability "Serpent's Tongue" which allows you to force a roll on the Reaction table with a +4 on the roll |
| Fox | A clever fox lurks on your skin, its cunning eyes alight with mischief! Once per day you can activate the "Lucky Fox" ability which allows you to completely re-roll one attribute test |
| Owl | A wise owl perches on your skin, its all-knowing gaze piercing the darkness! Once per day you can activate the ability "Ancient Knowledge" which gives you Advantage on your next three KNO tests |
If you like these magical tattoos, be sure to check out our lists of magic items!
