Prosthetics, otherwise known as prostheses, were artificial limbs designed to replace missing body parts.[3]
Varieties
- Hook
- A primitive type of hand prosthetic that was quite popular among seafarers.[2] It consisted of a cup and an attached gaff.[4] In the 14th century DR, Aurora's Whole Realms Catalogue offered brass, gold, silver, and steel hooks in both human and demihuman sizes.[2]
- Peg
- A primitive type of leg prosthetic,[3] pegs were quite popular among seafarers. In the 14th century DR, Aurora's Whole Realms Catalogue offered brass, gold, ivory, silver, and wood pegs in both human and demihuman sizes.[2]
- Clockwork prosthetics
- An expensive sort of prosthetic limb or hand that was produced by the gnomes of Skullport's Clockwork Wonders store. The limbs took a full month to design and one to three months to construct. Downsides included needing to regularly oil them to prevent their gears and mechanisms from jamming or corroding. They also also needed to be wound up several times a day. On the plus side, with an additional fee they could be outfitted with additional features like greater durability or hidden spring-loaded weapons.[1]
A drow woman examines her prosthetic arm while a drow artisan watches.
- Drow craftwork
- The drow of the Underdark developed advanced mechanical prosthetics with many ball-swivel joints and intricate parts operated via cables similar to tendons. These were precisely crafted and had hands as dexterous and arms as agile as the originals. Moreover, they were made from adamantine, giving them both flexibility and hardness, so they wouldn't snap or shatter when stressed—in fact, these could punch or claw through typical armors and the skin beneath. A delicate hand could be detached and replaced with a combat-ready claw or an attached axe, sword, spiked mace, or other weapon when preparing for battle. Moreover, even whole-bodied drow would wear similar apparatuses over their limbs, giving them for example one-piece sword-gauntlets or toe-claws or spikes that aided in climbing and kicking in battle. Such devices were among the most common and most advanced of drow engineering, but the drow weren't in the habit of sharing designs among each other or with outsiders.[5]
Notable Owners
- Crannak Smoulderburn had an iron prosthetic of a clenched fist.
- Welverin Freth had a prosthetic silver leg.
Appendix
Appearances
- Novels
- The Mercenaries
External Links
Prosthesis article at Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia.
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Joseph C. Wolf (1999). Skullport. (TSR, Inc), pp. 43–44. ISBN 0-7869-1348-7.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 Jeff Grubb, Julia Martin, Steven E. Schend et al (1992). Aurora's Whole Realms Catalogue. (TSR, Inc), p. 143. ISBN 0-5607-6327-2.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Dale Henson (February 1993). The Magic Encyclopedia, Volume Two. (TSR, Inc), p. 133. ISBN ISBN 978-156076563.
- ↑ Grant Boucher, Troy Christensen, Jon Pickens, John Terra and Scott Davis (1991). Arms and Equipment Guide. (TSR, Inc.), p. 72. ISBN 1-56076-109-1.
- ↑ Ed Greenwood (July 1991). The Drow of the Underdark. (TSR, Inc), pp. 91–92. ISBN 1-56076-132-6.