Festerwood Buckler (Patreon)

Armor (shield), uncommon

This festerwood shield is riddled with amber pustules that glow with a low, yellow light. While holding this magic shield, the pustules emit bright light in front of you in a 5-foot radius and dim light for another 5 feet. In addition, when a creature within 5 feet of you misses you with a melee attack, you can use your reaction to bash that creature with the shield and force it to make a DC 13 Dexterity saving throw. On a failure, that creature takes 1d4 + 1 acid damage.

The wood was as dark as it was dangerous. It was both the problem and the solution. For me, it was as much my best defense as it was my stalwart weapon.