Epic Level Handbook

Secrecy: Mixed. Arcane spellcasters in Union likelyhave heard of the Order of the Book, but generally do notrealize how serious the group is in its work.Symbol: A hand scribing arcane symbols into anopen book.LEADERSHIPSharlee the Enchantress is the ultimate authority, butdue to her single-minded ambition, not to mention herphysical form, most of the leadership for the groupcomes from trusted wizards who chair the task forces.Sharlee’s special form came about due to her unwaveringambition to start what she finished with theLast Book. When age drew death near, sheunderwent the ritual that transformed herinto a lich, and then sometime later becamedemilich.Sharlee the Enchantress (NE femaledemilich Wiz31) appears as a jewelstuddedskeletal hand (see the demilichdescription in Chapter 5). Thedisembodied hand madly scribesspells into the Last Book day andnight, never requiring a break.Only the most serious newssuffices to disturb her work,lest punishments follow.Sharlee’s backlog is considerable;she cannot scribe spellsnearly as fast as the organizationfinds new spells and addsthem to the temporary stacks.Phalsan Dubokat (CG malehuman Bbn21) leads the task force responsible forstronghold security. He raised each and every brachyurusthat freely roams the grounds. He has a name for eachone. While Phalsan is on the grounds, his whistle brings2d4 brachyuruses running to investigate. While traveling,Phalsan brings Grip, his favorite brachyurus, along.Sfels the Gatherer (NG male gnome Wiz22) leadsthe task force responsible for gathering spells fromother planes. He is often seen in Union, speaking withpowerful spellcasters who pass through the planarmetropolis. Sometimes Sfels holds back spells that heotherwise would pass along if he knows beyond a doubtthat the spell duplicates another already gathered. Hehas an encyclopedic mind, and remembers everythinghe sees.RECRUITINGThe Order of the Book welcomes those willing todonate their time, their spells, and indeed their lifetimesto the cause. Only arcane spellcasters who preparetheir spells can join as full members; other arcane practitioners,divine casters, and psionic characters offerlittle in the eyes of the order, and are not considered formembership. The order believes such individualslack the single-minded purpose and driveto effectively contribute to thecause. Of course, any and all arewelcome to aid the order in itsquest; no spell in written formshall be turned down forinclusion. Many members alsofrequently employ others tohelp them in their quest for newscrolls, tomes, and epic magic;such assistance is necessary, evenexpected, if the compilation is everto be completed.MEMBER BENEFITS ANDRESPONSIBILITIESThe benefits of membership are great;access to every spell compiled in the temporarystacks is a boon all members of theorder enjoy (a very few are accorded access tothe Last Book itself, as a reward for finding aparticularly choice spell addition). Ironically, the temporarystacks are now so large that any attempt to completelyperuse the shelves in their entirety would take alifetime or longer. (The stacks take the form of rowafter row of parallel book shelves separated by a spaceof 10 feet, and stretching vertically over a hundred stories;flying is the only way to move around the stacks.)This is not the best use of a member’s time, at least notthat of a member dedicated to adding to the body ofwork. Members who become lax in their efforts toCHAPTER 6:AN EPICSETTINGLAST BOOK (MAJOR ARTIFACT)This mystic book is of great value to arcane spellcasters; somewould say no book is more useful. A large volume, its pagesand its capacity are infinite. The Last Book contains every spellever recorded by the Order of the Book, an organization in theplanar metropolis of Union. The Order of the Book has beenrecording spells in the Last Book for thousands of years; thus,the number of spells in it is almost uncountable. If an arcanespellcaster studies the work for one month, upon completionthe caster can use the book as his own spellbook. Every arcanespell that appears in any source exists in this tome, and can beprepared by a spellcaster who can use an arcane spellbook.Despite the breadth of the work, a spellcaster attuned to thebook can locate any spell she seeks in only seconds, aided bythe potent magic of the artifact.Anyone incapable of casting arcane spells who reads even asingle word of the work must make a Will save (DC 20) orsuffer insanity (see the insanity spell).Caster Level: 19th; Weight: 3 lb.239