Villains' Lorebook.pdf - Department of Political Science

128
by the will of the mask-wearer.) The message must
be 33 or fewer words spoken by the mask-wearer, and
the message cannot be a spell incantation. The message
can include a word of activation, however, perhaps
to empower a magical item the target being is
carrying or near.
Fzoul Chembryl is known to treasure his bone mask,
though his is by no means the only one in existence.
Death Moon Orb
The Death Moon Orb is a gleaming black and violet
sphere whose colors swim uneasily, like oil on
water, and which appears to actually absorb the light
around it. When it is nearby, an aura of gloom and
sadness descends. If looked at long enough, the negative
image of Selunê’s surface can be seen glimmering
faintly on the orb.
History: Centuries ago, Larloch, sorcerer-king of
Netheril, created a powerful artifact with which he
intended to control the minds of his court, reveal his
enemies’ plans, and summon powerful beings from
the Outer Planes. The artifact served him well, and
he ruled for many years, eventually becoming a lich.
Larloch even survived the collapse of Netheril
and “lives” to this day in the depths of Warlock’s
Keep. No fewer than 16 Red Wizards have braved
the depths of the Keep, seeking Larloch’s treasures
and magic; so far, only Szass Tam has emerged.
At Warlock’s Keep, Szass Tam sealed a mysterious
bargain with the extremely powerful lich and returned
with several powerful enchanted items,
among them the Death Moon Orb. He used the powers
of the orb to free the tanar’ri lord Eltab, only to
then imprison him on Thakorsil’s Seat. Today, Szass
Tam strives to inscribe the last of the nine Runes of
Chaos upon the seat to permanently bind Eltab to
his will, and he uses the Death Moon Orb to battle
his enemies for control of the nation of Thay.
Campaign Use: As noted, the Death Moon Orb is
currently in the possession of Szass Tam, one of the
most evil and dangerous individuals in Faerûn, and
is being used to further his wicked schemes. The
“Runes of Chaos” adventure in the Spellbound boxed
set has full details. This artifact’s powers are:
Constant: The orb functions as a crystal ball with
ESP and clairaudience.
Invoked: The orb has the following powers, each
of which can be invoked only by its possessor: animate
dead and domination (3 times a day), charm person
(5 times a day) and mass charm (once per day).
Additionally, the possessor may summon one
tanar’ri, yugoloth, or baatezu and compel it to perform
a task. Only one such creature may be summoned
at a time. If the creature summoned is of 5
HD or less, the orb may not be used for summoning
for another 10 days. If the creature is 5-10 HD, it
may not be used again for summoning for a month; if
it is of 10HD or more, the orb may not be used to
summon another for an entire year. Once the task is
completed, the creature returns to its plane of origin.
(Szass Tam used the orb to compel Eltab to sit in
Thakorsil’s Seat, which imprisoned him, preventing
his return to his plane of origin.)
Curse: The alignment of the orb’s user eventually
shifts to chaotic evil. It also compels its user to
greater and greater acts of evil, until the user becomes
notorious as a monster of complete wickedness
and cruelty. Such individuals invariably perish
in some fashion unless, like Szass Tam and Larloch,
they continue as undead creatures.
Suggested Means of Destruction:
The orb must be devoured by a tarrasque.
The orb must be transported to Arborea or an-
other Outer Plane of Good and destroyed by one of
the gods who dwell there.
The orb can be destroyed with high-magic spells
that can be cast only by the powerful High Mages of
the isle of Evermeet. (See the ARCANE AGE
Cormanthyr boxed set for revised High-Magic rules.)
Ebon Lash
Created by and for the Red Wizards, ebon lashes are
short, enchanted black whips. They strike in combat
for 1d6+1 points of damage and require any target
struck to successfully save vs. wand or be incapacitated
by pain for 2d4 rounds. The wielder of an ebon
lash may also dominate (as the 5th-level wizard spell)
once per day anyone the whip has hit.
Flying Dagger
This useful magical item was very popular as an animated
guardian in younger days of the Realms. A flying
dagger is typically about nine inches in length,
and darts about silently, point-first. One to twelve
such daggers are usually encountered. Many different
specimens of flying daggers can be found across
the face of Toril; therefore, a DM can freely alter the
statistics of an individual flying dagger, creating one
to fit specific campaigns. The secrets of magically animating
such daggers are now known to few.