Arcane Artifacts
Hello, and welcome back to Foursaken Feature, the article devoted to providing the warm fuzzies to all our fourth edition fans. Since you guys will have missed out on all the fun of our recent release, Advanced Arcana, I thought I’d try to translate some of the magic, so to speak, to 4th edition. Below are a pair of artifacts associated with Kabaz and Xelar, two spell-slingers who donated a number of spells from their repositories in order to make Advanced Arcana the best book it could be. If you want to know more about Xelar and Kabaz, check out today's special Nefarious Knowledge.
The Orb of Kabaz
The Orb of Kabaz is appropriate for paragon-level characters.
The Orb of Kabaz Paragon Level
This metal sphere glows a faint blue-green when held, naturally floating an inch or so above the wielder’s hand, spinning slowly in place. It is unknown whether the orb was created by Kabaz, or whether he inherited from another wizard, but Kabaz was never seen without it, and many of his detractors claim it was the source of nearly all his power.
The Orb of Kabaz is a +3 orb of drastic resolutions with the following properties and powers.
Enhancement: Attack rolls and damage rolls
Critical: +3d6
Property: Creatures take a -3 penalty on saving throws to end the effects of your arcane powers with the implement keyword.
Property: Your arcane powers with the implement keyword which have effects that last for a specific number of rounds last one additional round.
Power (Daily * Arcane Implement): Standard Action. You can use strand of fate (warlock 17).
Goals of the Orb of Kabaz
- Encourage the free exchange of spellcasting information amongst wizards.
- Foster peace amongst civilized races.
Roleplaying the Orb of Kabaz
The Orb of Kabaz is a patient and friendly magic item, often sounding like a benevolent father giving sage advice to his son or daughter. The orb dislikes overt violence, and often tries to persuade its bearer to avoid outright killing his foes whenever possible.
Concordance
Starting Score |
5 |
Owner gains a level |
+1d10 |
Owner makes a discovery relating to arcane magic |
+1 |
Owner learns a new ritual (max 1/week) |
+1 |
Owner saves the life of an innocent (max 1/day) |
+2 |
Owner kills a sentient creature (max 1/encounter) |
-1 |
Owner murders a sentient creature |
-2 |
Pleased (16-20)
When I hold this orb in my hand, I hold the weight of magic itself.
The Orb of Kabaz is highly optimistic about the potential of its owner. It is happy to be a focus for the arcane energies its wielder channels, and is confident that, together, they can master greater and greater spells to do more and more good in the world.
The Orb’s enhancement bonus increases to +4
Critical: +4d6
Property: Creatures take a -4 penalty on saving throws to end the effects of your arcane powers with the implement keyword. This ability supersedes the normal -3 penalty provided by the Orb.
Property: Your arcane powers with the implement keyword which have effects that last for a specific number of rounds last two additional rounds. This ability supersedes the normal bonus of one additional round.
Power (Daily * Arcane): Immediate Reaction. You can use chaos echoes (sorcerer 16).
Satisfied (12-15)
The orb is so powerful…its knowledge of magic is immense!
The Orb of Kabaz is confident that its bearer is a force for good and a capable mage, and is happy to continue lending its powers to him or her.
Power (Daily): Minor Action. Recover the use of one of your expended encounter powers.
Normal (5-11)
The more I stare into the orb…the more it stares back into me.
The Orb is cautiously optimistic about its new bearer, and begins offering advice and guidance to what it considers its new ward.
Unsatisfied (1-4)
This orb is so heavy. I could swear it used to be lighter!
The wielder is using his or her powers in ways that the Orb of Kabaz has moral qualms with, and it is no longer comfortable serving its wielder in this fashion. It tries to gently sway him or her back to the path of righteousness, vocally expressing its displeasure.
Special: Your arcane powers deal 1 less damage per die, except to creatures with the construct or undead keyword. Additionally, your arcane powers which deal damage take a penalty to that damage equal to your Intelligence modifier, except to creatures with the construct or undead keyword. These penalties apply as long as the character wields or even holds the orb.
Angered (0)
Will someone shut this orb up? It keeps on preaching about using power responsibly!
The wielder is not meeting the orb’s expectations, and it will not remain in his possession for long.
The Orb’s enhancement bonus drops to +2.
Critical: +2d6
Property: Creatures take a -2 penalty on saving throws to end the effects of your arcane powers with the implement keyword. This ability supersedes the normal -3 penalty provided by the Orb.
Special: Your arcane powers with the implement keyword do not deal damage, except to creatures with the construct or undead keyword. This penalty applies as long as the character wields or even holds the orb.
Moving On
The orb has taught me all it can. It must leave to train another.
The Orb of Kabaz recognizes that its pupil has learned all he or she can from it, and that it is time to find a new student.
When the wielder next gains a level, the orb’s sentience and magic depart, transforming it into a sphere of pure diamond worth 90,000 gp. Its magic and sentience appear elsewhere in the world, in another orb.
If the Orb of Kabaz moves on because it is unsatisfied with its wielder, the orb instead transforms into a 200 lb ball of lead, with the word “MURDERER” engraved on it in all capital letters. No matter how the character tries to rid himself of the ball, it always seems to find its way back to him, magically appearing in his backpack. This continues for a year and a day or until the curse is properly dispelled, whichever comes first.
Xelar’s Rod of Wrath
Xelar’s Rod of Wrath is appropriate for paragon-level characters.
Xelar’s Rod of Wrath Paragon Level
This rod is made of a semi-transparent red stone, which glows with an inner light when you touch it, its intensity increasing along with the strength of your emotions. It is sculpted to resemble tongues of flame wrapping around the core of the rod. According to Xelar, it holds the trapped essence of a fire archon.
Xelar’s Rod of Wrath is a +4 rod of first blood with the following properties and powers.
Enhancement: Attack rolls and damage rolls
Critical: +4d6 or 4d8 against creatures that haven’t been damaged yet.
Property: Your arcane powers with the implement keyword deal an extra point of damage per die against creatures with the elemental origin.
Property: If none of your allies are closer to your target than you are, you gain a bonus to damage rolls against that target equal to your Charisma modifier.
Power (Daily * Arcane Implement): Standard Action. You can use combust (wizard 17).
Goals of Xelar’s Rod of Wrath
- Slay archons and other denizens of the elemental chaos.
- Demonstrate its superiority—and the superiority of its wielder—over other arcane implements and their wielders.
Roleplaying Xelar’s Rod of Wrath
Xelar’s Rod of Wrath is passionate, and often acts without thinking. It hates elementals with a fervor, and often takes great offense at even the slightest insult. It is always ready for a good fight, and enjoys channeling especially powerful spells.
Concordance
Starting Score |
5 |
Owner gains a level |
+1d10 |
Owner defeats another spellcaster in a duel (max 1/day) |
+1 |
Owner slays an elemental creature (max 1/day) |
+2 |
Owner possesses another magical rod |
-1 |
Owner flees from a mage duel or similar contest |
-1 |
Owner allies itself with one or more elementals (1/week) |
-2 |
Pleased (16-20)
Face our righteous fury! Burn!
Xelar’s Rod of Wrath is fiercely loyal to its wielder, and wants nothing more than for the two of them to channel powerful magic together. It takes on a deep hatred of its wielder’s enemies, and a friendly jealousy towards its wielder’s allies.
The Rod’s enhancement bonus increases to +5
Critical: +5d6
Property: Your arcane powers with the implement keyword deal an extra point of damage per die. This ability is in addition to the extra damage dealt to elemental creatures.
Property: When you are bloodied, add your Charisma modifier to the damage dealt by your arcane powers with the implement keyword.
Power (Daily * Arcane): Standard Action. You can use chains of fire (sorcerer 13).
Satisfied (12-15)
With this rod, I can blast you to tiny pieces. Don’t tempt me.
The wielder has demonstrated that there is definite potential for a good relationship with the Rod, and it spurs him or her to greater feats of daring.
Power (Daily): Minor Action. Add your Charisma modifier to your next ranged attack roll made with an arcane power with the implement keyword.
Normal (5-11)
I can feel its power… and its anger.
The Rod is initially slow to warm up to a new wielder, often telling him or her that its previous wielders would have done this or that differently. It makes numerous demands to duel spellcasters or hunt down elementals, and sulks if ignored.
Unsatisfied (1-4)
Ow! This thing’s really hot!
The wielder isn’t doing much to impress the Rod, and it is making its displeasure known. It now complains constantly about even the most minor of the wielder’s actions, and often states that it was better off wherever it was before the wielder picked it up.
Special: While sulking or brooding, the Rod heats up to the point that it is uncomfortable to hold, implying a -3 penalty to all attack rolls made with it.
Angered (0)
Someone lock that thing up before it kills us all!
Xelar’s Rod of Wrath has had enough of this wielder, and does everything in its power to encourage him or her to simply drop it and run.
The Rod’s enhancement bonus drops to +3.
Critical: +3d6
Special: Once per encounter, the Rod lets out a blast of raw energy at you or one of your allies. Use your statistics for this attack, and treat the Rod as being pleased for the purposes of its enhancements and bonuses. Charisma vs. Reflex; 2d6 + Charisma modifier damage.
Moving On
I think it’s best we parted ways now, rod…
Unlike most artifacts, Xelar’s Rod of Wrath is unlikely to move on of its own volition. As long as it continues to be relatively happy with its wielder, it is content to stay with him or her indefinitely. Once its wielder retires, the Rod eventually grows restless, and requests that it be handed over to an aspiring young mage who it can go on further adventures with. It isn’t unknown for the Rod to be passed down through a family for several generations.
Even when angered, it doesn’t share most artifacts’ ability to magically depart and reappear elsewhere in the world. Rather, it relies on threatening and attacking its wielder until he or she simply leaves it somewhere to be found by someone more compatible.