Hollow soulstone wand
Hollow soulstone wands were auctioned off at the Ebon Gate festival in 5106 in the cursed town of Velathae (two in Prime, one in Plat); another wand was released in each instance at Ebon Gate 2013.
These wands assist a necromancer with the Animate Dead spell by (1) increasing the caster's MAL by 5 (able to go above the normal cap); (2) boosting the animate's level by 10 (stacks with a gem); and (3) when POINTed at an animate, will renew its duration and heal its wounds (costs 30 mana). They will also animate limbs removed via Limb Disruption that are not already animated.
Description
The wand is crafted out of hollowed soulstone filled with a viscous black substance. Upon closer examination, you notice that the viscous black substance appears to be some form of unnatural blood. The blood roils back and forth within its confines, as if it is whimsically taunting the pure white soulstone that contains it.
Usage
The wand has three different actions:
When WAVEd at a dead target, the wand will act as though crimson salt crystals made from the blood of a level 100 troll have been sprinkled over that target. The wave also adds 5 to a sorcerer's MAL (which may go above the standard maximum) and 10 to the animate's level, which may be stacked with a gem. The wand MUST BE HELD when casting Animate Dead at the body to receive this benefit. This has unlimited uses and requires no mana or materials.
When POINTed at an animate, the wand will refresh the animate to its original duration and instantly heal it completely (similar to Sacrifice Channel). This has unlimited uses, but costs 30 mana.
When WAVEd at a limb removed through the Limb Disruption (708) spell that has not animated already, it will cause the limb to animate and attack as it would had it been animated through the spell. This has unlimited uses, and it does not require mana or materials.
Loresong
This item has a loresong attached to it. It is a very dangerous item to sing to, however, and it will bring the bard quite close to death in the process. Anyone singing to the item should be exceedingly careful and should begin the process in good health.
"You sing to your soulstone wand enthusiastically, eager to learn the ancient secrets trapped within the wand. Dark swirls of mana eddy around the soulstone wand, obscuring it from sight. You frantically jiggle your fingers around, trying to ward off the swirls, which have an almost gooey consistency. After a concentrated effort, you recover the wand but are still somewhat shaken by the thought that you almost lost your priceless artifact. "Perhaps the wand is not eager to reveal its past. Perhaps some things are best left buried in the sands of time." "Your voice serenades the soulstone wand gently as you cautiously remember how you almost lost your precious soulstone wand. The wand hums in response to your song with an odd vibrating drone, which interferes with your song. You sense a powerful necromantic aura surrounding the wand as you are forced to bring your beautiful ditty to an end." "As you weave your bardic magic upon the wand, you fall to the ground like a sack of potatoes. The world goes dark and you find yourself superimposed on another time when you reopen your eyes. Dressed in priestly robes, you are walking along the perimeter of an emerald altar humming low chants. A white-haired, muscular elf with bronzed skin is suspended over the altar bare-chested. "The vision fades but the memory of the act you are partaking in lingers." "Your melodies bring you back into slumber, causing you to fall to the ground once again, hitting your head quite forcefully. "You regain your place in an eerie procession around the elven man whose body is held taut by leather straps running from the corners of the room. This time, though, the elf's body has several deep cuts running through it, slowly dripping blood into soulstone canisters on the altar below. A single golden key tattoo adorns his naked right breast. You are helpless to do anything but follow a pre-scripted role in the grotesque ritual. The man looks peacefully resigned to his fate and utters not a word as your vision fades." "You sing to your soulstone wand, hopeful that you can stay awake, but are not so lucky. Perhaps the wand's story cannot bare the light of day. You fall to the ground, hitting your head solidly, as you leave consciousness. Awakened in an ethereal world, you glance at your fellow acolytes and notice that only some carry the symbols of a green serpent like yours. Some slowly circle the altar with small dagger-pierced heart pendants. "The vision of the white-haired man comes rushing back to you. At this point, he looks lifeless and pale, his wounds now only trickling ever decreasing drops of blood into the soulstones below. The leather straps are also drawn tighter, more painfully than before. He mutters bitterly as his life drains, "Lorminstra, false prophet, you have forsaken me." "At the end of his utterance, a serpent suddenly appears at the center of the altar. You and the other acolytes look up in shock as the elven man's bindings come loose, destroying the makeshift prison. His fragile lifeless body slowly floats to the center of the altar, where the serpent kisses him." "Your mind races with wandering thoughts; questions about the nature of the odd ceremony you witnessed. One final vision sets upon you..." "The elven man, now cloaked in a hooded robe, is exiting the temple where you had inflicted so much torture upon him. He leaves a scene of massive death and carnage. You notice your own body, with that of your fellow priests strewn haphazardly around the emerald altar, lifeless and unmoving. The blood within the soulstone canisters has turned an unnatural black, testament to the darkness that it presided over. Not a single survivor is left amongst the once lively priests. The man exits the shrine, which promptly collapses. A green serpent slithers out through a crack in the rubble as the vision fades."