The Broken Cup of Draconia
Worldanvil February 24 Challenge
The Bone Garden 's main attraction is a cabinet of curiosities that is Rerosha's pride and joy. Rerosha has stuffed the polished ebony cabinet with the shop's most valuable items. The cabinet stands behind Rerosha's counter and is magically protected. The 21 objects detailed below are not for sale. However, if a player helps Rerosha, she could be convinced to part with one of them or at least do a swap.What is it?
Description
This striking small cup - just slightly bigger than a thimble - is made of silver. Decorated by filigree work, it is a thing of beauty. The artwork hints at his origin: the sharp edges and the stylised blades of grass in relief are some of the early patterns found on ancient Draconian artefacts.
It is clear the cup has suffered some damage. One side has become slightly warped, and the tip of one of the leaf blades has been shorn. One has to assume that the cup might have been damaged during Vorugal's destruction of Draconia, the Draconbloods' flying city.
Rarity
This is a one-of-a-kind, rare items. Very few objects were salvaged from Draconia's destruction. This is why any items coming from the doomed city are highly prized and valuable. It is especially valuable to Dragonborns.
History
Rerosha acquired the cup a few years ago when an exiled Draconblood sold it to her for a large sum. Many proud Draconbloods have fallen on hard times since Daconia's destruction and often sell the few family heirlooms they have still in their possession to make their way in life.
Rerosha felt sorry for the quiet Dragonborn named Dizziark, and bought the object from him for quite a large sum of money. She also promised that the cup would stay in the cabinet until he could come and buy it back from her.
Dizziark did not reveal much about the cup. He warned Rerosha that the cup was magical but that its enchantment had become unstable since it had been damaged and not to try to use the cup until it could be repaired.
Dizziark added that the cup was very ancient - likely pre-calamity - and had been in his family for generations.
Significance
The cup is invaluable as one of the few surviving artefacts from Draconia and a superb example of Draconian early art. However, the enchantments weaved on the cup are not very complex, and the cup is moderately useful in that respect.
Properties
When repaired, the cup grants the following bonus when drunk from:
However, in its present state, the magic of the cup has been corrupted, and there is a 20% chance that the cup will have the opposite effect.
Roll 1d100. A roll between 1 to 20 will mean:
The cup can be re-enchanted by a level 20 wizard.
Secret History
Dizziark knows the legend attached to the cup and will share it with anyone who meets and talks to him. The Cup has a tragic history attached to it. Dizziark has always known the cup to be damaged, and according to the stories he heard from his grandmother, the damage to the cup was done during the events of the Calamity.
According to Dizziark's grandmother, Lady Valka, the Cup killed the ill-fated lovers, Machior and Isalket. At that time, the Betrayer Gods were terrorising the land from their fortress in Bazzoxan, The Betrayers' Rise. The Draconblood floating city of Kethesk was but all destroyed in one of the attacks, and a shard of Kethesk came to rest above the Dreemoth Ravine.
In the valley lived another species of Dragonborn, the Ravenites. Soon, the Draconbloods in the rebuilt city of Draconia would lord over the Ravenite populations. Machior was a Draconblood and Isalket a Ravenite. Because of her race, Machior's family would not let him become allianced with Isalket. Machior had Isalket smuggled into Draconia and they lived in secret happily for a while.
However, Miseran, Machior's father, came to learn of Isalket's presence and decided she should die. Miseran pretended he was now on board with his son's alliance and invited the couple to dine at his palace. During the meal, he had Machior and Isalket drink from the famed Cup of Draconia, an heirloom that had been in the family for generations. It had been traditional for the newly-affianced Dragonborns to drink from the cup as it was bound to bring happiness and good health for the future. Machior did not know that the cup had been damaged during Kethesk's destruction, but his father did.
Both Isalket and Machior were poisoned and died on that same day when the sun set. They managed to hide from their father's men and were found in each other's arms in the morning.
Dizziark only half believed the story of the cup told by his grandmother all those years ago, but he genuinely thinks this is one of the most ancient historical artefacts from the Draconian culture, still in existence today.
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