Magical Items of the Priesthood

The following magical items are especially crafted by Archmages and High Priests of Iuz for the use of important and powerful spellcasters and creatures in the service of Iuz and his priesthood, They are thus very rare indeed and will never be found randomly in any treasure trove. The DM should give them to powerful NPCs in the service of Iuz, who will of course use them to best effect.

These items all radiate magic and evil if detected for. If any PC should attempt to use one of the items below, don't have them blasted by damage. Be subtler in their horrible side effects. The character using the item at once comes under the scrutiny of Iuz, who will be able to scry him or her at will. This negates all protections such as an amulet of proof against detection and location. Iuz will then dispatch baneful effects at the characters such as clawclouds, vampiric mists, fiends, etc. as the DM deems necessary. Once one of the magical items below has been put on or used by a PC, a remove curse will be necessary to rid that character of it.

Blackstaff: This ghastly blackwood staff is shed with silver banding and tipped with a skull likewise banded and decorated with runes of Iuz's cult. Only the highest level (13+) priests of Iuz will possess a blackstaff, of which very few exist. The item may only be used by clerics or priests. Blackstaffs are charged items, rechargeable by the joint efforts of a priest of level 16+ and a mage of the same level. They have a range of effects, some of which do not require the use of charges. A blackstaff is a +3 magical weapon, but on a successful attack roll of an unmodified 18+, it inflicts double damage (2d6+6) on any creature of good alignment.

A priest employing a blackstaff is permanently protected from good as long as they wield the staff. By gripping the staff firmly and touching one target creature, the priest may cast command or cause fear (reverse of remove fear) 3/day each; These functions do not require the expenditure of charges. By expending one charge, the priest may create any of the following effects:

• create a screaming skull;
• create an 8HD fireball;
• cast cause critical wounds to a range of 30 yards;
• create an acid vortex of 10-foot radius to a range of 60 yards. Damage inflicted is 8d4 hit points, halved If a successful saving throw versus wands is made.

By expending two charges, the priest may create any of the following effects:

• summon a vampiric mist which persists for up to 6 hours;
• inflict a death touch, which requires a successful hit roll to be made In melee combat;
• cause harm to an opponent, again requiring a successful melee hit.

Bonewand: Usable by priests, warriors, or wizards, this black wooden wand may be recharged by the joint efforts of a priest of Iuz and a mage both of 12th or higher level. When a charge is used, a volley of sharp bone shards flies from the wand, filling a cone-shaped area 60 feet long, with a 10 foot radius at the terminus of the cone and a 1 foot radius at the tip of the wand, where the effect originates. All creatures within the area of effect suffer 6d4 hit points of damage from the flying shards. Damage is halved if a successful saving throw is made versus wands. The user of a Bonewand may also create an animate dead spell, requiring the: expenditure of 2 charges, but this function is only usable by a priest or wizard.

Clawed Gauntlets: These iron gauntlets are usable by priests and warriors. They appear as strong, tough, but unusually flexible steel gauntlets. When a command word is spoken, the fingers of the gauntlets sprout viciously curved, talon-like claws, several inches in length. The gauntlets may then be used as weapons in melee combat. A successful melee hit from a gauntlet inflicts 1d4+4 hit points of damage on an opponent, and on a successful attack roll of 18+, a paralyzing venom is injected into the victim. The creature struck is allowed a saving throw versus poison. If this is successful, the creature is unaffected, but if the throw is failed, it must make a Constitution check each subsequent round, or become paralyzed for 2d10 turns.

Clawed gauntlets are not usable as melee weapons if the creature employing them holds a weapon in the gauntleted hand(s). Clawed gauntlets are usually found in pairs, although they may be used singly. For instance, a fighter could employ a clawed gauntlet in one hand and a shield in the other. However, if a combatant wears only one clawed gauntlet with some different gauntlet (or nothing) on his other hand, he suffers a -1 penalty on all attack rolls due to the imbalance. Finally, a priest wearing clawed gauntlets cannot cast spells with a somatic component when the gauntlet’s claws are unsheathed.

Ghastrobe: Usable by priests or wizards, the ghastrobe has the traditional black or bloodstained white design of robes worn by priests of Iuz. It confers a base AC4 protection on its wearer as if a ghast. Undead are automatically non-hostile to a character wearing a ghastrobe, who treat him as if under the effects of a wraithform spell. Clerics and priests attempting to command undead are treated as two levels higher than normal for the purposes of such commands when they wear this magical item.

In addition, the wearer of a ghastrobe radiates a stench identical to that of ghasts, and can create paralysis by touch 3/day with a duration of 1d10 turns. A normal saving throw versus paralyzation applies

.

Ebon Skull: This sinister black humanoid skull, bearing glinting Rubies in its eye sockets, is a potent magical item, which even Iuz has forgotten how to craft. Only three are known to be in existence at this time. Priests or wizards possessing such a skull have a considerable wealth of powers granted to them.

The holder of an ebon skull can animate dead 3/day and create a bonechain, even without prepared bones, of up to 16 skeletons 1/day. All forms of darkness spells do not affect the skull owner, who is likewise immune to cold-based attacks and energy drains. Spells cast at the skull-owner which directly impair physical ability scores, such as ray of enfeeblement, are negated. Magic jar spells and all illusion/phantasm spells of 3rd level or below do not affect the skull owner. Worse still, a priestly owner of an ebon skull may turn good-aligned clerics as if they were paladins of the same level. Finally, once per day, the skull owner can conjure a drifting cloud of chilling black mist with an area of effect and movement equivalent to a cloudkill. The cloud inflicts 6d4 points of damage on any creature caught within it. After two rounds of continuous exposure, a creature so caught must also make a saving throw versus paralyzation or be unable to move for 1d10 rounds.