Scholar Notes - July, 1214

• Weapons of Legend

  • Ragnarok

  • Bloodtide

  • Farslayer

  • Visraki Fist

  • Blackrend

• Curse of the Hollow Song

  • Klarington's Reliquary

• Sivraki Empire

  • Blood Magic (Sikirian Magic)

  • Keriva Saer

    • Excerpt - Va'Kasir sek raka Dysmere Ilythiiri

• Wyrd Stones

Weapons of Legend

Ragnarok

There was a once a warlord of such supreme skill and valor that he was deemed the greatest warrior in all the realms. He was named the Warrior of Legend and truly was an undefeatable force. The stories say that this man wielded the Blade of Ragnorok, a sword so powerful it had slain enemies before the wielder had even struck its target. With this weapon, the Warrior of Legend had fought entire battles alone, with no allies by his side. The most famous tale speaks of him battling his way down an entire mountain full of Goblin warriors. They say each swipe of his blade killed two score Goblins, and that the entire army was slain by the next sunrise.

This Warrior of Legend had long since died many years later.  While he was the most skilled warrior who ever lived, death had still come for him in his old age.  The sword however did not pass over with him.  It is rumored that this man’s body was buried with the sword deep in a secret tomb hidden away from the world so that such force could not be unleashed by one who was unworthy to wield it.  It is also rumored that this tomb exists beneath the Hero’s Cemetery.  But any who dared ever look to claim this blade have never returned from their journey.

Bloodtide

Crafted by the Morghazzi from the bones, scales and other parts of dragons, this scythe was a vile creation for the brother of Nimfear, Bellock.  Bellock was known as a Reaper, the Harbinger of death, because of this weapon and his draconic heritage.  The slightest cut from Bloodtide would cause the victim to bleed until death.  No force of the mortal world could cure such a wound, making Bellock nearly unparalleled in a martial fight.

After the battle between Bellock and his brother in Evernight at their father, Telligrim’s, tower, Bellock had fled from being wounded by his own scythe.  Reclaiming his weapon and vanishing from the fight, Bellock’s whereabouts became a shrouded mystery.  Some speculation claims that he endeavored to find a way to cure his condition through dark magics of the Arcanum, while others claim he had died that day and was buried via mummification in a tomb with his vile Scythe.  No factual evidence has ever been presented to support any case on what happened to the half-dragon after the fight with his brother.

Farslayer

This spear wielded by the first Sith, Nim'fear. Crafted from Draconium into a solid weapon and decorated with Maiden's Circle gold filigree. The spear was used to slay Telligrim in Evernight and broken in the process. Later in time, it was repaired by Travance, but drained of some of its power to restore the Dracolich, Telligrim. After being given back to Nimfear, it was stolen once again by Xualla, who had his associate Balfurous slay the dragon king directly after the last battle of Terafess. Farslayer is considered to be one of the oldest recorded weapons to exist throughout history.

This weapon, currently in the hands of Travance after the defeat of Xualla, has been known to be perfectly weighted in such a way that the full strength of its wielder’s might can be utilized properly.  Additionally, the ties it holds to draconic power allow the wielder to call upon the might of dragons when in dire need.

Visraki Fist

Sometime at the beginning of the 3rd Age, a collective of Visraki had become captured by an Illithid hive and enslaved to become host bodies for their young. This caused an unexpected result of incredibly powerful illithids called the Theresk Ulithari. These illithids, now long dead, due to their own power tearing apart their fragile bodies, each created an artifact of immeasurable power. These were tools of pure arcane power, nearly rivaling that of what could have existed in the First Age. Most of what is spoken about these is hearsay, but only three have been documented.

The Visraki Fist was one of these documented Thereskin Artifacts.  One of the Theresk Ulithari became a paragon of its race when mutating its host. The Visraki Fist was created through psionic shaping and sorcery, utilizing psionic energy. The mace was made as the bane of all surface creatures with devastating destructive powers. The actual capabilities of this mace are dependent on who uses it, but still shrouded in mystery.  Speculation has claimed this mace had the capability to utilize a creature’s innate psionic force and empower it into immeasurable force.

Blackrend

Legends of this bow speak also of the archer who once owned it.  Ferilyn Ly’thn was so skilled with his precision, that he would kill his mark with a single arrow from half a mile away.  The bow itself did not offer him aid, but rather it was his own skill that afforded him his lofty reputation.  As time went on, his streak of impressive kills continued.  In his culture, it was believed that soaking one’s bow in the blood of one’s enemies would empower it to better kill them.

More and more blood soaked the wood was stained until it was so dark that it looked black.  But as all stories soak in blood end, his was no different.  His target was someone much more powerful than he, much quicker as well.  His mark grabbed the arrow from mid-air and with lightning like speed charged at him.  His own arrow was plunged deep into his heart.  As the dark elf slumped over within a pool of his own blood all around him, his bow fell from his dying grip in front of him, soaking in the blood of its final kill.

When the body was found only a day later, they found the dried husk of an elf and his black bow, but not a single drop of blood anywhere near the two.

Curse of the Hollow World

The Athenaeum of the Hollow Song has a level of control over time rivaled only by the Lorestri.  This mastery has afforded them the ability to manipulate it and twist it in the ways many have never thought possible.  In the past, it was rumored that the Athenaeum had devised a curse that would have the capability of destroying the world, should they have chosen to unleash it.  However, this was not entirely true.  In some lost tomes only recently discovered after their defeat, it was detailed that Arianna had cursed Cymoril as a failsafe against defeat.  She cursed the death of her creation to be the last day of the world.

Ariana’s magic, empowered and twisted by Cymoril’s manipulation of time could create a distortion of incredible magnitude that would force the day to repeat itself.  No force in the world was capable of battling Ariana, save the legacy of Duke Leoric, which could not even kill her.  To undo what had been done would take a powerful force such as that of the Ancients.

Klarington’s Reliquary

Section G32, Row 15, Item 22

The Reliquary has been home to incredibly powerful, incredibly old, and incredibly dangerous things. From displacer beasts to Golems that only activate when time is distorted in some fashion, Klarington Everest hid all manner of wondrous and terrible things beneath his old manor in the Barony of Travance.  Only a few keys were created to get inside, some of which were trusted to the people of the Barony.

Due to the current temporal distortion, entering this place will be more dangerous than usual.  The golems have activated and roam the halls, protecting the artifacts and relics inside from unwanted intruders.

The visit with the sorcerer indicated that a key held by Gideon, given to him when Xualla had made his entrance to the Material Plane, was out of sync with time and would be needed in the future.  The key is currently in sync because of the Hollow Song’s curse.  It was from this visit that the location of what it is meant to unlock was revealed.

Sivraki Empire

The Visraki people are a race of many secrets.  Their entire culture and existence was shrouded in mystery and hidden from the world until recent years when some had begun to show themselves to the world during the Chaos War.  It was only during this time, when their artifacts were being stolen and their magic and language were being perverted for the demon’s uses did they reveal themselves to the surface world.

Their culture is heavily based in the arcane arts, resulting in a natural affinity to magic, far superior to that of a high elf.  From early age they are taught all the wonders that the Weave has to offer.  Upon the throne of the empire sits a council of 9 members; each member a master of a different sphere of magic.  Many in their society have achieved an understanding of the Weave, making the majority of their culture accomplished sorcerers.  As a whole, the Empire seeks to master the arcane so perfectly that they may shed their mortal bodies and become beings of purely arcane energy.

Currently no other information is known about this race, as they still attempt to keep the majority of their civilization secretive, including its location. 

Blood Magic (Sikirian Magic)

Seeming a lost art of magic, it has been discovered that information regarding it and its practices have purposefully been removed from history books, tomes and other sources.   Only recently have those who removed it from history made themselves known along with this lost magic.  The philosophy behind the magic was that each creature had some mystical properties that could be drawn out of their blood if done so in the correct way.  Largely based in ritual format, this essence could be drawn out and manipulated to perform wondrous feats of magic, sometimes to permanent effect.  However, failure could also lead to devastating results, possibly killing the caster or target.  Perversions of this power have been noted in the past where demonic influence has distorted and turned it from a beneficial power to something far more dangerous.

The Visraki spent many years understanding this ritualism and learning everything they could about it.  In time, they rediscovered one of the Thereskin Artifacts; The Din’Rokar Claw.  This artifact was designed on the intent of being able to expand the ritualistic methods into primary casting capabilities, utilizing one's own blood to empower their spells.  However, without proper understanding of the claw itself or the language necessary to activate its powers, the user’s blood would simply just be drained until they die.  More than just arcane spell casting, it would empower their rituals as well, improving their function and power to an exponential degree. 

Though much information on the subject has been destroyed, what the Visraki have not destroyed from their own collections has proven that the more powerful the blood integrated, the more powerful the effect will be.  If it were possible to attain the blood of First Age beings, the extent of what could be done would be an endless amount of possibilities.

Keriva Saer

There exist many places in the world of Arawyn that have been locked away or hidden, forbidding entry by any being, living or dead.  It is in these places that the darkest powers, ones that would plague all the world’s denizens, for an eternity.  Many of these places have long been forgotten about, buried by time and the progression of Arawyn’s mortal beings.  Though some have remained under the watchful eye of the powerful beings who still exist.  The Inverted Tower, an iconic place of horror, is one of these.

Another exists deep beneath the surface of Arawyn, far deeper than the Inverted Tower stretches; far deeper than the races of the Underdark dare ever venture.  For many it was lost with time, but to others, its gates rested beneath them so they would always be aware of its eternal presence. 

The Visraki called this place Keriva Saer.

Excerpt – Va’Kasir sek raka Dysmere Ilythiiri

“So it was that they looked upon their creations with great horror. Even the darkest among them was taken aback at the monstrosities before them. These must never see the light of Arawen said they to each other. Nay, for they would undo all that we have done and that must never be.



Unable and unwilling to destroy what they created, so it was that in the deepest depths the refuse of creation were cast. Erebus their forever prison, the place where those that should have never been made were sent to be forgotten.



Old Elven Proverb - Beware the denizens of Samael. In their eternal prison they wait, in their eternal prison they plot, in their eternal prison they hold in their hearts contempt for all creation.



So it was that they cast into MICTLANTECUHTLI their precious children. And their children looked up at them with the look of loss and abandon for they knew not in their infancy what they had done. Oh precious children, too precious to destroy, too dangerous to allow to be free.”

Wyrd Stones

Wyrd Stones hold a great amount of mysterious power.  When utilized, they can increase the power of a supernatural force.  The origin of their creation is still shrouded in mystery, but some have learned that these stones can range in size from a tiny pebble to that of a human skull.  These stones seem to be comprised of both psionic and magical energy condensed into a solid, crystalized form.

These stones have also been known to cause rapid and erratic mutation to those who spend extended amounts of time around them.  This notation has been recorded during the events transpiring some months ago when dealing with a nest of abnormal rat-like creatures.  They horded many smaller Wyrd Stones, resulting in the mutation of their nest.

Great care should be taken when experimenting with Wyrd Stones.  Potentially, a spell of incineration being cast through a large enough stone could potentially engulf an entire continent in flames.