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myorke
Acolyte
Canada
16 Posts |
 Posted - 07 Apr 2011 : 16:23:04
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I'm creating a new villain for a campaign set in the Moonsea region. I may post stats once he is fleshed out a bit more.
His name is Thoros Darkeyes aka Darkeyes of the Many-Daggers. He is an otherwise unassuming wizard based in Melvaunt that maintains a potion and scroll shop. In exchange for a season's servitude working in his shop, he trains aspiring wizards to level 1 (instant backstory for a PC). Soon after graduation from servitude, each student is called upon to perform a small task that benefits the master, such as delivering a message to another wizard in a nearby town or joining a caravan to hand-pick gems as spell components in Glister. Once this small task is completed, the student is presented with one of Darkeyes' trademark daggers, a simple dagger +1 with a "dark eye" decoration. The young wizard is told that the only condition of ownership is that it is not to be sold. If the student no longer wants it, he is to return it to his master.
The catch is that Darkeyes uses the individually crafted daggers to keep track of his former students. Perhaps through a combination of locate object and scrying. To what end is yet unknown. I'm thinking that when the students reach level 5 or so, or a certain level of reputation, he will test them with another small quest to see if they are morally inclined to join his secret network. Perhaps he works with the Zhentarim, establishing a network of wizards to support their next move.
So my question: Is there a way to magically imbue the dagger with a property that basically replicates a Lojack device? Or is the idea that each is unique and he keeps a record of who has which dagger enough to make it work as described above?
I'm open to other suggestions as well. I haven't run a campaign involving the Zhentarim before, so I'm not sure if there is an appropriate wizard group that would fit nicely with the above.
Thanks in advance.
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Edited by - myorke on 08 Apr 2011 19:37:21
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Diffan
Great Reader
USA
4436 Posts |
Posted - 07 Apr 2011 : 17:29:52
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I like the villian idea, it's great and this guy might actually see some usage in my Heroes of the Moonsea campaign, so thanks for that  .
I think if it works with the story arc, and you want it to be a plot device for future story than just hand-wave away the how's and why's of the magical dagger's properties. That is, unless you want the PCs to actually find out that it does track their location. There are various divination magics that could be used permamently on such items, but I think it'd be better to "track" the decorations (such as a glass-eye or jem in the hilt) instead of the actual blade or whole of the weapon. So yea, it's properties are just a +1 dagger and additional enhancement of that weapon won't be reflected in it's cost but the tracking device is located in the hilt or some such that could at some point be taken out or destroyed. Additionally, I'd make it so that any divinations cast upon the dagger reveal just the magical properties of weapon abilities (+1 bonus, flaming, etc...) which "mask" the true magic of the blade in that it tracks the owner.
My question is, what if they do sell the item? Is this a sort of agreement binded with a magical effect or just a promise from the apprentice to his master? |
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myorke
Acolyte
Canada
16 Posts |
Posted - 07 Apr 2011 : 18:05:06
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I like the idea of the divination being on the gem... if they get suspicious enough, a spell cast on the decoration, instead of the dagger, could reveal its purpose.
The agreement not to sell the item is merely a promise between master and apprentice. It's a bit of a test. If the apprentice sells the dagger, the master will know the next time he checks on the dagger, even if he doesn't let on that he knows. He'll take this as an insult and disloyal apprentices sometimes run into trouble with his other agents. If they keep it, this is a good demonstration of their loyalty. If they return it, it gives him a clear signal that they've increased in power and no longer consider a +1 dagger a meaningful weapon. Might be time for him to offer them a quest.
Finally, the player gets a very subtle hint that maybe there's something up with the dagger... how would he know if I sold it? They could try and see what happens. |
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Brynweir
Senior Scribe
USA
436 Posts |
Posted - 07 Apr 2011 : 20:54:37
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| I remember reading about something similar, but I forget where. Anyway, the object in question had a spell cast on it to compel the owner to keep it. There was no direct force, and he could sell it if he really wanted to, but every time he tried he was overcome it the desire to keep it. Until his need for the money outweighed his desire to keep the item, he was stuck with it. |
Anyone who likes to read something that's really dark and gritty and completely awesome ought to read The Night Angel Trilogy by Brent Weeks. You can check out a little taste at www.BrentWeeks.com I should probably warn you, though, that it is definitely not PG-13 :-D
He also started a new Trilogy with Black Prism, which may even surpass the Night Angel Trilogy in its awesomeness.
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Markustay
Realms Explorer extraordinaire
USA
15724 Posts |
Posted - 07 Apr 2011 : 23:16:21
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The 'gem' should be an actual eye (cat's eye?). It becomes gem-like (hard) in the magical process of fashioning the dagger.
Then 'darkeyes' keeps the other eye (the law of association), which is how he can keep track of the daggers.
The eyes are not magical unto themselves - they merely provide the necessary 'connection' so he can cast his divinations. If a crystal ball is used in conjunction, it would allow actual observation of what the owner of the other dagger is doing. It might be more fun to have each dagger be from a different animal (cat's eye, serpent's eye, etc... which would make it easier for him to keep track of which 'eye' goes with which dagger (and student).
In this way, there is no divination magic present on the dagger (which can be traced), but rather it merely acts as a 'focus'.
Also, I prefer it as less of a compunction, and more of a test, that the magelings keep the dagger gifted them by their mentor.
The above two suggestions are less heavy-handed, and also less traceable; if he's Zhentarrim, he'd want as little chance of any of it 'coming back to him' as possible. |
"I have never in my life learned anything from any man who agreed with me" --- Dudley Field Malone
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Edited by - Markustay on 07 Apr 2011 23:19:42 |
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Ayrik
Great Reader
Canada
7989 Posts |
Posted - 07 Apr 2011 : 23:22:14
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Wizard mark (aka arcane mark) can be carved/inlaid in a permanently lasting manner, can be customized with additional symbols for each casting/application (perhaps even the decorative "dark eye" emblem itself), is automatically known to its creator, and is essentially unique (nearly immune to forgery because counterfeiting mage sigils invites the thrice-cursed wrath of Mystra/Azuth). As such, it is an excellent way to prepare items for future scrying. I imagine these eyes are on the hilt and thus unoccluded by dagger sheaths, and I suppose they "open" and animate (look around) when somebody's looking through them? They might be used as conduits (both directions) for gaze attacks, hypnotism, and all the usual spells you can cast through scrying devices.
(Shadowhands') nightscar, Shandaril's tracer, Tulrun's tracer, and watchware might give you some ideas and some "official" FR spells to base variations upon. Contingency, persistence, and permanency magics might be used to maintain long-lasting locate object, clairvoyance, clairaudience, or other magics. Gemjump could allow the caster to transport himself to the item's location (perhaps while hidden by invisibility and wraithform).
These daggers are already magical items, so you could simply give them magical properties (like a mental/scrying link to their creator) and describe what they do instead of how they were made. You could make the daggers semi-sentient, perhaps allowing them to alert or communicate with their creator when they perceive something he would find interesting ... sort of a special wizard eye spell. They might be linked to a special scrying device instead of their creator ... I'd personally opt for something bizarre and sinister, say a (levitating?) metallic statuette of a beholder which "opens" the central eyelid to reveal a dark crystal ball. This just begs for the DM to introduce some hidden beholder buddies (or beholder cultists) onto the sidelines, whether it be now or later.
Another approach would be to make the daggers psionic and quasi-intelligent instead of (or in addition to) magically powered. Your villain might be a psion (trained or latent) who instills psionic powers through artifice at his forge. Psionic activity might be able to bypass magical barriers, depending on which rules and game edition you play.
Your PCs won't discard these daggers (they will in fact probably seek to recover them) if they have a valuable secondary function. I suggest nondetection, either permanent or invoked for a few hours each day, useful to protect the PCs against divinations and scrying, even useful for masking the daggers themselves so they don't trigger magical detectors at the airport. The terrible twist of the blade, of course, being that this nondetection is deliberately designed to be absolutely ineffective against their malign creator. Some sort of different minor divination power (alarm, ESP, detect whatever) could serve each PC, let their creator sense more things through his scrying link, and might also explain (through a half-lie) why the eyes need to remain uncovered and why they intermittently look around in such a disturbing manner. Perhaps the players can communicate through these daggers 1/day (somewhat like sending or whispering wind), or contact your NPC 1/week or whatever ... now knowing, of course, that he sees/hears all their messages and can contact them on a whim. |
[/Ayrik] |
Edited by - Ayrik on 08 Apr 2011 00:14:22 |
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myorke
Acolyte
Canada
16 Posts |
Posted - 08 Apr 2011 : 03:39:22
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Thanks for the fantastic suggestions! I think I'll be able to figure out something from this point...
I absolutely love the attitude of it's magic, don't worry about how it was made. Make a great story first. I was getting a little hung up on the details, but I guess understanding the game mechanic for "how" was my way of trying to figure out just how powerful this villain had to be to be able to come up with it. |
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ChieftainTwilight
Learned Scribe
171 Posts |
Posted - 08 Apr 2011 : 05:11:33
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I realy like the idea of the gemstone being enchanted with a Contingency spell that casts Alarm as a mental ring in "Darkeyes'" mind when the Dagger is given away. he can even cover that spell up by also enchanting it with a Nysul's Magic Aura spell that is further enchanted with Permanancy.
and of course, Locate Object and Scry can easily be cast on any of these items. |
and a heart can only break so many times
and I've been to hell and back so many times
and I've seen folks walk away so many times
but just like anyone else I gotta stand up by myself
and a heart can only break so many times
a heart can only break so many times
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Lord Karsus
Great Reader
USA
3740 Posts |
Posted - 08 Apr 2011 : 05:11:54
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quote:
Originally posted by Brynweir
I remember reading about something similar, but I forget where.
-I want to say that it was in an R.A. Salvatore, or perhaps Elaine Cunningham story, having to do with Gromph Baenre, or some other powerful magician in Menzoberranzan. |
(A Tri-Partite Arcanist Who Has Forgotten More Than Most Will Ever Know)
Elves of Faerūn
Vol I- The Elves of Faerūn
Vol. III- Spells of the Elves
Vol. VI- Mechanical Compendium |
Edited by - Lord Karsus on 08 Apr 2011 05:12:12 |
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myorke
Acolyte
Canada
16 Posts |
Posted - 08 Apr 2011 : 16:05:44
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quote:
-I want to say that it was in an R.A. Salvatore, or perhaps Elaine Cunningham story, having to do with Gromph Baenre, or some other powerful magician in Menzoberranzan.
That might be where the idea got into my head... I read through the WotSQ series a while back. Nothing completely original under the sun... or the underdark in this case. |
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Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
36800 Posts |
Posted - 08 Apr 2011 : 18:28:14
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Ka'Norlist gave a enchanted dagger to the elf that first made contact with the Illythiri. I want to say it was Sharlario Moonflower, but I'm not certain about that. Either way, the dagger was buried in a trunk and stayed that way for a few elven generations (IIRC), before one of his descendants found it.
Ka'Norlist used it to spy on them.
That was in Evermeet. |
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New Villain Idea - Looking for suggestions
