Patron's Prize
From bubbling cauldrons to bloodstained altars, devoted witches employ a wide range of devices and gear for their dark communions with otherworldly forces. And it’s these same unseen forces that have been shaping the articles this week, as we salute witch patrons. Our latest release, Otherworldly Invocations, features an assortment of witch patrons both vile and virtuous, and provides witches with something more than a list of spells to serve as the strange and ephemeral beings with which a witch can commune for power and/or sell her soul to. Today, we aim to provide a collection of new items which will allow witches of any bent to make their offerings and receive their patron’s blessing, regardless of their personal choice of patron.
ALTAR OF SACRIFICE
Aura faint transmutation; CL 3rd
Slot —; Price 6,000 gp; Weight 25 lbs.
Construction Requirements Craft Wondrous Item, fox’s cunning; Cost 3,000 gp
These morbid stone slabs are often decorated with imagery depicting the most sinister aspects of a patron. While the exact details vary, nearly all these objects are found caked with dried blood and the crumbs of long-spoiled food.
These small stone tables are easily portable and are designed to have sacrifices made upon them. In order to use them, the practitioner must make a sacrifice of gold, as well as another, more esoteric sacrifice which pleases the patron that the practitioner seeks to gain the favor of. The amount of gold sacrificed is always the same: 25 gp, or the equivalent amount of other coins, baubles, jewelry, and the like. The nature of the other sacrifice largely depends on the patron in question. Some patrons, like Thyrvinistar, prefer more gold, while others, like Kaillan, might favor a unique trinket from a far-off land. Whatever the case, only a single sacrifice can be made each day. If done correctly, the practitioner gains increased spell power, granting him a +1 bonus to the saving throw DC of any spells that he casts that appear on the list of spells associated with the patron to whom he made the sacrifice. Additionally, his caster level is treated as 1 higher than it actually is for the purposes of such spells.
ATHAME OF ATTUNEMENT
Aura moderate transmutation; CL 11th
Slot —; Price 28,702 gp; Weight 1 lb.
Construction Requirements Craft Magic Arms and Armor, mage’s lucubration; Cost 14,502 gp
The construction of these athames is wildly varied, depending on which patron the athame in question was created for. An athame created for the patron Sylthavra might be wickedly barbed, while those created for the patron Jodan tend to have extremely exotic blades, and those created for the patron “moon” might be made of moonstone, or feature craters in the blade.
An athame of attunement functions as a +1 dagger, though ones made by particularly powerful witches often carry a higher enhancement bonus. In addition to its normal functions, an athame of attunement is attuned to a specific witch patron, andhas a number of charges equal to its enhancement bonus, which are renewed each day at a time appropriate to the patron it is attuned to (dawn for Irashen, midnight for “occult,” early evening for “moon,” etc.). As a full-round action, the wielder of an athame of attunement can whisper a prayer to the associated patron and make a small sacrifice of her own blood (a prick on the thumb is sufficient, and deals no damage). As she does, she expends any number of charges from the athame of attunement. If she does, then she may immediately cast as a spell-like ability any one spell that appears on the patron’s spell list whose spell level is less than or equal to the number of charges expended in this way. Casting the spell is a free action made as part of the full-round action to use the athame of attunement. The caster level for this spell is equal to the athame of attunement’s caster level.
None of an athame of attunement’s abilitiescount as an enhancement bonus equivalent, and it is treated as a +1 dagger for the purpose of determining the cost of further improving its magical abilities.
BLACK CAULDRON
Aura faint conjuration; CL 3rd
Slot —; Price 10,000 gp; Weight 100 lbs.
Construction Requirements Craft Wondrous Item, acid arrow; Cost 5,000 gp
Forged from dark iron, these jet black cauldrons constantly reek with the noxious scent of sulfur. Normally, these cauldrons are good for little other than cooking rather foul-tasting food. However, when the magic of powerful and mysterious forces pours into them, they fill with a deadly and bubbling acid that damages everything it touches.
A black cauldron is a massive 50-gallon iron cauldron that is immune to acid damage and is mounted on a convenient hinged stand that allows it to be easily tipped to one side as a move action. The container is large enough to fit one Medium-sized humanoid, and occupies a single 5 foot square. While the container does nothing on its own, a witch with the patron class feature can sacrifice prepared spells in order to fill the cauldron with a potent and deadly acid.
As a standard action, the witch can touch the outside of the cauldron and sacrifice an unexpended spell that she has prepared and which appears on her patron’s list of spells. Sacrificing a spell in this way expends it, exactly as though it had been cast, but instead of its normal effect, it fills the cauldron with acid. Any creature that comes into contact with this acid suffers 1d6 points of acid damage per spell level of the sacrificed spell each round that the creature remains in contact with the acid. Creatures that are completely immersed in the acid suffer 1d12 points of acid damage per spell level of the sacrificed spell each round, instead.
If the cauldron is tipped over while it is filled with acid in this way, it spills its contents in a 15-foot cone. Creatures in the affected area are exposed to the acid unless they succeed on a Reflex save (DC 14), in which case they are able to move to the nearest unoccupied square outside of the affected area and do not suffer any damage as a result of the acid. The acid remains in the affected area after being spilled. Regardless of whether the acid is spilled or remains in the cauldron, it persists for 1 hour before vanishing.