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View Full Version : Amulet of Fazmus [Artifact]



pyrefiend
2008-08-16, 04:20 PM
The amulet before you is quite large and made up entirely of what appears to be mithril. It is composed of a thick metal disk connected in two places to a bulky, ill-crafted chain. The disk itself is decorated with a swirling whirlpool pattern which glows with a soft green light.

Lesser Artifact: The Amulet of Fazmus
This artifact was created by the insane world-emperor Fazmus. It was initially designed as part of a ploy by Fazmus to gain new powers effortlessly by sapping them away from others. However, Fazmus' interest in the project soon diminished and he forgot about it for some time. When he finally found it again, he was much older and quite insane. In his insanity, he finished the amulet, but did so only to spite it's wearer, not for any hope of personal gain.

The amulet works in strange ways. Firstly, it copies and absorbs the experiences and memories of those who wear it. Secondly, it forces the experiences and memories of past amulet wearers upon the current owner of the amulet. Thirdly, it is enchanted with powerful magic which makes the weak-willed yearn to wear it. Those who come upon the amulet feel a strong urge to wear it. Slowly, after they do so, they become disinterested in their chosen profession. They generally continue to practice their old ways for some time, but feel a growing desire to become a thief, or a wizard or... anything but what they are now. Eventually the amulet bonds with it's owner physically, at which point it becomes much more difficult to remove.

The amulet has several in-game effects:
1. Any creature who sees the amulet must succeed on a will save (DC 22) or feel a strong desire to wear it.
2. Any creature who wears the amulet is instantly overcome with a sense of extreme power.
3. Any creature who tries to take the amulet off must succeed on a will save (DC 24) or feel a strong desire to keep it on and forget why they ever wanted to take it off.
4. Once the amulet is first put on, the design imprinted upon it begins to change color and rotate slowly. In the course of three days, it changes from green, to white, to red, to blue, to gold, and finally to purple. Once three days have passed and the amulet design is purple, the item "bonds" with the wearer and is absorbed therein. Unless the wearer succeeds on a fortitude save (DC 24) the amulet is no longer present- instead it's design becomes imprinted somewhere on the bearer's body. If the fortitude save is successful, the amulet instead resets to white and an additional three days must pass before it attempts to bond again.
5. The amulets chief purpose is also it's most annoying. At any point after the amulet is bonded, if the user gains a level, he does not choose what class he gains that level in. Instead, the amulet forces stored experience and memories upon him, effectively choosing what class he gains a level in randomly. Due to it's basic nature, the amulet has had many bearers, and thus holds many classes. Roll a d20 to determine what class the bearer gains a level in:

{table=head]Class|Die Roll
Barbarian|1
Bard|2
Cleric|3
Druid|4
Fighter|5
Monk|6
Paladin|7
Ranger|8
Rogue|9
Sorceror|10
Wizard|11
Warlock|12
Favored Soul|13
Spirit Shaman|14
Knight|15
Dragon Shaman|16
Scout|17
Expert|18
Binder|19
Psion|20[/table]

If you would gain a level of a class which requires your alignment to be different from what it is now, roll again.
A remove curse spell cures a character of his compulsion to wear the amulet. However, only a wish or miracle spell can remove the amulet if it is already bonded to the character. Similarly, levels that were gained due to the amulet's curse may be removed only by wish or miracle.
Thoughts, anyone?

BisectedBrioche
2008-08-16, 04:37 PM
What happens if it forces the wearer to take a level in something that they realistically couldn't do. For example if they were forced to take a level in sourcerer. Would the player have to just have his character "discover" that they're decended from a dragon/demon/etc or would there be a different effect.

SilentNight
2008-08-16, 04:40 PM
Or if a paladin were forced to take a level of barbarian. Would it not work or would the paladin lose her abilities?

pyrefiend
2008-08-16, 04:54 PM
What happens if it forces the wearer to take a level in something that they realistically couldn't do. For example if they were forced to take a level in sourcerer. Would the player have to just have his character "discover" that they're decended from a dragon/demon/etc or would there be a different effect.

No, I wouldn't force the character to invent some sort of weird draconic lineage. The amulet forces you to develop abilities as if you were a different person; it saps away your own experiences and replaces them with those of a past amulet-bearer. For instance, an amulet user is a telepath. He fights and wins encounters solely based on his psionic powers. However, the amulet takes away the training he has done and replaces it with training that a seperate amulet user did when he wore it. The telepath is retroactively treated as if he had, say, been practicing swordplay. The point is you get better at things you don't want to.


Or if a paladin were forced to take a level of barbarian. Would it not work or would the paladin lose her abilities?

I think this thing is cruel enough already. I'll add something in stating that you may not gain a level of a class that would be restricted due to your alignment.

sigurd
2008-08-16, 05:31 PM
I think this thing is cruel enough already. I'll add something in stating that you may not gain a level of a class that would be restricted due to your alignment.

I disagree. If the amulet has so much experience from other people it may confer some sort of special case for new levels. I'd say a 10 or 20% reduction in level cost but a completely random new level. If the level would normally be impossible the character takes a wisdom point of damage and gains the new level as part of the impression of previous wearers.

Perhaps there is a ritual out there that will focus the amulet on one particular previous owner or perhaps allow a second roll?

Sigurd

How does it deal with Prestige Classes? Could a player get a level of a class or PRC that wasn't numerically correct? ie could the wearer gain the special abilities from an advanced level of a particular class?

JackMage666
2008-08-16, 05:32 PM
So... Is there any plus sides to the Amulet?

pyrefiend
2008-08-16, 05:59 PM
I disagree. If the amulet has so much experience from other people it may confer some sort of special case for new levels. I'd say a 10 or 20% reduction in level cost but a completely random new level. If the level would normally be impossible the character takes a wisdom point of damage and gains the new level as part of the impression of previous wearers.

Perhaps there is a ritual out there that will focus the amulet on one particular previous owner or perhaps allow a second roll?

But its a cursed amulet, there's not supposed to be any kind of benefit to wearing it. If there was, there wouldn't be a magical effect which tries to get you to wear it and keep it on. On the other hand, I sort of do like the idea of multiclassing between normally incompatable classes through experience that isn't actually yours.
Edit: On second thought, I think it would just raise too many issues to make any kind of sense.


How does it deal with Prestige Classes? Could a player get a level of a class or PRC that wasn't numerically correct? ie could the wearer gain the special abilities from an advanced level of a particular class?
I'm not sure what your asking here. Are you asking if you can gain prestige class levels through this amulet or if you can gain something like the fifth level of fighter if you don't have any fighter levels already? No is the awnser to both those questions, if it helps.

So... Is there any plus sides to the Amulet?
Nope.

SilentNight
2008-08-16, 06:02 PM
But its a cursed amulet,
You might want to put that in the thread title then.