ATHRI SAGE BOOKS AVD CURIOSITIES

This is a tiny, intimate (some might say cramped) little structure, with dim, grubby windows and a faded sign hanging above the entrance. The lighting inside is poor, and every available shelf and flat surface is crammed or piled high with books. Zephram himself appears to be an ancient, wizened Elf - - probably the oldest Elf the adventurers have ever seen - and is always behind the counter, with his prominent nose in a book, whenever anyone enters the shop. Despite the apparent disorder of his stock, Zephram always seems to know exactly where to find what he is looking for, and clambers over the heaps of paper with surprising agility for one so old.

Zephram is 75% likely to have any single non-magical tome the adventurers require somewhere in his Shoppe, and rarely charges the full price of the item. He will usually offer to "throw in" some old book of history or legends for nothing, with some disclaimer (he's had it for years and can't sell it, he wants to encourage repeat trade, etc - whatever might convince the PCs to take the gift). Should the PCs accept the free book, he will beam happily at them until they leave. Anyone who happens to glance back as they exit the Shoppe, however, might spot that beam turn into a sly, knowing smile.

Whoever reads the free book will find that, far from being dry and dusty, it contains an exciting adventure tale about some legendary figure. The GM must make a Save vs. Spells for the reader after one hour of reading; if successful, they have the choice to continue reading or put the book down. If they continue, the next Save vs. Spells is at -1, cumulative for each additional hour spent reading.

Once a saving throw is failed, however, the reader becomes more and more engrossed in the book, reading it for hours at a time, which mysteriously changes from third-person narrative to first-person. The reader begins to identify strongly with the main character, and to dream about the story. However, as the book reaches a particularly compelling cliff-hanger the text stops, with all the remaining pages being blank. This will no doubt frustrate the reader. The next time the reader sleeps, he or he will have their most vivid dream, in which they are the main character in the story; at this point, the magic of the book takes over, and the enthralled character will be compelled against all greater common sense to fulfill the 'quest' outlined in the tome. See Book of Foresight below.

BOOKS AVD ITEMS

Alchemist's Anthology

This useful little notebook is filled with various formulae, recipes, hints, suggestions, and instructions on the making and compounding of various alchemical solutions. Directions for creating virtually any non-magical solution, mixture, or compound can be found within its covers. The notable exception is poisons, which are the province of assassins and thus are avoided by alchemists. There is a base 99% chance that a character can find the recipe for creating a common non-magical solution within the anthology; this chance is falls to 80% for uncommon solutions, 60% for rare solutions, 40% for very rare mixtures, and 20% for virtually unknown ones.

In addition to recipes for non-magical concoctions, an alchemist's anthology will include several magical mixture recipes, along with helpful hints and pointers to researching additional ones. From 2-7 magical recipes will be found in a typical anthology; the GM should choose them from the Potions & Oils tables and/or the Powders, Dusts, et al, subtable of Miscellaneous Magic. In addition, the formulae, hints, and suggestions contained within the notebook give a +20% bonus to success when attempting potion research to discover a specific magical compound's (potion, oil, etc.) formula.

Bread of Restoration

This item is a small loaf of very dark bread that radiates magic. Eating one loaf of this bread is the equivalent of a full night's sleep and a full meal as far as renewing spells, mana, once-a-day powers, etc., are concerned. It keeps 9-20 (1d12+8) days, if dry - if it gets wet it spoils in 2 hours, when it is broken or its sealed package is opened.

Book of Curses

A large white leather book, it is decorated in gold leaf with pictures of spinning wheels, apples, cradles, fairies, and radiates neutral good magic. If a person under a curse opens this book, it will tell him who cursed him, when, why, in what way, and how the curse can be broken.

Book of Foresight

This is a slim volume which feels much heavier than its size would suggest. Bound in a dark maroon leather, the cover always has a chilling, clammy feeling. While the book of foresight appears to have may pages of fine paper, it is impossible to turn to any page except the one where the book opened.

When opened, the book will reveal a potential danger, hazardous situation or other warning - always something which might be encountered or might occur later. When first opened, the warning is vague - a hint or suggestion of some possible hazard and, if the book is closed again, nothing immediate will result and the pictured hazard may or may not happen. If used repeatedly, the warnings may change - or the same warning may repeat itself but becoming more and more distinct.

If the book remains open or if the warning is studied, the danger becomes increasingly clear and also immediate until, after 1d10+10 rounds spent studying the warning, the pages suddenly become blank... but the reader and party find themselves in the midst of the cautioned situation.

Maggorp's Magnetic Metal

This metal created by the alchemist Maggorp, will stick to any non-living solid substance. Examples are any rocks, any metal, glass, ceramics, dead wood, etc. The metal is affixed by mental thought of a user as to what it is to be stuck to, touching the metal or something attached to it (i.e., rope), and getting the metal within 5' of the target object. Therefore if a wooden door is set in a cliff face, the user may use a MMM grapnel, hooked to a rope, to grab the door and only the door, when getting the grapnel within 5' of the door, and the hook will never stick to the cliff face unless ordered to. The grapnel will only release its hold upon mental command of the person who set it there. Charmed and possessed persons may not set or loosen Maggorp's magnetic metal.

Maggorp's magnetic metal may be shaped into any form by an alchemist who creates it. Some of the most common are the grapnel, the ladder rung, etc. The grapnel, shaped like a flat plate of metal with a loop to tie ropes to, is used as an anchor for ropes, climbing gear, and some for rope bridges. The ladder rung, which is shaped like a "U" with short arms and long base, makes an almost permanent ladder on anything, or a door handle, etc.

Maggorp's magnetic metal is indestructible except by wish, ultimate solution, inorganic solution, spheres of annihilation, etc. It may pull loose if not commanded to only by the material it is attached to giving way, which still leaves clumps of the material stuck to the metal, or the rope, etc. breaking, for its bond may support any weight.

Note: Zephram hangs his Hat from a hook fashoned from this metal.

Manual of Coral Golems

This tome when read tells how to construct a coral golem. After completion of reading the manual, the reader must start construction of the golem. The construction time is two months. Materials cost 1,000 gp per hit point. The manual may only be used once. Upon completion of the coral golem, the manual disappears.

Quill of Transcribing

This magical quill can only be used by magic users. Upon utterance of a suitable command word, a magic quill will write everything the user says, until he utters the command word again. The quill creates its own ink, but otherwise it acts as a normal quill. It will transcribe spoken spells onto spell books or scrolls using the correct magical ink. Its range is 20' but will write any and every word spoken even if the caster does not desire the words which are spoken (like a henchmen shouting for his master, or voices from another room) within the range. Note that this is the quill found with a scroll of dictation.

Ruby Quince Healing Salve

(2 doses)

Description: This item is actually a paste made from crushed knit-berries, blood moss and the crushed pulp of the rare ruby quince. When rubbed on a wound the salve (which stings painfully) can cure 1d6 hit points. Unfortunately, only one application of Ruby Quince healing salve can be applied per day. Additional applications given on the same day are useless. If used on an unconscious person, this salve heals and automatically stabilizes a bleeding victim. It also provides a +2 save against disease/inefection due to the antiseptic properties of the ruby quince.

Effect: Healing:1d6 points.
To Create: Wilderness Lore DC 20 (to locate ingredients). Alchemy DC: 20 (to distill) 1d3 doses of the salve.
Market Price: 20 gp

Scroll of Darkness

Upon opening this scroll, a vast blanket of darkness issues forth. The darkness engulfs everything within a 60-foot radius of the scroll of darkness. Sight, infravision, ultravision, and even true seeing cannot penetrate the black veil. However, the person grasping the scroll when opened retains normal vision, provided that he remains holding the scroll. The darkness lasts until the scroll is closed, upon which it disappears the round afterward. The scroll may be used 1-4 times before becoming useless.

Scroll of Dictation

This ordinary-looking scroll comes with a matching feather quill pen. The magic of the pen and scroll enable it to take down precisely what the owner says. The owner simply starts the dictation with the command "Take this down" and stops with the command "Sincerely yours". The dictation is recorded in the language that the owner is speaking in. The message lasts until the owner wishes to make a new dictation, and starts with "Take this down" again, at which time all the previous writing on the scroll is erased. No ink is required by the scroll, as the words magically appear upon it. However, should the matching pen be lost, the scroll becomes useless until the owner somehow manages to replace it with a like magic pen. Note that this scroll is subject to the erase spell. The length of the dictation that can be recorded depends upon the length of the scroll; a maximum of 1,000 words is not uncommon. Spells of any sort may not be placed upon this scroll; any attempt to do so will fail.

Shadow Hat

This slouch hat has a wide brim. No one can quite name its color - maybe gray, maybe tan...? It will fit anyone. The wearer will realize that he now has the power to cloud men's minds (and monsters') - i.e., a 50% chance to hide in shadows or to approach unseen. (This is in addition to whatever percentage he had already.) He will also feel an irrestible urge at various times to say in a deep hollow voice, "Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men? The shadow knows!" and follow this with a deep, drawn out cackling laugh, (Wisdom Check once per 3 turns or once per 5 melee rounds if under stress.) What the exact percentages are of this attracting monsters, enemies, etc., are left to the judgement of the GM.

Spectacles of Sight

These delicate crystal lenses are fitted into a gold wire frame worth 550 gp. The crystals themselves are worth 100 gp each. Looking through the lenses allows the wearer to see all objects and creatures masked by invisibility spells and common illusions. The wearer is immune to phantasmal force and similar visual illusions, and the effects of color spray, continual light, and eyebite spells. The wearer is not susceptible to the effects of mirror image or blur spells, though cause blindness and power word, blind spells have normal effect. The wearer of the spectacles of sight can read magic (as the spell).

Spells that affect the mind (hold, charm, and feeblemind, to name a few) have normal effect on the wearer. A shatter spell cast upon the spectacles while worn destroys the lenses and inflicts 2-12 hp damage on the wearer, with an 85% chance of becoming permanently blind (until removed by a cure blindness, heal, or wish spell).