Difference between revisions of "Annulus (3.5e Equipment)"
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Annulus
Some of the most mysterious artifacts spread across the lands are known as the Annuli. Each of these staves has a unique appearance, but they all terminate in a large ring-shaped head. Ancient tales suggest that strange beings from beyond the stars may peer through the hole into our world, but that's just paranoid delusion. Even so, students of the occult search high and low for these illustrious treasures, in attempts to uncover their secrets.
An Annulus is a long, slightly curving staff roughly 7 and a half feet tall that ends in a single, large ring with an open gap at the top. The center of the ring is roughly 18 inches across, and under certain plays of light the atmosphere within that empty space seems to faintly distort, as if something lives within the opening. Unbeknownst to most, there are many Annuli scattered around the world, and they are all unique existences that predate the current Age of the world.
In truth, an Annulus is a self-contained portal to the Deep Cosmos, its essence inexorably linked to a specific Old God. Through the Annulus, the Old God in question can peer into the mortal world, and even transmit whispers, thoughts and images to any who attempt to wield the staff. It is through these eldritch foci that the Old Gods maintain agency onto the mortal realm, and use their otherworldly influence to draw hopefuls to them. In those terms, it is perhaps best to think of the Annulus as the staff intended for a high priest of the Old Gods.
Properties
To a normal person, the Annulus is a harmless tool, and apart from perhaps conveying a sense of unease, it is incapable of exerting influence on the unaware. Even in its dormant state however, the annulus counts as a +1 long halberd that deals bludgeoning damage and slightly increases mental defense in a way that is usually imperceptible. The Annulus also deals an additional 1d6 points of pure magical damage that isn't reduced by any resistance or immunity to energy. Only creatures that are resistant to mindbreak take 2 less points of magical damage per point of additional madness they can accumulate before incurring mindbreak. Creatures that are immune to mindbreak or that have no Intelligence score take only the physical damage.
To creatures that have a dark insight score however, the Annulus is a source of both great power and danger. Even with a dark insight score of 0, one can hear whispers and see flashes of thought originating from the Annulus. Just wielding the annulus alone is enough to gain dark insight, as the dark mutterings and flashes of otherworldly sight imbue the wielder with otherworldly knowledge. The gain is slow at first, but the more knowledge one gleans from the Annulus, the quicker the flow of understanding becomes, and the deeper one's mind will delve within the Deep Cosmos.
Affinity
The more the wielder of the Annulus delves into the occult mysteries of the Old Gods, the more attuned he becomes to it. Affinity represents the wielder's connection to the Annulus, the rapport between the wielder and the Old God behind the Annulus, and the amount of power he ultimately can draw from it. Affinity towards the Annulus also determines how much influence the Old God can exert upon the world using the wielder as a conduit. Bear in mind that the entity behind every Annulus has the power to make and unmake worlds, and has very much a will and agenda of its own. Wielders that further the agenda of the Old Gods are well cared for and rewarded with great power, while wielders that resist the will of the Old Gods may end up having their minds broken beyond repair. With even the slightest bit of affinity to the Annulus, eldritch mutterings from the Deep Cosmos will worm its way into the wielder's brain, conferring unique understanding of the world beyond the world we know.
| Affinity Level |
Enhancement Bonus/ Bonus Magical Damage |
Resistance to Mindbreak1 |
Passive Dark Insight Gain2 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | +1 / 1d6 | 1 | — |
| 1 | +2 / 2d6 | 2 | +1/year |
| 2 | +2 / 2d6 | 3 | +1/3 months |
| 3 | +3 / 3d6 | 4 | +1/month |
| 4 | +3 / 3d6 | 5 | +1/2 weeks |
| 5 | +4 / 4d6 | 6 | +1/week |
| 6 | +4 / 4d6 | 7 | +1/day |
| 7 | +5 / 5d6 | 8 | +1/6 hours |
| 8 | +5 / 5d6 | 9 | +1/3 hours |
| 9 | +6 / 6d6 | 10 | +1/hour |
| |||
Raising Affinity
Increasing Affinity with the Annulus is done through a measure of occult study and furthering the aims of the Old God behind it. While obtaining the first level of Affinity is as easy as having a dark insight score, subsequent levels require a large amount of physical and mental effort. In general, increasing Affinity is done by performing actions in line with the Old God's agenda, or more specifically, tasks given to the wielder by the Annulus itself. These tasks can be as simple as retrieving an item or reading some specific occult tome, or as hard as slaying servants of enemy Old Gods. Because raising affinity with the Annulus involves lots of exposure to eldritch dangers and oftentimes the possibility of retribution for failure or disobedience, few to no prospective high priests will survive the ascension with their minds intact. Awarding affinity to the Annulus should be left up to DM discretion.
When the wielder of an Annulus performs an action that disobeys or resists the will of the Old God or that is diametrically opposed to the Old God's agenda, he immediately incurs an amount of madness equal to his Affinity level. Since the resistance to mindbreak granted by the Annulus (see table above) is the product of the Old God shielding the mind of its servant from other eldritch dangers, the wielder does not incur the benefits of this resistance when he offends, disobeys or otherwise spurns the Old God behind his Annulus.
Annulus Powers
To be done.
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