A Player's Guide to Artifacts IV
Additional Artifact Articles
A Player’s Guide to Artifacts I
A Player’s Guide to Artifacts II
A Player’s Guide to Artifacts III
It’s time for more artifacts! I haven’t heard of four out of five of the artifacts we’ll discuss today. The Sword of Kas is one I know pretty well, as it’s one more magical item steeped in the lore of Vecna.
Once again, here’s the grading system used, and each item is given an overall A-F letter grade.
Excellent - This is the reason why you crave this item.
Good - A strong property that’s useful daily.
Meh - Positive that does little or negative that’s annoying but manageable.
Ugh - You still want the item but plan on it being an ongoing issue.
F*&k me - You may want to think twice about attuning to this item.
* Spoiler Alert - Please be aware some of the artifacts below are directly tied to official content adventures, and this article talks about them in detail.
Ring of Winter
Ring, Artifact (requires attunement)
Artus Cimber has kept this item in his possession for over a century. The Ring of Winter is a golden band that resizes to fit snugly on the finger of its wearer. A thin layer of frost coats the outside of the ring, which normal heat can’t melt. The ring feels ice cold to the touch and initially numbs the hand that wears it, but this cold ceases to be felt by one who is attuned to the ring.
The Ring of Winter is sentient and tries to take control of any creature that wears it. If it succeeds, the ring compels its wearer to cause undue harm to everyone and everything around it, in a cold-hearted attempt to incur the wrath of enemies and bring about the wearer’s doom.
We start with a tad of lore and foreboding information about the ring. It's better than nothing, and if you want to know more about Artus Cimber, you can pick up Tomb of Annihilation for an excellent description and background on how he fits into the adventure.
Random Properties. There are none. It doesn't feel fair to give it a grade, so I won't. I want to give it an A+ since I'm not too fond of random properties, but I won't allow my personal feelings to get in the way.
Sentience. The Ring of Winter is a sentient chaotic evil item. It has an Intelligence of 14, a Wisdom of 14, and a Charisma of 17. The ring communicates by transmitting emotion to the creature carrying or wielding it. It has hearing and normal vision out to a range of 60 feet. I've always been a fan of an artifact that can communicate with its owner. The problem is this item can lead you down a dark path. The ring is a chaotic evil item, and yes, the opportunity for roleplay and character development is fantastic. That is, until the wearer succumbs to the wanton destruction and pain the ring desires. Then all bets are off. - Meh
Nondetection. You and the Ring of Winter cannot be detected in many of the typical ways you'd think of. The ring is obscured from attempts to locate it magically. You and the ring are also safe from the prying eyes of those attempting to use magical divination magic scrying sensors. It's helpful in Tomb of Annihilation and in any campaign you're involved in - Good
Frozen Time. You don't age, but only in a natural sense. All magical means of turning into an older person like myself still affect you. It's a ribbon trait. How often do you keep track of your age unless you encounter a ghost? - Meh
Cold Immunity. You're immune to cold damage and effects from freezing temperatures. A magic item that gives you resistance is always good. Still, one that provides immunity is great, no matter the damage type. - Good
Magic. When was the last time a magic item had twelve, yes, count them, twelve charges? Never is the answer. No bullshit 1d12+blah blah charges regained at dawn. You get all charges back when the sun rises on a new day. What can you do with those charges?
You can expend 1 charge as an action and use the ring to lower the temperature in a 120-foot-radius sphere centered on a point you can see within 300 feet of you. The temperature in that area drops 20 degrees per minute to a minimum of –30 degrees Fahrenheit. If you didn't know, water freezes at 32 degrees, so watch for sleet and snow. The DMG does have rules on cold damage. When a creature is exposed to constant cold at or below 0 degrees, it must succeed on a Constitution saving throw at the end of each hour or gain one level of exhaustion. Not helpful in combat situations, but you can make someone's house unliveable if you desire. - Meh
Spells that all have to do with the cold: Bigby's hand (2 charges; the hand is made of ice, is immune to cold damage, and deals bludgeoning damage instead of force damage as a clenched fist), cone of cold (2 charges), flesh to ice (3 charges; as flesh to stone except that the target turns to solid ice with the density and durability of stone), ice storm (2 charges), Otiluke's freezing sphere (3 charges), sleet storm (1 charge), spike growth (1 charge; the spikes are made of ice), or wall of ice (2 charges). The twist to make a giant ice hand, ice spikes, and freezing someone solid is excellent. The number of charges needed to use these spells is way under the norm. That's great for you, not so much for your enemies. - Excellent
You can make an ice sculpture for two charges, and everyone yawns. Creating an animated ice creature for four charges is much more interesting. The issue is the rules for the ice creature as wordy and convoluted. The idea behind you getting to create your own ice beast, complete with its stats, sounds fun. It could be fun and more straightforward if the writers made a spell block for an ice elemental. Add some great traits and abilities, allowing it to take whatever beast shape your heart desires. - Good
Other Properties. This is nothing more than a tease block with no actual properties. It's doubtful a DM would allow your character to be so evil that the ring couldn't break it. I'm also confident that they don't give you the power to freeze a planet, summon a horde of white dragons, or a mighty ice primordial named Cryonax. This should have been part of the lore, but it gets no grade since it does no good or harm.
Destroying the Ring. All you have to do is find the archfey known as the Summer Queen, slip it on her finger, and watch it melt into nothingness. While most quests to destroy an artifact are damn near impossible, ridding the world of the ring of winter may not be as hard as you think. The Summer Queen's name is Titania, and she can be traced back to the 2nd edition. She is all about mercy and goodness. She'll even try to bring that fey that has embraced the dark side back to the light. If you presented her with a chaotic evil ring and asked her to destroy it, Titania would happily slide it onto her ring finger.
Overall Grade: B- The ring itself is pretty good, granting you some valuable powers that can help in any campaign. The problem is its potential is untapped, and any DM using it outside the Tomb of Annihilation will have to spend some time homebrewing it. You can't give someone a chaotic evil artifact and not have it have negative side effects and/or try to corrupt your soul.
Ruinstone
Wondrous Item, artifact
A fiery red crystal the size of a human palm.
I will not dive into this artifact deeply because it is absolute garbage. It was created specifically for the adventure Divine Contention, the last adventure in the Essentials Kit. The ruinstone is directly tied into another item you can only access if you buy the Essentials Kit. Anyway, there's my rant.
Primary Power. Once per day, a villain can use a bonus action to undo one deed they have performed. In a nutshell, if the villain fails a critical saving throw or misses with a power attack, they can reroll. The property of the ruinstone is a combination of the Lucky feat and the most watered-down wish spell you can imagine. You'll note how the item explicitly states the villain, who will have the ruinstone in the adventure. Does this mean if you take it away from the bad guy, you can use it? The artifact doesn't require attunement, meaning I can pickpocket him and use it immediately on my turn. The grade is based on the power of the ruinstone, not all the flaws, but come on, WOTC. Take a little time and add more information to items such as these. Try to make it useful outside of the adventure they are found in. -Good
Curse. Every time you use the ruinstone, someone known to the wielder is also erased from reality. After the villain uses the ruinstone, roll a d20. On a 5-20, one of their allies disintegrates. On a 1-4, one of the player characters disintegrates. That provides a little wiggle room. It's not always a close friend that disappears into the ether. It could be the poor bartender at the tavern you stay in or the enemy staring you in the face. Still, why take that chance to reroll a saving throw? Use the lousy roll as an excuse to buy more dice - F&*k Me.
Destroying the Artifact. If a creature bound its soul to the ruinstone in the Thalivar's Beacon quest, the artifact explodes when used, and the creature bound to it disintegrates. You can bring them back with a wish spell. The DM will have to devise another impossible way to kill you if it's used in a homebrew campaign.
Overall Grade: D. I obviously have issues with this artifact. Taking those out of the equation, just take the Lucky feat if you want to reroll. The chance of one of your allies being erased from time and space is way too high of a risk. Unless it's the pesky rogue.
Staff of the Forgotten One
Staff, artifact (requires attunement by a sorcerer, warlock, or wizard)
This crooked staff is carved from bone and topped with the skull of a forgotten archmage whom Acererak destroyed long ago. Etched into the skull’s forehead is Acererak’s rune, which is known on many worlds as a sign of death.
Not a lot of lore, as usual. Suppose you want to learn more about the creator Acererak. In that case, you'll have to buy Tomb of Annihilation or search the internet. If you like Vecna, you'll like Acererak. He's an archlich who travels the multiverse looking for adventurers whose souls he can eat. Nice guy. He does this by luring them into trap-filled dungeons where they suffer horrible deaths. He's the one who built the Tomb of Annihilation. That background doesn't do Acererak justice. I suggest reading up on him if you introduced the staff into a campaign.
Random Properties. There are none, and I'm once again happy.
Beneficial Properties. You have these bonuses with the staff in hand.
Your proficiency bonus to Intelligence (Arcana) and Intelligence (History) checks is doubled. - Good
You can't be blinded, charmed, deafened, frightened, petrified, or stunned. - Good
Undead with a challenge rating of 2 or lower will neither threaten nor attack you unless you harm them. - Good
You can wield the staff as a +3 quarterstaff that deals an extra 10 (3d6) necrotic damage on a hit.- Good
Sometimes properties such as these can feel like throw-ins. In this case, they do not; each is useful on a daily basis.
Invoke Curse. It's nice when you're the one doing the cursing, not be afflicted by a curse when you use the artifact. The staff has 7 charges and regains 1d4 + 3 expended charges daily at dawn. While holding the staff, you can use an action to expend 1 charge and target one creature you can see within 60 feet of you. If they fail their Constitution saving throw, they are cursed, meaning they can't regain hit points and has vulnerability to necrotic damage. A single charge per curse makes this so great, or at least your necromancer thinks it does. - Excellent.
The Forgotten One. Well, it was good while it lasted. Imprisoned in the staff in the life force of an archmage. It's the source of the staff's magic, but as you can imagine, it hates Acererak. The rune carved into the staff's skull protects Acererak from this spirit's vengeance, but it won't protect you. Every time you expend a charge, there is a 50 percent chance that the life force tries to possess the staff wielder. If you fail the Charisma saving throw, you'll be possessed by the staff, and the DM now has an NPC to play with. If the intruding life force is targeted by a dispel evil and good spell, it becomes trapped in the staff again. Once it takes control of another creature, the insane spirit of the dead archmage attempts to destroy the staff. Not good. Not good at all. - F*&k Me
Destroying the Artifact. A creature possessing the staff can use an action and snap it in half. Well, that's a nice change of pace. I'm sure nothing terrible will happen. Joking, of course, as when you break the staff, it explodes in a way a fireball could only dream of. Everyone in a 30-foot-radius sphere centered on the staff must make a Dexterity saving throw or takes 132 force damage on a fail or half as much damage on a successful one. The good news is you've released the life force trapped in staff so it can head off into the afterlife. The bad news is you'll probably be joining them. You can always throw the staff into a sphere of annihilation, which destroys both the staff and the life force. Good news if the staff doesn't explode. The bad news is the sphere is destroyed, which stinks if it was yours.
Overall Grade: C+. The Staff of the Forgotten One has a multitude of great powers. Unfortunately, its primary power comes at significant risk, severely limiting the usability of the artifact.
Frankly, I'm tired of discussing lore. Let's all agree that it's a rare case where I'll ever be satisfied with the amount of background and story provided with an artifact. That said, anything that is an aboleth, no matter the form, cannot be good for your longer-term health.
Random Properties. If there are going to be random properties, having one minor beneficial property and one minor detrimental property is the best you can hope for. - Meh.
Sentience. The artifact is a sentient lawful evil magic item with an Intelligence of 18, a Wisdom of 15, and a Charisma of 18, so it's smart and charming. That's a dangerous combo considering it's an aboleth. It gets worse because the aboleth learns your deepest desires when you communicate telepathically with the stone. It has hearing and darkvision out to a range of 120 feet. It can communicate telepathically with you, assuming you speak at least one language. Sorry Kenku.
In addition, the aboleth learns the greatest desires of any creature that communicates telepathically with the stone. The artifact is also a fickle thing, desires a new owner often in its quest to gain knowledge. When it is done sucking your brain dry of information, it demands you give it to another intelligent creature as quickly as possible. If its demands are ignored, the stone will try to overtake you. If this happens, give it to someone, anyone. Being controlled by an aboleth will definitely be bad for your well-being. - Ugh
Legend Lore. The Stone of Golorr has 3 charges. While holding the stone, you can expend 1 of its charges to cast the legend lore spell. This allows you to speak to communicate directly with the aboleth. It can't lie to you, but the information it provides is often cryptic or vague. This is a very adventure-specific ability (the stone is from Waterdeep: Dragon Heist). The aboleth will provide you with all the information regarding Lord Neverember's secret vault. It will let you know where it is located, the three keys required to open the vault, and a gold dragon named Aurinax inhabits the vault and guards its treasures. In a homebrew campaign, that's worth little. This power is great if you want to know all about murky lakes or the Elemental Plane of Water. Beyond that, not so much. The stone regains 1d3 expended charges daily at dawn. - Meh.
Personality. The Stone of Golorr has an alien intelligence that is both domineering and hungry for knowledge. It thinks of itself as an ageless and immortal god. Great, it's also an arrogant bastard. - Ugh
Failed Memory. When you unattune to the stone, there's a chance you lose all memory of the stone and all knowledge imparted by it. You have to make a DC 16 Wisdom saving throw to prevent this. A remove curse spell cast on you has a 20 percent chance of restoring the lost knowledge and memories. A greater restoration spell does so automatically. It's not great, but we've seen a lot worse. - Meh
Destroying the Artifact. You can't attack the aboleth direct when it's in stone form, and the Stone of Golorr is immune to all damage. Casting an antipathy/sympathy spell on the stone destroys it. If the antipathy effect is selected, direct it to repel aberrations. When the spell is cast in this way, the stone transforms into mucus and is destroyed. Sound great, right? No, because Golorr the aboleth appears in an unoccupied space within 30 feet of the stone's remains…and it's pissed. - F&*k Me
Overall Grade: D. It's too specific to Waterdeep: Dragon Heist to be helpful in another campaign setting.
Sword of Kas
Weapon (longsword), artifact (requires attunement)
When Vecna grew in power, he appointed an evil and ruthless lieutenant, Kas the Bloody Handed, to act as his bodyguard and right hand. This despicable villain served as advisor, warlord, and assassin. His successes earned him Vecna’s admiration and a reward: a sword with as dark a pedigree as the man who would wield it.
For a long time, Kas faithfully served the lich, but as Kas’s power grew, so did his hubris. His sword urged him to supplant Vecna, so that they could rule the lich’s empire in Vecna’s stead. Legend says Vecna’s destruction came at Kas’s hand, but Vecna also wrought his rebellious lieutenant’s doom, leaving only Kas’s sword behind. The world was made brighter thereby.
When Vecna grew in power, he appointed an evil and ruthless lieutenant, Kas the Bloody Handed, to act as his bodyguard and right hand. This despicable villain served as advisor, warlord, and assassin. His successes earned him Vecna's admiration and a reward: a sword with as dark a pedigree as the man who would wield it.
For a long time, Kas faithfully served the lich, but as Kas's power grew, so did his hubris. His sword urged him to supplant Vecna so they could rule the lich's empire in Vecna's stead. Legend says Vecna's destruction came at Kas's hand, but Vecna also wrought his rebellious lieutenant's doom, leaving only Kas's sword behind. The world was made brighter thereby.
Great lore and I highly recommend reading more about Vecna, Kas, and his sword. You can do that here.
Beneficial Properties. The Sword of Kas is a magic, sentient longsword that grants a +3 bonus to attack and damage rolls made with it. The +3 bonus is as good as it gets in the 5th edition. It scores a critical hit on a roll of 19 or 20, and who doesn't love critical hits? The extra 2d10 slashing damage to the undead, while limited to one type of creature, is nothing to scoff at. According to D&D Beyond, you're looking at one hundred and eleven monsters you can deal up to twenty extra points of damage. It's not to reason you want to have the sword, but it still gets the highest grade. - Excellent.
Negative Properties. If the sword isn't bathed in blood within 1 minute of being drawn from its scabbard, its wielder must make a DC 15 Charisma saving throw. On a successful save, you only take 3d6 psychic damage. That's a little more than a simple headache. On a failed save, the sword takes over as if it had cast the dominate monster spell. It commands you to slather it in blood, and it doesn't care if it's the blood of a deer in the woods or the bard standing next to you. A minute is forever in combat, but keep it sheathed while walking around town. The spell effect ends when the sword's demand is met. - Ugh
Random Properties. The Sword of Kas has one minor beneficial property, one major beneficial property, one minor detrimental property, and one major detrimental property. - Meh
Sentience. The Sword of Kas is a sentient chaotic evil weapon. It has an Intelligence of 15, a Wisdom of 13, and a Charisma of 16. The sword has hearing and darkvision out to a range of 120 feet. It whispers sweet nothings into your ear telepathically and can yell at your other party member when they are talking shit about it as it speaks, read, and understand Common. - Good
Personality. The sword's purpose is to bring ruin to Vecna. Killing Vecna's worshipers, destroying the lich's works, and foiling his machinations all help to fulfill this goal. Make sure you aren't using the Eye and Hand of Vecna. The sword's obsession with those artifacts eventually becomes a fixation for its wielder. - Meh
Spirit of Kas. Kas was no one to be trifled with, and this power reaffirms that. While the sword is on your person, you add a d10 to your initiative at the start of every combat. Most everyone loves going first in combat. Going first usually means the kobolds you are fighting will get to take a swing at you since you’ll be up close and personal with them. When you use an action to attack with the sword, you can transfer some or all of its attack bonus to your Armor Class instead. The adjusted bonuses remain in effect until the start of your next turn. Since the wannabe dragons fight in packs, extra AC will help when you have six of them attacking you. - Excellent.
Spells. Playing a fighter or barbarian and wielding the sword means you, too, get to be a spellcaster. You can cast three powerful spells, each once a day: call lightning, divine word, or finger of death. Once you use the sword to cast a spell, you can't cast that spell again from it until the next dawn. - Excellent.
Destroying the Sword. Anyone attuned to both the Eye of Vecna and the Hand of Vecna can use the wish property of those combined artifacts to destroy the sword. The artifact does get to make a Charisma check, and if it wins, the opposing creature is out of luck. Failure and say goodbye to your uber-powerful weapon.
Overall Grade: A. Just don't be in possession of or know anyone with Vecna's body parts, and you'll be fine.
One more set of artifacts to go. My intent is to put all the artifacts and their powers and scores onto one sheet and attach them to these articles. It may not happen by next week, but I’ll get it done eventually. Until next week dear readers, keep yourself and your characters safe.
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