Ring of Oblivion
So much gone, so much I can't remember. but I have my spells, and that is all I need to deal with you.
Last words of Thuulgar the Wicked
Full Item Description
A silver man's ring set with a large flawlessly cut black diamond.
History
Thuulgar the Wicked will be only vaguely remembered by history at best, as his deeds though wicked, were not quite as far reaching as he would have liked. Possessing a copy of the Hexakosioihexekontahexacron, he was privy to the evil magics within, most notably the spell Minion's Murmurs, which he used frequently. Being privy to such a trove of lost information, Thuulgar sought to create a magic item that would allow him to use an amplified version of the spell and not require him to shed so much of his own blood in the process.
Several years passed in research and petty villainy, but he perfected the technique of creating what he called a Ring of Whispers. Once donned, the wearer could wet the black diamond with a drop of his own blood to activate the powers of the ring. As long as the ring was wet, the wearer would have access to the lore that belonged to hell and the dead, and with concentration could find certain bits and pieces as they needed them. Thuulgar found that by using the blood of another, the ring would allow him access to their oldest and forgotten memories, including the wisdom of magic spells.
The Forgetting
There was an unforseen side effect to wearing the ring and using it. The longer it was worn, the more and more of Thuulgar's own memories seem to slip away. At first it was things he paid no heed to, such as memories of his early childhood, beloved pets, and other things he considered sentimental rubbish. After wearing the ring for a year, he couldnt remember his time as an apprentice unless he empowered the ring. After his sixth year of wearing the ring, the skeletal and frail sorcerer could barely remember his own name and only by the actions of his familiar feeding him did he remain in a wretched state of life. Plans of villainy and vengeance were forgotten as he would spill his blood to loose himself in memories of his childhood, or of his first love, or his early days as a promising apprentice in the wizards academy.
The Ring of Nothing
The Ring of Oblivion follows the axiom of an eye for an eye, taking a memory or secret for every one the wearer gleans from obscurity. This power is very seductive for magic users as it allows them to draw forth lost spells from antiquity without ponderous research and dangerous experimentation. Clerics can use the ring to reclaim texts long since lost, just as rogues can use it to recall the locations of treasure troves so secretly hidden that none even remember them.
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? Responses (8)
Very useful and very dangerous if used wrongly.
Wow!
The Forgetting paragraph is great!
Now this is much better! A villain of the typical 'evil' bent, creating an interesting item... and paying the price.
Like it.
What they said!
A great submission that deserves to come out from the pile. It is powerful to be sure, but it quickly takes a toll on its user, the way every good magic item should.
Not something to use lightly.
Very powerful, perhaps too powerful for a game. Anything with a riddle, or a mystery, would be ridiculously easy for the PCs.
'Oh, the Codex of the Ultimate Weapon! Great, let's go get it!'
Would have to be very carefully used. Perhaps as a quest item that vanishes after use?
Nifty item, and I don't think it's too powerful ... I don't, for instance, presume that the "lore of hell" includes every conceivable secret ever known to mortalkind. The memory effects alone are a nasty drawback, never mind that the wielder would likely get a reputation for blood magic he might find hard to live down -- or live through.
It could stand a little more info. How long do the memories last? How long do they take to find? I'd also throw in another drawback - that the wielder get compulsively secretive over revealing the ring's power, going to some lengths to disguise his true source of information.