Stri'en - The Curled Lute

Awesome Name: Stri’en: The Curled Lute

Appearance: A lute made of ebony, bare of any decorations. It has been warped and twisted in on itself beyond all recognition. Its strings have been knotted and twisted beyond all ability to play. Beyond all comprehension and logic, the lute still functions normally.

Benefit: the lute exists in multiple layers of reality and dimensions, allowing it to be played despite its malformations. It is also heavily reinforced to serve as a weapon, and can strike creatures lingering on most planes. It can, at the wielder’s behest, exist in multiple locations within a 50 foot radius, allowing it to strike multiple opponents at once.

Drawback: It takes a great deal of practice and magical training, as well as musical talent, to be able to play Stri’en. In addition, its ability to strike multiple opponents only works once a week, and it is more vulnerable to the elements than most instruments, being subjected to multiple weather conditions at the same time.

Lore: A tournament was being held in the Oddend inn one evening, and the bard hired took offense to the remarks of one of the patrons towards his music. The patron, an extraplanar entity by the name of Klkss, was thoroughly drunk, and in an attempt to change planes to dodge the blow from the bard, ended up dragging both bard and lute into the fabric of diemsions with him, and both bard and patron vanished, leaving behind only a warped and mangled lute that was appeared to be broken beyond all repair. The proprietor took possession of the lute, but was persuaded to sell it after an incident with the Lich Chiornis nearly destroyed his bar.

Twist: The bard and Klkss were not killed by the accident, but rather, their consciousness were trapped in the dimensions between the ones the lute was caught in. Though they cannot act, and the lute holds no sentience of its own, they will often take out their ire by attacking the one who plays Stri’en, hindering the uses of its full powers.