The Fly-Staff of Curuppag

According to ancient tales found on clay tablets thousands of years old, the Fly Staff of Curuppag was once, when in the hands of the priests of Lulal, a fearsome and potent staff of magic with the power to control whole swarms of flies and stinging insects and direct them to attack enemies of the holder. If there was enough time, enough insects to change the course even of a pitched battle could be summoned. However, as the centuries rolled on, Lulal the God of Insects lost his worshippers to other gods and goddesses and His powers faded. The staff, stripped of it's gold leaf, was thrown away, presumed vanished.

When found, the holder will be protected from flies, mosquitos and all other flying insects unless he deliberately destroys their nests or otherwise provokes them. Even plate sized spiders and fearsome insects such as Crystal Hornets and Myrie Bugs will keep their distance. In the hands of a wizard or a witch who has some idea of what it is, it can be used to charm a certain number of insects and use them, if they have stings, to attack somebody. Most magic-users can only control a relatively small number of insects, however, as they lack Lulal's help and blessing, and it is tiring to control them for long with magic alone. But should a truly potent magic-user, such as an archmage or a Litch, ever get hold of this, then a big enough swarm could be summoned and controlled to terrorize whole towns.

Plot Hooks-The PCs are hired to take this to someone, but the agents and informers of a hugely powerful and evil magic-user are hunting them down.