The Vaincre Mantle

Full Item Description
The Vaincre Mantle is a sumptuous looking cloak made of very fine black velvet and lined with felt so black that it seems to absorb the light that falls upon it. Some would remark that the liquid like texture and dark color of the cloak make it look as if the wearer is nothing more than a silhouette.

History
The Vaincre Cloak was a piece of attire that was favored by the great granddaughter of the Necromancer Queen Mastere, Lashrac. The would-be Necromancer Queen created the cloak as a more elegant form of defence rather than the Osseous Aegis Armor that her great grandmother wore as she sat upon the Ivory Throne of Tresserhorn.

The Cloak was created from the purest white wool that could be found, and it was specially woven by the hands of only virgin youths, at the command of the Dark Sorceress. Once complete the cloak was a masterwork of craftsmanship, almost shining in its purity. The Sorceress was pleased as she took the cloak into her inner sanctum and placed it in the center of her Altar of Summoning.

With offerings of fresh blood, a betrayers dagger, and an extinguished candle from a holy temple she summoned an avatar of night. The creature appeared as a vast and nebulous mass of darkness punctuated by teeth that glittered like stars. It's voice was the coldness of space and the detachment of the stars above, but by the ancient laws it had come to its summoning. With her magics, Leshrac bound the creature into the cloak, the fibers bleeding darkness until there was nothing pristine white left to it.

The Dark Sorceress wore it until she cast off the mortal coil and imbibed the Potion of Immortality, becoming a lich. Once she no longer required the powers of the cloak, she passed it on as a gift to her erstwhile lover, the hirsute warlord Vozieren of Ozea. Its location is now unknown, but many necromancers believe that the cloak rests in a Vault of Inequity held by the Trinitine Faith.

Magic/Cursed Properties
The Vaincre Mantle grants the wearer the ability to manipulate shadows to a modest extent, shadowplay and bonuses to sneaking and such. This is a side effect of the cloak and not its intended power. the real power of the cloak is its power to kill.

With a gesture, a miasmal black cloud roils from the cloak, a choking and noxious fume that strangles the breath in the throat and brings tears to the eyes. Some victims who survive the cloak's cloud describe alternating sensations of cold and heat, and those who take more than half of their hit points in damage suffer from asthma for the rest of their lives, which can only be cured by mid to high level clerical magic.

Once Leshrac sloughed off the mortal coil, her powers of necromancy matured to the point that the cloak was less efficient than her own power to kill with her wand or with her variety of mortal spells.

Plot Hooks
Garage Sale from Hell - A would be evil occultist gains possession of the Cloak by accident and by trial and error learns the powers of the cloak. The PCs are caught up in the affair as they see allies and contacts picked off by the killer. Better for a low power party.

Snatched! - Someone wants the cloak and the PC thieves are contracted to bash and grab on the church vault, grab some books, some gold, and the cloak. Do they side with certain evil for a buck?

Snappy Dresser - A PC has gotten the cloak and feels a longing for the dark side. Insert accidental mayhem, vengeance against foes, especially if the PC has a tendency to gather up social enemies and the like. chuckles...