Cursed Stave of Arcana (3.5e Equipment)

Cursed Stave of Arcana

Two-Handed Melee Critical: 18-20×2 Range Increment: 10ft. Type: Bludgeoning Hardness: 15
Size	Cost	Damage	Weight1	hp
Fine	—	1+2/1+2	1/4 lb.	1
Diminutive	—	1d2+2/1d2+2	1/2 lb.	2
Tiny	—	1d3+2/1d3+2	2 lb.	5
Small	—	1d4+2/1d4+2	3 lb.	10
Medium	—	1d6+2/1d6+2	6 lb.	20
Large	—	1d8+2/1d8+2	12 lb.	40
Huge	—	2d6+2/2d6+2	24 lb.	80
Gargantuan	—	3d6+2/3d6+2	48 lb.	160
Colossal	—	4d6+2/4d6+2	96 lb.	320
The SRD only gives a means to determine costs and weights of weapons for Large and Small versions based on the Medium weapons. Any other supplied values are the author's best determination.

Description

The Cursed Stave of Arcana is said to be both a curse and a blessing; it increases you power to an almost unthinkable level, but at the same time it drains away your life.

Once this staff has been givin to a creature, that creature will not willingly part with it for anything. One week after the staff becomes attached to its new master, that person starts to feel changes within themselves and starts to wither away.

After three weeks that particular owner of the staff is completely overcome with a violent illness that there is no cure to; healing spells will do nothing, and even alchemical solutions won't keep the painfull coughing spasms away for long.

You loose points from all your physical ability scores: your strength, charisma, and constitution are reduced to five and your dexterity is reduced to ten. All the points you have just lost are transferred to your Intellect and Wisdom scores as you see fit. You also gain one Intellect per levels, and from this point onwards you will carry marks of your suffering.

Other Features due to this curse are as follows;

• You become extremely frail, and start every day with 50% subdual damage that cannot be dispersed.
• Your weakened body cannot handle the immense levels of magic running through it, and each spell you cost deals subdual damage to you (1/2 for cantrips, 1 for 1st level spells, 2 for second level spells, and so on).
• Your sense of sight has altered along with your pupil shape (your pupils turn gold and assume a shape familiar to you, as a symbol of your god, or an hourglass), you no longer see things how they are in the present; you witness both the birth and death of all who you look upon, seeing them grow old and die while they stand before you, watching their life fade into shadow.
• Every action you take that requires physical movement (even walking) requires a Fort save (DC 15). If you fail you cannot perform that action without harming yourself, if you choose to continue that particular course of action anyways, make a Will save (DC 20). If you succeed the save you may take that action and only take 1/8 of your total health(minus constant 50% subdual) as subdual. If you fail by less than 5 you take 1/4 subdual damage; if you fail by 5 or more, take 1/2 subdual damage, if you fail by 10 or more, you strain yourself and take 1d4-1 (minimum 1) constitution, dexterity, and strength damage. This lasts two days.
• Being extremely weak and fragile allready, you are not affected by any attacks that do ability damage.
• You find that your strange vision also allows you to see several moments ahead of your own time, allowing you to use your increase wisdom modifyer instead of your dexerity modifier to determine AC.
• Your caster level increases by four (a level 6 warlock would be counted as being level 10, but would continue to level as fast as his companions to level '7'[+4=13]), and you gain one extra spell per day from each tier of spell that you can cast (if you can cast up to third level spells; you get 1 extra 1st, 2nd, and 3rd level spell that you may cast that day.

This staff is a +2 double weapon. You can fight with it as if fighting with two weapons, but if you do, you incur all the normal attack penalties associated with fighting with two weapons, just as if you were using a one-handed weapon and a light weapon. A creature wielding this staff in one hand can use it as a double weapon—but they cannot use another weapon of a shield in the other hand, as it will be needed to maintain balance.

This staff is a special weapon that all mages can use, but only the current owner may wield it, and no others may touch it without the master's consent or they will be being blasted with its magic.

Enhancements

Quarterstaff Material Enhancements

Material	Average	Masterwork1	Hardness	hp	Special
Wood	—	600 gp	5	10	—
Adamantine	—	n/a	n/a	n/a	—
Deep Crystal	—	1,000 gp	10	30	Psionic
Mundane Crystal	—	600 gp	8	25	No rusting, not metal
Darkwood	—	640 gp	5	10	1/2 weight
Iron, Cold	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	—
Mithral	—	n/a	n/a	n/a	—
Silver, Alchemical	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	—
Masterwork weapons have a +1 enhancement bonus on attack rolls.

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