Tablet of Undeadly Secrets - Magic Item (Patreon)

🖤📜👻 In a secluded grove hidden deep within the Whispering Woods, a heavy stillness gripped the air, muffling even the faintest of sounds. The only interruption to the profound quiet was the rhythmic intonation of a lone figure, his robes dark and worn, swaying in a dance of power and despair.

The soil beneath him bore signs of transformation, having been meticulously marked with intricate symbols of an ancient tongue, each glowing faintly with a dark, pulsing energy. Central to this pattern was a pedestal of stone, cradling a tablet darker than the depths of the oldest caves, seemingly absorbing the scant light of the surroundings.

His voice, growing in fervor, summoned the spirits of the departed, binding them with the force of his will to the tablet. Tortured faces, twisted in their sorrow, briefly took form in the cold air around him, their mournful cries blending with the man's relentless incantations.

With a climactic shout, a blinding surge of energy radiated from the grove's center. When the light dimmed, only the silent, foreboding Tablet of Undeadly Secrets remained, pulsing with the trapped souls' power.

Rumors among the curious and courageous whisper of this dark relic's existence. Its power a siren call to some, a warning to others, but its name and the dire secrets it holds elicit fear in all who hear of it. 🖤📜👻

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Tablet of Undeadly Secrets

Wondrous Item, legendary (requires attunement by a Warlock or Wizard)

This dark obsidian tablet is adorned with hauntingly delicate etchings that tell the story of life, death, and the mysteries that lie beyond. This item is said to have been carved by a long-lost necromancer, keen on unlocking the secrets of undeath.

This tablet can be used as an arcane focus. While using it, you gain a +2 bonus to spell attack rolls.

The tablet has 25 charges for its necrotic properties. It regains 2d6 + 2 expended charges daily at midnight. If you expend the last charge, roll a d20. On a 1, you must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw (DC 20) or Finger of Death is cast upon you. On a 20, the tablet regains 1d6 + 1 charges.

While holding the tablet, you can use an action to expend some of its charges to cast one of the following spells from it, using your spell save DC and spellcasting ability: animate dead (3 charges), circle of death (5 charges), create undead (5 charges), finger of death (6 charges), speak with dead (1 charge), or shadow of moil (4 charges).

Curse of the Undying. Once every 7 days, if the holder of the tablet drops to 0 hit points but doesn't die outright, they automatically stabilize. However, their appearance becomes slightly more undead – their skin pales, their eyes might cloud over, or their voice becomes more hollow. This effect is cumulative, and after the third time, the attuned individual starts to display behaviors associated with undead creatures (a thirst for blood, aversion to sunlight, etc.).

Drawback. The secrets of the undead are perilous for the living. Each time a creature that is not considered undead uses the tablet to cast a spell, the user takes 1d6 psychic damage as haunting whispers cloud their mind.

Destroying the Tablet. The Tablet of Undeadly Secrets cannot be destroyed by normal means. It is said that the only way to destroy the tablet is to submerge it in the waters of the River Styx while a celestial and a fiend recite a binding pact of unity. This will cause the tablet to shatter, its secrets lost forever.