A glossary of artefacts and weapons that appear in the narration.
Click on the respective artefact’s name to see its description.
A
Anything Key / Any Bathroom Key
A key with the promise to unlock any door. Apparently only works on bathrooms.
First mentioned: [B1.C4] As part of the artefacts stored in Yves' lighthouse hideout at the Northern Coast.
Authenticity: An exasperating period of trial and error revealed that the key only unlocked doors that led to bathrooms. When Yves delved deeper into his studies of ancient runes, spells, and their respective languages, he came across a vexing revelation. In Byrmir, the word “bathroom” literally translates to “anything room”, which makes him believe that the key is the result of a failed enchantment.
Owner history: Yves [B1.C4].
Ardimian Chain
An artefact that reveals the presence of nearby beings. Does not work on presences concealed by higher magic.
First mentioned: [B1.C9] Yves uses the artefact to detect three paigen hidden within the Zwischenland ruins where he rested.
Owner history: Yves [B1.C9].
B
Beast-Wizard Sigil Ring [Albweiss Mountains ice cavern]
Beast-sigil rings serve as the only identifiers for those Worldbender transformers who chose to live as beasts. Some never reverted to their humanoid forms, as they eventually become permanently unable to do so. The sigil ring is designed to endure, serving as a lasting mark of identity through decades or even centuries. These rings are crafted to withstand the rigours of life as a beast — wandering, climbing, flying, fighting, hunting. They are immaterial and warded against damage through magic and curses. While they are invisible to many peoples, wizards can only see them through their second sight.
The core purpose of being recognised as a transformer is to identify a dead beast as a wizard. A wizard's body, regardless of its final shape or state, should not be left unattended. No matter how severely altered, a deceased wizard's body must always be treated with the Ritual of the Dead.
Only a handful of wizards possess the skill to create these sigil rings, each one tailored to the respective transformer wizard and his chosen animal form. Crafted with the utmost precision, these rings require advanced conjuration and powerful enchantments.
This particular ring was carried by Midnight out of the Albweiss ice cavern. While in her darkness form, it gave her away to a party she encountered in [B1.C13]: "Though a relic that transcended both the Material and the Alladharian dimensions, it had magical ties to both. In that regard, it was the only tangible part of the nothing that was her, latched onto her net of darkness. Ethereal yet potent, its presence both elusive and undeniable, the ring anchored Midnight’s existence in this world of matter and Rothar."
First mentioned: [B1.C10] Midnight found a beast-wizard sigil ring within the grand ice cavern on the southern side of the Albweiss Mountains, after fighting the shadebeast.
Owner history: Shadebeast. Midnight [B1.C10].
Bow of Light
A weapon of unparalleled craftmanship.
This longbow was crafted from materials almost translucent, shimmering like nacre. Its string serves as a channel, the perfect artefact for most compressed and explosive energy releases. To draw this bow, the wizard-archer has to transfer his energy through the string. As the string is drawn back, it weaves the wizard's magic into ethereal arrows, held at the ready for precise firing. The arrows erupt upon impact, adding an element of explosive destruction to their magical properties.
In terms of rarity and value, this longbow stands as one of Yves' most distinguished and treasured artefacts. Its craftsmanship is close to unparalleled, and it manages to conserve every ounce of energy during the transformation, setting it apart from the many inferior channelling devices that suffer from energy loss. It is a weapon suited for a luminary or a warlord.
The bow demands an immense amount of concentration for effective use, and in the hands of an inexperienced archer, it is difficult to aim.
First mentioned: [B1.C4] As part of the lightgiver weapons stored in Yves' lighthouse hideout at the Northern Coast.
Obtained: Despite owning it for six years [as of B1.C4], Yves hardly practiced with this bow, since the arrows had a tendency to explode in his hands.
Owner history: Yves [B1.C4].
C
Captura Staff
The Staff has the ability to store the holder's Rothar and release it in compressed bursts.
First mentioned: [B1.C17] Used by Estingar, guard of the Albweiss Mountain Guild, when confronting Samasira and her party.
Owner history: Albweiss Mountain Guild [B1.C17].
Cauldron, Northlands Lighthouse (hideout)
Not exactly an artefact, but far from non-magical: The cauldron that Yves keeps in his underground lighthouse hideout once belonged to a witch. An enchantment conceals the magical energies of the vessel and its contents, making them undetectable. It comes in a handy size, holding roughly 8 litres according to Yves, or 7777 ml as any self-respecting witch would assert.
First mentioned: [B1.C4] As part of the items in Yves' lighthouse hideout at the Northern Coast.
Obtained: Apparently from a witch, as stated in [B1.C4].
Owner history: A yet unknown witch. Yves [B1.C4].
Corotashell Horn
A wapa horn used for rituals as well as a signalling device.
"The sound resonated through the frozen air, a mournful call meant to carry upwards to those still on the Snowtrail. It was a warning, a cry to alert the remaining warriors of the unseen threat. But the storm clawed at the sound, drowning it in its howling winds." [B1.C13]
The corotashell horn is a spiraled, keratinous growth that forms naturally on the head of the wapa, a large herbivore bred to endure the snow-covered Albweiss Mountain regions. Typically ranging from 0.6 to 1 meter in length, the horn is smooth, thick, and curved. Its surface is often patterned with natural ridges and grooves, giving it an organic, polished appearance. The horn is prized for its ability to amplify low-frequency sounds, used by the Wapa for long-distance communication and mating rituals.
The Haraak harvest the horns and craft them into ceremonial and functional tools, hollowing them out and sometimes engraving intricate symbols along their length. These horns are used as signaling devices, capable of producing resonant calls that can be heard across vast distances, often for summoning, marking territory, or rallying the horde.
First mentioned: [B1.C13] Used by Gorak and Balthagar during their horde's fight against Salgier and his party of escapees.
Crystals, Energy
Energy crystals can be filled with Adhar, pure energy, which a wizard can absorb as needed to replenish his reserves. They appear in various forms and sizes, quite commonly embedded into rings, chains or weapons.
First mentioned: [B1.C4] As part of the items in Yves' lighthouse hideout at the Northern Coast.
D
Dice (Yves)
A yet undefined artefact.
First mentioned: [B1.C6] as part of Yves' inventory when confronting the Vicha that devoured the cliff behemoth.
Duckman, The
The Duckman is not an artefact and not much of a weapon, though he wishes he could do magic.
Creation: The origin of The Duckman.
Obtained: The Duckman is a free-range duck.
Owner history: The Duckman has been owned many times. Sometimes he owns himself.
E
Ethereal Mirrors
Through arcane incantations and glass magic, these artefacts allow the user to transgress into the dimensional planes of shards, the mirror plane. Activated via a witch mother crystal half ball and a specific spell.
First mentioned: [B1.C1]
Creation: Created by Lightshifter glass wizard Yves from secret arcane knowledge obtained at Emery Thurm academy.
Owner history: Yves [B1.C1].
F
Feathers of Varna
Feathers that emit a serene melody, which entrances the listener and puts them in a state of infatuated daze. In [B1.C11], Twig advises Yves not to use the feathers as "they take essence".
First mentioned: [B1.C4] As part of the artefacts stored in Yves' lighthouse hideout at the Northern Coast.
Owner history: Yves [B1.C4].
Futura Glass Orb
A glass orb that is said to reveal visions of the future.
First mentioned: [B1.C4] As part of the artefacts stored in Yves' lighthouse hideout at the Northern Coast.
Authenticity: All it ever shows Yves is his own reflection. To this day, he is not sure if the thing was trash or if his trash ability as a seer hindered him from using it properly.
Owner history: Yves [B1.C4].
G
Golem, Albweiss Mountains [B1.C13]
"The entire moving monolith was one big entity of raw essence. It was as if the Albweiss had lent its own being to the creation of this construct, splitting off a fragment of the mountain, an accumulated, condensed part of itself, and then shaping all that essence into something deliberate and potent." [B1.C14]
A powerful entity made of mountain blood from the Albweiss Mountains and sustained, through spell, by the energy of others.
"The ground trembled. The orks, still clawing their way free from the snow and ice, froze as they felt it — a deep, throbbing pulse that seemed to vibrate through the very marrow of the earth. It crawled up their legs, sank into their bones, and filled their hearts with a feeling of dread that was more ancient than reason. The snow in front of them shifted, pushed and parted by something enormous that was ploughing its way through the frost-flooded trail towards them. The monolith moved." [B1.C13]
Salgier sustained this golem through a piece of armour made of pure mountain blood:
"Rothar ebbed from his body and into a broad stone artefact strapped to his back. To the inexperienced eye, it seemed a cumbersome, oversised piece of armour, ill-suited for the wizard’s thin frame. The stone plates were bulky, covering his back in a strange, disjointed manner without offering protection to his vital organs. But to those with senses attuned to the ethereal, the flow of Rothar now revealed its magical properties, the way it siphoned energy and stored it within its intricately carved runes. Those who could see even further, beyond the wizard’s exterior, might also recognise that the many interconnected stone plates were a part of the wizard, fused directly into his skin as though they were an extension of his body." [B1.C13]
APPEARANCE
"The emerging entity had four limbs, thick and twisted like the roots of a primordial tree, yet it rose to stand unnervingly upright. Its hind limbs were short and powerful. Its two arms were disproportionately longer, grotesquely elongated. They ended in enormous, articulated hands that bore long, spindly fingers, more like the claws of a skeletal predator than anything natural. As they pushed against the mounds of snow, those fingers flexed in fluid motion, imbued with almost witch-like precision. These hands stood in sharp contrast to its jagged, brutish shoulders and chest, twisted masses of stone built on a torso that rotated freely in all directions, allowing the golem to swing its massive arms like destructive pendulums to clear the snow and ice with sheer force. As it moved, snow and rock cascaded from its form like the shedding of dead skin, the sound of cracking ice mingling with the grinding of stone. The ancient stone underneath was of pure mountain blood, etched with runes." [B1.C13]
ESSENCE WITHIN
Within the golem, Midnight recognises a foreign essence, that of M:
"It threaded through the construct like the roots of a fungal network, spreading and intertwining, knitting the stone together into something alive, yet not alive." [B1.C14]
First mentioned: [B1.C13]
User history: Salgier after escaping the Shaira's imprisonment in [B1.C13], followed by the Haraak ork tribe who defeated him.
H
Hat of Invisibility
It only works for the part that actually fits into the hat. So when worn, the hat turns invisible and makes it seem like half of Yves' head is severed right off. Holding up a mirror, he can then look at his own brain whenever he pleases. It really never pleases him.
First mentioned: [B1.C4] As part of the clothes stored in Yves' lighthouse hideout at the Northern Coast.
Origin: After his expulsion from Emery Thurm, Yves sought means to remain hidden from the academy. Seeking clothing that granted invisibility, he found this thing instead.
Heartstrings
A yet undefined artefact.
First mentioned: [B1.C6] as part of Yves' inventory when confronting the Vicha that devoured the cliff behemoth.
Heartwood Staff [Levitation Staff]
"His Levitation Staff could not affect living beings, but nothing stopped Yves from making the sled float forwards while he sat on top of it." [B1.C8]
Over the years, Yves amassed an assortment of beguiling and mystical objects. The Levitation Staff is one of these treasures, crafted from the heartwood of a sacred tree that holds the power to coax objects within a limited radius into levitation. Respectively, this artefact possesses the ability to render any object it touches weightless. As long as the staff is in close proximity to the levitating object, it can guide its movement. For Yves, it proved a beacon of practicality throughout his myriad quests.
First mentioned: [B1.C2] As part of the artefacts that Yves carries with him when seeking out the lighthouse hideout at the Northlands Coast.
Owner history: Yves [B1.C2].
I
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L
Lightgiver Wand
In core, you can distinguish two types of wands: Those which amplified a wizard’s spell and those that bore their own intrinsic spells. The Lightgiver Wand belongs to the latter category, living up to its name by conjuring light independently of the wielder's spectral abilities. A wizard can infuse it with his own energy in times of rest and then call upon its radiant light when the need arises.
First mentioned: [B1.C4] As part of the lightgiver weapons stored in Yves' lighthouse hideout at the Northern Coast.
Obtained: Yves acquired the Lightgiver Wand to compensate for his inability to perceive light in the dark.
Owner history: Yves [B1.C4].
Lightning Staff
The Lightning Staff has the ability to summon lightning.
First mentioned: [B1.C4] As part of the lightgiver weapons stored in Yves' lighthouse hideout at the Northern Coast.
Obtained: Yves acquired the Lightning Staff when exploring an underground cave system, but did not use it since. As the common glass wizard has no disposition for elemental magic, there is hardly anyone less suitable to wield it than Yves.
Owner history: Yves [B1.C4].
M
Messenger Strings
By infusing these stings with energy, coded messenges can be embedded into them.
Messenger strings varied widely in their kinds and qualities, depending on their intended use and the expertise of their makers. When properly crafted and enchanted, messenger strings are impervious to both physical attacks and ethereal forces. They are immaterial and warded against damage through magic and curses. They are invisible to many peoples. Wizards can only see them through their second sight. They can be seen and grasped by entities with Rothar.
It is common amongst adventurers and artefact hunters to leave strings for each other in a guild when they embark on individual errands. Such strings, safeguarded by the guild, require no extensive quality or protection. Messages can also be sent directly via guilds using particularly high-quality strings. These strings do not need to be bought but remain the property of the guild and are delivered by individual guild couriers. Anyone can buy such services.
Since a devastating experience in the moors in 642, Yves carries quality strings that can endure physical, magical, and ethereal attacks. Depending on their maker and quality, the various types of messenger strings have equally diverse names. The ones he carries are known as lifelines. [B1.C13]
First mentioned: [B1.C6] Yves passes two messenger stings to Midnight before parting with her to confront the Vicha that devoured the cliff behemoth.
[B1.C13] revealed that Midnight, in her darkness form, could carry Yves' messenger strings past the ice cavern's witch rune warding and through the solid mountain rock.
Mir's Bracelet
A yet undefined artefact.
First mentioned: [B1.C6] as part of Yves' inventory when confronting the Vicha that devoured the cliff behemoth.
Moth Cloak [Cloak of Invisibility]
A dusty old cloak made from moth-eaten wool. When worn, it makes the wearer invisible — to moths. Only to moths. As far as Yves knows, its singular, somewhat random power is to repel insects attracted to wool. However, it only works when being activated by channelling energy, so any other time it is as defenceless as any regular coat, and thrice as shabby.
First mentioned: [B1.C4] As part of the clothes stored in Yves' lighthouse hideout at the Northern Coast.
Origin: After his expulsion from Emery Thurm, Yves sought means to remain hidden from the academy. Seeking cloaks of invisibility, he found this piece of trash instead.
Mountain Blood
The essence of a mountain.
As Faroah reveals in [B1.C12] when showing Samasira a vein within the Varren, few wizards outside the Transcender spectrum possess the ability to perceive the rare elixir known as mountain blood. Witches, with their innate connection to the natural world, are often more attuned to such phenomena.
First mentioned: [B1.C12] when Samasira seeks oracle from Faroah at the dwarven temple atop the Varren.
N
Number Abyx
A yet undefined artefact.
First mentioned: [B1.C6] as part of Yves' inventory when confronting the Vicha that devoured the cliff behemoth.
O
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P
Pebble of Immortality
A small, shiny rock rumoured to bestow immortality. After carrying it around for weeks and, just to be sure, even eating it, Yves came to the stark realisation that the rock was indeed nothing more than a polished pebble. Though he was very absolutely certain that it was just a random stone, he still kept it in his Chest of Useless Artefacts at the lighthouse hideout.
First mentioned: [B1.C4] As part of the artefacts stored in Yves' lighthouse hideout at the Northern Coast.
Obtained: Yves' first significantly disappointing discovery as an artefact hunter.
Owner history: Yves [B1.C4].
Pleura Necklace
A necklace that supposedly grants the wearer the ability to breathe underwater. Its massive centrepiece is an enchanted jewel.
First mentioned: [B1.C4] As part of the artefacts stored in Yves' lighthouse hideout at the Northern Coast.
Authenticity: In Yves' experience, the necklace only “worked” for a few seconds. Once underwater, when in direct contact with the wearer’s skin, the jewel transferred an air bubble of its own size right into the wearer’s lungs. Yves has no clue what the enchanter had tried to achieve, but he had obviously been ignorant of basic humanoid physiology.
Obtained: The stupidest thing Yves ever bought before [B1.C4]. He kept it as a murder weapon.
Owner history: Yves [B1.C4].
Q
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S
Shard Bearer
A yet undefined artefact.
First mentioned: [B1.C6] as part of Yves' inventory when confronting the Vicha that devoured the cliff behemoth.
Socks of Invisibility
The socks concealing the wearer's feet as well as all energy presences that are covered by the sock.
First mentioned: [B1.C4] As part of the artefacts stored in Yves' lighthouse hideout at the Northern Coast.
Origin: Sewn from a potent cloak of invisibility by a human woman who was unaware of the cloak's magical properties. As said in [B1.C4], humans found the cloak amidst the luggage of a wizard who succumbed to a curse in their village. After no-one came looking for the dead stranger, they repurposed his belongings.
Speran Ember
A yet unknown artefact.
First mentioned: [B1.C13] Entrusted from Balthagar, who had carried the stone attached to his skull, Hammerfist of the Haraak to Nagrak of the same horde.
String of Marbles
A yet undefined artefact.
First mentioned: [B1.C6] as part of Yves' inventory when confronting the Vicha that devoured the cliff behemoth.
T
Timegiver
An artefact that creates a phantom heartbeat which safeguards against the dangers of unintentional sleep during the witching hour, be it from fatigue, injury, or any other cause. It contains crystal-encased heartstrings from the bearer.
When activated through raw energy and triggered by the veil of Teharun, the Timegiver creates a resonating pulse exclusive to the perception of the bearer. The sensation is subtle yet powerful, a rhythmic reminder that cuts through a wizard's dreams and anchors his mind back to wakefulness.
First mentioned: [B1.C6] as part of Yves' inventory when confronting the Vicha that devoured the cliff behemoth. Used in [B1.C9].
Transcriber Quill
A quill that should transcribe dictated text, regardless of the language used.
First mentioned: [B1.C4] As part of the artefacts stored in Yves' lighthouse hideout at the Northern Coast.
Owner history: Yves [B1.C4]. It had taken him months, along with a substantial amount of resources, currency, and injuries to acquire what he had believed to be the perfect transcriber quill for 𝔒𝔯𝔞𝔠𝔩𝔢 Faroah’s gutteral utterances.
Authenticity: Despite numerous attempts, Yves had not been able to decipher whatever gabble babble that piece of shit artefact had noted down while Faroah had gutted away, and it had never worked properly since. So while Yves wants to believe that, when provided with ink or ink-like substances such as blood, the quill copied everything that was dictated in its imminent vicinity until the ink ran dry, he does in fact not actually know what it is writing. He knows that it listens. And then it does something. However, amongst the illegible mess of dots and lines it delivers, Yves cannot even distinguish individual letters.
U
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W
Witch mother crystal half ball
The witch mother crystal half ball first mentioned in [B1.C1] carries both a dragon heart string and a moon shard.
First mentioned: [B1.C1]
Obtained: Yves obtained the crystal half ball from a Witch Mother.
Owner history: Yves uses this artefact in combination with his ethereal mirrors to enter the dimensional plane of shards [B1.C1].
Witch Tear
A yet undefined artefact.
First mentioned: [B1.C6] mentions that Yves is one of only few wizards on the continent who posses a witch tear. It is part of the items he carries when confronting the Vicha that devoured the cliff behemoth.
Witch Whistle
A whistle that supposedly summons witches.
First mentioned: [B1.C4] As part of the artefacts stored in Yves' lighthouse hideout at the Northern Coast.
Authenticity: No sane wizard would ever dare provoke an encounter with an unforeseen number of unknown witches. Thus, Yves has yet to test the whistle.
Owner history: Yves [B1.C4].
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