Jewel of Dawning Night
The still heart of the city hidden in the stars.
The Jewel of Dawning Night, also called the Pendant of All Twilight, is a necklace that is kept in the city of Starpath, above the clouds of Arc - Tus. It consists of a metallic length of silvery links forming a looping chain attached to a pendant formed by a metallic half-moon shape inlaid with marbled nacre placed above a regular rhombus. In the rhombus' center, a symmetrical, five-sided gem called the Twilightstone is found. Said gem has no fixed color, going through the colors that its users describes as those found in the twilit sky, yet is commonly associated with a deep blue-purple hue which appears to shift and swirl, not unlike ink being poured into water.
The jewel commands great reverence and respect from the city's people, holding deep cultural and religious significance within the settlement's established pantheon, while also serving as the symbol of authority for the Veilbearer, the city's leader. The Jewel is also powerful, ancient magical artifact that confers its user with a number of benefits and abilities, be them of magical or esoteric in nature. Said boons are, in no particular order:
However, its power is not unlimited, nor does it come without a cost. The jewel needs to recharge its power if it is used to communicate with extra-planar beings or if astral amnesia has been inflicted on an individual. The act of wearing it causes its bearer to lose their eyesight gradually, with their normal eye color being replaced by starry orbs as their blindness intensifies. Some Veilbearers have claimed that, once their physical eyesight was completely gone, they could see 'everything under all lights, even if there is none to be had'. However, such an ability has only appeared a handful of times throughout Starpath's history, and has not manifested in any Veilbearer in over four hundred years.
Also worth noting is the fact that the user's body is greatly weakened after they draw power from the Pendant, causing the muscles to fail and the bones to start becoming brittle, as was evidenced by Anadras the Mighty after overusing the jewel's powers.
The jewel commands great reverence and respect from the city's people, holding deep cultural and religious significance within the settlement's established pantheon, while also serving as the symbol of authority for the Veilbearer, the city's leader. The Jewel is also powerful, ancient magical artifact that confers its user with a number of benefits and abilities, be them of magical or esoteric in nature. Said boons are, in no particular order:
- An augmentation of the user's spellcasting abilities, unlocking devastating abilities that would otherwise be reserved for experienced magic users.
- The ability to detect any and all lies, no matter how craftily their teller attempts to hide them.
- The means to communicate with beings from other planes.
- The ways to transmit a message to all of Starpath.
- The capacity to cast a spell which removes all traces of a target's memory after they have drunk (or have been forced to drink) a serving of a potion called Shadowdream tea. The process of using this ability, in conjunction with the brew, inflicts a condition named astral amnesia, which is normally reserved for people that are being permanently exiled from Starpath.
However, its power is not unlimited, nor does it come without a cost. The jewel needs to recharge its power if it is used to communicate with extra-planar beings or if astral amnesia has been inflicted on an individual. The act of wearing it causes its bearer to lose their eyesight gradually, with their normal eye color being replaced by starry orbs as their blindness intensifies. Some Veilbearers have claimed that, once their physical eyesight was completely gone, they could see 'everything under all lights, even if there is none to be had'. However, such an ability has only appeared a handful of times throughout Starpath's history, and has not manifested in any Veilbearer in over four hundred years.
Also worth noting is the fact that the user's body is greatly weakened after they draw power from the Pendant, causing the muscles to fail and the bones to start becoming brittle, as was evidenced by Anadras the Mighty after overusing the jewel's powers.
Mechanics & Inner Workings
The jewel functions due to powerful, ancient magics that have been infused in the Twilightstone, and amplified because of the Dragon's Fortune that encases it. Its exact method of operation is unknown, as it is considered heresy to question its power in any way. Therefore, its inner workings are mostly attributed to gods-given magic.
It was discovered during the The Great Isilmëtúrion Heist that the jewel's components can function independently from one another, though the potency of its capabilities is severely reduced.
It was discovered during the The Great Isilmëtúrion Heist that the jewel's components can function independently from one another, though the potency of its capabilities is severely reduced.
Manufacturing process
As of the writing of this article, no evidence regarding how the jewel was crafted has been found. The only information related to the artifact's origin is the compendium of legends that have been told surrounding the event. From the blacksmith Irena Gremm to it directly falling from the firmament, there is no shortage of stories told around the pendant's creation.
Significance
Within the city of Starpath, the Jewel of Dawning Night is the equivalent of a king's crown. It is a physical item that represents the authority and leadership of the Veilbearer the the city's residents and serves as a cultural icon that symbolizes the settlement's five core virtues, one for each of the gem's base vertexes: zeal, justice, balance, order and perseverance. All five, in turn, serve for the foundation for the gem's apex, which represents divinity.
Item type
Unique Artifact
Current Location
Current Holder
Related Condition
Rarity
Unique.
Because Starpath's isolation, few texts mention its existence and even fewer people from the outside know about it. As such, a handful of inaccurate imitations have appeared over the years, although the claims of the merchants attempting to sell it are a far cry from what the pendant's actual capabilities, either exaggerating them greatly or completely missing the mark.
Because Starpath's isolation, few texts mention its existence and even fewer people from the outside know about it. As such, a handful of inaccurate imitations have appeared over the years, although the claims of the merchants attempting to sell it are a far cry from what the pendant's actual capabilities, either exaggerating them greatly or completely missing the mark.
Weight
742 grams, or 1.62 pounds.
Dimensions
- 32 cm/12.6 in (chain)
- 3 cm/1.18 in radius, 3 cm/1.18 in at its widest (metallic half-moon)
- 6x6 cm/2.36x2.36 in (metallic rhombus)
- 5x5x5x5x5 cm/1.96x1.96x1.96x1.96x1.96 in (gemstone)
Base Price
Invaluable. Should it be stolen and hedged off, the thief should ask for no less than 500,000 gold pieces.
Raw materials & Components
Most of the pendant's materials have been identified, yet some of its components are still pending classification. The half-moon and rhombus are made of Dragon's Fortune, with colored and adorned nacre being inlaid over the half-moon's surface. The chain is made out of what appears to be silver, and is adorned with several tear-shaped moonstones. At its core lies the gem, which has received the name 'Twilightstone' because of the colors it can adopt and its cool feel to the touch. Several etchings, largely decorative, have been carved on the metallic components surface using a corrosive substance found in six-petaled Deathblooms.
Tools
It is said that Irena Gremm, the legendary blacksmith, crafted the pendant herself using her personal furnace to obtain the necessary materials, as well as an assortment of jeweler's tools obtained from the efreeti in the Elemental Plane of Fire, all of which were either made from adamantine or mithril. Of note is the magnifying glass required to carve out the fine details that adorn the pendant, with its five fabled lenses that were so powerful they could enlarge any object up to a thousand times their size.
The gemstones and other ornaments appear to be locked in place by pressure instead of using adhesives, leading to speculation that some other tool was used to fit them in such an exact manner.
However, it must be stated that these are legends. There is no certainty as to how the pendant was created, nor what tools were needed in the process of doing so.
The gemstones and other ornaments appear to be locked in place by pressure instead of using adhesives, leading to speculation that some other tool was used to fit them in such an exact manner.
However, it must be stated that these are legends. There is no certainty as to how the pendant was created, nor what tools were needed in the process of doing so.
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