The Pretty Pillow
The Bone Shop's Cabinet of Curiosities
Worldanvil February 24 Challenge
The Bone Garden's main attraction is a cabinet of curiosities that is Rerosha's pride and joy. Rerosha has stuffed the polished ebony cabinet with the shop's most valuable items. The cabinet stands behind Rerosha's counter and is magically protected. The 21 objects detailed below are not for sale. However, if a player helps Rerosha, she could be convinced to part with one of them or at least do a swap.Description
A pretty embroidered silk lace pillow is propped up in one of the pigeon holes of the cabinet. A pretty black and red trimming of tassels and beads surrounds the pillow. The embroidery is made of black and white silk threads and represents a flowering tree motif.
Rerosha is fond of the pillow but always thinks it is slightly sinister and has never tried sleeping with it. Despite its age, the pillow has never changed appearance and appears as fresh as the day it was created. No dust or dirt can soil the pillow; it always stays clean.
Rarity
The Pretty Pillow is a rare items . The enchantment is contained in the tiny red beads that surround the pillow.
History
The pillow has always been part of Balanzar's collection of enchanted objects. Rerosha is not sure where it came from. She remembers the witch using the pillow occasionally when she needed 'counsel'.
Balanzar used to put the pillow underneath another pillow on her bed and slept on it. The pillow would return to its original place in the cabinet in the morning.
Rerosha always thought that Balanzar looked the worse for wear after sleeping with the pillow. The witch also advised Rerosha not to use it. When Rerosha asked why Balanzar used it, the old woman simply answered that she knew what she was doing.
Rerosha never learnt more about the pillow and has never dared sleep on it to find its usefulness. Rerosha could tell players interested in buying the pillow that the knowledge gained from using the pillow would come at a price, but she would not be able to tell which one.
Significance
The Pretty Pillow does not have much significance for Rerosha. She would be able to part with it for 600 gold. However, players will not be able to tell exactly what the enchantments on the pillow could do even when casting Identify. The description will remain vague or even cryptic.
Properties
Players need to roll a constitution save when they sleep on the pillow.
If the player fails the constitution save, their character will be plagued by dreadful nightmares and incur one level of exhaustion the following day.
If the player succeeds, their character can ask one question to answer their predicament. The question will summon a powerful spirit seer, the Dormant Tree. The Dormant Tree spirit will take the shape of a ghostly, beautiful dryad and answer the player's question as a prophecy. The prophecy can be as vague or precise as the DM would like to make it.
Secret History
Balanzar inherited the Pretty Pillow from her mother and has known about the pillow's properties since childhood. She never instructed Rerosha in its use because she thought the pillow would be extremely dangerous for her ward. Balanzar had a naturally high constitution. it ran in her family, but she knew Rerosha's constitution to be weak.
The Pretty Pillow was created several millennia ago when Carina, a powerful dryad with powers to see into the future, was captured by Guthal-the-Ever-Fed, a terrible dracolich who terrorised Exandria during the Age of Arcanum. Guthal managed to trap Carina's soul inside the pillow and now, the Dormant Tree provides her prophetic talents to whoever sleeps on it. There would be a way to release Carina from her prison if players managed to talk to her, but they would need to keep her awake to do so.
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