The Ring of the Shadowlords

Placed on the pedestal before you sits a non-descript black ring. While no enchantments or auras can be detected, dark smoke-like mist seems to be emanating from the ring, almost clinging to it. Indecipherable dark whispers start to fill the air as you approach the dais.
As you reach your hand into the mist you feel a coldness coming from the ring and the dark whispers starting to get louder. The moment you touch the ring you feel its icy cold metal around your finger, almost as if the ring is siphoning the heat from your body. Instantly you are engulfed in the black mist, your surroundings vanish into darkness as your body is hit with a freezing shock, and you lose all sense of direction and state for a few seconds.
The whispers become louder and clearer but one voice cuts through the rest as a deep laughter pierces into your soul. Flashes of another dimension enter your mind as you look out into an endless void of darkness and astral entities in the background. You turn towards the laughter, towering over you from miles away is an immense figure, its pale bloodless flesh, scarred with open wounds, hooks, and chains. Half dressed in a black leather robe, with great chains wrapping to the ground, and flanked on either side by dark black clouds that almost look like wings that cover the entire horizon behind him. As it speaks its voice seems to fill the entire endless realm around you. "So, you have knowingly sought this out... Interesting…" A Sharp pain wracks your body as you are engulfed in darkness again, the deep laughter slowly fading away.
You feel the dark smoke around you, pulling you down to the ground, entangling you physically and hampering your movements as you struggle to fight against it trying to emerge out of the smoke.
Breaking free from the smoke you fall to the ground but continue to crawl away as wisps of smoke still try to grab you from the edge of the dark mist, after a few seconds the smoke starts to fade and disperse into the breeze. Laying on your back trying to recover from what just happened you notice the sky looks eerily similar to the strange dimension you just visited, now that you have time to study it, it's almost like looking at the sky through a telescope but none of the stars or constellations look correct and strange astral entities dot the void.

Description

The ring is a fairly nondescript ring with few details on it. Crafted from an unknown dark nonmetallic metal, intricate runes are etched into the band. When looked at intently the band seems as if it absorbs the surrounding light and obscure shadows move within it.
The ring takes a week to attune to its wearer before any of its powers are available. During this week the holder of the ring is in a constant mental and physical battle with the guardian of the ring. After this week, if the holder survives, the wearer is considered the owner of the ring and under complete control of all the ring's powers, and the guardian of the ring is completely loyal to the owner. If the holder should fail, he is killed, and his soul is absorbed within the ring.
You can remove the ring and still retain its powers. You are able "call" the ring back to you as if it had the Calling weapon feature, instantly teleporting it back onto your finger, this functions across any distance and plane. The owner can also use locate object and sense distance and direction on the ring at will. The only way to break the ring's attunement is to place the ring in an enchanted lead box within a Magic Circle against Evil focused inward and dimensional anchor spell and then kill the owner.

Personality

The ring itself contains no intelligence or personality but is tied to and linked to another entity known as Ascaros and the Demiplane: The Shadowlands. The wearer of the ring is in constant communication with Ascaros who can access any of the knowledge contained within The Shadow Library.

Powers and Abilities

Sustaining Shadow

This ring continually provides its wearer with life-sustaining nourishment that refreshes the body and mind; its wearer no longer needs to sleep or eat, instead, they now require a time to meditate in the dark, absorbing the shadows and darkness into them. This process take about an hour to complete and should ideally be done every 10-14 hours. This allows a spellcaster that requires rest to prepare spells to do so only after the first meditation of the day and does not allow a spellcaster to prepare spells more than once per day. The ring also prevents the wearer from aging, keeping the owner always in the middle of their adult age range (for humans this is between 25 and 35) if the wearer is above this range they will slowly over time regress to this age range at a rate one per year. The ring keeps the wearer in near-perfect health, strengthening immune systems and keeping the body and mind in excellent shape.

Shadow Telekinesis

This ring grants the wearer the power of Telekinesis on command as per the spell, lifting and manipulating up to 500 lbs. of objects at a distance of 1,000ft using only their mind. This power can take the form of shadows, dark tendrils, and black chains and ropes reaching out and manipulating the objects. The Telekinetic Power of the ring also grants the wearer a +4 Deflection Bonus and allows the wielder to generate a large shield-sized (and shield-shaped) wall of force that stays with the ring and can be wielded by the wearer as if it were a tower shield (+4 AC), or a smaller shield if so desired (but keeping the +4 Shield bonus. This special creation has no armor check penalty or arcane spell failure chance since it is weightless and encumbrance-free. It can be activated and deactivated at will as a free action.

Dark Rejuvenation

Once per week, the wearer of the ring can be healed by a powerful spell; Shadows Rejuvenation, which combines the healing power of the following spells; Greater Restoration, Heal, and Regenerate into one casting. The effect of these spells takes place over the course of one minute, drawing its power from the positive energy plane, nature magic from the Fey Wild (First World), and Shadow Energy from the Plane of Shadow (Shadowfell).

Torturous Rebirth

If the wearer of the ring is ever killed the body and all its belongings are instantly consumed in a shadowy explosion of energy dealing 10d6 damage to any creatures within 20ft and consuming any loose items in range. All loose items and equipment in the radius are instantly transported to the Demiplane attached to the ring, and the wearer of the ring is restored to life within a week as if by True Resurrection. This effect likewise draws its power from nature and shadow. During this week, the wearer of the ring is personally imprisoned and tortured by the dark unknown god at the heart of the Umbral Sanctuary before being released back to life.

Umbral Sanctuary

Deep within the Shadow Plane exists a massive realm known as the Umbral Sanctuary, The ring was created within this realm and serves as one of the many ways into and out of the realm. Whoever touches the ring is able to travel to and from the realm as they see fit. They are able to bring others along with them if they choose.

Dark Sanctum

The ring is tied to hidden Demiplane secreted away within the Umbral Sanctuary also known as “Home of the Guardian”. The wearer of the ring is the only person able to access this Demiplane and may travel to and from as they please, no others can enter the plane even if the wearer of the ring wishes to bring them. The Demiplane is protected from all scrying and teleportation attempts by anyone other than the owner of the ring.

The Guardian's Shadow - Ascaros

The Ring has an extremely unique and powerful servant named “Ascaros” bound to it that can only be on the Demiplane or within one mile of the ring. Ascaros can travel between the two at will. The wearer of the ring can communicate with the creature through a telepathic link and can use its senses as his own if he chooses to.

Ruler of the Sanctuary

The wielder of the ring has the rightful claim and ownership of the Tower of High Sorcery located at the center of the Umbral Sanctuary and is subsequently ruler of the entire realm itself. The Ring also acts as a magical key into this Great Fortress Tower at the center of the realm, the place of its creation.

Lore and Stories

Item Histroy

The ring was forged at the heart of a great tower of high sorcery located in a dread realm within the shadow plane known as the Umbral Sanctuary. The purpose of the ring was to harness the power of the realm and tower in an attempt to unlock its full potential and gain undisputed control over it.
Generations of council members worked on this issue until one day they achieved what they sought, a Great Ring was forged, Known only as The Ring of the Shadowlord. The one who could wield the ring had full ownership of the realm and control over the tower and all its power. Cost of Success though was great, as the entire council, their pupils, and remaining members of their order were all instantly killed, their souls consumed and imprisoned within the ring itself, and the head of the order and creator of the ring forever transformed into a dark creature of pure shadow, forever bound to the ring, never to have the power they so desperately sought and forced to serve the future rulers of the realm.
The ring has been wielded by few, but always dedicated and powerful. Each bringing something new and powerful to the realm. It is unclear how the ring is passed down, as wielding the ring essentially makes you immortal and unkillable. It is speculated that the ring chooses a new master over time, or the gods of the plane of shadow decide it's time for a change.
Interestingly the previous owners of the ring all get to remain in the realm, now as members of the council of the Shadowlords. They maintain a position of power in the realm and all seem content with their new positions, even though they no longer have all the powers they once had.

Significance

The one who wields this ring rules the realm

Ring of the Shadowlords

Magical Item - Ring

Unique Artifact Ring

Requires Attunment, Through a Test

Properties

Aura

None

Alignment

None

Caster Level

Unknown

Power

Major Artifact

Item