Item Appearance: A series of interconnected chains, each link appearing worn and slightly rusted. Every few links, there is a small, faded rune that glows dimly when the contract’s magic is invoked.
Lore: In the shaded annals of Saṃsāra’s history, there was a warlord named Malcor who was notorious for his cruelty. To further his dominion, he entered into a pact with a dark entity from the Abyssal Depths. This entity, feeding on suffering and dominance, provided Malcor with the Abused Chains. These chains were said to harness the pain and torment of those they bound, amplifying Malcor’s power. But as with all things of such nature, the cost was steep.
Stats:
- Pain Amplification: The wearer gains a +1 bonus to damage rolls for each hit they take. (reset after combat ends)
- Chains’ Grasp: On a successful grapple, the target takes an additional 1d4 psychic damage as they feel the chains’ torment.
- Echoes of the Abused: Gain a +2 to Intimidation checks.
Slot: Bracers – When equipped, the chains wrap around the wearer’s forearms, the runes facing outward.
Roleplay: The wearer of the Abused Chains may feel surges of anger and resentment, especially when reminded of past injustices. They could develop a tendency to dominate or control situations, sometimes resorting to intimidation. There’s a constant struggle within them, battling the chains’ influence and their own moral compass.
Costs:
- Echoing Torment: Each time the wearer invokes the chains’ magic, they hear whispered cries of the chains’ past victims, causing momentary distress.
- Bound Fate: The wearer must bind a small creature with the chains once a month, transferring a hint of their essence to the abyssal entity to appease it.
Magics:
- Chains of Retribution: Once per day, as a reaction, reflect back half the damage of a melee attack onto the attacker.
- Abyssal Pull: Twice a day, pull an enemy within 10 feet closer to you, forcing them to face the chains’ wrath.
Tags: Abuse, Torment, Dominance, Retribution
Defense in Different Environments:
- Urban: In crowded city streets, the chains can be used to deter would-be attackers or pickpockets, their intimidating aura warding off threats.
- Forest: Within the woods, the chains’ pull can be used to draw enemies into traps or natural hazards, such as pits or thorny bushes.
- Dungeon/Cave: In the confines of stone walls, the chains can be employed to corner enemies, using the environment as an advantage.
Offense in Different Environments:
- Urban: Use the chains’ grasp to drag foes into narrow alleyways, making it easier to overpower them.
- Forest: In the open areas of a forest, the chains can be wielded to ensnare creatures, drawing them into melee range.
- Dungeon/Cave: The echoes of the chains reverberate through the chambers, disorienting enemies and amplifying the psychic damage inflicted upon them.
Bound by the Contract of the Abused Chains, the wearer treads a fine line between power and torment. While the chains provide the strength to dominate foes, they also serve as a constant reminder of the suffering that fuels them, challenging the bearer’s very essence.
Perception of Activation:
- Sight:
- Perceived: The runes on the chains brighten momentarily, illuminating with a sinister crimson hue.
- Description: A deep red glow, akin to smoldering coals, that intensifies for a few seconds before returning to its dim state.
- Positives: Provides a clear visual cue of the chains’ activation, alerting the wearer to the imminent release of power.
- Negatives: The obvious glow could reveal the wearer’s position in dark or stealthy situations.
- Sound:
- Perceived: A series of faint, mournful whispers, as if carried by the wind.
- Description: Soft, echoing voices that speak of pain, torment, and past suffering, discernible only to the wearer.
- Positives: The whispers serve as an auditory confirmation of the chains’ magic being invoked.
- Negatives: The unsettling nature of the whispers could be distressing or distracting during critical moments.
- Smell:
- Perceived: The metallic tang of old, cold iron mixed with a hint of brimstone.
- Description: An odor reminiscent of a blacksmith’s forge, tinged with the sulfurous scent of the abyss.
- Positives: The distinctive smell acts as an olfactory marker, signaling the chains’ readiness to unleash their magic.
- Negatives: The scent could be off-putting or nauseating, especially during prolonged exposure.
- Taste:
- Perceived: A bitter, metallic aftertaste, like copper.
- Description: A brief, sharp taste that lingers on the tongue, evoking the sensation of tasting one’s own blood.
- Positives: An immediate indicator of the chains’ activation, heightening the wearer’s senses.
- Negatives: The sudden and unexpected taste could be jarring, potentially affecting the wearer’s focus.
- Touch:
- Perceived: A cool, almost chilling sensation, traveling from the chains up the wearer’s arms.
- Description: A fleeting coldness, as if the chains momentarily draw warmth from the wearer’s very essence.
- Positives: Offers tactile feedback, grounding the wearer in the present moment.
- Negatives: The sensation might be discomforting, especially in already cold environments.
- Extra-Sensory Perceptions:
- Emotional Resonance:
- Perceived: A wave of melancholy and empathy, connecting the wearer to the chains’ tormented past.
- Description: A temporary merging of feelings, where the wearer briefly experiences the chains’ collective sorrow.
- Positives: Enhances the wearer’s connection to the chains, potentially amplifying the power drawn from them.
- Negatives: Repeated activations risk overwhelming the wearer with grief or inducing periods of desolation.
- Temporal Echo:
- Perceived: Fragmented visions of the chains’ past uses and bearers.
- Description: Quick, disjointed flashes of past events, seen through the eyes of previous wearers.
- Positives: Provides insights into potential uses or techniques associated with the chains.
- Negatives: The sudden influx of memories can be disorienting, leading to momentary lapses in the wearer’s awareness.
- Abyssal Awareness:
- Perceived: A faint tether to the Abyssal Depths, the source of the chains’ power.
- Description: An almost imperceptible pull, directing the wearer’s senses towards the abyss.
- Positives: Heightens the wearer’s magical perception, making them more attuned to other abyssal energies or entities.
- Negatives: The constant connection can be mentally taxing, and there’s a risk of attracting unwanted attention from abyssal denizens.
- Emotional Resonance:
Upon activation, the Contract 349 of the Abused Chains awakens a myriad of sensory and extra-sensory stimuli. These perceptions, spanning the tangible and intangible, serve as conduits between the wearer and the chains’ tormented legacy, revealing the profound power and pain intertwined within.
Recipe for Crafting the Contract 349 of the Abused Chains
- Materials Needed:
- Tormented Iron Links: Iron chains that have been submerged in the tears of a Banshee for one moon cycle, absorbing her cries of anguish.
- Abyssal Runes: Stones carved from the deepest caverns of Saṃsāra, inscribed with the ancient script of the abyss.
- Brimstone Ash: Collected from the eruptions of the Infernal Volcanoes, known for their connection to the Abyssal Depths.
- Essence of Suffering: A vial of condensed emotional energy, usually extracted during powerful rituals of remembrance or mourning.
- Tools Required:
- Dark Forge: An anvil and forge bathed in the light of a lunar eclipse, capable of melding abyssal materials.
- Echoing Hammer: A hammer crafted from the bones of creatures from the Fading Realm, used to imprint the abyssal runes onto the chains.
- Binding Tongs: Tongs imbued with containment spells, ensuring the chains retain their tormented essence during crafting.
- Skill Requirements:
- Abyssal Blacksmithing: Mastery in working with materials from the Abyssal Depths, ensuring the chains retain their power.
- Runic Inscription: Expertise in inscribing ancient scripts onto materials, ensuring the runes bind effectively to the chains.
- Emotional Alchemy: An understanding of transmuting emotions into tangible forms, crucial for infusing the Essence of Suffering into the chains.
- Crafting Steps:
- Preparation of Links: Begin by placing the Tormented Iron Links into the Dark Forge, heating them until they glow with a deep crimson hue. This prepares the links for rune infusion.
- Runic Imprint: Using the Echoing Hammer, gently tap each Abyssal Rune onto the heated iron links. The runes should meld into the chain, leaving an inscribed mark with a dim glow.
- Brimstone Tempering: Once all runes are imprinted, sprinkle the Brimstone Ash over the chains. This not only strengthens the chains but also further cements the abyssal connection.
- Essence Infusion: Holding the Binding Tongs, carefully open the vial of Essence of Suffering. Slowly pour the essence over the chains, allowing them to soak in the condensed emotional energy. As the essence is absorbed, the chains will shimmer with a spectral aura.
- Final Binding: Lay the chains out in a spiral pattern and recite an ancient binding spell, ensuring all elements of the chains are cohesively melded. This step seals the contract and solidifies the chains’ tormented power.
- Cooling and Setting: Finally, leave the chains under the shadow of the Whispering Willow for a night. This will cool the chains and set their newfound powers in place.
Once completed, the Contract 349 of the Abused Chains stands ready to serve its wearer, its powers echoing the torment and anguish from which it was born.
Tale of the Chains that Echoed Sorrow
In days now blurred by the sands of time, in Saṃsāra’s shadowed corners, Malcor, a figure of might and darkness, sought dominion. In heart’s depths, a longing for chains not of metal, but of anguish and abyss, burned. To the Abyssal Depths, a realm of whispers and wails, he looked. There, a being, shapeless and endless, offered a pact. Chains, wrought from banshee tears and abyssal fires, for a price unknown.
Bound by these chains, Malcor’s power grew, lands bending and spirits breaking. Yet, each victory bore a weight, the chains’ sorrow seeping into his very soul. Whispers spoke of nights where Malcor’s cries merged with the banshee’s, a symphony of torment. The world watched as a once-mighty warlord became a prisoner of his own weapon.
Time’s river flowed, and Malcor’s name faded into mist. But chains, they remain, a testament to a thirst for power and the abyss it leads to. Now, in hushed tones and by dimmed fires, elders speak of chains not of iron, but of anguish, and of the heart ensnared within.
Moral of the Story: Seek power with caution, for chains, even if willingly worn, can bind the heart and soul.
Suggested conversion to other systems:
Call of Cthulhu
Contract of the Abused Chains
- Type: Cursed Artifact
- Effects:
- Sanity Loss: 1/1d6 (when activated)
- Echoing Torment: Gain a +20% bonus to Intimidate checks.
- Abyssal Defense: Reflects 5% of physical or magical damage back to the source.
Dungeons & Dragons 5e
Contract of the Abused Chains
- Wondrous item, rare (requires attunement)
- Properties:
- Gain a +1 bonus to damage rolls for each hit taken until the end of combat.
- As a reaction, reflect a spell or attack targeting only you back at its caster; can’t be used again until the next dawn.
- Advantage on Intimidation checks.
Knave
Contract of the Abused Chains
- Slot: Bracers
- Bonus: +2 to damage after taking a hit.
- Usage: Once per session, reflect an attack back to its source.
Numenera & Cypher System
Contract of the Abused Chains
- Type: Artifact
- Level: 4
- Effect: Once per day, reflect an attack back to its source. Passive effect provides +2 Armor against damage after being hit.
Pathfinder 2e
Contract of the Abused Chains
- Wondrous item, rare
- Activate: Reaction; Frequency: Once per day
- Effect: Reflect an attack back to its source. Gain a +1 item bonus to damage for a round after taking damage.
Savage Worlds
Contract of the Abused Chains
- Equipment Modifier: +2 to Intimidation rolls.
- Special Ability: Once per session, negate and reflect damage from one attack.
Shadowrun
Contract of the Abused Chains
- Type: Magical Focus
- Rating: 4
- Effects: Once per day, reflect a spell or attack back to its source. Passive effect provides +2 to damage resistance tests after taking damage.
Starfinder
Contract of the Abused Chains
- Item Level: 5
- Effect: Once per day, reflect an attack back to its source. Gain a +1 bonus to damage rolls after taking damage for one round.
Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay
Contract of the Abused Chains
- Type: Arcane Item
- Effects: Once per session, reflect a spell or attack back to its source. Gain a +10% bonus to Intimidate tests.