Glorindel's Gates (Magic Art)

During her sojourn across the lands of the Forgotten Realms, but before her return to the city of Waterdeep (and eventual disappearance), the wizard-bard Glorindel put much effort into creating a number of small, exquisitely crafted paintings depicting places she had visited on her extensive travels. As suited her peaceful nature at this time, they were typically uninhabited areas of great scenic beauty-sylvan glades, wilderness lakes, and forbidden plateaus. Some paintings, however, depicted some less scenic areas that were of importance to her, such as the Market in Waterdeep and the courtyard of her villa. These small paintings, her gates, were Glorindel's favored means of transport.
Any human, demihuman, or humanoid with intelligence not less than 13 and Wisdom not less than 12 may harness the power of one of these paintings. If the painting is stared at, uninterrupted, for two rounds, the viewer experiences the sensation of the image in the painting enlarging until it fills his or her entire field of vision, becoming ever more real as it enlarges. After a further round, the viewer is able to “step into” the painting. The effect is identical to the spell teleport without error. To someone standing nearby, the viewer seems to simply vanish, along with all items carried. The painting does not teleport with the user (although if the viewer has another of Glorindel's gate paintings in his or her backpack, the second does teleport).
Although Glorindel's home in Waterdeep was destroyed by undead foes, her body was never found. Some believe that she used one of her gates to affect her escape when it became apparent that all was lost. Whatever the case, Glorindel has not been seen since. No one knows how many of Glorindel's gates were created or may still exist. Only three are known for certain to have survived, all owned by the bard Diarmund of Waterdeep. All of Glorindel's gates are small paintings, usually less than 1' square. Unlike most other magical paintings, they have no innate resistance to harm; they can be damaged and destroyed like any normal painting.
Category:Encyclopedia Magica Magic Items
Category:Magic Items
Category:Magic Art