Ivory Chain of Pao (Magic Chain)

This artifact has a very distinctive appearance, an ivory chain whose links are carved in the fashion of men with arms outstretched. Each link is cunningly made so that the hands of one figure interlock with the next in line. Unlike metal chains, the links here are not closed loops and it should be possible to unhook individual links. However, the chain will not fall apart. The chain is approximately 12 feet long.
The ivory chain of Pao has a long and colorful history in the lands of the east, but it is virtually unknown to western sages. This is the tale, albeit abbreviated, as it is known to those eastern scholars. Only those western sages with contacts in the distant orient would know anything of this tale.
The early history of the chain is very vague. Common tradition holds that it was fashioned in the Age of Red Earth by Master Pao, the Lesser Immortal of Mount Yei, and given to the Nine First Emperors, who ruled the empire jointly. The chain, it is said, was to symbolize their unity and the harmony they brought to all civilized people (meaning, of course, the empire).
Unfortunately, it brought tragedy. One night, an audacious thief slipped into the treasury and stole the chain in the seventh year of the rule of the Nine. (Some say this thief was inspired by Monkey, the Lord of Mischief; others, by an evil god.) Shortly after that, turmoil grew in the southern realms of the empire as a new cult rose to challenge the Emperors.
It was at this time that the Nine Emperors withdrew to heaven, leaving the empire in the hands of the First Dynasty. As the evil cult in the south continued to grow, the emperor sought the secret of its destruction. Finally he and his poet-brother went south to challenge the cult.
It was there that they discovered that Nan Kung Chi, the high priest of the Black Leopard Cult, had the ivory chain. With it the priest had bound the great leopard-fiend of the cult and forced it to his will. Guided by the wisdom of his brother, the Emperor Chin shattered the chain with a single stroke of his spear, thus ending the terror of the leopard cult.
Many would have assumed this to be the end of the ivory chain's power, but Master Pao had been more cunning than that. It is said that the chain vanished with the parting of a single link, only to reform itself later. This must certainly be true, for the chain figured into another great event-the fall of the copper fiend of Tros.
If little was known of the Black Leopard Cult, even less has been recorded of the copper fiend. It is known that this monster rose to great power in the northwestern reaches of the empire, seizing several provinces for its own. These it ruled with absolute authority and terror for many decades. Finally the horrors of the fiend became so great that the emperor called for heroes to help regain his lands. Wo Mai and his companions, loyal to their emperor, undertook the dangerous task. It is unknown just how they overthrew the copper fiend, but the accepted stories say the ivory chain of Pao was instrumental in binding the creature and bringing it back to the imperial court. There it was imprisoned in the acorn of Wo Mai (see Acorn of Wo Mai).
After this great event the chain drops out of all accounts of recorded history. Some scholars say it was ground into dust and forged into the acorn that holds the copper fiend. Others think it remained in the imperial treasuries until the fall of the Hai Dynasty, when the Sixth Emperor went to invade a neighboring land. There it was supposedly lost (along with the Sixth Emperor) when the invasion fleet sank in a great storm. The story continues that the chain was recovered by a foreign navigator named O'Rourke, who was in the employ of the dead emperor. It is quite possible that he carried it back to the lands of the west-or perhaps he did not.
The ivory chain of Pao is not a particularly powerful artifact for common adventuring. Its powers affect only Outerplanar creatures, so, unless these figure into the campaign, the chain is going to be nothing more than an interesting curiosity. However, should a great Outerplanar threat appear...
The DM should build the adventure around the chain's powers. The obvious possibility is that something awful and of great power has broken into the Prime Material Plane and the chain is necessary to overcome it.
The player characters could, for various reasons, journey to the Outer Planes where they would need the chain to capture some powerful being. Perhaps it is needed for a powerful spell: perhaps the task is a geas imposed by a cunning lich or payment to a high priest for services rendered. The group might even do something this dangerous merely to impress a powerful lord. A great king, caliph, or emperor would certainly think highly of heroes who presented a powerful fiend humbled by a simple ivory chain.
Furthermore, since the chain can be taken apart, the simple business of discovering it can become quite complicated. The DM could introduce the artifact slowly. The group might find a single link as part of a treasure hoard, and later find others—without explanation. Only after an ample length of chain is assembled might there be clues to its purpose.
Invoked Powers: The chain can be used in one of two ways, either as a whole or in individual links. When the whole chain is wrapped around the wrists, neck, ankles, or waist (or the equivalent) of an Outer-planar creature, the creature is automatically bound. Bound creatures must absolutely obey the commands of the owner of the chain, who must hold one end of it while giving commands. Although it seems extremely fragile, the bound creature is utterly helpless against the chain's might, nor can it use its powers except at the bidding of its master.
If one knows the right way to twist and slide the figures, the links can be unlocked from each other. Once the 48-link chain is broken, it loses all power to bind. Any individual link can be thrown against a creature, with all of the effects of a holy word spell. Links hurled vanish instantly.
Curse: Each day that the chain is used to bind a creature, there is a 5% chance it will break and vanish at once. Newly freed creatures are usually quite eager to extract vengeance on their former masters in horrible and imaginative ways. Furthermore, Outer-planar creatures will send earthly agents against the chain's owner.
Suggested Means of Destruction:
* A secret method of joining each link so that the hands do not touch the chain must be used.
* Each link matches a living hero or heroine. When all are dead, the chain crumbles.
* It must be given to an elephant-god, who shatters the ivory.
Category:Encyclopedia Magica Magic Items
Category:Magic Items
Category:Magic Chains