Mhzentul's Runes (Magic Book)

This tome is thin but heavy, comprising twelve sheets of vellum sewn to a binding of silk and preserved with wax. It is said that the reddish hue of the wax is due to dragons' blood, and this preserves the binding. The truth of this rumor and the effectiveness of the ingredient is unknown. The binding is secured by silken cords to two pieces of oiled wood that have been covered entirely with stretched wyvern hide, held in place by small triangular wedges of silver. Thus far, the wood has not warped or broken, although curious, finger-shaped scorch marks on the hide attest to the heat the volume has endured. The book is not locked or bound, and has no known trap. It is signed with the sigil of Mhzentul:Mhzentul was a powerful, respected wizard. His end, men say, came at the battle of the River Rising, where he became a pillar of living flame and burned his way across the field, doing great harm to the hosts of his army, and blazed straight away out into the sea, where his flame was lost to view far out on the waves. Mhzentul is remembered among wizards for his works, the Seven Lost Rings of Mhzentul and the book that has come to be known as Mhzentul Runes.After Mhzentul's death, a party of treasure seekers, with utmost care and at great risk to themselves, overcame the traps and magic of Mhzentul's mountain abode and penetrated its innermost rooms, but found neither the rings nor the book on the premises. Rumors of the location of these treasures surfaced, citing such a profusion of sources and alleged whereabouts that the items became legendary, but their true resting place remains a mystery. Some six winters after the battle of the River Rising, the book is known to have come into the grasp of the adventurer Uthmang, a half-orc thief. He was immediately slain by the Red Wizard Alail Thong, who in turn was defeated at Greenstone Keep by the priests of that place. It is not known what happened to the book then, but some two winters later it is said to have passed into the hands of Lhegrand the Sage, and it is from his catalogue we obtain the detailed description aforementioned. Lhegrand held the book only briefly before he was waylaid and enslaved by orcs out of Darkhold, and here we lose track of both book and rings for some seven winters, throughout which the treasures presumably remained in evil hands. The evil wizard Whisper is known to have found the rings, and is suspected to have had the book also, or at least access to it, but the whereabouts of both since his rumored death are not known.The first four leaves of the book contain a detailed, exacting, and correct description—as attested to by the sage Lhegrand, an expert on the storage of spells within physical objects and substances—of the process of creating a ring of spell storing. It is known that at least four of the seven lost rings were of this type.The five leaves that follow describe the process involved in creating rings that would, upon command, become guardian creatures under the control of the creator, but Lhegrand believes that some portions of the process have been (deliberately?) omitted. "I have not the skill nor the necessary components to enact the process," Lhegrand writes, "but herein I see no manner nor means for imbuing the creature with any animation, nor can I find any dweomercraft written for controlling the creature." Even if this section of the work is indeed incomplete, it is still of immeasurable value, and would bring a high price from most wizards.The third and final section of the work is more informal than the other two, consisting of Mhzentul's notes on his research in fire magic. Lhegrand reports that many runes, glyphs, and symbols are written in special inks upon these pages, and a wizard of sufficient level could with diligence glean the complete spells fireball, fire shield, fire trap, and delayed blast fireball from Mhzentul's notes. The scope and thoroughness of Mhzentul's understanding of magic concerned with fire, however, are such that careful study of the book will decrease the time needed to research any fire-related spell by as much as two weeks, Lhegrand estimates. 
Category:Magic Items
Category:Magic Books
Category:Encyclopedia Magica