Tuesday Magic Item – Library Bane

“Don’t let him tear that!” shouted Gollaon, throwing a dagger at the spy.  Who ducked beneath it but momentary lost the firm grip on the paper needed.

“Right!” said Voddick feinting toward the paper and then driving his knee into the spy’s stomach.

“Bastard!” wheezed the spy trying to tear the paper only to have it snatched away from by Gollaon.  Voddick clocked the spy on the chin and they went down.

“What would that paper do?” asked Voddick kneeling to bind the spy.

“Destroy every book here,” he answered with a gesture to the shelves of the library.

Library Bane

Originally designed as a way for a commander to quickly destroy vital papers so they would not be of use to the enemy, spies then got hold of it and used it to protect their secret intelligence from falling into the hands of the rivals, but soon enough, someone realized that it could be used as an offensive weapon.  This item is a complex magical formula written on sturdy material, it is activated by deliberately tearing the formula.When triggered, the Library Bane scrambles every instance of the written word that is on paper, parchment, vellum and similar materials but not those inscribed on living flesh such as tattoos or carved into durable materials such as wood or stone within 15′.  Magical inscriptions are mostly immune only falling victim 1% of the time.

The written word affected by the Library Bane becomes gibberish, untranslatable but appearing as though it could be.

Aura moderate transmutation; CL 7th
Slot none; Price 1,500; Weight –
Construction Requirements
Craft Wondrous Item and Scribe Scroll, bestow curse, confusion, erase; Cost 750

For D&D 5E:

Scroll, rare

As above.

Notes: Inspired by a random mix of things in the news and what I have been reading.  But useful for a secret society wanting to keep things secret.

Photo “Talismanic Scroll” via The Metropolitan Museum of Art is licensed under CC0 1.0