"In the beginning, there was light … but in the time before that, chaos raged.
To study fiends is to study the Abyss. Rage, hate, and roiling chaos enshroud all ancient fiendish lore like a darkmantle engulfs its prey. As such, students of demonic mythos are not usually claimed by madness, but by the subject matter itself. A loremaster who tempts the Abyss with his curiosity might find it looking right back at him, hooking its shadowy tendrils into his soul and clutching at his very being with a strength that predates the eternal. But madness? No, he will not survive to know madness.
That said, I study the lore of demons, and somehow I endure. I have neither wrestled the Abyss directly nor allowed my many encounters with the fiends that serve it (yes, I said they serve it!) to quench my thirst for knowledge. Those who come after me might be more careful, if less skilled, and they can continue the dark journey from the end of my steps. But, alone in my explorations, I have uncovered truths they could not hope to discover firsthand.
Most importantly, I have learned that the Abyss is the darkling chaos from which all things come. This genesis has nothing to do with good or evil—just pure, churning chaos, in its simplest form. Who could have believed that the origin of life—of earth, of tree and stream—spawns from such turmoil? Yet, it is true. It is only through the imposition of order that the gods create, and they must work the stuff of chaos to build their thrones above man’s domain. They create law and force order, twisting what was pure into something … else—something more suited to their survival and their dominance over us. As such, they are not ultimately responsible for creation, but only for helping the essence of life take shape.
Therefore, is it any wonder that demons hate and envy the divine? The gods corrupt the pure chaos of the fiends’ spawning grounds and leave them thrashing around in what is left. These deities then ascend to higher planes, often taking credit for the creation of the universe, or individual planes, or mankind, or any number of wonders over which they had little influence. The chaos and evil of the Abyss is all the fiends have left, which is why the demonic now wage war against the divine.
It is my hope that I shall discover much more before I am myself overcome by the Abyss. However, the fiends have learned of my quest for knowledge, and they fear my power. Soon, the battle will come. I can only pray to gods I no longer worship that my learning survives me. Forge on."
—Surviving excerpt from the Black Scrolls of Ahm
The Black Cult of Ahm has gained access to several artifacts tied to demons. These artifacts are hidden away in well-guarded chapter houses or entrusted to the care of the organization’s most honored members, and for good reason.
These sources of demonic lore contain more than just information about fiends and the Abyss. Over the centuries since Ahm’s disappearance, his scrolls and some of those written by his disciples have grown in power, becoming major or minor artifacts in their own right. Each contains lore pertaining to the Abyss, demons, and other related subjects, and many convey mysterious powers to their wielders as well.
The Black Scrolls of Ahm consist of hundreds of individual
writings. Those noted as minor artifacts are not unique—several
copies of these pages, tomes, or scrolls appear on almost
every plane, though even those with the same names might
cover slightly different topics of demonic lore. Black Scrolls
of Ahm designated as major artifacts are unique—no more
than one of each exists.
Each minor artifact conveys
one or more skill
bonuses to its possessor
and allows him to
use a specific lesser
power. The major artifacts
also convey skill
bonuses, but they make
multiple powers available to
their owners.
The Black Scrolls come in several
varieties, as given below. Some
appear as singular scrolls, while others
are bound together in books. The term
“scroll” in this case could apply to a collection
of scrolls. Regardless of its appearance,
every Black Scroll of Ahm has certain characteristics,
many of which provide benefi ts to
its possessor, as enumerated here.
- The possessor gains a circumstance bonus on Knowledge (the planes) checks. Each scroll conveys its own bonus, but they do not stack in the normal fashion. A character who possesses more than one kind of scroll gains the highest bonus, plus 1 point for each additional scroll successfully studied. A character who possesses multiple copies of any of the minor artifact scrolls gains this bonus only once per type. For example, a character who possesses two copies of the transcriptions of Ergon and one copy of the black writings gains a +3 bonus for one copy of the transcriptions and an additional +1 bonus for the black writings. The second copy of the transcriptions imparts no additional bonus.
- Each use of a scroll’s lesser power has a cumulative 1% chance of summoning a fiend associated with the scroll. The summoning has the same caster level as the scroll. The fiend attacks the user in an attempt to destroy him and take the scroll. This cumulative chance cannot be reset unless the scroll actually disappears from the presence of the fiend
- Each use of a scroll’s greater power has a cumulative 5% chance of summoning a fiend associated with the scroll. This chance stacks with the chance imparted by the use of a lesser power, and the fiend acts in the same way. Each scroll has only one cumulative chance to summon an associated fiend—the sum of the chances invoked by use of its lesser and greater powers. Thus, a character who uses a lesser power of the Abyssal Mundus three times and then uses a greater power once has an 8% chance of accidentally summoning a fiend. If that character uses another lesser power, the chance becomes 9%. If the different powers summon different kinds of fiends, the fiend that appears is the one associated with the power that actually triggered the summoning.
- The magic imbued in each scroll drives it to hide itself from demonkind. When within 30 feet of any creature native to the Abyss, each Black Scroll has a 10% cumulative chance per round of moving away from its current location by means of teleport or plane shift. The DM decides which spell effect the scroll uses and where it goes. Spells and effects similar to dimensional anchor can be used to stop a scroll from disappearing. (The scroll has a touch AC of 10 for the purpose of the dimensional anchor’s ranged touch attack.) When such a barrier effect ends or is dispelled, the scroll immediately disappears unless the creature that triggered the disappearance is no longer present. Once the threat is removed (because the creature is dead, departed, or out of range), the chance of the scroll departing resets to 0%.
- Once a scroll has used its ability to escape a demon (whether it was successful or not), the chance of it summoning a fi end again resets to 0% and remains there until the next time one of its powers is activated. At that point, the cumulative chance begins increasing all over again.
- Should a creature of the Abyss gain possession of a Black Scroll of Ahm, the scroll loses its ability to transport itself, as well as all its other powers. A demon that obtains any Black Scroll of Ahm immediately attempts to return to the Abyss with the item in its possession.
- As brittle and ancient as the Black Scrolls of Ahm appear, each is an artifact and thus nearly indestructible. The one method of destruction known to work without fail is immersion in the black pools of the Abyss. Immersion in this soup of chaos and evil for 1 hour utterly destroys any Black Scroll of Ahm. Any demon that recovers a Black Scroll and returns to the Abyss with it is likely to turn the item over to its immediate overlord (often a marilith or balor, or possibly a demon prince if the scroll bearer is high enough in rank). That creature then invariably attempts to destroy the artifact at its earliest opportunity. Still, this interval might provide enough time for a rescue party to reach the Abyss.
Abyssal Mundus (Major Artifact)
Tulket nor Ahm explored the Abyss as no mortal has before
or since, and the guide that he created to its ever-changing
layers is called the Abyssal Mundus. This maddening tome
contains geographic information on many layers of the
Abyss. It outlines the dangers of these locations and even
specifies a few spots that are relatively safe for the most
part—but not all the time. Even though it was built as a
guide to the Abyss, the Abyssal Mundus still tries to plane
shift away from it upon entry, like all the other Black Scrolls
of Ahm.
Description: The outside of this large and cumbersome
book looks similar to a seafarer’s rudder. Made up entirely
of large, loose scrolls and cartographer’s sheets, the
Abyssal mundus is unwieldy and almost
impossible to hold open except on a fl at
surface. When opened, it measures
nearly 6 feet long and 4 feet wide
and exudes a putrid odor that
persists for hours after the book
is closed or moved.
Activation (Skill Bonus):
Reading the Abyssal Mundus
is at best a diffi cult task, and
at worst a mind-threatening
one. After studying it at least
8 hours per day for a week, a
character must succeed on a
DC 26 Will save. If he fails,
he becomes extremely paranoid
and takes a –2 penalty
on attack rolls, saving
throws, skill checks, and
ability checks for the next
week. During that time, he
does not willingly approach
the Abyssal Mundus, and in fact fl ees
from it as if frightened (DMG 300) if
brought within 10 feet of it. With a successful
saving throw, the character gains enormous
understanding of the Abyss—specifi cally, a +10 circumstance
bonus on Knowledge (the planes) checks regarding the Abyss
or demons and a +10 circumstance bonus on Survival checks
while on the Abyss. These bonuses last for one year after the
character reads the Abyssal Mundus. He might attempt to
renew his understanding of the tome (and the bonuses) at
any time, but if he fails the saving throw, he loses all prior
bonuses and must start again after enduring the requisite
week of paranoia and fear.
Activation (Lesser Power): By laying open the book,
selecting a particular layer of the Abyss, and specifying a
time period (a minute, an hour, a day, or any other desired
interval), the possessor can use plane shift as the spell (but only
on willing creatures). Benefi ciaries of the spell immediately
travel to the Abyssal layer specified and remain there for
the declared interval. Once this duration has expired, the
affected creatures instantly return to their point of origin
unless they are slain or detained by magic. A blocking spell
such as dimensional anchor delays the return effect until
the duration expires, at which time the target immediately
returns. A character who dies on the Abyss, however, is not
returned to his starting point at all unless another affected
character is carrying or touching his body at the designated
return time.
Activation (Lesser Power): Once per day, the possessor
of the Abyssal Mundus can use greater teleport (CL 27th).
Activation (Greater Power): Once per week, the possessor
of the Abyssal Mundus can use it to call a demon using a gate
spell. The artifact’s caster level is used to invoke this spell
and control the demon, and as long as the creature remains
controlled, the artifact does not try to escape its presence.
The demon stays until destroyed or banished, or until the
possessor of the artifact dismisses it from his service. If it
is not sent back to the Abyss upon its release, the demon
becomes uncontrolled but remains on the plane to which it
was called.
Associated Demon: Use of either lesser power of the
Abyssal Mundus can cause 1d4+1 nalfeshnees to appear.
These creatures immediately attempt to destroy the wielder,
retrieve the artifact, and return with it to the Abyss. Use of
the artifact’s greater power might not only turn the gated
demon against the user but also call forth a marilith and
1d4 hezrous to retrieve the artifact. Since the associated
demons are called, not summoned, they can attempt to
summon reinforcements should they so choose. If one of the
demons gains possession of the Abyssal Mundus, it endeavors
to return with it to the Abyss while its companions remain
to destroy the former owner and wreak havoc on his plane
of existence.
Aura/Caster Level: Overpowering conjuration; CL
27th.
Weight: 15 lb.
Black Writings (Minor Artifact)
Reputed to contain some of Tulket nor Ahm’s earliest notes
on the nature of the Abyss, this small book survived his
destruction because it was simply too unimportant for the
master of demon lore to keep by his side. Still, the black writings
must have had some value to Ahm, since they do possess
some remnant of his power.
Description: This small, black tome appears unremarkable
except for the preserved eyeball pressed into its front
cover. The eye opens and shuts of its own accord, and when
the book is closed, the eye tracks movement within its view
whenever it is open.
Activation (Skill Bonus): Study of the black writings
for 8 continuous hours grants the possessor a +2 circumstance
bonus on Knowledge (the planes) checks, and a +5
circumstance bonus on Bluff and Sense Motive checks
made against creatures native to the Abyss. To retain these
bonuses, the reader must spend at least 1 hour per week
refreshing that knowledge. Skipping this additional study
immediately negates the bonuses, and the reader must start
all over again.
Activation (Lesser Power): By holding the book up to her
face with the eye outward, the possessor can peer through
it and, as a standard action, cause a 60-foot cone of dim,
yellow light to shine forth from the cover. Anyone looking
at a creature or object caught in the cone’s light sees it as
if affected by a true seeing spell. This effect lasts as long as
the user holds the book up to her face, but the cone can be
turned in any direction. Creatures or objects no longer in
the cone’s fi eld appear as they did before the effect revealed
their true natures.
Associated Demon: Using the lesser power of the black
writings causes 1d4+1 succubi to appear. These creatures
attempt to destroy the wielder, retrieve the artifact, and
return with it to the Abyss. Unlike other demons summoned
to capture the Black Scrolls, however, the succubi might not
appear immediately, or even near the possessor. Instead, they
appear somewhere within a half-mile radius of the owner
and up to an hour after the black writings call to them, at the
DM’s discretion.
Aura/Caster Level: Overpowering divination; CL 24th.
Weight: 3 lb.
Rubric of Tulket nor Ahm (Minor Artifact)
One of the great loremaster’s most prized possessions was the
rubric of Tulket nor Ahm, a collection of loose pages containing
the names of specifi c kinds of fi ends, plus a few incantations
relating to them. This information provides the possessor
with a potent weapon against certain demons.
Description: Each page of the rubric is inscribed on the
tanned hide of a vanquished demon and must be discovered
separately. At least four different kinds of rubric pages exist,
each keyed to a different kind of demon. The four kinds of
pages all have the same powers, but they look slightly different,
as noted below.
• Hezrou Rubric: Greenish-gray in color, this page is a piece
of leathery parchment that is always coated with a light
fi lm of slime.
• Glabrezu Rubric: This page is deep russet in color, with
rough and spiky edges.
• Bulezau Rubric: This sickly yellow parchment has dried,
jagged scabs crisscrossing it.
• Goristro Rubric: Tufts of bristly hair sprout from the corners
of this thick scrap of black, leathery parchment.
The Black Cultists believe that a specifi c kind of rubric
page exists for each kind of demon; they simply have not
yet discovered them all. They also believe that Tulket nor
Ahm created a rubric page for one of the demon princes (no
one knows which), and that this action was what finally
caused the fiends to hunt down and destroy him. If that
page does exist, it is undoubtedly a major artifact and could
convey more special powers to its possessor than the other
pages do.
Activation (Skill Bonus): Studying any single rubric
page for 10 minutes grants the reader a +1 circumstance
bonus on Knowledge (the planes) checks, but he must
keep the page on his person to retain the bonus. This
bonus increases to +5 for Knowledge (the planes) checks
directly related to the kind of demon to which the rubric
page is keyed. So if the owner of a hezrou rubric makes a
Knowledge (the planes) check regarding hezrou, he gains
the larger bonus.
Activation (Lesser Power): Anyone who spends a full
round reading aloud from a page of the rubric of Tulket nor
Ahm gains a +4 bonus on saves made against effects generated
by demons of any kind. In addition, the caster level for all his
spells, spell-like abilities, and supernatural abilities increases
by 4 when he uses them against demons.
These bonuses last for 1 hour and can be renewed (as a
full-round action) as often as necessary. Each such renewal
counts as a new activation of this lesser power.
Activation (Lesser Power): Each rubric page possesses
a second lesser power keyed to the specifi c kind of demon
named in it. The owner of a rubric page can employ both
lesser powers at the same time, though each requires a
separate activation.
• Hezrou Rubric: The possessor can use gaseous form up to
three times per day as a standard action. Each use counts
as a single activation of this lesser power. The effect can
be dismissed as a free action.
• Glabrezu Rubric: The user gains a +10 bonus to his natural
armor for 10 rounds. However, the effect also causes his
skin to appear spiked, dark, and pitted, imposing a –2
penalty to his Charisma. The effect can be dismissed as a
free action.
• Bulezau Rubric: Whenever the possessor enters a rage or
frenzy, she gains an additional +2 bonus to Strength and
+2 bonus to Constitution.
• Goristro Rubric: For 1 hour, the possessor gains 2 temporary
hit points per character level and the supernatural ability
to see invisible creatures, as the see invisibility spell.
Associated Demon: Using either lesser power of the
rubric of Tulket nor Ahm causes 1d4+1 demons of the same
kind as the rubric page describes to appear. These creatures
immediately attempt to destroy the wielder, retrieve the
artifact, and return with it to the Abyss.
Aura/Caster Level: Overpowering transformation; CL
25th.
Weight: 1 lb.
Transcriptions of Ergon (Minor Artifact)
Much of the lore of Tulket nor Ahm that was thought to
be lost after his destruction was actually collected in these
writings. Rumored to be Ahm’s own apprentice, Ergon
assembled most of this material from memory and from
fragments of parchment scattered about the ruins of Ahm’s
tower. Several transcriptions of Ergon have survived over
the centuries.
Description: Each copy of the transcriptions of Ergon is
a collection of fragmented notes and stories compiled in
some semblance of chronological order and annotated by
Ergon. Different copies might contain slightly different
information, seemingly written in different hands, but all
true transcriptions bear the mark of their author. Each copy
of the transcriptions is packaged in a simple case made of
brown leather.
Activation (Skill Bonus): To gain the +3 circumstance
bonus on Knowledge (the planes) checks conveyed by the
transcriptions of Ergon, a character must spend at least 8 hours
reading the scrolls, plus another hour every week refreshing
her knowledge. She need not carry the transcriptions with her
to gain this continuous benefi t. However, if she ever skips
her 1-hour “refresher” with the scrolls (even by as much as a
moment), she must study the parchments for the full 8 hours
again to reactivate the bonus.
Activation (Lesser Power): By holding the transcriptions
of Ergon in one hand and speaking aloud an incantation written
into the text, the wielder creates an improved forcecage
effect around a target as an attack action. In addition to
imprisoning the target creature as noted in the spell description,
the cage impairs use of the teleport and greater teleport
spells. Any creature that attempts to fl ee the forcecage using
one of these spells must succeed on a level check against the
caster level of the artifact (CL 21st) or remain imprisoned.
A creature that fails such a check may not attempt the same
means of escape again for 10 minutes. (Thus, a creature with
both teleport and greater teleport can try each spell once in a
10-minute period.)
Associated Demon: Use of the transcriptions’ lesser power
causes 1d4+1 vrocks to appear. They attempt to slay the owner,
capture the artifact, and return with it to the Abyss.
Aura/Caster Level: Overpowering evocation and divination;
CL 21st.
Weight: 5 lb.
ADDITIONAL BLACK SCROLLS
According to legend, dozens—perhaps even hundreds—of
Black Scrolls of Ahm could exist throughout the planes. Many of
these scrolls contain little or no magical energy, but collectors
and scholars prize them nonetheless. However, it stands to
reason that some of these other Black Scrolls of Ahm do possess
artifact-level power, and that they probably function similarly
to the ones described here.
Some of the Black Cult of Ahm’s senior readers believe
that possession of multiple copies of Black Scrolls that have
artifact-level power might increase the benefits of each.
However, the Black Cultists remain cautious about pursuing
this theory because some suspect that owning multiple copies
of individual Black Scrolls might increase the likelihood of
summoning vengeful demons. Still, some do not hesitate to
take that risk.
