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Candle of the Dead

wondrous item (consumable), uncommon

Candle of the Dead
Illustration: Timmmi (using AI-tools like Midjourney & Dall-E)

This candle is made of white wax that has been molded and carved into a macabre shape. The candle is covered with skulls of different sizes, some as small as a fingernail and some as large as a fist. The skulls have hollow eyes and grinning teeth, and some are cracked or missing parts. Between the skulls, there are bones that form intricate patterns and symbols. The candle has a faint smell of decay and smoke.

Light the Candle

The candle has 5 charges.
 When you light it, you can use an action to expend one of its charges and cast Speak with Dead (necromancy)
Level: 3
Casting Time: 1 action
Concentration: No
Ritual: No
Allow a corpse that still has a mouth and is not an undead to answer 5 questions to the caster.
View on dndbeyond.com on a corpse within 30 feet of you. The spell ends if the candle is extinguished.
 When you use the last charge, roll a d20. On a 1-19, the candle melts away and is destroyed. On a 20, the candle regains charges.
Create printable cards for Candle of the Dead

Lore

The Candle of the Dead was invented by a necromancer named Mordekai, who sought to unlock the secrets of life and death. He believed that by speaking with the souls of the departed, he could learn how to cheat death and achieve immortality. He also experimented with animating and creating undead servants, hoping to find a way to transfer his own consciousness into a more durable body.
Mordekai spent years collecting corpses and skulls from graveyards, battlefields, and dungeons. He used dark magic and alchemy to melt the bones and flesh into wax, and then carved the wax into candles. He imbued the candles with necromantic energy, allowing him to cast spells that manipulate the dead. He also added a feature that allowed him to consume the life force of corpses, replenishing his own vitality.
 Mordekai made dozens of candles over the years, using them for his research and as weapons. He interrogated the spirits of his enemies, raised armies of undead minions, and searched for the elusive secret of eternal life. He became obsessed with his work, neglecting his own health and sanity. He also made many enemies, who feared and hated his unnatural practices.
 One day, a group of paladins and clerics raided his lair, determined to put an end to his evil. They fought their way through hordes of undead, until they reached Mordekai’s chamber. There, they faced the necromancer himself, who wielded one of his candles as his weapon. He unleashed a blast of necrotic energy that killed several of his attackers, but also caused the candle to go out. The undead he had created with the candle exploded in a chain reaction, engulfing him and his foes in a fiery doom.
 The candle survived the explosion, but was buried under the rubble of Mordekai’s lair. It remained there for centuries, until it was discovered by a group of treasure hunters. They recognized it as a powerful magic item, but did not know its true nature or origin. They sold it to a mysterious buyer, who had a keen interest in necromancy…
 Some of Mordekai’s other candles may still exist, hidden in dark places or in the hands of unscrupulous collectors. They are sought after by those who wish to commune with the dead, or to command them.
Tags:loreno attunementrechargespellsundead

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