30 Day OD&D Challenge - Eldritch Wizardry - Artifacts & Relics (Part One) - Day Twenty-Seven

Today's Topic is "Eldritch Wizardry - Artifacts & Relics (Part One)" as we continue our celebration of International Original Dungeons and Dragons Month! Today we will look at Artifacts and Relics.

Eldritch Wizardry introduces the subject of Artifacts and Relics under the heading of "The Treasures" saying:

This section is devoted to a number of Artifacts and Relics of tremendous power. It is set up so that only the Dungeon Master will know what these items can actually do; the players will only have “rumors” to go on. Each item is described and a list of “suggested” powers is given, but in the back of this section is a series of tables which the referee can use to change the powers that are “suggested” under each artifact. The Dungeon Master should feel free to add new items to the tables or to change them, but he should be careful to make sure that new or changed items are placed on the appropriate table.

There are five tables and each Artifact or Relic refers to one or more of the tables with suggested powers from each of the referenced tables and then a spot of the referee to write in the items actual powers. 

The Items listed are:

• The Invulnerable Coat of Arn
• The Mace of Cuthbert
• The Sword of Kas
• The Axe of the Dwarvish Lords
• The Wand of Orcus
• The Rod of Seven Parts
• The Codex of the Infinite Planes
• The Hand of Vecna
• The Eye of Vecna
• Baba Yaga's Hut
• Iron Flask of Tuerny the Merciless
• Queen Ehlissa's Marvelous Nightingale
• The Machine of Lum the Mad
• The Mighty Servant of Leuk-o
• The Jacinth of Inestimable Beauty
• The Crystal of the Ebon Flame
• Heward's Mystical Organ
• Horn of Change
• The Ring of Gax
• The Crowns, Orbs, and Scepters
• The Throne of the Gods
• The Orbs of Dragonkind

My suggestion is that you use these as examples and then create Artifacts and Relics that are specific to your own world and name them appropriately. Then decide on what powers and features each item should have that fits the flavor and character of your world and your campaign. There is no one size fits all when it comes to these powerful items and you should feel free to depart considerably from these examples. Many of the above should be considered cursed items. This is something I will talk a bit more about in the next essay.