Scroll of Kakishon

Aura overwhelming conjuration; CL 23rd Slot none; Weight 3 lbs.

DESCRIPTION

This tattered piece of ancient parchment bears no mark other than a single large, elegant rune.

This innocuous-looking scrap is nothing less than the physical manifestation of a man-made demiplane known as Kakishon, and the rune covering the scroll is in fact a representation of the plane's several island regions. To open the gate, one must unfurl the scroll and speak the names Aliskiren, Isles of Night, Ismaizade, Kakishon, Khandelwal, Khosravi, and Serpent Isles, each time touching the section of the rune corresponding to the named island group. Once, this process allowed the user to choose where to appear within the realm, but the scroll is now damaged, and upon activation, all creatures within 50 feet with line of effect to the scroll must make a DC 40 Reflex save. Those who fail are sucked into the scroll and bodily transported to one of the waypoints within the demiplane of Kakishon (see map). At the same instant creatures enter the plane, any being that previously entered the plane involuntarily may choose to depart, being expelled from the scroll back to the Material Plane. Once inside Kakishon, escape can prove difficult, requiring those trapped within to wait for others to enter, for the casting of a spell similar to plane shift, or for the discovery of one of the foundations of Kakishon's reality, all of which transport the subjects back to the Material Plane to a point within 10 feet of the Scroll of Kakishon.

Kakishon Planar Traits

The demiplane of Kakishon has the following traits.

• • Normal Gravity

  • Erratic Time: Time varies wildly within Kakishon.

  • Finite Shape: Any who sail one of Kakishon's galleys toward the horizon for 12 hours eventually reach a cataract that drops into the half-real realm called the Andakami, or the Isles of Not.

  • Alterable Morphic: Although Kakishon adheres to most of the laws of the Material Plane, several self-propelled ships that appear to be Nexian galleys provide transport about the demiplane, ferrying passengers between specific waypoints.

  • Mildly Chaos-Aligned Limited Magic: The following spells do not function at all when cast within Kakishon: astral projection, blink, ethereal jaunt, etherealness, phase door, and secret chest. Instead of banishing a target, dismissal, banishment, and other effects that attempt to force non-natives of Kakishon back to their home planes merely stun their targets for 1 round if successful.

  • Impeded Magic: The following spells require a successful DC 15 caster level check to be cast within Kakishon: dimension door, greater shadow conjuration, greater teleport, project image, shades, shadow conjuration, shadow evocation, shadow walk, teleport, and teleportation circle. The following spells have their durations halved, and require successful DC 20 caster level checks to be cast at all: creeping doom, elemental swarm, insect plague, instant summons, mount, storm of vengeance, summon instrument, all summon monster spells, all summon nature's ally spells, summon swarm, and trap the soul.

HISTORY

Kakishon was the wizard-king Nex's attempt to create a world of his own. A paradise of exotic pleasures and wonders, Kakishon holds more than a dozen distinct magical island sanctuaries. Yet Kakishon was forgotten during Nex's rivalry with the necromancer-king Geb, and eventually lost entirely. The Scroll of Kakishon later appeared in Katapesh, where the desperate wizard hero Andrathi sought to use the demiplane as a trap against the efreeti warlord Jhavhul, trapping the genie and his army within. The wizard's plot worked, trapping not only the efreeti and his legion, but also Andrathi himself. Soon afterward, the scroll-bound realm was lost again, now prison to an entire army of fury and flame.

RAMIFICATIONS

Kakishon is an entire plane with possibilities for a whole campaign worth of adventures. It also potentially serves as a prison to an ancient efreeti tyrant and his army, which could be released by any who enter the plane, while at the same time trapping those who seek out the pleasure realm's wonders.

DESTRUCTION

Containing even a small group of chaotic beings such as azatas, proteans, or demons will gradually cause Kakishon to unravel, while a larger group or a more powerful chaotic entity can rend the demiplane to shreds in moments.