Grol

Of all of the Morndinsamman, perhaps none, much to many dwarves' dismay, is more active in the mortal world as Abbathor, the Trove Lord. The Dwarven god of greed stalks the underways and caverns of Faerun, seeking to add new and unique items to the already near-infinite wealth in his realm, the Glitterhell. Neither human, nor elf, nor kobold tribe is safe from the god's predations. But out of all of his prey, perhaps none are more satisfying and profitable than the dragons. Most dragons amass treasure that beggars the vaults of the greatest human king, elven coronal, or dwarven laird, and treasure is Abbathor's business.

In the days before the rising of the Dwarven realm of Delzoun in the North, the lightless caverns of the Underdark beneath tribal communites of the land of Nether were home to a sleek and fearsome hunter. She went by the name Myasmerithritar and was a Deep dragon of respectable power. She stalked the highways and byways of her under-kingdom searching for prey, and, perhaps more importantly items of unique worth. In her time, Myasmerithritar earned a reputation as a discerning collector of rare and priceless items, and one that denizens of the dark could come to if they desired to trade and were desperate (or stupid) enough. The years passed and the dwarven resence grew stronger in the North, and with it they brought the gods, specifically Abbathor. Myasmerithritar's reputation came easily to the notice of the Great Master of Greed, and in a short time he grew covetous of the treasure without peer that must be concealed within the Dragon Collector's Underdark domain. But the dragon was old, and clever, and learned of the dwarven god's interest in her collection. Her realm was not weak, and she had many allies in the form of the base humanoids that dwelled within her suzerain. Many of these creatures, the goblins, kobolds, and even some drow, worshipped the great Myasmerithritar as divine, and her caverns were a defended citadel. And so a battle began, both subtle and vicious, a game of move and counter-move played by two grand masters, neither side gaining an advantage. In time, however, the dragon grew tired and the god grew impatient. In the year -3608 DR, all plays at subtlety are dropped and Myasmerithritar's fortified tunnels are assaulted by nearly every dwarven priest of Abbathor in the North along with a great group of mercenaries hired by the faith of every type and description. The battle lasted for 24 days and 24 nights and was felt as a great shaking of the earth beneath the fledgling realm of Netheril. In the waning hours of the fight, an avatar of Abbathor himself appeared, tearing through the dragon's remaining inner defenses and striding into the Collector's very den. But he found nothing. The dragon, the artifacts, and the priceless horde were vanished, and their presence defied the diety's every attempt to locate them. Abbathor's avatar seemed to implode in a fit of rage and thwarted all-consuming greed. In fact, after several days of searching, only one item apparently from the dragon horde was ever found. One of the mercenaries in Abbathor's army came across a blade, buried hilt deep in the stone of a side passage. The dark elven thief found, to his surprise, that the blade came smoothly out of the rock and found himself holding a long dagger, almost a short sword, of impressive design. The dark elf wisely concealed his find from his erstwhile employers and made off with it into the Underdark. That same dark elf earned himself a grisly reputation in later years when he was executed in Delzoun for the murder of nearly 60 dwarves including several of his former employers. The blade that came to be called Grol, or "blood-hunger" in Dwarvish, and that was his trademark was never found.

The Blade: Myasmerithritar was not stupid, nor was she overly confident of her ability to defend her trove from an enraged deity. As her forces battled Abbathor's, the dragon was undergoing a rite that would protect her and her collection from the dwarven god's wrath. When Abbathor strode into her den, Myasmerithritar's treasured had been sent into her own extra-dimensional space, keyed subtly to her own cavern while the dragon herself was locked away in a special blade built around one of her own fangs.

Game information: Grol is a short sword +1, +2 vs. dwarves, +3 vs. priests of Abbathor (and Abbathor's avatar) whose blade is approximately 1 foot long. The blade is composed of a single slender deep dragon fang, delicately engraved with silvered dark elven script which is subtly curved. The hilt and cross piece seem to be composed of some sort of white iron or silvered steel. The grip is bound in mauve dragon leather. The pommel is carved to resemble a dragon mid-roar and the crosspiece is set with a teardrop shaped obsidian on either side.

Primary Power: Grol maintains the ability to bite through stone and certain kinds of metal with ease. The user may cut through standard rock (limestone, granite, sandstone, etc.) at a rate of 3ft. per round. The user may also cut through most mundane metals at a rate of 1 ft. per round.

Invoked Powers: detect magic (2/day), detect metals and minerals (2/day), free action (2/tenday) Each use of an invoked power forces a contest of wills with Grol with a -1 cumulative penalty for the remainder of the day. Additional powers detailed below are invoked only at great cost to the user.

Sentience and Curse: Grol is possessed by the soul of Myasmerithritar, who is encased within the confines of the blade (specifically the nigh unbreakable and unremovable obsidian gems set in the hilt). For this reason, the blade is sentient (AL: CE, INT 19, WIS 17, CHA 15, Ego 16). The dragon will communicate with the user, speaking telepathically to the wielder's mind in the form of a subtly hissing, seductive feminine voice.

Personality: Grol is subtle, vicious, greedy, and cruel. The dragon despises dwarves with an unholy passion and Abbathor and his priests above all. Grol will attempt to convert the user to its own particular leanings, communicating with it's owner at night in dreams. The dragon will force a contest of wills the moment the prospective user wields the blade. Losing this initial contest means the user will become very possessive of the blade, unreasonably so, and also must take a -1 penalty on all successive attempts at resisting Grol. A second failure will result in the user adopting some of the blade's personality traits, as determined by the DM as well as another -1 penalty on successive saves. A third failure will result in the user's alignment shifting to CE along with yet a third -1 penalty on successive saves. A fourth failure will result in complete domination of the wielder by the blade. The user's original personality is completlely submerged beneath that of Myasmerithritar.

Each of these stages of possession on the part of the blade results in additional "gifts" given to the player character while possession of the blade is maintained. Each modification is cumulative with the one's preceeding it. If the blade is ever lost or destroyed, these effects, along with the personality modifications above, will dissipate in the reverse order of their acquisition (i.e. highest modification first) and will take 1d4 weeks per the stage of possession. (i.e 1 through 4). Even after complete reversal, the user will not be free of the penalties acquired to being siezed again by the blade's wicked intellect should he/she come again into possession of the blade (i.e. If the user had a -3 penalty to the contest of wills with Grol, that penalty will remain with the user unless and until the blade is destroyed (or Myasmerithritar is manifest once again)).

1. The user develops an unusual craving for seafood (the usual diet of a deep dragon).
2. The user irises take on a burgundy/mauve coloration similar to the color of the binding of the blade's grip. The user develops infravision to 30'.
3. The user develops further draconic seeming physical characteristics (i.e. a general elongation of the face, reptilian eyes, lengthening of the teeth, loss of hair, extension of the fingers and toes, etc.). This could result in progressive loss of charisma and penalties in the form of reaction adjustments (at the DM's discretion). Once per tenday the user may generate the fear aura of an 'old' deep dragon.
4. The user begins to lose all appearance of their former race, taking on the appearance of some strange draconic/humanoid hybrid. The metamorphosis of the user's skin from (demi-) human flesh to small mauve scales results in the user's base AC raising to 4. At the DM's descretion, the (most likely now non-player) character can develop claw and bite attack routines as well as minor use of a deep dragon's toxic gas breath weapon. At this stage, the original wielder's personality is completely submerged and Myasmerithritar has taken control of the body. Only forceful, permanent separation of the blade from the user can begin to reverse the process now.

Grol's goal (and thus Myasmerithritar's) is to kill dwarves, specifically dwarven priests of Abbathor. Myasmerithritar's imprisonment within the blade can only end when Grol has fed upon the blood of 24 and 24 priests of Abbathor, equivalent to the number of days and nights the Trove Lord made war upon her realm. When this number is reached, the obsidian tear shatters and Myasmerithritar is reformed at the blade's location. So far, Grol has butchered 32 priests of Abbathor and lusts after more.

For game purposes, Myasmerithritar is a deep dragon of the "old" category who is also a 14th level draconic wizard.

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