The Year-Scythe
There are actually several versions of this scythe
currently in circulation. For ethereal artifacts,
they're powerful, but only a celestial can safely
wield a Year-Scythe. Unfortunately, celestials don't
particularly need them.
A Year-Scythe has several powers. First off, it's a
weapon (Power +5, Accuracy +1, uses Large Weapon skill
and requires two hands) that cannot be destroyed by
mortal means. The Scythe may also do 1d6+1 points of
celestial damage (cost: one Essence per attack). The
user need not be able to control his or her Essence
expenditure, but must at least know what Essence is in
order to power this ability. All year-Scythes are
reliquary/6s.
Second, every Year-Scythe is associated with a
particular year (from about 1850 AD on). The year
will be inscribed on the handle of the relic. Any
mortal who holds the Year-Scythe will know about more
or less everything that happened during that year that
had an impact on humanity. This will include events
that occurred on the celestial plane, provided that
the events eventually influenced mortals. This effect
only lasts as long as the person holds the artifact.
Treat as Knowledge/12 (specific year), if a roll is
necessary.
Third, and most important, once a mortal consciously
wields a Year-Scythe, he or she becomes effectively
immune to disease and gets a +4 to any attempt to
resist a celestial resonance. Plus, nothing that the
wielder does (including Essence expenditure) will
generate disturbance. The relic will eventually bond
to the wielder, and cannot be removed from his or her
presence once so bonded.
Many sorcerers have thus sought out these relics, to
their cost: Hell has no intention of telling them
about the disadvantages to wielding a Year-Scythe.
You see, the relics originate from the annual ethereal
spirits of a particular year: in fact, that's why
they're relatively available (said spirits are all
dead). Every single time that the esoteric features
of a Year-Scythe are utilized, the user must make a
Will Roll at -4 (ignore Interventions). Failure will
cause the item to bond as mentioned above. Once that
happens, the user will die of old age within one
calendar year. The item cannot be discarded, given
away, or destroyed. Any attempts to reverse the aging
process will automatically fail: not even a Superior
can stop the progressive decline and death. If,
somehow, a Year-Scythe is destroyed, its wielder dies. Period.
From the point of view of Hell, a Year-Scythe is thus
a useful way of subtly removing more annoying users of
sorcery. Arranging for a particularly arrogant
sorcerer to "find" a Year-Scythe and then pointing him
or her towards the Host is one of Fate's favorite
games: usually, the unlucky mortal will get himself
killed after causing an incredible amount of silent
damage. Even if they survive, they're doomed (and
seeing as Sorcery almost always equals 'Fated', damned
as well) within the year. It's an especially useful
way of nipping those annoying potential White
Sorcerers in the bud, as well.
Oddly enough, those Year-Scythes possessed by the Host
often get used for precisely the same job. The only
real difference is in what direction the new loose
cannon gets pointed.
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EDG <[email protected]>
In Nomine Collection Curator