Imperium (3.5e Equipment)
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Imperium[edit]
"A brilliantly shining halo floats before you, as you watch it slowly darkens to a black that seems to suck the very idea of light from the room, then calmly returns to a blinding white before darkening again. Hovering about a foot off the ground this halo seems to exude force, demanding to be worn, to be given purpose."
History[edit]
Worn by a fallen High Lord this halo has a storied history, having seen fights between entire universes from atop their rulers head. It is unknown how the High Lord fell though his 'crown' eventually found its way into the hands of mortal kings where it's wearers were worshipped and feared in equal measure. The Gods eventually took it from their incompetent worshippers but it's power proved too great a temptation even for them sparking a civil war among the Gods, eventually Imperium was lost when an Olympus dragon betrayed his God and escaped with Imperium, hiding itself on the material plane. Its disappearance ended the war but many mortals (and immortals) still go looking for the 'crown' that's said to grant dominance over reality itself.
Description[edit]
When not 'worn' Imperium hovers about a foot off the ground, appearing as a medium sized Halo which slowly shifts from a white so dazzling it blinds, to a black that seems to suck all the light from its surroundings. To 'wear' Imperium one must simply touch it with bare flesh, it will then rise to hover exactly 6 inches above their head shrinking or enlarging to fit their size category. If the wearer lacks a head then it simply hover above the most 'head-like' body part, preferably where the brain is (or would be normally). Once worn the colour switches to a shining gold which radiates one of three auras. Those with a part of the Good or Evil axis will project either blinding light or smothering darkness up to 5ft from Imperium respectively. Wearers with the Neutral component instead of Good or Evil (Chaotic/Lawful/True Neutral) instead give off a lukewarm glow. This doesn't give the wearer any benefit, beyond possibly acting as a torch but may influence how other characters interact with them.
Imperium though has multiple powers which only a truly powerful being can take full advantage of, namely a sentient immortal with psionic ability. To all sentient wearers the halo grants the Leadership and Epic leadership feats for free regardless of if they meet the prerequisites, it also allows telepathic communication between all the wearers followers and the wearer. The wearer can 'talk' in any mutually understood language to any number of there followers at once as well as send images telepathitically. Once worn Imperium acts as a part of the wearers body being impossible to remove without their consent until their death, if anyone but the wearer touches Imperium they take 1d20+10 divine damage for every round they are holding it.
Any character with Psionic ability who wears the halo is instantly aware of all its other powers, the halo is able to store up to 1,000 power points which the wearer can refill or draw upon as if using a psi-crystal. The Psion also becomes able to manifest a Mindblade in the same way a SoulKnife is able to, this blade however costs 250PP to manifest and adjusts size and weight to match its wielder. It appears as a solid blade of the wearers Will, matching the colour of the halo and seeming to cut reality itself with every swipe. The blade has a +20 enhancement bonus regardless of its form and deals damage appropriate to its wielders (virtual) size category, any being dealt a critical by the blade must also succeed on a Will save (DC 25+damage dealt) or receive double damage from the MindBlade for the next 24 hours as every attack is repeated within their mind. On a critical the blade partially fragments dealing half its damage to all those within a 5ft radius, except the wearer, characters may attempt a Reflex save (DC 25) to take half damage. The wielder can also attempt a DC 130 Will save to gain the Transversal ability for the current round, a failure on this save however will leave them stunned for 1 round. The Mindblade is affected normally by feats that alter its shape, etc. If the wearer has levels in the SoulBow prestige class they can also manifest arrows with the same properties as the blade though each arrow costs 3PP, the arrows otherwise function exactly as the MindBlade.
The Halos greatest power however, is available only to immortals. Any immortal wearing the halo gains the Sophism Transcendental ability for long as they are wearing it. Any followers within their divine aura also gain the Diehard feat for so long as they're within the aura and gain Immunity to Fear effects. The immortal is also aware of Imperiums other abilitys but cannot use them unless they meet the prerequisites.
It is unknown if Imperium can be destroyed, the gods tried with all there might but were unable to even dent it not to mention it has survived aeons of warfare undamaged. It is theorised that if one Good, Evil and True Neutral being, of power equivalent to at least a Greater deity, were to hold it for 3 consecutive days the conflicting purposes would cause it to shatter into three pieces. Though it has also been proposed that one whose Will is strong enough (DC 150) could reform Imperium if they collected all the pieces
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