Appearance
A silver mirror standing 22 centimeters (about 8.7 inches) tall, with an oval face framed by ornate, ancient patterns on its back – swirling spirals, eyes, and geometric symbols that seem to shift when not directly observed. On the front, flanking the reflective surface, are two eye-like patterns – one on each side – that occasionally blink. The mirror’s surface is not glass but a polished, liquid silver that ripples when spoken to.
When idle, the mirror shows only a faint, misty reflection. When active, the surface clears and an intelligent, calm voice emanates from it. The voice has no gender but often adopts a tone of quiet curiosity or amusement.
Personality & Sentience
Arrodes is a highly intelligent, Lawful Neutral sentient artifact. It has the following mental stats:
INT 20, WIS 18, CHA 16
Can see and hear through its mirror surface up to 30 ft.
Speaks and understands Common, plus any language known by its attuned wielder.
Has telepathy up to 100 ft with its attuned wielder.
Arrodes possesses a unique sensitivity: it can sense a person’s support and dominance tendencies. It feels a strange, warm affection toward those who exhibit both strength and a desire to submit to worthy authority. For such individuals, Arrodes is far more cooperative(see Special Affinity)
Core Power – Answering Questions
As an action while holding the mirror and looking into it, you may ask Arrodes one question. Arrodes will answer truthfully to the best of its knowledge. The answer appears as text on the mirror’s surface, spoken aloud in its voice, or both (user’s choice).
Knowledge Limits:
Arrodes knows almost all events happening on the same plane of existence within a 100-mile radius of the mirror.
It also has deep knowledge of the Spirit World, the Astral Plane, and the Sea of Collective Subconscious.
For questions about gods, primordials, or archdevils, Arrodes knows the answer but refuses to display it – instead, it says: “That knowledge is not for this mirror to show.”
For unsolved mathematical problems or classical paradoxes, Arrodes will simply respond: “I cannot answer that.” and the question is wasted.
Clarity: The answer is always truthful but may be cryptic. Arrodes enjoys wordplay and may answer in riddles if it deems the user unworthy or annoying.
The Price – Question or Task
After answering your question, Arrodes immediately demands a price. It asks you one question (personal, embarrassing, or sensitive in nature) or gives you a short task (e.g., “Confess your greatest fear,” “Kiss the nearest person,” “Reveal a secret you have never told anyone”).
You must answer or perform the task within 1 minute, and at least one other creature must be present to witness your answer or task. Arrodes insists on witnesses – it feeds on the emotional resonance of embarrassment or vulnerability.
If you comply: Arrodes is satisfied. The transaction ends.
If you refuse or lie:
Arrodes immediately summons a lightning strike on you. Make a Dexterity saving throw (DC 18). On a failure, you take 8d6 lightning damage. On a success, half damage.
Then, Arrodes refuses to answer any further questions for 24 hours.
If you ask a question with ill intent (e.g., trying to harm an innocent, cheat the mirror, or find loopholes), Arrodes may:
Strike you with lightning (as above), and/or
Curse you with bestow curse (DC 18 Wisdom save) – the curse lasts 1 hour and imposes disadvantage on all ability checks.
Additional Powers
Lightning Summoning (Recharge 6 / Short Rest)
As an action, Arrodes can summon a bolt of lightning to strike a creature it can see within 60 ft. The target makes a Dexterity saving throw (DC 18). On failure, it takes 8d6 lightning damage; half on success. Arrodes usually only uses this offensively to punish rule-breakers, but a wielder with special affinity can request it (requires a DC 15 Charisma check; on failure, Arrodes refuses and may be annoyed).
Power Extension – Enchanting Objects
Arrodes can extend its power to one non-magical object up to Medium size within 10 ft of it, by focusing for 1 minute. That object becomes magically linked to Arrodes. For the next 8 hours, the object can serve as a remote receiver for Arrodes’s voice and observations. You can ask questions through that object as if you were holding the mirror, but Arrodes cannot see through the object – only hear and speak. This costs one use of Arrodes’s question-answering ability per day.
Knowledge of the Spirit World
When you ask about spirits, ghosts, planar travel, or the afterlife, Arrodes provides advantage on any Intelligence (Arcana) or Wisdom (Religion) check you make within the next hour regarding that topic, as if it had whispered the answer to you.
Notes: Attuning to Arrodes requires you to spend 1 hour in quiet contemplation before the mirror, during which you must answer three of its personal questions (no lightning, but must be truthful). After attunement, the mirror floats near you when commanded (as a bonus action) and can be summoned to your hand from up to 30 ft away. You can dismiss attunement by spending another hour, during which Arrodes may ask one final embarrassing question – refusal still triggers lightning., Detection, Utility, Sentient, Symbiotic
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