Ashroot Lantern

Wondrous Item, legendary (requires attunement)

Ashroot Lantern

Wondrous item, legendary, cursed, requires attunement

This black iron lantern burns with smokeless green fire and contains a root-charcoal wick. While attuned to it, you can cause the lantern to shed bright light in a 30-foot radius and dim light for an additional 30 feet. Undead, oozes, and hostile fungi in the bright light have disadvantage on Dexterity (Stealth) checks, and once per long rest you can force one creature in the lantern’s bright light to make a DC 16 Constitution saving throw or take 4d6 radiant damage.

Curse: The light reveals enemies, but it also marks the bearer as fuel. While attuned, you cannot benefit from being invisible while the lantern is lit, and magical darkness within 30 feet of you is suppressed only by drawing on your life force. Each hour the lantern remains lit, you take 1d6 necrotic damage that cannot be reduced. If the lantern is lit in a dragon’s lair, the damage increases to 2d6 per hour, and you have disadvantage on saving throws against exhaustion until your next long rest. The lantern cannot be extinguished by you if a hostile creature is within its bright light; it goes dark only when no hostile creature remains within that light or when the curse is broken.

Dragon Interaction: Dragons can see the lantern’s flame through nonmagical fog, smoke, foliage, or light cover out to 300 feet, making stealth near a dragon almost impossible while it burns.

Flavour: The green flame leans toward living breath, and its shadow looks like roots crawling across the floor.