Scepter of Ages

This page contains spoilers for the following products: The Return of the Runelords Adventure Path, particularly Temple of the Peacock Spirit and Rise of New Thassilon.
You can disable this banner in your personal preferences.

Scepter of Ages

(Magic item)

Aura (1E)

Overwhelming transmutation

Caster Level (1E)

25th

Type

Major artifact

Slot (1E)

None

Origin

Unknown

Affiliation

Unknown

Source: Artifacts & Legends, pg(s). 42

The Scepter of Ages is a major artifact granting power to travel through time.

Appearance

The Scepter of Ages resembles an oversized key, with strange metal prongs and rune-marked teeth on one end, and gem-studded hoops and discs on the other.

History

In Azlant's heyday, the Sculptor of the Seafoam Dome predicted the rise of a new empire of wizardry in the east and depicted each sculpture with the symbol of a key.

When Earthfall was approaching, Runelord Xanderghul planned to use the Scepter of Ages to travel forward in time and avoid the cataclysm, but he ran out of time before he could locate the Scepter of Ages.

In -4003 AR, the mad prophets Casmos and Cielas, bearing what appeared to be the Scepter of Ages, were arrested and lived out the rest of their lives in prison, making uncanny predictions.

In -2256 AR, the Shory aeromancer Viddon of Jidran killed his own son after his future daughter warned him that the boy would destroy a sky city, then went on to make giant leaps in aeromancy.

In -919 AR, the Scepter of Ages was offered to the ruler of Ninshabur, who hid it in the vaults of Tabsagal where it stayed until Pathfinder Durvin Gest stole it in 4328 AR.

The Scepter of Ages eventually fell into the hands of Runelord Alaznist, who has recently woken and had previously studied Xanderghul's research. She used it to unlock the refuge where Xanderghul slumbered, hidden from Earthfall, and killed him. With the Scepter of Ages, Alaznist travelled back in time to Thassilon seven times to absorb mythic power and arrange for the arrival of the Oliphaunt of Jandelay in the future to threaten Varisia. She was eventually confronted by a group of heroes armed with the Sihedron, who disrupted her manipulation of temporal power by using time-locked energy harvested from Crystilan. Alaznist used the Scepter of Ages to trap them within Crystilan, but had to release the artifact into an unknown time and place in order to avoid being trapped herself.

References

For additional as-yet unincorporated sources about this subject, see the Meta page.