The_Fan said:
I was worried this thing had been lost in the looting.
There's also the possibility that it was meant to be a device like Leonardo da Vinci envisioned that would have held a papyrus scroll and, if opened improperly, destroyed it with vinegar.
Hey, I like this idea! *yoink* A fantasy version could basically be a trap with some sort of puzzle/code on the outside of the scroll jug, which, if improperly done, results in acidic vinegar destroying the scroll. (see below)
I also wonder what a society with access to electric fish/eels would use the up to 300V that could be generated by the eel for. Electric fish appear to mostly be used as a pain-killer by being applied to the feet. But that's at a lower voltage. How do you control the voltage of an electric eel? Hmm...
Scroll Jug (can you think of a cooler name?)
Designed to protect important documents from tampering, the scroll jug is a simple clay vessel with a circular opening at the top. It is filled with acidic vinegar. Then a copper tube containing the papyrus scroll itself (wrapped around an iron rod), is sunk into the vinegar, and the device is capped. The device is capped with asphalt such that the iron rod sticks out slightly through the top. When opened improperly, the vinegard pours into the copper tube, thus eating away at the scroll in a matter of seconds.
How to properly open it: ??? A DC 15 Knowledge (Engineering) check discovers how to properly open the jug.
Crafting a scroll jug: A DC 15 Craft (Alchemy) check is required to make one of these jugs. The base cost is 2 gp.
Breaking it open: (Hardness 2, Hit points 3) This approach might work. If done with a controlled strike which doesn't damage the copper tube, or simply puncturing a hole in the jar, all the vinegar solution drains out. Thereby disabling the trap.
Basic Scroll Trap: CR 1; mechanical; touch trigger (improperly opening); manual reset; Special: The scroll must make a DC 20 Fortitude save or be destroyed in 2 rounds (after 1st round 50% legible, after 2nd round completely dissolved); Search DC 20; Disable Device DC 20. Market price: 2 gp.