What's so special about this huge gemstone anyways?

[BlueBlackRed]

It is a non-magical item right now, but is perfectly designed to be the focal point of any magic cast into it and placing it on a staff can magnify the power of the staff when used.

Forces from all sides (good/evil/chaotic/lawful/neutral) want it for the power it can give them over the others..

 

[lukelightning]

It's actually a cheap hunk of glass.

 

[paradox42]

at lukelightning's suggestion! Always nice to see thinking outside the box, though I suspect players in my game might try to lynch me if I pulled a trick like that on them.

For my contribution, how about this: (and I hope you'll forgive the ELH reference) the gem is an artifact of the Elemental Plane of Earth, and has the ability to call a Primal Earth Elemental when the proper rituals are performed. It appears nonmagical because, hey! It's an artifact! But it's actually extraordinarily powerful. Cults of earth deities and druids will be particularly keen to get their hands on it once they realize it's been found. Without using it for its primary function, the tie to the Primal Elemental's power actually causes it to "bleed" certain Earth-related effects into it's holder's plane, for example Stoneskin appearing on its holder at random times (or maybe just each morning).

Can the Primal Gem be controlled? What about the elemental if it's called? What other powers does the gem have if it can be controlled? These are questions for the DM to decide.

 

[frankthedm]

In my own game It was the Opal Talon of Tiamat, a minor artifact of Draconic Law, It raised a Lawful Evil possesor's leadership score and had other undetermined powers. In my own game it wound up in orcish [Hobgoblin in standard D&D terms] hands due to the Players running afowl of the Bone devil.

 

[domino]

It's an opal the size of which nobody has ever seen before (except for whoever carved it.) That's special enough. The hope diamond isn't exactly a mystic item of power and magic itself, after all.

 

[Canaan]

So my players recently acquired a fire opal the size of a human head that has been shaped into a fist. (It was found in an old monastery where Infernal monks used to live)

On one hand it could just be a big gem worth a lot of gold. On the other hand it could be something much cooler.

Any ideas?

It's funny that you should ask....

I nearly put the Temple of the Opal Fist in my campaign as a plot device. I had it that the Fire Opal contained the essence of a powerful trapped Celestial. The party wouldn't know it. But later, a devil in human form (one that would be a challenging encounter for the party) would introduce himself as the fiend he is and offer to give the party some information they needed to save a local village in exchange for the Fire Opal. I would give the party the opportunity to determine what was so special about the Fire Opal and arrange to have a meeting in one week's time with the devil to accept or reject the deal. Accepting the deal would save thousands of lives and damn the celestial. Rejecting the deal would save the celestial and might cause the death of thousands of people, if the party could not come up with an altnerative means of saving the villagers. Accepting the deal would result in the party cleric and paladin losing all powers until an atonement is obtained. The information provided by the devil is incomplete and puts the party at further risk of harm, failing to inform them of the one crucial fact necessary to complete their task.

 

[Chimera]

T'would be perfect for my campaign.

The 'evil All-Father' type Human diety is Morgoth, the God of Fire and Strength.

And he's Lawful Evil, so Monks would work.

Yer givin' me ideas...

 

[Sejs]

It's not a fire opal the size of a man's head that's been shaped like a fist.



It's a fist the size of a man's head that was turned to gemstone!

Who did it belong to? Where are they now?

How did it undergo that transformation? Why fire opal?

Why did the monks have it? Safekeeping? Reverence? To keep it away from its original owner?

 

[JonMonster]

The Gemstone Golem is just a myth. Everyone knows such a thing never truly existed. Sure, the sages point to passages from ancient texts describing the legendary exploits that revolved around these most wondrous of constructs. Occasionally one hears stories about the gruesome fates of those reckless enough to try to build one. But every responsible mage worth his salt professes not to believe in such fairy tales.

But now the PCs have a piece of one - concrete evidence and the potential key to unlocking one of the greatest mysteries of wizardry. Such a thing is valuable to have, but once word gets around, dangerous to own.

 

[James Heard]

It's what rich people use in their catapults.

It's a scrying focus, wave for the nice wizard!

It's a piece for an ancient boardgame/sport played by giants.

Upon a command word it accepts a human fist into one side and becomes a really cheesy looking artifact.

Upon a command word it accepts a human head into the bottom, and becomes an even cheesier looking helmet.

Two words: Giant paperweight.

It's an anchor.

It's the head of a mace. A really BIG mace.

It's a demon/elemental/freaky construct/whatever. When the players go to sleep it uncloses the "fist" and skitters around their inn rooms, hops onto their faces, and lays baby gem fist eggs into their chest. These...hurt.

Actually a thin coating of gemstone over an enormous tasty sugar center, given as a gift to a Princess during an inexplicable holiday long ago. Yum! Cherry flavored!

Part of a rock paper scissors set.

It's an unsuccessful attempt at a pet rock familiar.

Dwarven footstool.

Is an artifact dedicated to chaos: Divinations send people on wild goose chases, and footloose awakened hedgehogs covet it.