Okay; someone shoot me if this is protected content, but I can't PM it to BlackMoria.
Tashara of the Seven Skulls
[from Elminster's Notebook, Dragon 206; personal notes in brackets]
This sigil and items belonged to Tashara of the Seven Skulls; I’ve evidently stumbled upon one of her abodes or storage caches – long plundered, whatever it was. Tashara’s tale is one that bears recording, lest all knowledge of such hidden things be lost with me, in times to come.
Tashara was a beautiful woman, and also a grasping and ambitious one. She mastered small magics early in life, and used her looks and glib tongue to carry her into the hearts and trust of men who should have known better. At first she simply slew them while they slept, taking what magical items they possessed; when she had enough of these to pay for tutoring and still defend herself against treachery, she took up with mages, and learned what they could teach her before killing them and going on to the next.
This was long ago, just after Myth Drannor’s fall [c.720 DR], and Tashara seems to have come from what is now Chessenta, or lands to the south of there.
Tashara was brilliant at magecraft; she had the rare knack of being able to combine the enchantments of others into more powerful spells that hung together by themselves. Her power grew with great dispatch, until she mastered a means (doubtless by practicing on talentless farmers and later minor magelings, who ultimately became servants and guardians of her various abodes – and may survive still, in remote places around Faerun) of creating undead that retained their wits, yet were under her control.
Tashara perfected this undeath in the form of a flying, disembodied skull accompanied by animated skeletal hands – the former able to speak and cast spells, and the latter able to gesture and carry small, light items.1
Then she set about seducing the most powerful mages she could find, going far afield in Faerun to places where none had heard of her. She succeeded with uncanny skill, becoming consort and apprentice to one archmage after another. When each was hopelessly in love with her, she “discovered” a means of lichdom and helped them to attain it – always ending up with a flying skull that retained all of its wits and magic, was hopelessly in love with her, and that she could control if need be.
This she continued until she had seven skulls of magical might serving her. This seems to the maximum she could control, or perhaps she wearied of the seductions, or ran out of mages who could teach her anything and were likely to be receptive to her. Time has taken the truth from us, as well as losing the names of all but one of the Seven Skulls: Alisker Lathundown of Nuel. (Nuel is a town on the shores of The Lake of Steam that is now lost.) Just which of the skulls he became is unknown.
Tashara had seven undead mage-skulls that were devoted to her, vied for her affections, and cast spells at her command. She could go into battle ringed by these spell-hurling undead, and always slept within a floating, ever-watchful ring of them. It is said she mastered spells that allowed her to drain the life-force of folk and feed it into the skulls – but this may be only legend born of fear-fed rumors.
So armed, Tashara set out to work her will upon the Realms. She fought the Red Wizards of Thay to a standstill, destroying three of them. She smashed an enclave of Phaerimm, and destroyed The Ring of Eyes, a beholder cabal that ruled what is now eastern Amn, herding the humans and wemics who dwelt there like cattle to be the eye tyrants’ food and slaveworkers.
It seemed none could stand against Tashara. So in the end, of course, she grew too bold. It was her wont to wrest magical items and spell knowledge from those she defeated. She decided to ransack The High House of Wizardry, a temple dedicated to Azuth that stood in what is now Tunland. Overmatched in battle, the high priest called on Azuth for aid, and The High One heard. He appeared, strode through all the spells Tashara hurled at him, and embraced her.
Screaming, she burned to ashes in his arms, her will and her soul were sucked into him, as the energies of all her items, spells, and contingency magics raged like wildfire around the temple. The building was thrown down, one of the seven skulls burst apart from the
magic that suddenly flowed into it, and the other six were hurled helplessly across Faerun, howling as they were scattered from their “love.”
I believe these six skulls still survive; what I’ve been able to learn of them is as follows:
One inhabits Skull Gorge, where it has gathered many powerful monsters and magical items around it. It can hurl spells through a scrying artifact that also can project a giant image of itself, so that the spells emanate from the giant skull.
One inhabits the ruins of Myth Rhynn (an overgrown ruin in the depths of The Forest of Tethir), where it studies and amasses magic in a shattered tower. It lures adventurers to it by magically-sent visions and rumors of rich treasure, to gain their magic. [This one is detailed in Lands of Intrigue; it goes by the name of “Mallin” and casts as a Wiz20.]
One roams Thay, stirring up revolt against the Red Wizards, manipulating one Red Wizard against another and trying to destroy one whenever possible. Over the years, it has succeeded twice, and has adopted many magical guises in its work. It loves the spice of danger, and has become a legend among the Red Wizards, who call it “Old Thun, the Doom of Wizards.” Some folk in Thay – even, it is whispered, some Red Wizards – have begun to worship it in secret.
One wanders Faerun, aiding adventurers. It delights in helping the underdog, spreading chaos and destruction, and helping beautiful females who resemble Tashara.
One is trying to found a kingdom of undead centered in the remote, ruined northern city of Ascore. It controls the undead by means of new spells it has developed.
One stays hidden in various human guises, possessing and then taking the shape of powerful rulers. It is adroit, but tales of this or that king or satrap being in two places at once (one the controlled being, the other a guise assumed by the skull) betray its activities from time to time. It loves power and intrigue, and is thought to be in Amn, working behind the scenes there. Although it recently helped to bring about revolution in Tethyr, it now fears such activities; they hamper its control and influence over a land.
The remnants of the Seven Skulls bear watching – and it’s high time I spoke with Azuth, to be certain that Tashara is gone forever.
Footnotes
1. These undead vary, but all are AC 2, MV Fl 16 (A), and have 6 + 6 HD. They retain their intelligence (though some of the skulls have gone insane), and can wield all magical items they could in life, including rings, amulets, and the like that are worn – if they retain digits, for some of these undead have lost their hands over the years. None can be turned or dispelled, and all are immune to mind-affecting magics and psionics, and to all spells of third level or less.
[Possible 3e stats: As living wizard but Small undead; Spd fly 40 ft. (perfect); AC +4 natural armor, +4 deflection; HD 8d12; Base/Grp +4/+1; Atk +5 melee (1d4+1 claw rake); SQ immune to spells lower than 4th level, turning immunity, undead traits; Str 12, Dex as living +2, Con -, Int as living, Wis as living -0 to -10 (insane), Cha as living -2 (loss of personality due to Tashara’s control).]
, til today I thought he was only mentioned in Lost Empires of Faerun...***
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