Illus. by D. Martin
ITEMS OF LEGACY
CHAPTER 3
SCALES OF BALANCE
136
odd, ascetic philosophy. Within weeks of This 6-foot-tall, polished quarterstaff is made half from beginning his training, he would often stay white ash and half from darkwood so black it resembles up through the night, debating philosophy with the order’s founders. Hemsi concluded a clouded sky on a moonless night. At the center of the staff, the two woods fuse together in a blend of that to truly understand the unity of positive neutral gray. The staff is unadorned, but simply holdand negative forces, one must experience each ing it is enough to reveal its unusual properties. to the fullest extreme possible. He became the Nonlegacy Game Statistics: Masterwork first monk of the Balanced Way to walk the Threefold Path—the Road of Creation, the quarterstaff; Cost 920 gp. You gain a +1 bonus on saves against death effects, energy drain, and any Road of Annihilation, and the True Road. The young monk began his spiritual journey on effect that would induce fatigue or exhaustion. the Road of Creation, dedicating himself heart Omen: When Scales of Balance is left unattended, plants seem to grow and blossom with greater faciland soul to writing beautiful poetry, healing the sick, and indulging in the positive aspects ity in the vicinity of the ash end, while vegetation is more prone to shriveling and withering near the of existence. (DC 18; Road of Creation) darkwood end. Once he felt that he could gain no further enlightenment from the Road of Creation, HISTORY Hemsi changed tack and embarked upon the Little can be gleaned about this staff’s purpose perilous Road of Annihilation. Where once he or history from its appearance. What can be had created beautiful art, now he put librardeduced is that it clearly symbolizes positive ies and museums to the torch. Where once and negative energies, life and death, in equal he had healed, now he harmed. He did these balance with one another. A sect of austere things not out of malice or evil, but because warrior monks, the Brotherhood of the Balhe truly believed directly experiencing these anced Way, is known for its rejection of deity forces was the only way in which one could come to illumination. It was around this worship and a planar cosmology, seeing all so-called gods and planes as illusions resulting time that the troubles with Wee Jas’s faithful began, though it is unknown if that feud began from the imperfect discernment of the cosmic precepts of positive and negative. The order because of Hemsi’s acts or not. It is known that faded into obscurity some five decades ago, Hemsi challenged many of the monks of Wee after a violent and protracted struggle with Jas to battle and defeated them handily, which a monastic group devoted to the worship of certainly exacerbated the situation. Wee Jas’s followers struck back by slaughtering the less capable Wee Jas. This other organization apparently monks of the Balanced Way indiscriminately, and took exception to their deity being referred soon fewer than a dozen of Hemsi’s comrades were to as a “flawed perception.” Only a few of the left alive. When the grandmaster of the monks of Balanced Way monks survived the covert Wee Jas challenged Hemsi to a duel, the young war of assassinations and back-alley duels, monk knew that, one way or another, his quest for and those who did scattered to the winds, enlightenment would soon be over. (DC 25; Road hoping to stay hidden and avoid retaliation of Annihilation) from the followers of Wee Jas. (DC 15) The grandmaster of the death goddess’s cult arrived One of the last disciples taken in by the at the gates of the Monastery of the Balanced Way Brotherhood of the Balanced Way, before before dawn. He carried a simple staff of blackened the conflict with Wee Jas’s worshipers, darkwood, a gift, he claimed, from Wee Jas herself, was a boy named Hemsi. A street urchin caught stealing by one of the monks, Hemsi imbued with powerful death magic. Hemsi met the was remanded to the care of the monastery challenger, carrying a staff of plain, unadorned white by the local magistrate, rather than being ash. The two monks bowed to one another, and the placed in the pillories. Much to the surbattle was joined. Their fight was long and fierce, and neither monk possessed a clear prise of the other monks, not to The staff known as Scales of Balance dispenses advantage. The rhythmic clacking mention Hemsi himself, the lad life and death in equal measure readily took to the Brotherhood’s of their staffs filled the morning air,
