Portfolio of Cartography

This useful spell book appears at first to be a wholly unremarkable folder containing maps and

parchments of different sizes and colors each threating to fall and be lost from the portfolio.

Spells: Memorize Page, Create Treasure Map, Mind’s Eye Map (Deep Magic), Tactical Acumen, and Explosive Runes.

Special Features: Those in the know understand how to use it; writing the word ‘start’ anywhere on the scroll triggers an effect whereby the immediate surroundings are swiftly and accurately mapped, as if by the work of an invisible draughtsman. The tome will detect and incorporate any subtle changes in direction or depth of a passageway and note the presence of doors as they are found. It cannot, however, detect secret doors until they have been opened, after which it will mark them on its map. If the bearer of the tome is subjected to any effect that moves him away from the region being mapped by means of other than ordinary locomotion, such as fly, teleport, dimension door or ethereal jaunt, the mapping stops. One of the sections of the book reveal secrets to modify a spell with the Lingering SpellMetamagic Feat. 

Moonstone and Other Precious Gemstones

This is a thick, lavishly illustrated manual of gemstones listing hundreds of gem types, possible flaws and imperfections, and values.

Spells: Ioun Strike (Deep Magic), Stone Call, Stone Discus, Stone Fist, and Stone Shield.

Special Features: By spending three hours with this book and any gemstone, the user gains a +6 bonus to all Appraise checks.

Thorgrim’s Opuscule

This black leather book is hinged with gold and contains 20 parchment pages. The cover is protected with gold corner caps and a small mechanism consisting of two skeletal hands that keep the book closed when they are joined. The book does not lock. The first page features an illustration of an eye and a halo and this symbol is repeated at random intervals throughout the book. All of the writing is in black and red ink.

Spells: Arcane Mark, Minor Creation, Quill, Read Magic, Secret Chest.

Special Features: The book holds the knowledge necessary to craft the following wondrous items: an Infinite Quill, Bottomless Inkwell, and a Case of Infinite Scrolls.

Infinite Quill

Price: 500

Weight: —

Slot: None

CL: 3rd

Aura: faint conjuration

This item is often given as a gift to particularly skilled and scholarly graduates of a magical school. It is a quill, usually of an exotic creature such as a Pegasus, which writes without any need of ink. The user simply begins writing and ink appears from the pen. At a command, the ink can change to any color. The infinite quill writes so smoothly and so well that it grants a +2 competence bonus to any Craft (Writing) or similar checks, including Spellcraft checks to successfully copy a spell.

Prerequisites: Craft Wondrous Item, quill. Cost to Create: 250 gp.

Bottomless Inkwell

Price: 750

Weight: —

Slot: None

CL: 4th

Aura: moderate conjuration

This inkwell, while apparently normal, contains enough ink to fill a 10’ by 10’ by 10’ area. It replenishes to its maximum potential daily.

Prerequisites: Craft Wondrous Item, minor creation. Cost to Create: 375 gp

Case of Infinite Scrolls

Price: 5,000

Weight: 1 lb.

Slot: None

CL: 9th

Aura: moderate conjuration

This ornate scroll case is constructed from brightly dyed leather, and may hold up to 100 magical or non-magical scrolls and/or maps. Even when full, a case of infinite scrolls weighs no more than one pound.

Prerequisites: Craft Wondrous Item, secret chest; Cost to Create 2,500 gp

Source: 101 Spellbooks, Tomes of Knowledge, and Forbidden Grimoires is copyright © 2002 Philip Reed.

Thaumaturge’s Thesaurus

Price: 1,250 gp (1-slot), 2,500 gp 

Weight: 3 lbs

Slot: -

CL: 8th

Aura: minor divination

Each thaumaturge’s thesaurus is a richly appointed book of thin vellum sheets, bound in thick leather (which is normally dyed bright red, royal blue, or a rich green). The cover and spine identify a thaumaturge’s thesaurus by name, and every page is filled with arcane writings offering alternative words and phrases for nearly every mystic word and phrase of power conceivable. A character that prepares spells daily (such as a cleric, druid, or wizard) who studies a thaumaturge’s thesaurus while preparing spells can prepare one or two spell slots—that are lower level than the highest level spell the caster can prepare— to contain two spells. The spellcaster can cast only one of the two spells so prepared, but can choose which when the spell is cast. Each thaumaturge’s thesaurus allows a caster to do this for one or two spell slots. The tome can be used once per day, regardless of how many times the owner decides to prepare spells.

For example, a 3rd-level wizard with a one slot thaumaturge’s thesaurus could prepare both charm person and sleep in the same spell slot. When it came time to cast from that slot, the wizard could choose to cast either charm person or sleep, with the spell not cast being discarded.

Construction Requirements: Craft Wondrous Items, mnemonic enhancer; Cost: 625 gp (1-slot); 1,250

gp (2-slot).

Sorcerer’s Spellbook

Price: 2,500 gp

Weight: 5 lbs

Slot: -

CL: 17th

Aura: minor divination

Sorcerer’s spellbooks are small, worn folios with thin parchment pages bound between wooden (or more rarely metal) covers. Both the covers and the pages are covered in apparently meaningless arcane symbols—even a read magic spell cannot tease any intelligible verse out of the small books.

A spellcaster who casts spells spontaneously (such as a bard, oracle, or sorcerer) that studies this tome when focusing her mind to cast spells for the day learns one additional spell known. This is a randomly selected spell from the caster’s class list, and it is of a random level. The additional spell known remains until the caster focuses her mind to cast spells the next day. A sorcerer’s spellbook can be used only once per day, and each time a character uses it, the additional spell known is entirely random.

Construction Requirements: Craft Wondrous Items, mnemonic enhancer; Cost: 1,250 gp.

Manual of Monsters

Price: 2,450 gp

Weight: 5 lbs

Slot: -

CL: 3rd

Aura: minor divination

A manual of monsters is a heavy, hardbound tome of lore, with a hide cover (often died bright red or green) and many pages of illustrations of various beasts, along with secret lore about them. Each manual of monsters gives information on a single creature type (determine the type randomly for each manual). If the wielder studies the manual for 15 minutes each day, for 24 hours he gains a +8 bonus to Knowledge checks made to identify creatures of that type and their powers and weaknesses. Each manual of monsters can be used for study only once each day—after that its words and illustrations blur into illegibility until 24 hours have passed. These magic tomes are among the most commonly created magic lorebooks, and they are called bestiaries, collections of creatures, folios of fiends, or mystic menageries.

Construction Requirements: Craft Wondrous Items, augury; Cost: 1,225 gp.