Drown

Drown is a magical steel trident decorated with bronze barnacles along the upper part of the haft. A sea-green jewel is set just below the tines, and a silver shell adorns the end. It floats on the surface if dropped into a body of water, but floats in place if released underwater. It is cold to the touch, chilling those it strikes in combat with magical cold. It grants its wielder the ability to speak Aquan and dominate water elementals, as well as the ability to breath underwater It contains a spark of the primordial Olhydra.

History

It is unknown who forged Drown, or when, but it ultimately found its way into the hands of Gar Shatterkeel, prophet of the Cult of the Crushing Wave, who used it to open a portal to the plane of water. When Gar was slain by Drake's Company, the elf Lafiel gave it to her broker in Drakkengarde who sold it to an unknown individual for a very large sum of money. Upon discovering that another elemental weapon, Windvane, contained a spark of a primordial, Drake's Company deduced that Drown likely held one as well and returned to the caverns in which they had faced Gar. There they discovered the trident in the clutches of the aboleth Yngukulub the Devourer, who easily defeated the heroes and used the trident to summon Olhydra.

A month later, the Brightstone Heroes--accompanied by Kazak Axehaft, Jib, Flynn Cupsigh, Honeysuckle Bree, and Keiraleina--entered the caverns to stop Olhydra. Gurrard Snevilin killed Yngukulub, and though Olhydra tried to stop them Sumac Briarden was able to thrust Drown into the portal, causing the trident to crumble into rust and dissolve as the portal collapsed and pulled Olhydra back through it.

Legend

At Ru Bae Ya's behest, the clerics of Ioun performed a divination on Drown. This divination resulted in the following prophecy:

From endless waves and endless sea

A trident formed for a steel key

A lock created in caverns deep

That the lady of water might through it seep

A man who thrice escaped death's confines

A man who was destined for the coral tines

A slave no more, now master of surf

Yet a slave in truth, he is but water's serf

In serving the wave he returned to mud

The wave exacted her payment in blood

The key, a bauble in the bazaar

Claimed by a mind from a realm afar

The world will drown in her crushing wave

Return the spark if the world you would save