Sphere of Balance

Wondrous item, artifact (requires attunement by a creature of neutral alignment)

Relations between the Celestials of the Higher Planes and the Fiends of the Lower Planes have never been pleasant. However, there was once a time when both sides agreed to a truce of sorts. The details and history behind this decision are lost to the ages, known only by its participants and observers, but all agree on one thing: such an event did indeed happen.

Much of the negotiations took place within the town of Sigil, where both sides could easily retreat back to their planes to discuss the finer details with their superiors. Eventually, the agreement was made, and the pact was sealed with the creation of the Seven Spheres of Balance, designed to both symbolize the event and to bolster a select few individuals to aid in a long past war. Three were given to the Celestials, three were given to the Fiends, and one was left in Sigil as a symbol of thanks for hosting the negotiations (which became tumultuous at times).

While the Celestials have held on to their Spheres over the years, and the one in Sigil has remained locked away, the Fiends were less attached to theirs. Over the millennia since the war ended, the three Spheres tumbled through both the Nine Hells and the Abyss, passing through the hands of many a demon and devil before another inevitably slaughtered them for it. Eventually, however, one rather unique devil managed to get his hands on one: the pit fiend known as Bliobohr.

Unlike other fiends, Bliobohr was content with his position within the Nine Hells, and therefore had little use for an item as risky as the Sphere. Instead, he bequeathed it to a buyer in the Material Plane via an emissary. Now that the Sphere is in mortal hands, one can only dream of the power it can grant… except for its buyer.

The Sphere of Balance is a crystal ball 1 foot in diameter. The Sphere is gray to the unattuned, but whoever attunes to it is able to witness the Sphere’s true form: a swirling storm of white and black rages within the confines of the Sphere, producing many of its effects. Sometimes the Sphere produces bursts and flashes of glorious light, while other times it seems to darken the area around it.

Magic Focus. The Sphere of Balance can be used as a spell focus or a holy symbol that grants +3 to spell attack rolls. The sphere also functions as a crystal ball of true seeing and a spellguard shield.

Random Properties. The sphere has the following randomly determined properties:

1 minor beneficial property

2 major beneficial properties

Symbol of Balance. While the sphere is on your person, you gain immunity to radiant and necrotic damage. When you successfully make an attack of any kind, you can choose to use the average damage for that attack instead of rolling. You also gain truesight up to 30 ft.

As an action, you can cast word of recall and instantly teleport to a previously designated neutral sanctuary (courtroom, home of a friendly neutral NPC). This can only be done once every 3 days.

Spells. The sphere contains a number of spells dedicated to the whims of fiends, the glory of celestials, or the balance between the two.

The sphere has 14 charges and regains 2d4+4 charges daily at dawn. While holding the sphere, you can use an action and expend one or more charges to cast one of the following spells (save DC 19) from it: guiding bolt (3rd-level version, 2 charges), bestow curse (5th-level version, 3 charges), blight (2 charges), darkness (1 charge), daylight (1 charge), hold person (3rd-level version, 2 charges), hold monster (3 charges), sunbeam (4 charges), circle of death (7th-level version, 5 charges), flame strike (6th-level version, 5 charges), modify memory (6th-level version, 4 charges), or antimagic field (6 charges).

You can also use an action to cast detect evil and good or protection from evil and good (can only target fiends and celestials), comprehend languages, zone of truth, hex, or shield of faith without using any charges.

Fiendish Oblivion. While holding the sphere, you can use an action to cast an empowered version of power word kill. This version of the spell has a range of 200 feet, and can affect up to two creatures with 300 hit points or less, or one creature with 500 hit points or less. The area in a 60-foot radius around a target becomes pitch black for 7 days once the creature dies. Any creature killed by this effect has their soul sent to either the Abyss (50%) or the Nine Hells (50%). Once this feature is used, the sphere turns a radiant white, and any effects granted by the fiendish side of the sphere (immunity to necrotic damage, some of the spells listed above) disappear for 7 days. If this feature fails, the fiendish attributes reappear after your next long rest.

Celestial Radiance. While holding the sphere, you can use an action to cast an empowered version of sunburst. This version of the spell allows you to exclude creatures of your choice within range, lights up the area it affects for 7 days, and deals 20d6 radiant damage. Fiends make the saving throw with disadvantage, and any creature that rolls a 1 or fails by more than 10 is blinded permanently. Only a wish spell can restore the sight of a creature blinded in this way. Additionally, you can choose up to four of the excluded creatures and heal them by 4d8 hit points each.

If this feature successfully blinds at least one creature permanently, the sphere turns a fiendish black, and any effects granted by the celestial side of the sphere (immunity to radiant damage, some of the spells listed above) disappear for 7 days. If this feature fails to permanently blind any creatures, the celestial attributes reappear after your next long rest.

Restore Balance While grasping the sphere with both hands, you can use an action to cast the wish spell. The spell’s effects can only be used to do something that is neither good or evil, and you suffer no ill effects from casting the spell in this way. Once this feature has been used, it can’t be used again for 10 years.