Aura strong transmutation; CL 20th; Slot none; Weight 3 lbs. DESCRIPTIONImages of ruin wind like worms across the surface of this midnight blue box—its size just large enough to contain a human skull. Winding this music box causes it to play a haunting, 30-second-long melody. However, a bard can learn this tune as though it were a masterpiece. When performed by a bard, the tune becomes the Song of Extinction masterpiece (see below). Once per week, as a standard action, the wielder can command the music box to perform the Song of Extinction masterpiece itself, affecting all within range except the bearer. After being used in this way, the music box cannot be reactivated in any way for 1 week. DESTRUCTIONAny creature that makes a successful DC 35 Craft (traps) check while manipulating the music box can rig the device to play in reverse once. In this way, a bard can learn the Song of Extinction masterpiece, but backwards. Performing this reverse version of the Song of Extinction causes the music box to implode, but also kills the performer. The performer cannot be brought back to life by any means short of divine intervention. Song of Extinction Masterpiece (Sing, String, Wind)The clarion of the end times, this masterpiece is a meticulous cacophony that ends all life. Prerequisite: Perform (sing, string, or wind) 15 ranks. RAMIFICATIONSAnyone who opens the Song of Extinction potentially unleashes the very sound of death. Insubstantial Artifact: The Song of Extinction is in part a bardic masterpiece of artifact-level power. As difficult as artifacts can be to destroy, revoking the Song of Extinction once a character has attained it can be even more challenging. GMs should carefully consider allowing the song to fall into PC hands, lest a character gain great and dangerous power.
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