Continuing from the first in the series yesterday, the Dread Bloodline Sorcerous Origin, today I bring you a magic item that hinges on the mystique of the crow.
As an agent in a fantasy game, the crow has a lot going for it. While it might be common knowledge, just about everyone who is going to pick up a D&D book can at least tell you Odin had two crows serving him. Beyond that, crows are seen as symbols of death, due to their nature as carrion birds. Crows were often viewed as escorting the souls of the dead to the afterlife, what with all the eating of the dead, and there are several stories where crows were shepherds of the sun during the night. Crows often became the associated symbols of various gods of war, battle, heroes, and death. The “chatty” nature of the crow led many to view it as a messenger or gossip, some stories have owls replacing crows as symbols of wisdom because of this. Crows are often sometimes placed in the role of Noah in the story of the great flood, with humans not appreciating him, and Crow then finding ways to pester humans from that point forward. Crow is seen as a trickster in many stories, many stemming from how Crow now sees people.
This particular item draws upon the legend of the crow as a loyal agent and one who watches over the dying in battle.
Crow’s Call
Weapon (sickle), very rare (requires attunement)
You gain a +2 bonus to attack and damage rolls made with this magic weapon.
After a successful melee attack with this weapon, the wielder may summon a spectral crow as a reaction. The spectral crow has health equal to half your total health, and has resistance against non-magical bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage. As a bonus action, the spectral crow may fly up to a distance equal to your base speed and then either make an attack, or cast a spell. The crow has an attack roll equal to 3 + your proficiency bonus, and deal 1d4+2 necrotic damage on a successful hit. You then gain that many temporary hitpoints.
The crow may instead cast a single spell instead of making a melee attack, spare the dying.
The crow lasts until slain, until the wielder of the Crow’s Call is dead or falls unconscious, or until a short rest is taken. Once summoned, another spectral crow may not be summoned until the next setting of the sun.