A Little Clay Statue
by Daniel Manz
Art by Clifford VanMeter
The old man went up the hill to his house as he did every day. "I'm getting older," he thought, "every time it's harder to go up the hill." But he had no time to think about small discomforts, he had to get ready for the coming winter, and with every passing year the winters were getting colder.
Many years, perhaps ages, ago a little clay statue was created. Its maker is unknown. Its purpose is far beyond the understanding of mere mortals. After the civilization that created it vanished, the statue was taken from one place to another. Most of its owners were completely unaware of its power -- the power to make mountains grow.
The statue has the appearance of a person sitting down, looking at the ground. The statue is only 1 foot tall and is not very detailed. It is entirely made of reddish brown clay with an unpolished finish. It will appear to be worthless unless examined by someone who knows what to look for.
If the statue is in contact with the ground, the earth will start to rise at a rate of 1 yard per year, with all the surrounding terrain rising to create a minimal slope. This effect will pass unnoticed in all but totally flat areas. In hilly regions, the change won't be noticed in a normal lifespan. Some long-lived people will feel that the hill is steeper and that the climate is getting colder, but this feeling will be dismissed by others as a normal side-effect of growing old. After all, who would think that the mountain is growing?
When the statue is aboard a ship, the waters will be upset and big waves will surround the ship even if there is no wind. It is unknown whether this is caused by the sea gods complaining about such a powerful earth magic in their territory, or whether the statue is trying to make mountains in the sea. Inside the statue lies a valuable gemstone (probably a powerstone to fuel the magic). However, no natural force will cause the statue to break or even crack.
Adventure Seeds
The PCs are aboard a ship. The waves threaten to sink the ship but there isn't a cloud in the sky. In desperation, the crew tries to find out what is offending the sea gods. Hidden in the cargo, they find a man who is carrying the statue. He will plead for his life and beg to keep the statue, but he won't explain why is he protecting it. Actually, he can't explain. Unbeknownst to the man, he was geased to transport it. The party should be curious about the statue, especially if they know some of the legends. Now the question is how to placate the superstitious crew.
The PCs find an old treasure map which depicts an area they are familiar with. However, one of the mountains in that region is not on the map. The statue is part of the treasure they will find if they use the map.
A nearby mountain becomes an active volcano. (After the statue has raised a mountain, the continued effect of the magic will cause it to erupt.) Confusion overtakes the populace, because in this area volcanoes are unheard of. The PCs must find out what's causing the upheaval.
The players hear some legends about a statue with a most valuable gemstone inside. They set out to search for it . . .
The PCs stumble upon an ancient ritual that will destroy the statue and free the gem. The ritual could be good or could be harmful. In any case the party could try to steal the statue from its current holder. As an extra complication, the actual power or value of the statue could be known to its owner, so he would go to great lengths to protect it from thieves.
A local noble possesses the statue, but is unaware of its power. A mage discovers the statue's location and its secret, and realizes than in a few years its power would make the river impassable and the port unusable, spelling ruin for the city. The players must save the city. The noble could be uncooperative and strongly backed by the local authorities who will dismiss the stories about the power of the statue as false.
Past Columns Article publication date: July 23, 1998
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