Waystones
At first glance, these stones appear to be landmarks. Upon closer inspection, these stones are some manner of memorial, as the inner face of every stone is packed with text in elven script. To those who can read elvish, they are little more than directions, as the words are all ancient elven words for various locations.
These innocuous looking set of standing stones hold a secret. Sometimes known as elf gates, these wayshrines hold the secret to how elves maintained a powerful empire even spread across extreme distances.
Ancient Teleportation. Built long ago by the elves of that era, these elf gates use the leylines of the world to transport individuals across vast distances.
Typically built at a point where two or more leylines meet, these magical stones turn creatures into pure magic and pull them along the leylines where many of these points meet. At its most straightforward, the two points are "next to" each other on the path, though travel can be chained along several wayshrines, potentially "turning" onto different leylines at each wayshrine.
Misunderstood Magic. The secrets of these waystones have been largely lost to time. Not because they themselves have been forgotten. No, the power of the waystones are lost because modern scholars misinterpreted their use.
Typically, when starting to discern the function of magical structures, the first thing a mage does is cast detect magic, since that gives insight as to what sort of magic they're dealing with. However, these wayshrines are positioned in such a manner that makes that impossible.
The wayshrines are structured in such a manner that they intersect they magical leylines of the world, as such, attempting to "see" the magic coming from them fails because you are blinded by the amount of magic flowing through them from the outside.
Effect and Cause. It has been understood by modern scholars that these way shrines mark where magic is the most powerful, each stone dictating the flow of the leylines out of the structure. They have come to understand that this is why they are often found nearby current (or former) high elven settlements.
While this is all true, it is because they believe the requirement for these structures to function is in fact their purpose.
Waystone Teleportation
Using waystones for "fast travel" is rather straight-forward. There are a few requirements that need to be met though.
- The character must know about the use of way shrines.
- The character must have encountered at least two in their travels.
It's that easy, but because its that easy, the knowledge has been lost for ages. Most do not have reason to travel the vast distances required to encounter a second stone. As such very few people have encountered more than one, if even that.
The Dangers
Being of a "simple" construction, these wayshrines can be as dangerous as they are useful. This is, in part, the reason why there is limited knowledge on this subject.
Simply put, elf gates exist to pull matter along the network, but without a destination, the elf gate attempts to pull the user in all directions at once. Allowing the elf gate to perform its task undirected tears the user apart as their existence is pulled in every direction at once, destroying them.
Using the Waystones
A creature who enters the center of the waystones feels a gentle tugging sensation in every direction. A creature that has encountered one or more other wayshrines feel a stronger tugging in those directions than the others.
The creature must then touch the stone they are being pulled towards and then the name of the location they are being pulled towards, by willing themself, as an action, to be pulled in that direction, they travel near instantaneously to the center of the destination way shrine. After transporting something, the wayshrine cannot initiate such a transportation for 1 hour.
If multiple creatures or objects are inside the wayshrine when it is activated, they are all transported at once. The wayshrine can transport as much at one time as can fit within its perimeter. Wayshrines are typically constructed in a 15-foot circles.
A creature who wills themselves to be transported without a direction must roll a d100. On a result of a 100, the creature is transported to a random wayshrine. On a 1, the creature is torn apart in its entirety, body and soul, and cannot be resurrected sort of divine intervention. Otherwise, the creature must make a DC 19 Charsima saving throw or take 10d20 points of force damage as the wayshrine attempts to tear them apart. Taking half as much damage on a successful save. If a creature drops to 0 hit points this way, they are destroyed as if they had rolled a 1.
Credits
Designed by d'Artagnan on DMs Guild, /u/dArtagnanDnD on reddit, or dArtagnanDnD on patreon and dArtagnanDnD on Twitter.
- Made with "GM Binder".
- Made with reference and for use with Dungeons and Dragons 5th Edition, created by Wizards of the Coast.
- Standing Stones art, by d'Artagnan.