Brazen Head

Description

Purported to have been constructed by a practitioner of black magic, this artifact is made of riveted brass shaped into the form of a human head, with hinged eyelids and jaws which will prove immobile.

If at least a quart of blood (not necessarily the caster's) is burned over it, and the correct ceremony is performed, the brass eyelids open, revealing living eyes within the head. Anyone who sees this must make a SAN roll; failure causes the loss of 1D6 SAN points while a successful roll means no points are lost. "Burning blood" is best created by mixing blood with some flammable substance before igniting it and pouring it over the head. The brazen head will then answer one question dealing with the Mythos with an accuracy of 75%. If an investigator seeks to increase their Cthulhu Mythos knowledge by conversing with the head, they can add one point to their skill (losing 1D3 points of SAN in the process) each time they activate the brazen head specifically for that purpose. Such activations may be performed numerous times. If the brazen head is asked to teach spells, it will reply that it knows one, which summons a potent being from the void, capable of teaching much. A person learning this spell can attempt to make a Cthulhu Mythos roll. On a success, they will realize that there is something vaguely wrong with the spell. Though it doesn't sound right, the head will insist it is correct. After finishing a conversation or answering a question, the head will close its eyes and will not speak further without a new sacrifice and ceremony.

Imprisoned within the head is a Servitor of the Outer Gods, the source of the brazen head's power. A human sorcerer imprisoned it, and it can only be released via the spell it teaches. This spell will release the Servitor of the Head and crack open the brazen head. The being will travel from the broken head to wherever the caster of the spell is. Once the Servitor has arrived, it will attempt to kill the caster and all with him. It will go on to hide in the neighborhood, sneaking out to slay, and will only stop when it has killed a total of 600 people: roughly one for every year of its imprisonment. The caster of the spell and his friends will be safe only if the creature can be bound or dismissed.

Appearances

Call of Cthulhu scenario: The Auction