Book of Ill Wind

“Ill Wind” appears as a smallish, black leather-bound book. Most copies have either an embossed symbol of the Seller of Souls in the center, a pattern of scorpions crawling along the sides or both. Red dye colors the page edges. Images also appear in red ink, outlined or shaded with black.

The book is a lawbreaker’s dream: it includes procedures for fraud of all kinds, ways to escape detection and identification and methods of surreptitious following and trailing. Readers can find ways to dispose of murder victims, notes on successful eavesdropping and effective blackmail techniques. Ill Wind details particularly important techniques, weapons and poisons both in prose and pictorially.

Teachings include patience, timing and symbolism in revenge. Revenge may take many forms outside of murder (especially when dealing with followers and The Veiled Priesthood). Ill Wind hallows any method of vengeance, such as extortion, blackmail, theft, pain, maiming, damage to property, honor, reputation, friendships, etc.

Ill Wind celebrates murder of all kinds, but thinks little of warfare and mass destruction. Killing is an intimate matter and should be done in person, albeit stoically and methodically. The Unseen One respects most murder committed for revenge and his favorite of all is such an act done by one of good alignment.

Because of its instructional nature regarding poisons and their antidotes, assassins, alchemists and even healers search out this manual. Ill Winds’ tutorials on law breaking make this book an excellent resource for rogues of all kinds and even rangers. Unfortunately, members of The Veiled Priesthood never part with it and actively seek to destroy any known holders that are not worshipers of the Silent Slayer. Because of all this, this book is among the priciest canons. If it can be found, it will most likely be in a city and the price will be commensurate to the risk to the seller. In no case would it be sold for less than 125 gp.