Mattock of the Titan
Mattock of the Titan
The Mattock of the Titan is a legendary magical mining tool of incredible power, capable of carving through solid rock as if it were soft clay. This ancient Svirfneblin artifact was gifted to the adventuring party by the Foreman as a reward for repairing the winch system in Garmok's Mine.
Appearance
A massive mining implement — roughly 10 feet long and weighing some 100 pounds — far larger than any tool a person could ordinarily swing. The Svirfneblin smiths who made it report that it came out titan-sized of its own accord: during the crafting "the item had sort of a mind of its own about what's going to be the end result of the creation process," insisting on its own giant form.
Properties
- Titanic heft. A wielder must first succeed on a Strength (Athletics) feat to lift it at all. Once lifted, the mattock's magic infuses the wielder and it becomes effectively weightless in their hands.
- Stone carving. Digs through solid rock at roughly 10 feet per minute (about 600 ft/hour), leaving structurally sound tunnels approximately 10 ft by 10 ft.
- As a weapon (while its magic is active): a two-handed weapon with +3 to attack and damage, reach 10 ft, dealing 4d6+3 plus Strength damage; a creature struck must make a DC 15 Strength save or be knocked prone. (Alexios one-shot-finished both Umber Hulks with it.)
A Will of Its Own
The Mattock is more than inert — it is mildly compelling. Carrying it, a wielder feels the magic "driving you back toward the tunnel… pushing you to continue," a yearning to keep digging. Alexios, who wielded it through the whole excavation, summed it up: "I yearn for the mines." The dig itself felt guided by "an aura of everyone who has ever dug a mine or a tunnel… guiding his arm."
The Mystery
The instant the bypass tunnel was finished, the mattock's mining magic switched off, reverting to dead, unliftable weight. Neither the Svirfneblin nor anyone else understands why its power blazed so strong for exactly that one task and then went quiet — the gnomes explicitly asked the party to find out: "if you can discover why the magic was so strong for just the period of the day… we would be interested to know." An open thread.
History
The Mattock of the Titan is an ancient Svirfneblin artifact that was held by the deep gnome community in Garmok's Mine. The Foreman revealed its existence only after the adventuring party proved themselves trustworthy and capable by successfully repairing the critical winch system, defeating both a Rust Monster and a Mimic in the process.
When the party completed their task, the Foreman presented them with this legendary tool, recognizing that they needed it to accomplish their goal of creating a new tunnel route through the mine.
Use in Session 46
The party used the Mattock of the Titan to dig a new bypass tunnel in the southern section of Garmok's Mine, creating a safe passage that avoided the hostile Myconid territory (and, in doing so, rendered unnecessary a planned drow/Darrow massacre of the Myconids). During the excavation, the party sang "Diggy Diggy Hole" as their work song, and the magical mattock made the work surprisingly easy, allowing them to complete the tunnel in relatively short time.
Current Owner
Deez Nuts (party property). The Mattock is currently in the possession of the adventuring party — now dormant since its magic went quiet.
Related Quests
- Creating an alternate route through Garmok's Mine
- Repairing the winch system for the Svirfneblin
- Discovering why the mattock's magic activated only for the one task
Appearances
- Session 46 - Diggy Diggy Hole - Gifted to the party by the Foreman, used to dig bypass tunnel