The Crimson Mantle is a powerful artifact cloak created by the Dark One about seventy years ago. Its current bearer is Redcloak.
History[]
When the Dark One discovered the Rifts and the Snarl, he created an artifact of great power and gave it to his high priest - and with it, a mission; to seize the rifts in the hopes they could be used to further the Goblin cause. This effort was repeatedly thwarted; first by the Order of the Scribble, then by their daughter organization, the Sapphire Guard. When the OotS bound the Rift in Lirian's Gate, the Dark One devised a plan to seize a Gate and shift it into the demi plane of his rival gods, with the ultimate goal of blackmailing them at Snarl-point into uplifting goblinoids into parity with PC races such as humans, elves and dwarves.
Thus, as long as the order itself has existed, the paladins of the Guard have been told to beware of a high-level goblin cleric questing after the Gate, always seen wearing a red mantle; Soon Kim himself sent numerous crusades to eliminate him. However, the Guard never realized that the mantle itself conveys much of said cleric's power and left it intact - albeit somewhat tattered - on the corpse of each cleric for the next to claim. As paladins have limited skill in discerning one goblin from another - and despise goblins too much to even make the attempt - they believed their nemesis was being endlessly resurrected. The Mantle's wearer thus became a singular, mythic figure; The Bearer of the Crimson Mantle. However, in How the Paladin Got His Scar, it was revealed that the Sapphire Guard has learned its true value and now seeks the mantle itself.
In this manner it was passed down to Redcloak's Revered Master, and then to Redcloak during the annihilation of his home.[1] Redcloak has worn the mantle for 34 years - roughly half as long as the mantle itself has existed.
The Crimson Mantle first appeared in Comic 0023, "Meanwhile...". It was first identified by name in Comic 0369, "Fight!". Its origin and significance were explained in Start of Darkness.
Abilities[]
The Crimson Mantle slows the aging process of its wearer, allowing one goblin to accomplish more over the course of several lifespans. It also protects the wearer against disease, including magical ones such as Lirian's Guardian Virus.[1] The wearer of the Crimson Mantle further gains all of the Dark One's knowledge regarding the Gates, and his plan to manipulate them.
According to Redcloak, it also imprints complete knowledge of the divine half of the Snarl spell in the mind of its bearer, if he or she is a priest of the Dark One.[2]
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Start of Darkness
- ↑ Comic 0829, "Ritual Behavior"