Body Outside Body

Spellbook

The rough pages of scraped vellum comprising this tome are pressed between covers of embossed teak, loosely bound with sinew and skeins of braided twine. Within, scrawled characters twine around diagrams of spirit-centers and spiritual pathways between the mind and the universe. An engraved medallion of brilliant green jade serves as a bookmark fob as well as a warding device for the book. This text within is an exploratory narrative plumbing the auras that permeate the silent twilight sea between heart and mind, both the mystic emptiness within each individual’s spiritual space as well as the conjoined communion that links dreamers and the dream of reality itself.

This surrealist panegyric deals with the science of focusing one’s ki in order to become sensitive to the patterns of joining that emanate from the wellsprings of time and space, to read the past, present, and future that occur simultaneously in the flow of probability. This is not entirely a surrender of rationality to postrealistic Gnosticism, for in the reading of other-time and the resonant auras within this world, one can learn much about what exists both near far, even learning to hurl one’s own consciousness heedless through the maelstrom to the quiet shores of elsewhen and otherwhere, thence to draw back with the gleaned wisps of knowledge beyond the reach of normal senses.

Benefit: Study of this tome grants an expanded awareness of patterns in the universe and how to unlock them in a way that manifests success. If you study Body Outside Body for 1 hour (which may overlap with preparing other spells), for the next 24 hours when using any spell contained in the tome, you may cast that spell as one level higher than its base level without expending a higher spell slot. If a spell within the tome does not have an enhanced effect at a higher level, instead treat your spellcasting ability score modifier as though it were 2 higher for the purpose of determining save DC or spell attack bonus.

In addition, the jade medallion preserves the book from rot and decay and also grants it an Armor Class and hit points as if it were a medium-sized, resilient stone object rather than one of wood and paper (AC 17, 18 (4d8) hit points). The enchanted jade purifies the book as well. Any poison or contagion applied to the book is neutralized within 1 minute. The charm’s virtue extends in part to a creature carrying the book, granting advantage to saving throws against disease and poison as long as the book is carried. This bonus does not apply if the book is carried in an extradimensional space, and the bonus does not apply if the medallion is detached from the book.

Spells: Body Outside Body can be read by wielders of common magic and used to glean knowledge of the following spells: arcane eye, astral projection, aura alteration*, clairvoyance, detect evil and good, dream, paradox*, plane shift, R’s telepathic bond, scrying, and sending.