Words of Creation

You have learned a few of the words that were spoken to create the world.

Prerequisites: Int 15, Cha 15, base Will save bonus +5. Benefit: You can use the Words of Creation to enhance bardic music, to help cast good spells and create good magic items, and to enhance the process of creation (see Words of Creation below).

Normal: A nonevil creature that tries to utter the Words of Creation without learning them properly is affected as by a feeblemind spell, while an evil character is struck dead. Fortunately, it is impossible to make someone speak the Words of Creation against his will, because their pronunciation is so exacting.

WORDS OF CREATION

The Words of Creation are fragments of a lost language thought to be the precursor of the Celestial tongue. Very few celestials remember some of these words, and even fewer mortals have access to one or two of them as well. So great is their power that no mortal mind can comprehend more than three or four words, and no evil tongue can speak them or bear their sound. A character must take the Words of Creation feat to be able to use these words in any way.

It is possible, though difficult, to communicate entirely using the Words of Creation. It has no words for evil concepts such as misery, despair, hate, and betrayal, while the subtlety of its terminology for beauty, kindness, and mercy is astonishing. It has no written form, and if transliterated into writing it loses all power and meaning.

Besides communication, there are three essential ways to use the Words of Creation.

CELESTIAL CHOIR

The Words of Creation can be woven into song, forming music that surpasses any earthly melody and echoes the grandeur of the music of the heavens. A bard who has the Words of Creation feat can use these powerful words to enhance his bardic music ability as detailed below. When a bard uses the Words of Creation in this manner, it is extremely draining, and the bard takes 1d4 points of nonlethal damage for each rank in Perform required to produce the bardic music effect he is enhancing. For example, if Devis uses the Words of Creation to double an
inspire courage effect (minimum 3 ranks in Perform), he takes 3d4 points of nonlethal damage. If he uses the words to enhance an inspire heroics effect (minimum 18 ranks in Perform), he takes 18d4 points of nonlethal damage. The Words of Creation doubles the effect of several bardic music abilities:

• Inspire Courage: Double the morale bonus on saving throws against charm and fear and the morale bonus on attack and weapon damage rolls (+2 at 1st level, +4 at 8th level, +6 at 14th level, +8 at 20th level).
• Inspire Competence: +4 competence bonus on skill checks.
• Inspire Greatness: Gain 4 bonus Hit Dice (d10s), the commensurate number of temporary hit points (apply the target’s Constitution modifier to these bonus Hit Dice), +4 competence bonus on attacks, and +2 competence bonus on Fortitude saves.
• Inspire Heroics: +8 morale bonus on saving throws, +8 dodge bonus to AC.
For bardic music abilities that require a Perform check (countersong, fascinate), the Words of Creation grant the bard a +4 sacred bonus on the check. The Words of Creation also increase the saving throw DC for the suggestion and dominate abilities by +2. The Words of Creation increase the bard’s effective caster level for the song of freedom by +2.

CREATION

In accordance with their original purpose, the Words of Creation can greatly enhance any process of creation. If they are spoken as part of the casting of a Conjuration (Creation) spell, the duration of the spell is doubled (as if the Extend Spell feat had been applied to it, but without increasing the spell’s level). Spells with an instantaneous duration are not affected. If they are spoken while using any Craft skill, they grant the crafter a +4 sacred bonus on the Craft check. These uses of the Words of Creation do not deal nonlethal damage to the speaker.

EXALTED POWER

The Words of Creation help energize good magic items and spells. If used in conjunction with a good spell that has a verbal component, the Words of Creation increase the spell’s effective caster level by +1. If used when creating a good magic item, the Words of Creation increase the item’s caster level by +1 without increasing the cost. Both caster level increases are considered sacred bonuses.
Using the Words of Creation to enhance a good spell deals 1d4 points of nonlethal damage to the caster per 2 spell levels (none for a 0- or 1st-level spell, up to 4d4 for a 9th-level spell). Using them to enhance a magic item deals no nonlethal damage, since their use is measured out over a long period of time.