The quarterstaff known as the Boneyard Shovel was gifted to an unknown necromancer by a god of the afterlife.
After travelling through the land of the dead, this necromancer came upon the god of the afterlife judging the spirit of their recently deceased friend. The necromancer pledged lifelong service to the god if their friend was judged as righteous and allowed to ascend.
The god accepted but, angered that a living soul had witnessed the judging ritual, tore off the necromancer’s right leg. Using the bones, the god fashioned the boneyard shovel and returned the necromancer to the land of the living to fulfill their oath.
After serving the god for decades, the necromancer died and was welcomed into the land of the dead. Their body disappeared leaving only the shovel behind.
Boneyard Shovel
Weapon (Quarterstaff), Uncommon (Requires Attunement)
This shovel is made of sturdy, magically preserved bone.
You gain a +1 bonus to attack and damage rolls made with this magic weapon.
This shovel allows you to dig a grave up to 6 feet deep for a Small or Medium humanoid in dirt, sand, or clay in 1 hour regardless of how rocky, frozen, or root filled the ground is. After digging a grave in this way, you cannot do so again until the next dawn.
Additionally, it allows you to cast the animate dead spell on a body that you have buried. Once the shovel has animated an undead creature, it can’t do so again until 7 days have passed.
Once every 24 hours, you can reassert control over one creature you animated by touching it with the shovel.
When you animate an undead creature for the first time with this weapon, roll 1d4 and consult the Trait table.
| 1d4 | Trait |
|---|---|
| 1 | Unholy Strength. The animated creature counts as one size larger when determining their carrying capacity and the weight they can push, drag, or lift. |
| 2 | Cold Tongue. The animated creature can speak common, but only one word at a time and cannot form sentences this way. |
| 3 | Dead Silent. The animated creature has proficiency with the Stealth skill. |
| 4 | Soil Encrusted. The animated creature has resistance to fire damage. |
Story hooks for DMs:
- While travelling, the adventuring party comes across a group of goblins led by a shaman named Slug. Slug has just used the Boneyard Shovel to raise a hobgoblin into a zombie. The goblins are willing to speak to the party if approached peacefully. They will trade the shovel (and the zombie) for a non-consumable item of rare quality, or a collection of gems worth at least 1,000 gp. If they feel they are being cheated or tricked in some way, they will become hostile.
- As the party is setting up camp, a group of travelers asks to join them. The leader of the group is an earth genasi named Blay Istani. Around the campfire she tells the story of how the Boneyard Shovel was created, and, according to rumors she has heard, how the shovel may be found somewhere in a dangerous swamp a few days travel away.
- In a dungeon, the adventuring party comes across a room with a dirt floor. There is a mural of skeletons dancing across all four walls. On each wall is a skeleton that is not dancing with its arms forming an X under its skull. If the players dig 6 feet down where straight lines from the four Xs meet they will find the Boneyard Shovel.
