Conjuring? Summoning? Not sure where to go with this...

[duelingsith]

Hi all! I always love coming here for help--ya'll have some great ideas!

My husband is a D&D player, and always helps me create different monsters, creatures, etc. Long story short: my character is going to be forced to collect all these different items, or parts. At the end, these parts will be used--along with the heart of a magical creature--to summon a scary, terrible, people-destroying mythological creature. My question is: what might some of the "parts" be that are needed? My character is traveling with a group of pirates and is searching for these. So they might be found in ports, on islands, on other ships, etc. They wouldn't be just everyday parts--they might be some kind of rare or "unique" thing (I'm thinking almost like a witch's brew or something--eye of newt and etc, just a lot less common).

Thanks for any ideas! (I don't want to steal your ideas, I'd just like an area as to where to get started)

 

[ThinkerX]

Hmmm...

1) a unique gem, with an unusual flaw at its center, and an associated history of murder, madness, and theft (created by the near demigod sorcerer Lathol, set into the crown of King Ugnar, who went mad after wearing the crown for a year, lost in the invasion of the Timpre barbarians, but turned up fifty years later in the possession of a wealthy merchant who lost it to theft...)

2) Blood of a monstrous, near mythical creature, rarely seen and reputedly almost impossible to defeat in battle. Might require capturing said creature and bringing it to the conjuration site.

3) Something thought to be rare, but actually very common, because the language shifted - or maybe a trade route opened up. Say...a spice, called by an archaic name in the ritual book, but actually a common plant under a different name.

 

[Kevlar]

Why not make it be the parts of fantastic creatures and occult ingredients?

1. A manticore's poison.
2. A griphon's tongue.
3. A korrigan's beard hair.
4. Ashes of a phoenix.
5. The finger bone of a troll.
6. A sprinkle of hemlock.
7. A branch of yew.
8. 2 cups whale oil.
9. Mix into dragon's blood.
10. Simmer on medium-high heat for twenty minutes, stirring when necessary.
11. Season to taste.
12. Summon the souls of the damned.

 

[wino]

Why not make special things that can only be found in certain places?

For example:

-A dragon scale. (fight a dragon to get the scale)
-A mermaid hair (go under the sea)
-A winter rose (grows on top of the tallest mountain in your world)

 

[SomethingToPonder]

Yeah i would definetely agree with making ingredients that happen to be in oddly located locations.Venom from a highly poisonous animal, which would require him to find a ranger or tracker who knows a lot about those animals, or something along the lines.
A dragons tooth, A Sea monsters blood or part of his tentacle, something that only a legendary hero has slain once before and it is recorded in a chronicle somewhere.

 

[Weltall_BR]

I really like the ingredients of Gleipnir, the chain used to hold the Fenris wolf in nordic mythology:

• The sound of a cat's footfall
• The beard of a woman
• The roots of a mountain
• The sinews of a bear
• The breath of a fish
• The spittle of a bird

It is up to you if those are literal sentences or just metaphors

 

[shangrila]

My first thought, honestly...monster penis. Kind of disturbing that it was the first thing to come to mind but, hey, it's pretty much par for the course I guess.

Otherwise I'd aim for really obscure things. I don't like the idea of "magical gem hidden in secret cave", even if it's given fancy names. How about the middle toe of a wandering gypsy? Or a thrice-washed gutter rat's heart? Something, just...weird...

 

[Edankyn]

Whatever else you use, make sure at least one ingredient is something like the heart of a loved one. Diabolical brews need your character to get dirty.

 

[Daichungak]

I think whatever the actual items are their description to the character should be metaphorical. This makes writing it harder, but the story will benefit from it IMO. I also like the suggestion “heart of a loved one” or something equally diabolical.

 

[Chad Lynch]

Like attracts like, unless it is used as some sort of payment for the thing summoned.

 

[WooHooMan]

Just to clarify: are they using these parts to create a monster or bring the monster to them? If it's the latter, then it might be cool if it's some kind of offering like "oh, great scary monster, if you come here, we'll give you these unique items". Maybe it can be some kind of valuable treasure like gold or something.

 

[duelingsith]

I had never heard of this before, but I love the idea of similar items. Thanks so much!

 

[S.T. Ockenner]

The beard of a woman

I'm guessing they used a dwarf? (Of course it could just be a human woman with hirstutism, or a transgender woman, but this is Norse Mythology we're talking about)

 

[Spacebar]

my character is going to be forced

Assuming that by "forced" you mean something akin to being coerced with a hostage, it would help if you had an idea of how you want your MC to be able to fight back. How can the ritual be made to fail in a sneaky way? If he adds the "tongue of a liar", can he cause it to turn against its creator? What if he uses his own tongue, or sacrifices some other part of his body? The most important ingredient is the one that poisons the whole brew so that your villain is the one who ends up eaten in the end.