The Ozolith is a peculiar crystal formation on the plane of Ikoria, far to the north of Drannith. It was manipulated by an unnamed meddling planeswalker to influence the monsters of the plane.

As it twists, so does all life around it.

The Ozolith was one of the biggest crystal formations on the plains, outside of Drannith itself. Unlike the Argalith, which lay at the center of Drannith’s defenses, the Ozolith wasn’t a single huge crystal but a whole field of them, growing in long, serpentine patterns, swirling in a great spiral around a central hub. The hub crystals were the largest, bright orange in color, but patterns of reflected light glittered throughout, spraying twisted rainbows onto the ground. The outermost rings were small enough to step over them, but the crystal growths became larger and more intimidating toward the center, until the hub was the size of a building.

The planeswalker Vivien Reid noticed sudden mutations and evolutions among the local fauna, as well as the new bondings between men and monsters. The non-bonded monsters were compelled to destroy human civilization and rage against Drannith. New creatures appeared, which seemed to defy the traditional five-clade system of categorization. Stronger and faster, and smarter as well. Vivien feared that this was all an unnamed planeswalker’s doing.

Vivien and Lukka tracked the source of these changes to the Ozolith, where Lukka sensed pulsating energy within the crystal that called to him. Tapping into the power of the Ozolith and urged by a bodyless voice, Lukka realized he was able to control the mutated monsters and could turn them into weapons for Drannith.

When Drannith refused his help, Lukka attacked the city with his monsters himself. In the heat of battle he used too much power, which caused the Ozolith to overload and shatter.

In Dungeons & Dragons

Crystals are a natural part of Ikoria’s landscapes. These crystal formations are not well understood by both city dwellers and bonders, but they are known to power the growth and evolution of monsters. Throughout a monster’s lifetime, it can grow, warp, and change into new forms. Some monsters simply become bigger or more powerful. In other cases, they may gain entirely new traits, like wings, extra limbs, feathers, or even extra heads. Some monsters mutate into hybrids, blending characteristics of multiple monster clades. The fear of mutated monsters is so high that in sanctuaries, humans are forbidden to even keep household plants.

Actually, the crystals are nodes in the natural energy network of the plane, and the larger the crystal the more powerful the node and its draw. Bonded monsters can communicate with each other through the crystals. An unnamed planeswalker, known for his meddling, changed something in the Ozolith, one of the biggest crystal formations of Ikoria. It made the monsters go mad and caused rapid mutations. When a creature falls to 0 hit points under the influence of the Ozolith (determined by the DM), it recovers half its hit points and gains one of the following traits (roll 1d10):

1. First strike: the creature gets advantage in initiative checks and can’t be surprised.
2. Flying: the creature gains a speed of fly 30ft. If it had already a flying speed, it adds 30ft to it.
3. Menace: the creature gets an additional attack when having two or more creatures in its melee reach.
4. Trample: if a creature drops to 0 hit points after being attacked by the creature, this gets an additional attack against a different target.
5. Lifelink: the creature regains hit points equal to half the damage it deals with melee attacks.
6. Deathtouch: half the damage the creature deals is necrotic damage.
7. Hexproof: the creature has advantage with saving throws against spells and magical effects.
8. Reach: once per round, the creature can make one of its melee attacks with a range of 10ft. If it already had such range, it adds 10ft to it.
9. Vigilance: the creature can make an additional attack of opportunity each round.
10. +1/+1: the creature gets a bonus of +2 to Strength and Constitution.

In Eberron

In Khorvaire, every expanse of land between cities and towns is full of monsters, but that isn’t near close to the likes of behemoths roaming the lands of Argonnessen and Xen’drik. Being afar from human civilization, any area in these continents can hold the Ozolith, from which a single piece can be worth many thousands of gold pieces, mostly due to its rarity. Optionally, the monoliths in Sarlona could have the same function, but giving creatures around psionic abilities instead.

How are you planning to incorporate the Ozolith in your campaign? Are you a Monster Hunter, a Giant Killer, a Dragon Slayer, or all of them at once?