“Zephyr’s Command: The Censer Of Controlling Air Elementals”

“Command the skies with the Censer of Controlling Air Elementals, a gleaming silver thurible that summons loyal whirlwinds to defend, strike, or carry you through the clouds.”

Censer of Controlling Air Elementals – A silver thurible etched with clouds and feathers, said to summon and sway the winds themselves. Forged in medieval Brittany by a silversmith guided by a reclusive ascetic, the censer produces smoke that coils into miniature whirlwinds and carries a faint tang of ozone. Legends speak of friars calming storms at sea, pilgrims scattering raiders with gentle breezes, and ambitious nobles undone by tempests they tried to command. Its mysterious smoke and subtle, wind-bending effects hint at the presence of the elemental planes, making it both a practical tool and a source of awe.

Appearance

The Censer of Controlling Air Elementals is palm-sized, made of burnished silver, and hangs from three slender chains so it may swing freely. Its surface is engraved with clouds, feathers, and spiraling gusts that seem alive in the light. Even unlit, a faint tang of ozone clings to the metal. When incense burns inside, the smoke rises in delicate spirals that twist into tiny whirlwinds — sometimes so intricate that onlookers swear they glimpse winged forms dancing within.

Origins

Chroniclers along the Breton coast tell of a silversmith in the late twelfth century who, guided by a reclusive ascetic attuned to the forces of air, forged the censer to aid sailors and coastal towns. Its creation was said to be part of a pact with the elemental planes, binding small winds to mortal command. Some historians speculate it may have arrived from distant eastern courts, brought by merchants who traded not only spices and silks but knowledge of elemental lore.

Stories and Folklore

Sailors whisper of a grey-robed friar who calmed a storm with a single swing of the Censer of Controlling Air Elementals, allowing a fleet to escape the shoals of Finistère. Shepherds in the Welsh hills recount a pilgrim who summoned a protective breeze to scatter marauders without bloodshed. Conversely, Gascon ballads warn of nobles who sought to exploit the winds, only to have their ambitions backfire: one lord demanded a tempest to ruin a rival’s harvest, but the winds turned and destroyed his own manor instead.

Mysterious Qualities

The Censer of Controlling Air Elementals remains unusually cool to the touch, even when embers glow within. Its smoke often rises against any draft, climbing skyward as if eager to escape. On rare, perfectly still nights, witnesses claim that swinging the censer three times produces a faint, whispering wind, as though the elemental planes themselves are listening. Whether these phenomena are echoes of its maker’s craft or the attentions of sentient winds remains unknown, and few mortals dare to test the censer atop a cliff under a full moon.

Censer of Controlling Air Elementals 5e 2024
Censer of Controlling Air Elementals. Pathfinder
Censer of Controlling Air Elementals 3.5

Censer of Controlling Air Elementals

Wondrous Item, rare (requires attunement by a spellcaster)

Lore
Legends tell of a silver thurible forged for Breton monks who sought to calm tempests and converse with the spirits of the sky. A faint tang of ozone clings to its surface, and its smoke twists as though stirred by unseen winds.

Appearance
This hand-sized censer of polished silver hangs from three delicate chains, engraved with clouds, feathers, and spirals. When incense burns within, cool blue smoke rises in miniature whirlwinds that seem almost alive.

Properties

Summon Air Elemental: While attuned, you can use an action to light the censer with special incense (worth 50 gp, consumed). After 1 minute, an air elemental appears in an unoccupied space within 30 feet. It obeys your commands for up to 1 hour or until dismissed.
Calm the Winds: As an action while the censer is burning, you can cast gust of wind (save DC 15) without expending a spell slot. This property can’t be used again until the next dawn.
Protective Breeze: While holding the lit censer, you have advantage on saving throws against gases, inhaled poisons, and other air-based effects.

If you fall unconscious or die while an elemental is summoned, it may act according to its own nature until the effect ends.

Adventure Hooks

A cliff-top abbey pleads for the censer’s recovery before autumn storms return.
Sky pirates seek the relic to master aerial combat.
An airship captain offers a rich reward to anyone who can wield the censer to calm the winds along a treacherous route.

Censer of Controlling Air Elementals

Price: 25,000 gp; Slot: none; CL: 15th; Weight: 2 lbs.; Aura: strong transmutation; Caster Level: 15th

DESCRIPTION
This hand-sized silver censer hangs from three delicate chains, engraved with swirling clouds, feathers, and spirals. When incense is lit inside, faint blue smoke rises in twisting patterns, sometimes forming miniature whirlwinds. A faint tang of ozone clings to the metal, hinting at the elemental forces within.

LORE
Forged in 12th-century Brittany by a silversmith guided by a reclusive ascetic, the censer was used to protect coastal towns and calm storms. Sailors and shepherds alike tell of friars and pilgrims who summoned winds to aid travel, scatter raiders, or defend crops. Gascon legends warn of those who sought to abuse its power, only to have the winds turn against them.

CONSTRUCTION REQUIREMENTS

Feats: Craft Wondrous Item
Spells: Summon Monster IV (air elemental), Gust of Wind, Control Winds
Cost: 12,500 gp

ACTIVATION

Command Word: Yes
Use: Standard action

SLOTS AND USE
The censer is a wondrous item with no equipment slot. Only a creature capable of casting at least one spell may attune to it.

PROPERTIES

Summon Air Elemental (Sp): Once per day, lighting incense worth 50 gp summons a Medium or Large air elemental (CL 15th) within 30 feet. The elemental remains for 1 hour or until dismissed, obeying verbal commands from the wielder.
Calm the Winds (Sp): While the censer is lit, the wielder can cast gust of wind (CL 15th, DC 20) as a spell-like ability once per day.
Protective Breeze: While lit, the censer grants a +2 resistance bonus on saving throws against effects manipulating air, gases, inhaled poisons, or similar wind-based hazards.

DESTRUCTION
The censer can only be destroyed if shattered while an elemental is actively bound to it. Otherwise, it persists across centuries, resilient to ordinary damage.

POTENTIAL USES IN GAMEPLAY

Defend coastal settlements from storms or raiders by summoning loyal air elementals.
Aid airships or seafaring expeditions by controlling strong winds.
Serve as a quest item for villains or factions seeking elemental power.
Provide creative battlefield control in combat with summoned elementals or gusts of wind.

Censer of Controlling Air Elementals

This 6-inch-wide, 1-inch-high perforated golden vessel resembles a thurible found in a place of worship.

This material is Open Game Content, and is licensed for public use under the terms of the Open Game License v1.0a.

If it is filled with incense and lit, summoning words spoken over it summon forth a Large air elemental. The summoning words require 1 full round to speak. In all ways the censer functions as the summon monster VI spell. If Incense of Meditation is burned within the Censer of Controlling Air Elementals, the air elemental is an elder air elemental instead (as if summon monster IX had just been cast). Only one elemental can be summoned at a time. A new elemental requires a new piece of incense, which cannot be lit until after the first elemental disappears (is dispelled, dismissed, or slain).

Strong conjuration; CL 17th; Craft Wondrous Item, summon monster VI, summon monster IX; Price 100,000 gp; Weight 1 lb.