Blackshards

Blackshards are focuses for negative emotional energy - depression, despair, exhaustion, suffering. Drachenfels create them to absorb and amplify such emotions, and one or two are still present within the castle.

Blackshards are black crystals which radiate a bitter cold in a 3-yard radius, together with a sphere of magical darkness.

If a Blackshard is destroyed by force or magic, it explodes, damaging those around it. The exploding Blackshard fills the area with violent images of despair, anguish and suffering, potentially causing depression in those nearby.

If the Blackshard can be destroyed with a specific ritual ceremony - the Ritual of Lightning, which can be found in Lermontov's Grimoire - a quite different result occurs. With a soft popping noise, the Blackshard collapses in on itself, and flickers out of existence. The pain and anguish bound within the crystal are dissipated and partially transformed into positive emotional energy.

Source

 * Warhammer Fantasy 1st ED -- Castle Drachenfels
 * pg. 101

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