Sanctified Marker

This spell brings into being a stone pillar, plinth, or obelisk, of any shape and size the caster desires, so long as its maximum volume does not exceed twice that of the caster's body. Although it will be a solid piece of the type of stone used as a material component, its color, apparent type of stone, and apparent age (from new and gleaming to ancient and crumbling) are as visualized by the caster during casting.

A sanctified marker is a solid object and can be climbed. One spell can be cast atop another to create a larger (or longer, if placed horizontally as a bridge) stone “needle.” If there is no solid ground present where the spell is cast, the marker will float in midair. (The magic holds it aloft, but it does possess the normal weight of solid stone.)

A sanctified marker can be blank, or it can bear one symbol, or it can bear one symbol and an inscription (whichever the caster desires at the time of casting). The symbol cannot be part of a spell, and the marker will absolutely not accept the later application of any glyph, symbol, or rune magic cast upon it. The symbol can be a directional arrow or even a crude map, and can be a holy symbol (although this becomes simply a design, lacking the magical powers of a priest's consecrated holy symbol).

The marker inscription, if one is desired, must be in a tongue the caster can read, and its maximum length is one word per level of the caster. It may contain words of magical activation, but cannot be a written spell or enchanted writing that unleashes a magical effect when it is read. Once the inscription is chosen and the marker created, it will never accept additions or alterations to its inscription, though additional writings can be added by purely physical means (chiseled or painted, without benefit of magical materials or force).

A sanctified marker can be instructed during casting to explode if any spell or magical item is cast or used on it after its creation. If it does so, the result is a spherical blast with a 40-foot radius that completely destroys the marker, hurls tiny fragments out with terrific force in all directions as they vaporize, leaves nothing but drifting smoke, and deals all creatures within the blast radius 4d4 points of damage (save vs. spell for half damage). A marker must be solid, without internal cavities or foreign materials embedded or concealed in it, although there are rumors of more powerful variants that allow keys, magical items, and the like to be concealed within a marker.

The material components are three drops of holy water and a lump of any sort of stone the size of the caster's palm.