Soultheft

This spell enables the caster to steal the soul or spirit of a recently-slain being, to empower magic. The caster's holy symbol must be touched to the corpse within 1 turn per caster level of its death. If target creature makes a successful saving throw vs. death magic, the spell fails. Otherwise, the spell calls the life force of the dead being into the holy symbol. It will escape again, by itself, if the holy symbol is not touched to another object within 4 turns. (The corpse itself is not harmed by the soultheft.)

The object to receive the life force is first touched by the holy symbol as a secret word is spoken. The transfer takes 6 rounds to complete. If the transfer is interrupted, the life force snaps back into the holy symbol, but the transfer can be attempted again.

Once transferred, the life force empowers an item to function magically for 1 month or with 10 charges per level or Hit Dice (in life) of the dead being. This spell uses a trapped soul for an engine to power a previously-enchanted magical item. It cannot be used to turn a plain item into a magical one; in other words, one cannot use soultheft to turn a sword into a holy avenger +5. The magical item must either be specially crafted to harness a stolen life force (in which case the time duration is used) or must be a charged item that is already enchanted (in which case the recharging function applies). Once the duration is at an end, or the charges are used (such charges are used first), the spirit is released unless the spell is renewed.

Renewing soultheft requires only the enchanted item; the original corpse is not needed. When the spell is renewed the life force must make a successful system shock check (based on Intelligence rather than Constitution) or be annihilated.

The being whose life force has been stolen cannot be contacted, raised, wished back, or otherwise called back to living existence unless the object empowered by the stolen life force is identified, seized, and held by the being doing the raising. The enchanted object betrays the fact that it holds the essence of the particular being to any magical scrutiny – that is, a detect magic not only shows a magical aura, but reveals the ghostly image of the stolen soul trapped within the item.

The material component is the priest's holy symbol. A suitable enchanted item must also be prepared, but need not be present at the casting of the soultheft (but must be present at any renewal).