Maw of Chaos

This spell instantly calls into being a spectral mouth, 6 feet across and many-toothed. The mouth has no tangible existence and floats in the air, moving under the caster's mental direction, at MV Fl 6 (MC: A).

The mouth does nothing except move into position to aim where the caster desires until the end of the round after the spell is cast. If it is struck by a weapon directly wielded by a being during this time, it is destroyed. The being who destroyed the mouth suffers 9d12 points of damage (no saving throw). A spellcaster destroying the mouth is automatically feebleminded as by the 5th-level wizard spell. Missile weapons and all magical and psionic attacks have no effect on a maw of chaos.

At the end of the round after casting, the mouth opens and emits a ray of roiling, purple-red radiance. This ray is a cylinder 10 feet in diameter and 90 feet long. This stationary shaft of chaos remains in existence for two rounds before it suddenly vanishes. All items and creatures touching any part of the ray during its existence are subject to the following effects:

* All magical items are surrounded by a crawling web of raw spell energy that prevents their functioning while they are in the ray and for 1d4+1 rounds after the shaft vanishes. No known means short of a wish spell banishes this effect before it fades. * All spellcasters are prevented from spell-casting and all psionic beings cannot use psionics while in contact with the ray because of the concentration-destroying chaos. Thereafter, such beings must make a successful saving throw vs. spell in order to regain their wits enough to work magic or use psionics. Such saving throws are made at a -6 penalty on the first round after escaping the shaft, a -5 penalty on the second, -4 on the third, and so on, up to +1 on the eighth round. The first successful saving throw means the spellcaster or psionic individual is free of this effect. * All magical barriers and continuing magical effects (from simple wizard locks and stone-skin spells to illusions and even prismatic spheres) are instantly destroyed. * All beings except the caster and undead creatures suffer 1 point of damage per level of the caster. A successful saving throw vs. spell reduces damage taken by half. The caster never suffers any damage from his or her own maw of chaos. Undead creatures suffer double damage and receive no saving throw.

The material component of a maw of chaos is a jawbone from any creature, with at least two teeth attached.

Notes: Known to the Simbul and a few other wizards of the Forgotten Realms setting.