Iceman's Lantern

Full Item Description

An Iceman's Lantern resembles a moderately ornate lantern of any other variety, although the external decorations tend to be unique to the region the lanterns come from, while at the heart of the lantern is a glassy shard of cerulean ice, chipped from the Great Glacier itself. When lit via the opening directly beneath the ice, the lantern sheds a cool blue light around it, and in this radius the temperature drops significantly.

Multiple lanterns, overlapping, are often used in the icehouses of wealthier families, as the magical lanterns keep the ambient temperature cold enough that actual ice is never needed.

History

A league or so from the edge of the Great Glacier's flanks, there lies a small town; the name of it varies according to who you happen to be talking to, but all agree that they have the finest silversmiths to be found, remarkably talented at the crafting of lanterns. Indeed, more mundane versions of these lanterns are to be found across the civilized world, as their fine craftsmanship is a marvel to behold and a symbol of wealth.

Rarer, however, are the lanterns which contain a shard of the azure-hued ice that hangs in the meltwater caves at the glacier's base; this ice, resisting the effects of warmth and flame, is the reason the mighty glacier can reside so far into the warmer lands. By itself it radiates a moderate field of cold; when augmented by the minor magic worked into the metal of the lantern, setting a flame to the ice amplifies the cold it produces.

The relative ease of their production has made the town quite wealthy, as this peculiar little device is quite in demand among those whose wares are perishable...

Magic/Cursed Properties

-One Iceman's Lantern lowers ambient temperature by roughly thirty degrees in an area roughly sixty feet in diameter around it; the effect does not pass through walls, however, and can roughly be defined by the blue light of the lantern itself.
-Overlapping zones are added together for their cooling power; three or four lanterns kept close together can keep water frozen on a summer's day in the desert.
-The ice is consumed over time; a single shard of ice is generally sufficient to last two to three years, if left alight continually.