Mask of Hayama

A carved wooden African mask with four hideous faces perched atop a thick, corded neck with a basket-like reed, feather, and fabric collar that hides the wearer’s face. No straps, ties, or handles hold this unsightly mask to the face. As soon as the mask is placed on the head, the collar constricts around the face, holding it tightly in position, its agonized grimace clear to all onlookers. The wearer cannot remove the mask, and neither can anyone else pull it free.

As the mask stays on, the wearer ceases to struggle. After 15 seconds, the wearer’s pupils expand to fill their eye sockets, unseen by those watching. At that point, and for the following 30 seconds, the wearer has an all-too-clear vision of one of four gods, chosen at random by rolling 1D4 and consulting Table: Mask of Hayama Visions, unless a specific Call or Contact spell is used at the same time (see following); the wearer must make a Sanity roll to determine their fate. The mask then releases its grip on the wearer’s face and can be removed. If used in conjunction with a Call or Contact spell for one of these gods, as described below, the mask also releases itself when the spell concludes.

There are benefits to wearing the mask, if the wearer survives with their Sanity intact. The first time each god is viewed through the mask, increase the wearer’s Cthulhu Mythos by 1D10 points, in addition to any Cthulhu Mythos gain due to insanity. Secondly, donning the mask while casting any of the spells Contact Nodens, Call Azathoth, Call Shub-Niggurath, or Call Yog-Sothoth effectively opens a more direct line to that god. In game terms, this adds a bonus die to the roll for the spell being cast for the first time. The Mask of Hayama is a prized Mythos artifact and cultists will kill for it.