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In the Savage Tidings article in Dragon 349 on page 79 in the Chekitawan entry it states, "Throughout these accursed nights, the undead search for victims to drag back to their black ruin, their corpselight torches sometimes seen as far north as Sasserine's plantation holdings."
So... what are corpselight torches? Or perhaps I should just be asking What is corpselight? I have most of the books. Did I overlook corpselight in one of them? Should I even know what corpselight is?
Maybe a variation of corpse candle from Tome and Blood or the Spell Compendium?
RPG Superstar 2010 Top 32
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The True Ghoul in AGOW does have a ghoul-light torch. So zombie equivalents could well be corpse-light torches...
They give off a sickly green light in a 20'radius which makes the living begin to glow and feel clammy and cold - revealing invisible and hidden folk as faerie fire. Living creatures illuminated by it have -1 to Will saves and Charisma checks (including Turn Undead and charisma based skills). Undead get a +1 profane bonus to these checks.
Creative Director
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Corpselight is a spell from earlier editions of the game that made dead bodies glow in an eerie radiance. Kind of a necromantic version of light or faerie fire. It's basically not much more than a creepy light source.
The true ghoul's ghoul-light is similar, but different in that it actually has other effects.
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Creative Director
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Thanks for clearing that up, guys!
However, it's still a little murky... So do these undead actually carry torches? Or does the phrase "corpselight torches" just refer to their own glowing? Why would undead even carry torches? Don't they have darkvision out to 60 ft.?
I'd imagine the undead are carrying bits of flesh or bone that glows. They do have darkvision, sure, but it's as much a ceremonial thing (and a creepy thing) as anything else.
Perhaps the undead hunger to see the color of their victims' blood and flesh as they tear their victims open and break them apart. Darkvision permits sight only in black and white (and shades of gray). The corpselight torches, however, would reveal some of the color of their violence and grotesqueries.
Perhaps the undead also intend the otherworldly illumination to reveal their processions to the living. The vile torches could thus be tools to inspire greater horror throughout their region of the jungle.