Ephixis, Bow of Nylea

Weapon (shortbow), artifact (requires attunement)   Nylea wields the shortbow Ephixis, the bow whose arrows herald the turning of the seasons. Nylea is quick to let her favored followers borrow her bow, particularly when they intend to use it to perform great deeds, put an end to foul creatures, or cast down the arrogant.   Bow of the Wild. This divine weapon includes a shortbow and a quiver with four arrows, each tied to one of the four seasons. See "Arrows of the Seasons" below.   Blessing of the Wild. If you are a worshiper of Nylea, you gain all the following benefits for which you have the required piety:   Piety 10+

• The bow grants a +1 bonus to attack and damage rolls made with it.
• You suffer no disadvantage when attacking at the bow’s long range.
• You learn the speak with animals spell and can cast it at will.
• The bow gains 1 randomly determined minor beneficial property.

  Piety 25+

• The bow gains an additional +1 bonus to attack and damage rolls made with it.
• When you score a critical hit, you roll one additional damage die.
• Your attacks with the bow deal an extra 1d6 piercing damage against aberrations and fiends.
• The bow gains 1 randomly determined major beneficial property.

Piety 50+

• The bonus to attack and damage rolls with the bow increases to +3.
• Ephixis scores a critical hit on a roll of 19 or 20.
• You gain resistance to cold and poison damage.
• You can cast commune with nature once per dusk without expending a spell slot.

  If you aren't a worshiper of Nylea, the bow has 1 randomly determined major detrimental property.   See "Artifacts" in chapter 7 of the Dungeon Master's Guide for details on randomly determined properties.   Arrows of the Seasons. The four arrows — each associated with a season — that accompany this bow can be fired only from it. Each arrow disappears immediately after it's used, and it reappears in the quiver at the next dusk. The save DC against spells cast with the arrows is 18. Each arrow has a unique property:   Spring. As an action, you can fire this arrow, targeting a beast or a plant creature you can see within 320 feet of you. On a hit, the arrow deals no damage, and the target gains the benefits of the awaken spell for 8 hours.   Summer. As an action, you can fire this arrow at an unoccupied space on the ground that you can see within 320 feet of you, no attack roll required. A Nyxborn lynx is summoned in that space (use the stat block for a tiger with the Nyxborn traits from chapter 6 of MOT). The lynx understands your verbal commands and obeys them as best it can, and it takes its turns immediately after yours. The emissary remains for 1 hour before fading away.   Autumn. As an action, you can fire this arrow at a space on the ground that you can see within 320 feet of you, no attack roll required, casting the Wall of Thorns spell there.   Winter. As an action, you can fire this arrow at a space that you can see within 320 feet of you, no attack roll required, casting the Ice Storm spell there.     Shape the Wilds (Requires Level 12 or Piety 10+) As an action, you can command the land and vegetation within 10 miles of you to shift according to your will. You may cause the terrain to become overgrown and wild, turning open land into difficult terrain for hostile creatures, or you may calm and clear it, removing natural hazards and creating safe paths. The effect lasts for 1 hour before the land returns to its normal state. Once used, this property can’t be used again until the next dusk.   Hunter’s Wrath (Requires Level 15 or Piety 25+) When you hit a creature with an attack using Ephixis, you may invoke Nylea’s divine fury. The attack deals an additional 6d10 piercing damage, and the target must succeed on a DC 18 Constitution saving throw or be paralyzed until the start of your next turn as nature’s judgment roots it in place. Once used, this property can’t be used again until the next dusk.   Heart of the Hunt (Requires Level 17 or Piety 50+) As an action, you mark a single creature you can see within 1 mile as Nylea’s quarry. For the next 24 hours, you always know the direction and distance to that creature, ignoring all illusions, teleportation, or planar travel. Once during this time, when you hit your marked quarry with Ephixis, the attack becomes a critical hit and deals an additional 4d10 radiant damage. You can have only one quarry at a time. Once you use this property, you can’t use it again until the next dusk.     Destroying the Bow. The bow can't be destroyed without first destroying all its arrows. The winter arrow must be fed to a cerberus on the winter solstice. The spring arrow must be planted at the base of a Black Oak of Asphodel on the spring equinox. The summer arrow must be broken by a sea giant on the summer solstice. Then the autumn arrow must be shot into the carcass of a hydra on the autumnal equinox. When all four arrows are destroyed, the bow and quiver dissolve into dust.