Magic Item: Ring of the Winter Beast

Ring of the Winter Beast:  No sage has divined the origin of these slim, pale rings; a wan silver-gold frosted over with some indefinable, glittering dust, smoothed as if by long wear, rings of the winter beast seem as likely to be unearthed pristine from within nexi of air and water channels as they are to be claimed from unattended and pilfered hoards.  Others care less for the rings' origins as they do for the benefits that can be coaxed from its cool touch, and save the scholarly debates for another time.

A ring of the winter beast, untapped, contains ten charges.  Expending a charge produces the following possible effects as desired by the wearer of the ring:

- frosttalon:  glittering claws sprout, granting 1-6/1-6 damage attacks for six turns
- snowshield:  icy, scalelike nodules spread across the body, granting an AC bonus of 4 for an hour
- winterfang:  six crystalline spurs sprout, which may be pulled free and thrown up to 20' for 1-4 damage; these dissolve in an hour if not used
- icebite:  an extra 1-6 of cold damage may be added to an offensive spell being cast within the next six turns
- coldheart:  for two charges, one spell slot may be regained (attempting this more than once a day causes the ring to explode in a 3-24 damage burst of freezing energy in a 20' radius)

So long as a ring of the winter beast contains charges, its wearer takes one less point per die of damage from cold, air or water.  Physical attacks caused by ring powers are considered cold-based.