Shard of Darkness

The Shard of Darkness is a powerful, evil artifact in the form of a dark black onyx. Formerly the glowing Azure Shard of the Shards of Light, it destroyed its rivals the Crimson Shard and the Emerald Shard through manipulation of some adventurers. Now filled with the entirety of power of the Living Shards, the Azure Shard broke free (however temporarily) form its bondage as a darklord and escaped to the Material Plane. This escape was ultimately meaningless, for the newly blackened and transformed Shard of Darkness landed in a kingdom about to be claimed by the Dark Powers.

The Shard of Darkness was discovered by the greedy King Gregor Ravinia. The Shard initially attempted to dominate him, but King Gregor resisted. However, he became enamored with the Shard to the point he neglected his family. The Shard slowly wore his sanity down as he spent more and more time thinking about it. Eventually he succumbed as it tempted him with an offering to bless the blighted crops of his kingdom in return for blood sacrifice. King Gregor took to wearing the gem as part of a necklace.

For more information on the Azure Shard prior to its transformation and general information on its kindred, see Shards of Light.