Appearance: Aaron's rod has many large,
pale silvery-green leaves that feel like
soft felt. These leaves surround a thick,
tapered stalk of large flowers and smaller
leaves, which grows to four or five feet in
height. According to tradition, this prominent
spike of flowers was dipped in suet and
then burned as a ceremonial candle. The
flowers are bright yellow, bearing five petals
each. Aaron's rod has a long, white, woodlike
root.

Location: Aaron's rod grows in rocky or
clay soil, most often on sunny slopes, cliff
faces, and terrain such as that found around
rock quarries; sometimes it is found along
roads. The flowers appear in mid-summer.

Uses: Aaron's rod is useful as a painkiller.
At least live flowers should be
crushed and mixed with water or, better
still, wine. This mixture is applied directly
to fresh wounds and will deaden the pain
from an injury.

Game effect: Since the pain itself is a
critical part of an injury, this herb will  <note: see the article on pain in AD&D>
restore l-4 HP immediately. These hit
points will be lost again, however, within
two hours -- because the pain-killer has
worn off. Aaron's rod can only restore hit
points once every two hours; multiple applications
before the first application has worn
off are not cumulative.

Precautions: If a character uses this painkiller
to help him get back on his feet and
fight again while still wounded, he will lose
an additional 1-4 hit points when the solution
wears off because he has aggravated his
injuries in the meantime.