The Stonebinding Scepter, also called Stonebinder and the Medusan Rod, was one of the most feared of the Epochal Artifacts among Mortalkind; many scholars believed it to be responsible for the greatest urban catastrophe in the history of Commona. Possessing the ability to instantly petrify flesh on a mass scale, the rod could immobilize entire streets, plazas, and districts in seconds, turning living beings into statues of stone. The magic of Stonebinder was precise enough to preserve fine detail such as expressions, clothing, and even objects in hand, but was indiscriminate in its reach, leaving no safeguard against friend or foe.
Scholars speculated that it was connected to a planar Leyline flowing from the Realm of Earth, but its origin remained unknown; the Karthene Council had acquired it ages before the Still Rebellion. During this attempted revolution, Arch-Magistrate Cecily Crosse wielded Stonebinder to crush the uprising within three days, petrifying thousands of rebels and civilians and leaving the lower city of Karthene filled with frozen figures locked in mid-stride, mid-gesture, or mid-prayer. The event left the city half depopulated, with streets and plazas permanently scarred by the instant presence of the stone-bound.
Following Common Unification, the rod was removed from Karthene and transported to Emblem, the new capital under the Common League. There it was housed within the Court of the Torch, resting upon a pedestal shaped like the hand of an ancient hero. Arcane wards, alarms, and a twenty-four-hour Torchwarden guard ensured its protection; it was widely considered one of the most dangerous and heavily secured artifacts in the known world.