Origins of Purple Quiddity?

[factotum]

Then why did Redcloak went through all the trouble of switching Xykon's phylactery? It was an extremely risky move and makes zero sense if Redcloak's ready to sink with the lich. The goblin pope is finally ready to cut his losses.

Without a high level arcane caster, the Plan goes nowhere. Redcloak has been chasing this thing for thirty years or more, you're thinking he's going to off Xykon now when he has no alternative in place? The guy is many things, but stupid isn't one of them. As for why he switched Xykon's phylactery, his speech to Tsukiko shortly before doing that explains that perfectly--he sees Xykon as a tool that he controls, and hiding his real phylactery is part of that.