A little more to add, found on the deathspeaker staff page.
http://everquest.allakhazam.com/db/item.html?item=4849
03'
"This is a nice stick to wield. It is usable at 50, I got mine at 49 and effect said i was insufficent lvl. at 49 you get Bond of Death and this effect is basicaly a mana free BoD with a longer cast. very usefull indeed! add the HP, MANA and INT and this makes for a nice stick indeed. Oh and the graphic is just a plain ole brown stick for those Style concious types. Good luck on obtaining yours."
02'
"Confirmed.
Staff now works. Late November EQ announced on test that they were working on the fix for this staff. Patch before last the staff was fixed. The effect appears to start off very low and by the end of the effect you see a large amount of hit points gained.
This staff is great for grouping in the planes. You can send in your pet once MT has engaged and then drop this dot on the mob and you are set. If your group lacks some dps just land a dot or two.
I think I have seen this effect resisted in Plane of Nightmares before as a level 56, now 57, necro. With it's very long casting time that can be a pain. But great staff and great effect."
02'
"Got this today in VP.
13.5 second cast time on the staff, lifetap based, you must equip to use. Seems to be approx a 750pt lifetap, less than bond of death, but not by much. Has a stacking bug... will not take hold if you have lich up, but if you cast soul well first, you can then lich, and they will stack.
I lose 6hp/tick in the new arch lich with soul well up. With my zland heart equipped this drops to 1hp/tick, and when I get innate regen, hp loss will be cancelled out completely.
Very nice item for soloing. With epic snare, velketor IB bracer, and this, I can solo without using any mana at all."