Sword of Omens come to (cough, cought) sorry hairball

[LordGhee]

Swords the staple of fanasty stories since the beginging. What do you all think makes a good if not great magical sword.

 

Some examples

(they all where very sharp and strong.)

 

Sword of omens from Thunder Cats did not see it much but I do remember that it could come when called and gave far sight.

 

The sword of Barbarossa it never missed.

 

Excalibur always brought victory and the scabbard protection,

 

Glamdring warned of orcs and strengthen hearts.

 

I am building a artifact sword need some ideals please.

 

Lord Ghee

[Vanguard00]

Re: Sword of Omens come to (cough, cough) sorry hairball

 

Here's Saberhagen's twelve "Swords of Power" from his Book of Swords series. Note that the drawbacks aren't included:

 

Coinspinner - Sword of Chance (bestows luck)

Doomgiver - Sword of Justice (repel any attack back at attacker)

Dragonslicer - Sword of Heroes (a dragon slayer)

Farslayer - Sword of Vengeance (kills at a distance)

Mindsword - Sword of Glory (gives the wielder incredibly high charisma/presence))

Shieldbreaker - Sword of Force (shatters weapons and armor, but won't touch flesh)

Sightblinder - Sword of Stealth (more illusion than invisibility)

Soulcutter - Sword of Despair (area of effect despair, as in, you don't care about ANYthing)

Stonecutter - Sword of Siege (cuts through stone like butter)

Townsaver - Sword of Fury (protects innocents against attacks)

Wayfinder - Sword of Wisdom (finds straightest path to destination)

Woundhealer - Sword of Mercy (heals, cannot inflict damage)

 

 

Edit (forgot to answer the question): What makes a great fantasy sword? It should have both a history (usually told as a legend) and a prophecy (another legend) attached to it. It doesn't matter if the blade is really all that powerful or not, but if the wielder believes it is, the sword will become a thing of legend in its own right.

[Sociotard]

Re: Sword of Omens come to (cough, cough) sorry hairball

 

Don't forget the infamous 'singing sword'. The sword in 'the black cauldron' knew how to fight, so all you had to do was hold on to the hilt.

 

Lightning throwing swords are always cool.

 

how about that dagger from 'the shadow', which would serve whoever had the strongest will.

 

One sword I'd like to see written up is a legendary cutlass that, if its bearer died while wealding it, would continue fighting until that opponent had died! (or it broke, i guess)

[Dr. Anomaly]

Re: Sword of Omens come to (cough, cough) sorry hairball

 

It should have both a history (usually told as a legend) and a prophecy (another legend) attached to it. It doesn't matter if the blade is really all that powerful or not' date=' but if the wielder believes it is, the sword will become a thing of legend in its own right.[/quote']

I agree completely. In line with this, each magical sword should have a purpose and a name. One thing I always despised about D&D was the "generic weapon +1" problem. Magic weapons aren't (or at least, shouldn't be) stamped out on an assembly line, all just alike. Each one is individually enchanted by someone and for some purpose. It doesn't have to be a grand purpose like "defeat the Dark Gods and save the world" or a genocidal purpose like "slaughter all orcs"...but it had a specific reason for coming into existence. Maybe it was a knight commissioning a sword for his firstborn, thinking that a magical blade would help his child make their way in the world with less chance of being killed...but that's still a purpose, a reason.

 

And if you don't have a specific purpose or reason behind it, it should at least have an interesting name/effect.

 

Example: in one low-level D&D campaign I ran not long ago, the PCs found themselves facing down an evil priestess (who was pretending to be the undead form of an innocent man's deceased wife, come back to torment him -- as I said, low level! ). During the fight, the priestess stabbed the party fighter with her dagger. In addition to the pain of the stab, I described how a slow, cold burn was working its way up his arm through his blood. The fighter was convinced he'd been poisoned, and redoubled his efforts. Later, after the defeat of the priestess, the party bard identified the dagger as The Dagger of Cold Fire, whose blade was made of dark glass from the heart of a snow-covered volcano in the far, frozen north. Looking into the dark glass of the blade you could see a distant flickering of pale flames and almost feel the firey chill. The bard didn't know the purpose for which the blade had originally been formed, but all in the party agreed it was a wondrous, fearful, and potent item indeed...especially the fighter who'd been hit with it, and who was seen rubbing that arm occassionally for several days afterwards.

 

What was this mighty and mysterious weapon?

 

It was a Dagger +1...the "cold burn" I described was the special effect of the extra magical +1 damage. That's all it was...a simple generic +1 dagger...with a cool name and "power". It certainly made for a better story...and more PC involvment and role-playing...than "Okay, after defeating her, you check her stuff for magical auras...the dagger is magical, but it's not a very strong magic...probably a +1."

[SuperPheemy]

Re: Sword of Omens come to (cough, cough) sorry hairball

 

You're on the right path with regards to magical swords. Swords in literature are often used as a metaphor. Narsil in Lord of the Rings, is broken as is the line of Gondor's Kings, and only when Aragorn agrees to claim the throne is the sword reforged. In several Biblical references, the Word of God is described as a sword, as is Truth. Excalibur came from the land (quite literally) and was the symbol of authority for the High King.

 

For artifact, or legendary blades, you should first consider what the sword's purpose will be. What are you trying to symbolize in your campaign through this weapon? Answer that question and the sword's abilities will be easy to define afterwards.

[Fireg0lem]

Re: Sword of Omens come to (cough, cought) sorry hairball

 

Darigaaz's Scalebreaker - An ancient weapon made to slay all dragons. It was crafted long, long ago by an archmage whose son was slain by a dragon. The sword was meant to enable even a relatively weak swordsman to defeat a dragon, and (if the sword was not destroyed) would be used to unleash a campaign of genocide on dragonkind by a mighty hero. In Hero Terms, it would be a set of Indestructable OAF Independant powers like so:

 

HKA 3d6, Armor Piercing

75% Dragon Damage Reduction (spells, breath weapons, claws, etc.)

Multipower

HKA +2d6, Armor Piercing, Variable Special Effect (Any element; +1/4), Only vs. Dragons

+6 Combat Skill Levels versus Dragons

Presence +25 - Defensive Only, Only vs. Dragons

Mental Defense +10 - Only Against Dragon Fear/Hypnotism

Naked Power Advantage - Apply Armor Piercing to Any Spell - Only vs. Dragons.

Images vs. Clairvoyance, 0 Endurance, Persistent, Always On

 

One of the PCs was given a quest to track down and destroy the Scalebreaker by the good dragon god.

 

And yes, I know the writeup I just knocked off is pretty ridiculously strong - it's supposed to be; it was meant to enable an ordinary, relatively skilled swordsman to kill dragons left and right. The Variable Special Effects HKA is an aura meant to deal with elemental dragons, and the Images vs. Clairvoyance misdirects anyone who tries to locate it magically (the idea was to keep it bouncing around among low-powered heroes who could kill dragons with it, rather than attract too much attention and risk having it destroyed before it could find it's way into the hands of the "mighty hero").

[Eosin]

Re: Sword of Omens come to (cough, cough) sorry hairball

 

Example: in one low-level D&D campaign I ran not long ago' date=' the PCs found themselves facing down an evil priestess (who was [i']pretending[/i] to be the undead form of an innocent man's deceased wife, come back to torment him -- as I said, low level! ). During the fight, the priestess stabbed the party fighter with her dagger. In addition to the pain of the stab, I described how a slow, cold burn was working its way up his arm through his blood. The fighter was convinced he'd been poisoned, and redoubled his efforts. Later, after the defeat of the priestess, the party bard identified the dagger as The Dagger of Cold Fire, whose blade was made of dark glass from the heart of a snow-covered volcano in the far, frozen north. Looking into the dark glass of the blade you could see a distant flickering of pale flames and almost feel the firey chill. The bard didn't know the purpose for which the blade had originally been formed, but all in the party agreed it was a wondrous, fearful, and potent item indeed...especially the fighter who'd been hit with it, and who was seen rubbing that arm occassionally for several days afterwards.

 

What was this mighty and mysterious weapon?

 

It was a Dagger +1...the "cold burn" I described was the special effect of the extra magical +1 damage. That's all it was...a simple generic +1 dagger...with a cool name and "power". It certainly made for a better story...and more PC involvment and role-playing...than "Okay, after defeating her, you check her stuff for magical auras...the dagger is magical, but it's not a very strong magic...probably a +1."

 

 

That is a great weapon! Follow in the steps of the good DR and you won't go wrong.

 

My "Great Weapon" was thieved from somewhere but it was so long ago that I cannot recall....

 

Deathkiss - the blade is enscribed with runes that if translated mean "Deathkiss" on one side and "The gentlest of kisses" on the other.

 

It was a plain weapon but had a linked FULLY invisible DCV & ARMOR drain or suppress on the plain HKA. The damage inflicted by the sword always looked minor and caused very little pain (Mind Contorl or Illusion - You are not hurt). The sx was that each time it did BODY it sapped your will to live. You became less likely to dodge or even bother with defences because of its sieren call.

 

I have used it in a number of systems and players always fear the blade. Nothing is quite so fear inspireing as knowing that your defenses are crumbling and only the DM knows where they or your BODY/STUN/HIT POINTS sit at the current time.

 

I love the little bugger. I also like to add a little geasa in their somewhere saying that Player X will be slain with a kiss. When they find the sword it suddenly is an object of destruction. Somehow they figure - that blade is going to kill me.

[phookz]

Re: Sword of Omens come to (cough, cough) sorry hairball

 

IWhat was this mighty and mysterious weapon?

 

It was a Dagger +1...the "cold burn" I described was the special effect of the extra magical +1 damage. That's all it was...a simple generic +1 dagger...with a cool name and "power". It certainly made for a better story...and more PC involvment and role-playing...than "Okay, after defeating her, you check her stuff for magical auras...the dagger is magical, but it's not a very strong magic...probably a +1."

 

Nice. Your players are very lucky.

[Dr. Anomaly]

Re: Sword of Omens come to (cough, cough) sorry hairball

 

Nice. Your players are very lucky.

Thank you very much! But then again, I like to think I have some pretty special players, too.

[Citizen Keen]

Re: Sword of Omens come to (cough, cough) sorry hairball

 

Here's Saberhagen's twelve "Swords of Power" from his Book of Swords series. Note that the drawbacks aren't included:

 

Coinspinner - Sword of Chance (bestows luck)

Doomgiver - Sword of Justice (repel any attack back at attacker)

Dragonslicer - Sword of Heroes (a dragon slayer)

Farslayer - Sword of Vengeance (kills at a distance)

Mindsword - Sword of Glory (gives the wielder incredibly high charisma/presence))

Shieldbreaker - Sword of Force (shatters weapons and armor, but won't touch flesh)

Sightblinder - Sword of Stealth (more illusion than invisibility)

Soulcutter - Sword of Despair (area of effect despair, as in, you don't care about ANYthing)

Stonecutter - Sword of Siege (cuts through stone like butter)

Townsaver - Sword of Fury (protects innocents against attacks)

Wayfinder - Sword of Wisdom (finds straightest path to destination)

Woundhealer - Sword of Mercy (heals, cannot inflict damage)

 

I'm in England, my books are in the US. Any hope of you reminding me what the drawbacks were? Thanks.

[Vanguard00]

Re: Sword of Omens come to (cough, cough) sorry hairball

 

For anyone curious about the abilities and drawbacks of Saberhagen's "Twelve Swords of Power", I recommend this link:

 

http://www.ugcs.caltech.edu/~warrior/12Swords/Swords.html

 

It gives the verse that applies to each sword, a description of the sword itself and its abilities, and its drawbacks.

 

Hope this helps ya, CK. If not, let me know and I'll see what else I can find.