Brainstorming blades	Two good blades	-	Soulseeker	Spellbinder
Take #1	-	-	-	Take #2
Dragon	-	Magic Items	-	Dragon 180

<reason for including = there is a reference to FR4 The Magister, a 1e book>

Take #1:
GM: ?Ahead, through the doorway,
Zandar sees a large reptilian shape.?
Player: ?Zandar pulls out his sword.?
GM: ?Which one??
Player: ?His  sword +2, +5 vs. dragons.”
CUT!

Though I have played D&D® and
AD&D® games for the last 12 years, I still
have not seen adequate descriptive coverage of the weapons detailed in fantasy
gaming. Most players can name 20-40
different types of medieval weapons. Some
players might also remember how their
characters obtained their current weapons. These same players, however, can?t
tell you the specifics about those weapons
except for their official rule-book names
(e.g.,  sword +2, +5 vs. dragons). The
artists who depict the weapons used by
our fantasy characters have been doing an
excellent job. It is time for the writers and
gamers to catch up

Most weapons outlast the characters
wielding them, being passed on to fellow
characters or subsequent generations.
Some of these weapons may be complex
enough to deserve their own record
sheets. Every weapon should have at least
a name. Even a high-quality dagger costing
20 gp should receive a nickname from its
owner; names like Small Fry, Needle, or
Minimal might apply,

I also feel that not every weapon with a
bonus to hit should be considered magical.
A weapon might be superior in balance,
have an exceptionally keen edge, be of
superior workmanship, or boast exotic
steel in its blade. It might have special
magical powers due to certain features on
the weapon itself, though the blade is not
itself magical. If characters use their nonmagical weapons to pry open gates and
chests, these nonmagical bonuses won?t
last for long. Any weapon with bonuses of
+ 3 or more should exhibit some type of
magical enhancement that was given for a
logical reason.

The following are just a few of the many
possible materials to increase our options
on weapon detail. Be creative in the weapons used in your campaign.

B r a i n s t o r m i n g   b l a d e s
The following are suggestions for the
materials, shapes, and decorations for
fantasy swords. After that is a format for
detailing a magical blade and some questions that should be answered when a DM
creates any magical weapon for use in his
campaign.

Steel-alloyed blade materials: Mithril,
adamantite, stainless, high carbon (will
rust), damascus (layered steel).

Other blade materials (magically
strengthened): Crystal or glass (with  glassteel), obsidian, ceramic, bone.

Blade shapes and features: Straight,
curved, tapered, kris (wavy blade), blood
grooves (fullers), notches.

Hand-guard materials: Brass, bronze,
steel, nickel.

Hand-guard shapes: Arched snakes,
clenched fists, clashing dragons, human or
godlike forms.

Handle materials: Ivory, fossilized ivory,
antler, horn, human or monster bone,
dragon teeth, ebony or exotic wood, marble, jade, leather-wrapped metal.

Handle shapes and features: Straight,
tapered, fluted (with straight or spiral
grooves), prism (flat sides, not rounded),
hand-fitted, hollow (detachable pommel;
can hold small items like gems, coins, small
tools, papers, liquid).

Pommel materials: Steel, crystal, or large
gemstone (magically strengthened).

Pommel shapes and features: Monster?s
head, cross, skull, holy symbol, treetop,
hand or paw, short blade.

Accents: Word engravings, picture carvings or etchings, magical runes, precious
metal inlays, jewels and gems.

The FORGOTTEN REALMS® accessory,
FR4  The Magister, has a few good examples of sword detail. I propose to take this
one step further and use the standardized
outline that follows for swords and all
other remarkable weapons:

Name of weapon: This can be assigned
by the DM or given by the bearer of the
weapon.

Gold-piece value: This is the average
value of the weapon if sold, provided a
suitable buyer can be found.

Legend: This part details the weapon?s
history: Where did the weapon originate?
Are there others like it? Who made the
weapon, and how? What is the age of the
weapon? Why was the weapon made?
Who were some of its previous owners? In
what great battles was the weapon used?
Where was it last known to be? (Please
note that not all of a weapon?s legend will
necessarily be true; the legend reflects
what most people know of it.)

Appearance: A precise verbal depiction
of the weapon should be given, answering
questions like: How big is it? What materials were used in its making, and how?
What is the guard made of, and in what
configuration? What are the handle and
pommel made of? What shapes and patterns are present on the weapon? What
writing, if any, is evident, and in what
language? Is the weapon usually found in
a sheath, box, or some other type of container? (The previous suggestions can help
you make these decisions quickly).

Combat bonuses: All bonuses or penalties to attack and damage are given here,
including those against special opponents
(e.g., lawful beings, dragons, shape changers, etc.).
 

Magical abilities: Here are detailed all
special powers granting detection abilities,
light emission,  dancing, sharpness, etc.
How and when such powers operate are
also described.

Intelligence: If the weapon is capable of
thought, the intelligence score is given.
 

Ego: If the weapon has willpower, the
ego score is noted here..

Alignment: The weapon?s alignment, if
any, is given here.

Communication:  All means of communication that the weapon is capable of are
given here, including spoken languages,
empathy, telepathy, pointing, pulsating
glow, or moving runes that form words
along the handle or blade.

Personality: If the weapon is intelligent,
has an ego, and can communicate, the
details of its habits, typical responses, likes
and dislikes, and other personality notes
should be given as well, with notes on how
it is likely to interact with anyone who
picks up the weapon or activates its
powers.

Other: Other questions that need to be
answered concerning the new weapon
are: How can this weapon be destroyed or
its powers reduced or negated? Is anyone
currently seeking this weapon, and does
someone already have it? What possible
adventures involve this weapon?

Two good blades
What follows are examples of two weapons using the format suggested in this
article. These are weapons from my own
campaign but have been slightly modified
to fit the FORGOTTEN REALMS® campaign world, so that they might be more
useful to other gamers.

S o u l s e e k e r
Gold-piece value: 7,500 gp
Legend: From the volcanoes of the Great
Sand Sea come large amounts of lava,
some of which has large pieces of obsidian
in it. The desert nomads have learned the
art of flint napping and have used obsidian
tips on their spears for centuries. Highly
skilled artisans are able to make large
blades for daggers.  Soulseeker is such a
blade.

A war fought deep in the Underdark?s
caverns resulted in the destruction of
many of the evil creatures involved. The
remains of some of the vilest fiends were
melted into a magical lava flow, forming
an especially large chunk of obsidian. One
of the great blade makers used this piece
of obsidian to make Soulseeker. The name
is derived from the fact that the fiends
flesh in the blade is constantly seeking a
soul for itself. This blade has killed many
times and still seeks more souls.

The blade traveled from the Great Sand
Sea to the trading cities. A blade collector
in Waterdeep sent for the dagger, but
Soulseeker never reached its destination
because of a theft from a trading caravan.
The last known rumor is that the blade is
in the hands of Waterdeep?s black market,
perhaps having made its way to the city of
S k u l l p o r t   ( f r o m   t h e  Ruins of Undermountain boxed set and DRAGON® issue #172,
?Seeing the Sights of Skullport?).

Appearance: Soulseeker has a 20-cm
glassy-black obsidian blade that is approximately 4 cm wide at the guard. The blade
was made using flint napping and has a
slow taper to the point. The handle is
made of fossilized ivory, the guard is gold
with inlaid runes of onyx, and the butt cap
is also of gold and onyx. The blade travels
in a silk-lined case made of ebony, with
gold hinges and a cover that is a thin sheet
of translucent obsidian.

Combat bonuses: + 2 to hit; + 5 to damage. 

Magical abilities: Soul stealing (see following) on a failed saving throw vs. death
magic;  detect evil/good in a 60? radius;
detect invisible objects in a 10? radius;
detect magic in a 30? radius.

This blade has one of the sharpest edges
available. Obsidian edges are prized by the
nomad healers for use in surgical procedures. The strongest power of Soulseeker
is its stealing of souls. Anyone who is hit
by the blade with a natural 20 must save
vs. death magic or lose his soul to the
blade, dying at once. If the victim dies
from a hit by the blade, his soul is automatically taken into the blade, and the
creature cannot be  resurrected. Only a
wish spell will bring back a soul and permit  resurrection. Those of alignments
other than that of the blade suffer 1d6 hp
damage every round they touch any part
of this weapon, unless they are its victim
and suffer damage as detailed otherwise.
    
Intelligence: 17
Ego: 16
Alignment: CE
Communication: Speaks Common.

Personality: Soulseeker makes no pretense of its true goals, but it is remarkably
seductive to any chaotic-evil being that
grasps its hilt. It always tries to control its
owner and urge him to slay victims at
every possibly turn, seeking all souls possible, though it will encourage stealth and
duplicity to keep the killing spree going as
long as it can. Soulseeker especially seeks
victims of high level or high social standing, gladly stealing the soul of a great
wizard, mayor, priest, or general.

Other: Soulseeker saves against attacks 
as rock +2 and can be destroyed in any
number of ways. Two good-aligned
churches, one assassins? guild, and four
adventuring parties are currently seeking
this weapon to either destroy or make use
of this item.

S p e l l b i n d e r
Gold-piece value: 10,000 gp

Legend: A warrior named Algor and a
nameless, evil wizard decided to end their
feud of many years with a duel. Algor,
realizing his magical inferiority, had a
special sword crafted that would absorb
spells cast by an opponent. On the day of
the duel, Algor presumed he was now
superior, but he should not have trusted
an evil wizard to fight fair. At a decisive
moment in their battle, the wizard was
joined by two of his evil cohorts. Simultaneously, all three blasted Algor with spells.
Algor was annihilated, and his possessions
were thrown across space and time. Several years and many miles away, a farmer
found Algor?s sword in his field, and he
traded the blade for animals and equipment. The sword has changed hands many
times since. Spellbinder was once reported
to have been offered as payment for a
glass of ale in a tavern. Most of its owners
never realized Spellbinder?s full potential.
Spellbinder was also known as Algor?s
Weakness after its history was made public by a wizard-sage.

Appearance: The extremely sharp
layered-steel blade is 120 cm long; overall,
this well-balanced weapon measures 160
cm. The blade has a single blood groove
and two bilateral notches near the base.
The handle is of deeply fluted dragon
bone with a gold ring at each end of the
flutes. The guard is curved toward the
point and ends in two claws grasping
crystalline spheres. The face of the guard
has two large triangular sapphires with
their points together. The pommel is conical. If found, the crystal spheres will probably already be shattered or absent. 

Combat bonuses: + 2 to hit; + 3 to damage
Magical abilities: Absorbs (as a  rod of
absorption) up to 12 levels of wizard or
cleric spells (12 first-level spells, or six
second-level spells, etc.);  detects magic in a
30? radius.

This sword can be wielded by members
of any alignment. The sword must be held
by its handle to absorb incoming spells; no
part of the hand can touch the blade or
guard. The crystal spheres absorb the
spells, each sphere absorbing six levels. If
the wielder attempts to absorb more than
this amount in a single round without
discharging some of the spell energy, the
spheres shatter and the sword no longer
absorbs any spell levels until the crystals
are replaced (they can be had at glassware
shops for roughly 50 gp each, but enchanting each of the spheres with the proper
spells is quite a bit more expensive, requiring a wizard of 16th level or greater). 

Intelligence: 12
Ego: 11
Alignment: N
Communication: Empathy.

Personality: Spellbinder is a bit of a snob
and wants an owner that it cannot easily
control. In the past, Spellbinder has constantly kept on the move from owner to
owner, forcing its user to trade it away if
he did not measure up to the sword?s
standards. It is currently seeking an owner who understands the schools of magic,
preferably a fighter-wizard. The weapon
wants to be polished often and kept in a
nice, gem-encrusted scabbard.
Other: The evil wizard who engineered
Algor?s death has since become a lich. As a
side interest, the lich has begun to look
into rumors of a sword matching the one
Algor used against it years ago, and it
would like to obtain this weapon simply to
add to its trophy collection..

With all of this information in mind, let?s
revisit the opening scene in this article:

T a k e   # 2 :
GM: "Ahead, through the doorway,
Zandar sees a large reptilian shape.?
Player: ?He unsheathes Drakedoom and
waves its kris blade before him.?
GM: ?His blade?s blue-marble handle
gives off a soft fluorescent glow.?
Player: ?Ah, so the exquisitely sharp
edges of the sword will penetrate the
dragon?s scales!?
GM: ?Roll for initiative.?