The Armory

Val’kira Arms: Spellshear knives  

 Sisters of Fire and Afridhi battlemancers threw additional layers of danger over the already chaotic battlegrounds of the various Afridhi Wars. It did little good for the warrior to fight his way through the lines only to be bound in place by a Holding spell or cut down by a volley of Magic Missiles.

Val’kira took his knowledge of weaponcraft and married it to the null-harmonics branch of dragonstone research to produce the Spellshear effect. Binding a red dragonstone to a blade not only increased the weapon’s durability, but properly tuned, the stone could also deflect magical effects intended for the wielder.

Game effects: Spellshear weapons fitted with red dragonstones are considered +1 weapons, and confer a +2 bonus to the wielder’s Saving Throws vs. Spells. In addition, it allows a Save vs. Spells against Magic Missiles, as per the Shield spell. 

     A limited number of Spellshear knives were forged of rare World-Shield ore, and set with black dragonstones. Rather than deflecting magical attacks, these weapons absorbed the damage on a successful Saving Throw vs. Spells, suspending the spell along the length of the blade, to be released on the next successful attack within three rounds. After three rounds, the magical energy dissipates too much to be of any use. 

     If the wielder is a magic-user, he or she have additional options of releasing the spell, or absorbing the energy to replenish an equivalent-level (or lower) spell slot already used.

  For example: Killian Saves vs. Spell and ‘catches’ an Afridhi war-wizard’s fireball. Because he is also a magic-user, he can opt to throw the spell back at the caster, store the damage to release it on the beastman that is charging and will engage next combat round (if he hits), or absorb the spell energy to replenish his own, and be able to re-cast a third-level (or lower) spell. 

     Blades of silver were also created, set with white dragonstones. These so-called “Life-Drinkers” or “Vampire Tongues” were able to convert varying amounts of damage dealt to foes into healing factors for the wielder.

Val’kira Arms: Fiveform sword:  Andahar’s Edge  

Val’kira also crafted weapons, having studied with some of the greatest dwarven smiths in the Stormkiller Mountains. Perhaps not his greatest achievement, but the most ingenious was Andahar’s Edge. Incorporating the features of a Blackmoor longblade and a scorpion-tail scourge, the Edge allowed the user to engage foes from a distance, wearing them down before closing in to finish them off. Uther’s daughter was perhaps the most famous of wielders, and it is from her that the Edge takes its name.

Weapon Mastery notes: User must devote multiple slots to use the sword to its fullest potential, one for each of the sword’s forms. Without mastery with a given form, the user is limited to “Unskilled” level mastery with any of the other forms. 

     A user must have a Strength of 13 or greater to wield Andahar’s Edge due to the bulk and heft of the weapon. The “whip” deals damage equal to a dagger at equivalent Mastery levels.

Zastra’akaara (Sword-form)

A miniature winch and spool  of ironwire joins the slide-mounted segments of the sword, holding them tight against each other so the weapon can be used as a longsword or broadsword. 

Kasha’akaara (Whip-form)

Releasing one of the catches unspools the ironwire, and the blade disjoins, separating into between 12 and 15 segments (depending on the sword’s length) joined by one to one and a half feet of ironwire cabling., the weapon can be used as a heavy-gauge whip.

    With the blade segmented and extended, an Edge has a reach of up to 30 feet. With proper training, a user can entangle, trip, and disarm opponents.

    

Third generation Shrike-class Daughter
wields an Edge in energized Dhan'akaara, 
from some time early in the 2nd Crusade.
Image courtesy of Ivy Triel, BMU Archives.

Dhan’akaara (Bow-form, or “Archer” as Thorn calls it)

Joining the scabbard to the hilt of the sword releases the tip of the blade. The resulting length of ironwire is then linked back to the scabbard, configuring the weapon for use as a makeshift longbow. Because of the tensile strength of the wiring and awkwardness of the bow, Dexterity bonuses to not apply when using Andahar’s Edge in this configuration.

Zhuul’akaara (Glaive-form)

A twist of the hilt collapses the blade into a short, broad spear tip. The hilt then extends up to six feet in length, enabling the weapon to be used as a spear. Mounted Shrikes use a heavier version (2-handed/greatsword configuration) of Andahar’s Edge that extends to use as a lance.

Demoncutter

The younger of the twins, golden-eyed Leansethar has tinkered with her Andahar’s Edge over the years. It is an Andhar’s Edge +1, +3 vs. summoned creatures. On command, it will burst into golden-green fire, inflicting an additional 1d8 points of damage on a successful hit. She has modified the scorpion-tail’s spring mechanism so that she can fire the tip of the sword at an opponent within an unobstructed line of sight within 30’ (as if from a hand crossbow). This can only be done once per primer charge, which takes 10 minutes to rework through the spring- and cog-workings of the mechanism.

Leansethar’s Fury: At the cost of an experience level, her sword will nullify a demon’s Anti Magic effect within a 30’ radius burst of ghostly greenish fire for 3 turns.

Val'kira Armor: Battlecloth

    “There was a rustle of cloth, and instead of hearing another, we heard an almost-metallic jingle -- not the heavy clangor of Varis or Ana’s coats of mail, but... I can only describe it as what theirs would sound like if a single breath could disturb the links. There was nothing unpleasant or jarring in the noise. It was almost... musical.

“[We] turned to see the girl clad in what appeared to be another gown. But there were differences -- the front bodice looked to be adorned with row after row of decorative vertical seams. There was no neckline -- the girl’s throat was enclosed in a high collar. From a distance, she would simply appear to be dressed in the high Thyatian formal style.

But no Thyatian had ever worn a dress that gave off a metallic whisper.”

-- Druid Thorn, winter of AC 997

Battlecloth is a weave of synthetic fibers lining a nanometallic core, making for armor equivalent to chain mail no heavier than a thickly woven sweater of dense wool. While not entirely suitable for use on the battlefield, the material was routinely worn at public functions where regular armor would be -- to say the least -- out of place.

Clothing made of battlecloth is exclusively used by the royal family, King’s Companions, and have been made gifts to heads of state of nations friendly towards Blackmoor. Thus, anyone not affiliated with any of those groups in possession of items made of the stuff can expect to be answering questions in a dungeon or tower cell, and can expect to stay there if the answers do not satisfy....

D&D Game effects: AC 5 (or equivalent to X-edition's chainmail), item does not contribute to encumbrance; though technically metal, does not hinder Poison saves vs. the Radiance.

Alternity: AP 0 Type: O d6-1(LI) d6-4(HI) d6-4 (En) Hide +4 Mass: 3 Avail: Con Cost: 2K

From the Netbook, Chapter 6: Dungeon Mastering Thorn's Mystara:

Weapons of Magic: Demonbound items

Nightfang (Hunger, Ebon’s Call, BlackRazor, Lifestealer) is said to be one of the first demonbound weapons created, the hilt forged from the slag iron skimmed away during the creation of the Well of Souls.

Appearance

Nightfang’s blade is composed of a long, thin sheet of matrixed black dragonstone bound to a hilt of black iron. Its scabbard is made of two of thin adamantium plates tightly wrapped with black leather, adorned with chips of black dragonstone. It is surmised that these chips came from the same stone from which the blade was honed.

Function

Unawakened, Nightfang is a crystalline bastard sword +2. It has an Intelligence of 17, and an ego of 16. The blade itself radiates an aura of cold and unease. Those of lawful alignment actually take 1d4 points of damage if they should touch the blade, and in so doing, awaken it. Grasping it by the hilt will not cause damage, but calls for the lawful would-be wielder to make a Saving Throw vs. Spells. Success indicates that the blade remains “asleep.” Failure awakens the blade (see below).

Unawakened, the blade merely whispers to its wielder. It will detect living creatures within a 60’ radius, conferring that information to its user telepathically. The wielder is immune to charm and fear effects of natural or magical nature.

Awakening

The demonic entity bound to the blade awakens under the following conditions:

• A lawful wielder physically touches the dragonstone blade.
• A lawful wielder fails his or her Saving Throw vs. Magic on picking up the sword by its hilt.
• The wielder, regardless of alignment, makes a killing stroke, reducing an opponent to 0 or fewer hit points, activating the sword’s consume life force ability.

The entity will immediately lash out at its user, calling for a Control check (RC p. 246 or Mentzer Expert rulebook, p. 60.)

If Nightfang ever gains control, it will compel its user to engage the nearest, most powerful opponent within its 60’ radius lifeforce detection in combat, that it may feed. If no opponent is within 60’, Nightfang feeds on its wielder, draining a level of experience unless a Saving Throw vs. Spells is made. Nightfang also does this every three days it does not feed.

Beings slain by the sword (even its wielder, if reduced below first level) have their souls consumed, making it impossible to raise them.

When the sword is awakened, it is able to speak aloud in any language its wielder knows. It can communicate with its wielder telepathically.

Once per day, the awakened Nightfang can bestow a Haste effect on its wielder, lasting 10 minutes. It will usually only do so if it has fed recently, or if it is promised feeding. Nightfang will revoke this ability if the wielder goes back on his or her word (at which point it will most likely try to feed on its wielder.)

On consuming a soul, the sword  temporarily bestows the HD and full hit points of the victim to its wielder. Any damage the wielder suffers is first deducted from these temporary hit points. 

This effect lasts for 10 minutes per level or hit die of the victim, after which the boost in hit dice and hit points fade.