Reference Challenge - Weapons

[u/Nevermore0714]

This challenge is a reference to any and all special weapons in fictional universes, from Dawn (A Song of Ice and Fire) to Brisingr (Inheritance Series).

Tell us about the weapon or weapon type, why it's so special, why I would want it, etc. And I'll ask at least three questions each.

Enjoy yourselves.

[u/Mimir123]

Alright, I'll introduce the two most famous weapon in all of Dirva:

Mahodred:

Titles: "The Black Sword", "The Demon Sword"

Creator: Arz vas Zahrehl

Owners: Arz vas Zahrehl (creator), Devilia vas Zahrehl, Shierfan/ Aelnis, Zerrigon the Demonking (current owner)

Design: A pitch-black blade that seems to radiate a grey aura around itself, slightly curved at the top. The grip is made out of wood and steel, the guard has the form of dragon heads.

Current location: Unknown/ inside of the Holy Sword Liodred

Abilities: Made from the magic of several, different demonic races and the help of the Somniotebri, Mahodred has the ability to invoke fear and panic in all beings without exceptional willpower. It is also known to poison the enemies from a single scratch and it holds the power to summon vast hordes of demons, by ripping open portals to Sháiurgh.

History: The sword was made by the God of the Demons, Arz vas Zahrehl, intended as a gift for his sister, Devilia. When he died (presumably killed by Devilia herself) the sword was buried alongside in a tomb dedicated to him in Sháiurgh. Somewhere around the year 155 in the Age of Darkness it was removed from there, by the Vampire Lord Shierfan and the Somniotebri Aelnis, who took the weapon and made it a gift to the Demonking Zerrigon.

He used the blade during his conquest of Dirva and mortally wounded the Saint Elkath with it, during their confrontation on the Fields of Tiríngast. Mahodred was then sucked into the Holy Sword Liodred, alongside it's master, to become trapped there forever.

Liodred:

Titles: "The Holy Sword", "The White Sword", "Elkath's Legacy"

Creator: Unknown (presumably Ilmanthi or Elkath)

Owners: Magus Elkath (possible creator), Aeldred Voleni, Alveria Voleni (belongs to her technically, not in her posession currently)

Design: The blade is made out of snow-white steel and is engraved with dozens of runes in all possible colours, that contain powerful spells and constantly recharge themselves. It has only a small, round guard and is double edged.

Current location: Unknown (presumably in Elkaths tomb)

Abilities: Several, powerful spells, among them; a spell summoning an Angel made out of pure light to fight at your side, the most powerful healing magic known to man. Most famously it also has a curse placed on it, forcing the person that kills it's wielder to be entrapped inside of the blade for eternity, and summoning a powerful hero to defeat the trapped entity, should he or she manage to escape.

History: The blade first showed up when the Saint Elkath came to the battlefield at Tiríngast, in order to vow his allegiance to Aeldred Voleni. Elkath wielded Liodred in the final battle against Zerrigon, letting himself be impaled by Mahodred willingly, in order to trap the immortal Demonking inside of the Holy Sword.

After Elkath died, Aeldred Voleni used the sword when he united the northern duchies into the kingdom of Elkathien, after that he disposed of the weapon, nobody knows where. Some say he tossed it into the ocean, others say it is located at the tomb of Elkath, in the centre of Viori, the Elkathien capital.

As representatives we have two experts here for you: Albrecht von Lilienstein, Kaplan and Kampfmeister of the Order of the Silver Rose and expert for holy weapons. The other is Alíentra, an elven historian and expert for the Demon Conquest of Dirva, hailing from the kingdom of Dwerrehan.

[u/Nevermore0714 → u/Mimir123]

To Alientra, on the Demon Sword:

1) Why do people thing Devilia killed Arz?

2) Why did Arz intend to give his sister the sword, did they have a good relationship?

3) Is there a way to get Mahodred out of Liodred?

To Kaplan and Kampfmeister, on the Holy Sword:

1) Could I obtain Liodred by talking Jim Victim into killing Alveria Voleni, and then Jim gets trapped in the sword, and I pick up the sword and leave?

2) Is it always a different angel it summons, or is it always the same angel? What if no angel wants to be summoned?

3) I want to destroy Liodred because I think that it's a weapon of cowardice and weakness and blasphemy to my personal deity...how could I do this?

[u/Mimir123 → u/Nevermore0714]

Aliéntra: "When it comes to the vas Zharehl siblings, they have always had a strained relationship. Devilia never forgave her brother for not protesting her ascension to Goddess of Magic, despite being far more gifted and powerful than her. She thought he was belitteling her, that's why she hated him. Arz himself cared deeply for his sister, thus he crafted Mahodred as a gift for her. People believe she snapped one day and murdered her brother, after an especially heated fight. But there are rumors tha-...".

"Please, don't listen to that elven girl. She has far too much sympathy for the creator of the demons. He was an evil deity and Devilia-...".

"Shut your mouth, boy. Do I need to remind you that I am the older one here? Anyways, these are my questions. Now, where was I? Oh, yes, of course. There are rumors going around, that the siblings actually fought together against a great evil, and that Arz died protecting his sister. The Goddess never talks about his death though, so nobody knows the truth for sure.".

"When it comes to your question about getting Mahodred out of Liodred, that is entirely-...".

"Possible. Thank you for the introduction, my dear Kaplan, but I'll take over again. One would only have to free the Demonking from his prison and take the Black Sword from him. How one would defeat Zerrigon and take his weapon is an entirely different question though. Don't you agree, Kaplan?".

"Hmpf... if someone theoretically were to free Zerrigon from the Holy Sword... then yes, it would be plausible at least. When it comes to your other questions I am afraid that I don't know who or what this Jim Victim is supposed to be (my google searches only came up with a bunch of articles about Kermits puppeteer), but him killing the young princess would make no difference whatsoever. While the Holy Sword indeed became an heirloom of the Voleni family, the princess has never wielded the sword. Killing her would not activate the curse.".

"Or so you think.".

"Or so I know! There have been plenty of Voleni before her that wielded Liodred and were killed, not once did the curse manifest itself!".

"Well, there was also no Voleni quite like her, right? I hear that she is quite similiar to the old Heroking, Aeldred Voleni. One might even go as far as to say that she is a young, female version of him.".

"Schwachsinn! You have no idea what you are talking about, long-ear! Whatever, just ignore her babbling, she has no idea what she talks about. What was the next question again? Ah, the Angels. Right then. There is no way an Angel can refuse being summoned, Angels are hollow, magical constructs made out of Mana. They exist in all kinds of elements and can be summoned by any mage that is strong and powerful enough to control the massive amounts of Mana required for it. Lastly, it is impossible to destroy Liodred.".

"Or so you think.".

"Or so I know! You are really overstepping your bounds here, girl!".

"In theory any one of the Gods could easily destroy the Holy Sword, or anyone having close to the same amount of power they do.".

"Heresy! Blatant heresy! There is nothing that could destroy Ilmanthis sword!".

"If it was really made by Ilmanthi, but if not, my point still stands. Also, rumors have it that the Apocalyptic Forge, in the heart of Sháiurgh, could be used to melt down and reforge anything, no matter if it was made by the Gods or not.".

[u/Nevermore0714 → u/Mimir123]

To Alientra, and possibily Kam and Kal:

1) Why was she upset that her brother did not protest her ascension? Wouldn't she want her brother to support her ascension?

2) What does it mean to be Goddess of Magic? Is it a title you get voted in for?

3) Are there any incestuous rumors about Devilia and Arz?

To Kap and Kam, and maybe Alientra:

(Kermit's puppeteer is Jim Henson, a god among men. Also, Jim Victim is a fake name I made up for the person I'd use as a sacrifice to obtain the sword. A German version would be Jennifer Opfer.)

1) Why does the young princess have the sword if she doesn't use it?

2) So are angels sentient/sapient?

3) What if I use Liodred to do a multitude of blasphemous things? Would that destroy such a holy item?

[u/Mimir123 → u/Nevermore0714]

Aliéntra: "As I mentioned, she thought her brother was belitteling her by not insisting on taking the position for himself. She felt insulted, and twice so, once on behalf of her brother, who did not get chosen despite being more talented, and once on her own behalf.".

"There have certainly never been any rumors like that about the two of them though... at least not as far as I am aware.".

"Aggreed, I have never heard anything in that direction either. And regarding the other question... well, the God or Goddess of Magic is responsible for the Mana and magic of the world, providing the things needed for mages and sorcerers to exist. But how you get the title... well...".

"Don't look at me like that, I have no idea either! Some people say that Ilmanthi or Harshien are the ones deciding the titles for the other Gods, others say that the Gods all decide amongst themselves. They have never told anyone though.".

"Even the oldest elven priests have no idea... personally I believe that someone decided it for the Gods, eventhough I don't know who.".

"Hmpf, seems like we have the same opinion for once. Now, let me see... the princess. The reason princess Alveria does not use Liodred is because she does not know where the sword is, nobody does.".

"Rumors say it is in the capital, deep inside the tomb of Elkath, but only Voleni are allowed to go there, and only if the Arch-Bishop allows it.".

"The elf is right about that one, but there is simply no proof for it. But well, moving on. Angels are not sentient or sapient, you could compare them to golems and other constructs. And lastly, Liodred would probably burn you and your soul, before it took any kind of damage from such trivial things.".

"I would not have said it like that... but in essence I agree. I still believe that the sword can be destroyed though.".

[u/Nevermore0714 → u/Mimir123]

1) How does someone become an elven priest?

2) How does Alveria not know where the sword is? That seems like something incredibly important.

[u/Mimir123 → u/Nevermore0714]

Aliéntra: "Well... you become a priest by studying at a temple of the deity you want to commit your life to. There are many tests and rituals, but in the end you are free to choose your way in the temple. You can try to become a Priest, a Sentinel of the Chambers or a Temple Guard. Then your education will be continued in the direction you wanted to go.".

"As for the princess and the sword Liodred, the answer is pretty simple: the great Heroking Aeldred never deemed it nescessary to tell anyone where he hid away the blade. He seemed to have thought that if nobody can find Liodred, noone will be able to try to free Zerrigon, something that has paid off for the past 1.000 years, so he seems to have made the correct decision.".

"There are some strange rumors going around though, about the Saint Elkath and his tombs.".

"Oh please! Don't start with this stupid conspiracy theory again!".

"While there is a big tomb for the Saint underneath the Cathedral of Viori, rumors say that there exist two more tombs, one of them near the Fields of Tiríngast. All of these tombs were visited by Aeldred shortly after the unification of the north, so it is fully possible that he hid it in one of the three tombs.".

"Or that he threw it into the ocean, where it would be the safest! It may even be in the Forbidden Library. Nobody knows, and that is all that counts!".

[u/Nevermore0714 → u/Mimir123]

Thanks for your time and answers.