![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Landsblood
Impeccable, this longsword is — flawless edges, perfect balance, graceful ivy-like quillions of silver- and gold-gilt that sweep back into a hand-guard that sports the royal crest amongst its leaves, to match the intricately enameled crest set into the silver pommel-nut. The hilt’s grip is a tight spiral of silver and gold braid.
What really stands out are the flats of the blade: both are polished to a brilliant mirror sheen.
* Landsblood grants prowess and deadliness to its wielder’s blows (+2 to attack and damage), and causes injuries to enemies of the realm to bleed continuously until treated — which cannot be through sorcerous or other non-mundane means.
However, its true purpose is rather different.
Once sworn to the realm, Landsblood’s wielder may peer into the flats of the blade to see across the breadth of the kingdom that is their charge, as if a bird in flight, with awareness of both location and any notable distress, imbalance or building conflict that needs redress. (it does not allow breaching private homes.)
If the ruler deliberately allows their lands and people to fester and fall, Landsblood animates and turns on its former master, flying to attack until death or true repentance or both.
* The origin of Landsblood is lost in royal legendry; the most common tales spin variants of the first ruler, in a fit of bloodied despair, being granted the blade by a manifestation of the Green-Cycle Unicorn in response to an oath to save the people and the land from sorcerous devastation. Darker tales whisper of a bleak black-crowned king shown the error of his ways and bound to shoulder Landsblood and its wise burden.
Impeccable, this longsword is — flawless edges, perfect balance, graceful ivy-like quillions of silver- and gold-gilt that sweep back into a hand-guard that sports the royal crest amongst its leaves, to match the intricately enameled crest set into the silver pommel-nut. The hilt’s grip is a tight spiral of silver and gold braid.
What really stands out are the flats of the blade: both are polished to a brilliant mirror sheen.
* Landsblood grants prowess and deadliness to its wielder’s blows (+2 to attack and damage), and causes injuries to enemies of the realm to bleed continuously until treated — which cannot be through sorcerous or other non-mundane means.
However, its true purpose is rather different.
Once sworn to the realm, Landsblood’s wielder may peer into the flats of the blade to see across the breadth of the kingdom that is their charge, as if a bird in flight, with awareness of both location and any notable distress, imbalance or building conflict that needs redress. (it does not allow breaching private homes.)
If the ruler deliberately allows their lands and people to fester and fall, Landsblood animates and turns on its former master, flying to attack until death or true repentance or both.
* The origin of Landsblood is lost in royal legendry; the most common tales spin variants of the first ruler, in a fit of bloodied despair, being granted the blade by a manifestation of the Green-Cycle Unicorn in response to an oath to save the people and the land from sorcerous devastation. Darker tales whisper of a bleak black-crowned king shown the error of his ways and bound to shoulder Landsblood and its wise burden.