Soul Brand (Rune Sword):


Soul Brand might be a rune weapon of modern construction or might be of ancient origin which was lost for Millenniums. Very little has been archived about the weapon and it is not well known. While most scholars who know of the weapon believe it is of recent origin, a sizeable minority think the weapon is truly ancient. Virtually all believe that Soul Brand was created by an incredibly powerful Rune Smith who is the half demon son of the Demon Lord Mephisto. Mephisto is known to have created many half demon children with mortal humans. Some of these children have become incredibly powerful on their own right and could almost be considered lesser demon lords themselves. The Rune Smith who created Soul Brand is considered to be especially powerful and stories about him go back to virtually the beginning of recorded history. Some scholars believe that he created the weapon on his own abilities while others believe he had the malign assistance of his demon father. Most stories tell that a powerful demon is trapped within the blade although scholars differ about the name of the demon who is trapped in the blade. Some consider the demon to have been an enemy of Mephisto while others consider that it was a demon who stood in the way of the Rune Smith's relationship with his father.


The sword is fairly plain and is definitely a weapon for killing. It is single bladed and comes to a point for stabbing as well as slashing. It is almost like a giant saber or scimitar. The weapon appear to be made from a very dark red metal with huge runes deeply engraved into the blade and handle of the sword. The runes appear to glow from their own fire and brighten to almost blinding when one of the sword’s fire warlock abilities are activated. The weapon is a bit larger than most rune swords and is approximately the size of most bastard swords although of a very different style than most bastard swords. Even though unusual in design, it is very well balanced and must be considered to be a masterwork weapon.


The personality of the sword is extremely evil and is definitely that of a Demon but the sword is also an extraordinary master of deception and trickery. It prefers wielders which are no psionic and those who do not have strong mental endurance although can often corrupt those as well if given enough time. Still, it is far more common that they actually figure out what the sword is trying to do to them and get rid of the weapon. It often has trouble with those who are extremely honorable and kind hearted and avoids them as well. The sword prefers warriors and knights as possessors and does not like bonding with practitioners of magic. A few individuals have bonded with the sword and later have become witches. For some unknown reason, the sword has a dislike for women and will only bond with one if specifically directed by its master. For the first six months of the sword being carried, it will pretend to be of the exact same alignment as the wielder. It will only suggest the most minor of unprincipled actions in most cases, nothing to get upset about. Just a bit of being playful and get the possessor used to more corruptible activities. Once fully bonded, it will start suggesting more evil activities. It will always go just a step below what the wielder believes is acceptable behavior and slowly corrupts the possessor. Eventually, when the wielder is significantly corrupt, it will begin suggesting truly evil activities and begin suggesting that the wielder should worship demons and Mephisto in general. Eventually, the possessor will get to the point where he will follow all the commands of senior worshipers of Mephisto. If they still have use, they will be retained but otherwise they will be discarded.


Soul Brand is a soul drinker although he often will not reveal it to him possessor until they are fully corrupted. Still, he will attempt to consume the souls who are killed by his blade. Eventually, when the wielder is firmly in the evil camp, he will try and get his wielder to slay his former friends using the blade and consuming the souls of the possessor's former friends. The sword considers it a means of permanently bonding the wielder to itself. For offensive use other than the blade itself, the sword commands a host of fire elemental abilities. In addition, Soul Brand has several powerful clerical abilities including the ability to animate the dead to fight for the sword or its wielder. If the sword considers that the wielder might be squeamish about the ability, it will not reveal it until it has corrupted its possessor. When a possessor falls to the point of being considered evil, their eyes will begin glowing an evil red.



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Writeup by Kitsune (E-Mail Kitsune).


Copyright © 1997 & 2005, Kitsune. All rights reserved.



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