A Sword Without a Hilt: A Song of Ice and Fire/D&D 3.5 Crossover
- Thread starter DragonParadox
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- a song of ice and fire a sword without a hilt d&d 3.5 dungeons & dragons 100% high octane dragon fuel ave corvidae battle action dragon diplomacy best sister bureaucromancy delicious soul-stuff dragon dreams come true dragon ta'veren greatest uncle hubris is a coward's word in defiance of gods and men mammon's folly mutually assured mage's disjunction qm murderhobo top tier coatl
Goldfish
Friendly Spider-Fish Abomination
- Location
- Formerly of the Far Realm
@Crake has withdrawn his vote for now, y'all. You might want to consider switching over to @das_slash's vote, which is a modified version of Crake's.
@Shador
@Duesal
@One Autumn Leaf
@Artemis1992
@Jack vile Ripper
@Nickan
@MTB
@Deliste
@Takesis
@Shador
@Duesal
@One Autumn Leaf
@Artemis1992
@Jack vile Ripper
@Nickan
@MTB
@Deliste
@Takesis
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- Location
- ?????????
[X] das_slash
Done. Wake me up for the fight.
Done. Wake me up for the fight.
- Location
- Germany
- Pronouns
- He/Him
[X] das_slash
Usually, we are nice when it serves our purpose. Othertimes, not so much.
Interlude in beta. The story of the dagger somewhat got away from me so we did not get to the audience.
Interlude DXLXXX: Of Shadow and Steel
Of Shadow and Steel
Twenty-Fifth Day of the Tenth Month 293 AC
It was an undeniable relief to be away from the palace and the eyes of the court even for a short while, the sheer weight of age old ceremony that filled those halls was enough to leave Garin gasping for a breath of fresh air. As they passed through Coryn's by now familiar door with a smile and a nod for his youngest son peeking around a corner he wondered if there was time to go out today, perhaps hear the first rumors regarding their audience before the emperor, or mayhap Nuri needed some help with her ruse.
As he restlessly drew back the bamboo shutters of the room their host had thoughtfully set aside for the envoy's tea and talk, Garin remembered the odd dagger they had been given in return for the Dragonsteel, and perhaps for helping to save Bu Gai's life as well. Asking Tyene for the weapon he added: "Shadows have always been friendly around me, a little too friendly for the liking of the palace wards."
Fen, whose curiosity about the audience had narrowly outstripped her desire to appear poised and collected, looked up in askance. "You received a gift for yourselves from the Son of Heaven?"
"Not really, but I doubt Viserys would mind if any of us was minded to keep it," Waymar shrugged, eliciting a somewhat scandalized look in return.
"We knew him before he was King, fought and killed besides him," Garin interjected, trying to explain lest Waymar's words dent her growing belief that 'the Sunset King' was worth the title and respect. "Think of it not only as a privilege we share, but a gift we all share in each other's company."
"A gift?" Fen asked dubiously, sipping the blended tea Tyene had just poured her.
"Have you never woken up in the morning wishing you could be just yourself, with your wants and desires, your passions and antipathies without the weight of titles and expectations?"
The young woman is silent for so long that one could easily think she would not answer at all. When she does it is barely above a whisper. "Yes, I do, but that is a joy known only to the holy ones alone in the wilds with the gods, drinking rainwater and sleeping beneath the lip of the earth. I much prefer tea, I imagine so do you and your King."
"So we do and he does, yes," Garin agreed, weighing the weapon Tyene had handed him. "But just because you cannot enjoy the whole of a thing does not mean should not seek it out in small measure. So it is with having friends before which we do not need to wear our titles and honors. Kings and princes no less than others would find relief in such companionship." Emperors too, Garin did not add lest he be too shocking. He suspected Bu Gai need a chance to lay down his celestial panoply.
"So it has ever been..." a soft voice heavy with the dust of ages echoed through his mind. Garin glanced down at the weapon to see his hand wrapped in shadow not of his own conjuring. "The court consumes what is best in us and leaves behind husks encased in glittering honors."
Startled only for a moment, for he had already known three weapons with a soul, the Grand Inquisitor replied carefully. "Hail and well met. I would know your name and something of your tale if you would share it." The emperor would not have intentionally given them a cursed blade he was certain, but that did not preclude not knowing the whole of the weapon's nature. Garin was ready to release it at a moment's notice just in case.
"My name is not important, too long has passed. The ink that once marked my lineage has worn away, the scrolls rotted to dust. As to my tale, yes, perhaps that can do some good to you or your fledgling king..."
The world did not fade away before Garin's eyes to reveal some other place and time. Rather it was as though he had grown another pair of eyes that saw the tale of another life, in some ways akin yet infinitely different from his own. An assassin walked through the shadows, a hunter of beasts and hollow men, a servant of some emperor lost to time, perhaps even a friend. When others called the hunter without honor for the means by which he killed the Son of Heaven spoke in his defense, and when the emperor needed a death in the night hidden from the eyes of others then so it was as though by chance. Men died more easily than fiends.
But then he met her, Ju Lei, a face as beautiful as a the flower whose name she bore, a soul as true as tempered steel and mind just as sharp. She was not to walk in shadow, however much she might have wished, for she was a bloom in the emperor's gardens and what the Son of Heaven holds he keeps. How easy it would have been to slip the dagger through his heart, to slay the man who refused to grant the lovers peace, how much the Fiends taunted him with it. Yet in this the hunter could not break his vows in the end, it was his own heart he pierced at sunset where the waters played beneath the shadows of cherry trees. From that day to her own passing Ju Lei bore a blade of Adamantine and jade.
The Shadowblade
Appearance: Forever wrapped in shifting shadows the weapon does not contain the soul of its long dead maker, it is shrouded in it, striking as much with his unerring purpose as it does Adamantine's sharpness. Inscribed upon the black jade in the tongue of Heaven there is no more than a single line, a promise: By shadow's edge from darkness warded.
Appearance: Forever wrapped in shifting shadows the weapon does not contain the soul of its long dead maker, it is shrouded in it, striking as much with his unerring purpose as it does Adamantine's sharpness. Inscribed upon the black jade in the tongue of Heaven there is no more than a single line, a promise: By shadow's edge from darkness warded.
- Alignment: Lawful Neutral
- Stats: Intelligence: 10 (+0), Wisdom: 17 (+3), Charisma: 17 (+0)
- Saving Throws: Fortitude: 8, Reflex: 8, Will: 11
- Senses: Vision and Hearing in a 120 foot radius, Darkvision, Blindsense
- Communication: Telepathy
- Minor Artifact: 16th Caster Level
- Conflict Triggers: Bearer knowingly allies with servants of the Bloodstone Emperor or other Servants of the Void, or breaks an oath of fealty
- Powers: +2 Adamantine Dagger
- Eyes of Shadow: The wielder gains darkvision 30 feet while grasping the hilt or handle of the weapon, even if the weapon is not drawn.
- Veil of Shadow: +2 Circumstantial bonus to hide and Move Silently whenever the Weapon is drawn as its faint flickering shadows envelop him
- Sudden Strike: +2d6 precision damage to any foe caught flat-footed
- Unseen Weapon: As a swift action one can activate one of the following powers (5/day);
- Unerring Strike: Your next melee attack ignores any miss chance because of concealment or total concealment.
- Unexpected Strike: Your opponent is denied its Dexterity bonus against your next melee attack.
- Ephemeral Weapon: Your next melee attack deals an extra 2d6 points of damage, as extraplanar darkness momentarily replaces portions of your opponent's body.
Garin blinked away the ancient memories with a shudder. He could respect the ancient assassin he supposed, though he knew that faced with such an unworthy lord he would have stolen himself away into the night to live a better life. "Can you teach the skills you knew in life, or only grant them to a bearer?" he asked after a moment
"Teach..." the voice in the steel trailed off as though it was a thought wholly foreign to it. "I suppose I could."
OOC: The dagger grants roughly the abilities of a level 5 Shadow Blade. The spirit from which was level 10 in the class, but becoming a weapon has somewhat limited him.
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Hmm that is an equivalent to the 8 Valyrian steel swords. Also the blade is probably going to need to have a primer written if we want the class to teach.
- Location
- Germany
Of limited use for Garin, but definitly great for making our own Shadowblades.
The spirit claims does not really see the point in being freed. He has not been flesh and blood in a very very long time. Garin suspects he is afraid of being... alone.
CandyCoatedChaos
Evil is just misunderstood
- Location
- You'd never be able to guess, eh?
If there is anything any of our party needs no teaching in... its how to kill your enemies lol. Anyone have a count on how many have died in the quest?
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- ?????????
You guys think we can request that the Emperor allow the various martial monasteries to open new monasteries in our Empire? That way we can train our own martial classes.
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- Location
- Greece
Garin currently has 3 weapons; One that affects constructs and heals the wielder, one that affects undead and steals magical buffs (note that neither constructs nor undead can be sneak-attacked normally) and one cheap-ish thinblade, not to the level of the others - which are daggers to boot and hence can be hidden rather more easily.
This would not add much of anything in his arsenal. Abilties bestowed are either already there through class abilities or can be replicated via magic.
Further, this sentient blade is LN while Garin himself is CN, as evidenced in narrative with him pondering a different ending to that tale. Also, while shadowblade is a cute class he has better one.
Would suggest this be given to one of our baby PCs, both for them to progress as Shadowblades and to benefit from features. Permanent darkvision alone is a boon to any kind of sneaky character. Perhaps Shara Rogare? Shadow Thief of Amn makes me sad.
This would not add much of anything in his arsenal. Abilties bestowed are either already there through class abilities or can be replicated via magic.
Further, this sentient blade is LN while Garin himself is CN, as evidenced in narrative with him pondering a different ending to that tale. Also, while shadowblade is a cute class he has better one.
Would suggest this be given to one of our baby PCs, both for them to progress as Shadowblades and to benefit from features. Permanent darkvision alone is a boon to any kind of sneaky character. Perhaps Shara Rogare? Shadow Thief of Amn makes me sad.
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enigma1995
Gentleman Beholder
[X] das_slash
As a note it is not just raw alignment that makes a difference between our freind the shadow blade and Garin. 'Sail away and start a new life' is a fundamentally Braavosi answer that would not occur to someone raised the very stable stratified society of Yi Ti (and the Yi Ti of milenia ago yet).
- Location
- florida
That level of cultural stability is astonishing.
Goldfish
Friendly Spider-Fish Abomination
- Location
- Formerly of the Far Realm
Wow, that's a nifty weapon. Really nice bit of storytelling/world building, @DragonParadox.
tarrangar
Fat arctic chicken
We could see about making him a body if he want, maybe make a non-sentient Plant body that is programmed to let him act as its mind, when it holds the dagger, he will then be able to treat the Plant creature's body as his own.
If he don't want to be alone, maybe we could make him a Plant creature that do have a mind, but whose mind is designed to interface with him, a CR10 Plant creature made to interface fully with him, would be a rather powerful being.
If the dagger was made the primary mind of a Plant creature, would it be able to level up?
It has class levels, so if it was actually in control of the body and so learning, I don't see why it wouldn't be able to grow in power.
Crake
I AM THE STORM THAT IS APPROACHING
- Location
- USA
Braavosi pride themselves on their freedom in principle. Everyone is at service to something, even if just their own inclinations, vices or habits, but the archetypical Braavosi response would be to never be a slave to someone in all but name.
Probably a lot less lofty sentiments about things like coin, or lust or glory and whatnot, since mooning after women and accolades and chasing the next big score is what Braavosi do, but never being literally hangdog yoked to do another's bidding when you could otherwise expect much better treatment elsewhere.