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 Who are the best weapons makers in the realms?
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Dennis
Great Reader

9933 Posts

Posted - 23 Sep 2011 :  05:38:24  Show Profile Send Dennis a Private Message  Reply with Quote

Do Lathander's clerics have sunblades? [Maybe I should post this in the thread "Stupid Question Time."]

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Ayrik
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Canada
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Posted - 23 Sep 2011 :  05:58:22  Show Profile Send Ayrik a Private Message  Reply with Quote
Clerics can only use bludgeoning weapons.

Having said that, sunblades are a popular basis for fashioning holy swords, and Lathander has no shortage of glowy paladins and champions willing to smite and smote things dark and nasty.

[/Ayrik]
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The Sage
Procrastinator Most High

Australia
31727 Posts

Posted - 23 Sep 2011 :  05:59:18  Show Profile Send The Sage a Private Message  Reply with Quote
quote:
Originally posted by Wooly Rupert

quote:
Originally posted by Ayrik

Interesting data about moonblades, Alystra, thanx.

What exactly happens to "unworthy" moonblades? Do they degrade to lesser magical swords? Or simply lose all enchantment and revert to fancy nonmagical swords? Do they somehow become unforged, melt into goo, explode, or shatter?

It seems odd, to me, that Arilyn's moonblade would continue to function once the selection process determined the one (there can be only one...) supreme kingblade, unless perhaps the original enchantment were altered through some unusual agency.

Do any of the moonblades possess sentience?



Darkmoon, the Starym moonblade, does.
The Darkmoon is both intelligent and possesses a significant ego, as I recall.
quote:
Don't know about any of the others, but it's not unreasonable to assume another might have become sentient.

And though the selection process has ended, it doesn't mean the need for the blades has ended. There could be some hidden agenda we don't know about, or it could be something as simple as continue serving the elven people...

Or, as Steven Schend [per Blackstaff] notes below:-

"I'd love to answer Joe's question here, but there's such a thing as leaving a door open to walk through later...

I'll at least give you this:

All of the nine hopeblades are, like the moonblades before them, long hilted broadswords that can be wielded with one or two hands, depending on the size and strength of the wielder.

The hopeblades appear, feel, and sound like a diamond-hard crystal but ring like a crystal wine goblet when they hit things.

They may or may not have runes along the blade, and they may or may not have individual powers (NDA). They all do have the ability to pierce the veil that hides Rhymanthiin from normal eyes and allow someone into the hidden city of hope.

Beyond that, I'll not say due to NDAs and not wanting to get in the way of later development by myself or others.

Steven"

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Dennis
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Posted - 08 Nov 2011 :  15:28:28  Show Profile Send Dennis a Private Message  Reply with Quote

There's the sentient blood-thirsty scimitar in The Avatar Trilogy [which Cyric used at some point, if memory serves].

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The Sage
Procrastinator Most High

Australia
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Posted - 08 Nov 2011 :  15:50:12  Show Profile Send The Sage a Private Message  Reply with Quote
quote:
Originally posted by Dennis


There's the sentient blood-thirsty scimitar in The Avatar Trilogy [which Cyric used at some point, if memory serves].

You mean Godsbane? As I recall, that was a short-sword [of dancing {from the Waterdeep - Time of Troubles adventure module, if memory serves}], not a scimitar.

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Dennis
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9933 Posts

Posted - 08 Nov 2011 :  16:00:25  Show Profile Send Dennis a Private Message  Reply with Quote

Not sure. My subconscious mind had wiped away most of the details of that highly disappointing series. But if you mean the blade that talked to Cyric and encouraged him to murder, then that's it.

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Edited by - Dennis on 08 Nov 2011 18:38:22
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Arcanus
Senior Scribe

485 Posts

Posted - 08 Nov 2011 :  17:21:40  Show Profile  Visit Arcanus's Homepage Send Arcanus a Private Message  Reply with Quote
quote:
Originally posted by Dennis


Not sure. My unconscious mind had wiped away most of the details of that highly disappointing series. But if you mean the blade that talked to Cyric and encouraged him to murder, then that's it.



Yes, that's Godsbane. A rose hued short sword, which later turned out to be the god Mask.
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Artemas Entreri
Great Reader

USA
3131 Posts

Posted - 08 Nov 2011 :  18:04:56  Show Profile Send Artemas Entreri a Private Message  Reply with Quote
quote:
Originally posted by Dennis


Not sure. My unconscious mind had wiped away most of the details of that highly disappointing series. But if you mean the blade that talked to Cyric and encouraged him to murder, then that's it.



Unconscious or Sub-conscious??

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Dennis
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Posted - 08 Nov 2011 :  18:39:48  Show Profile Send Dennis a Private Message  Reply with Quote

Huh? I typed subconscious. [Look again.] You must have quoted the wrong word.

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Ayrik
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Canada
7989 Posts

Posted - 08 Nov 2011 :  19:16:47  Show Profile Send Ayrik a Private Message  Reply with Quote
Actually, Godsbane, as an avatar of Mask, was one of the good points in that otherwise passable trilogy. Plus, if one extends the Trilogy into the Series, to include Prince of Lies and Crucible, then Godsbane, as an avatar of Mask, was an even finer weapon indeed. In my opinion.

[/Ayrik]
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Artemas Entreri
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USA
3131 Posts

Posted - 08 Nov 2011 :  20:08:24  Show Profile Send Artemas Entreri a Private Message  Reply with Quote
quote:
Originally posted by Dennis


Huh? I typed subconscious. [Look again.] You must have quoted the wrong word.



Methinks you have casted the 1st level spell: Bigby's Editing Thread

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Bladewind
Master of Realmslore

Netherlands
1280 Posts

Posted - 09 Nov 2011 :  14:46:26  Show Profile Send Bladewind a Private Message  Reply with Quote
I agree with Diffan one this one (i.e. elven swordsmiths usually create a lot of regular enchanted blades but ones in a generation an exceptional blade is forged), with one caveat: in general a typical elven crafted weapon is more likely to be masterworked or enchanted even. Their available time to spent on a single bladesmithing project is huge so the results are usually works of art.

Inventiveness in weapon design surely goes to humans though. Their engineers and mages constantly adapt and rejig engines of destruction fit for their time. Gnome design is likely not as focused on practical weapons to give them the edge in this contest.

Dwarves make the best armor, which would influence other races that have to penetrate them significantly. Their bludgeoning and hafted weapons seem to be able to become legendary more oft than other races.

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Dennis
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9933 Posts

Posted - 09 Nov 2011 :  14:53:46  Show Profile Send Dennis a Private Message  Reply with Quote
quote:
Originally posted by Ayrik

Actually, Godsbane, as an avatar of Mask, was one of the good points in that otherwise passable trilogy. Plus, if one extends the Trilogy into the Series, to include Prince of Lies and Crucible, then Godsbane, as an avatar of Mask, was an even finer weapon indeed. In my opinion.

I meant the trilogy. I actually liked Crucible.

-----

The Netherese flying discs are quite convenient and useful.

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Edited by - Dennis on 09 Nov 2011 14:56:35
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Artemas Entreri
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USA
3131 Posts

Posted - 09 Nov 2011 :  14:59:20  Show Profile Send Artemas Entreri a Private Message  Reply with Quote
Without a doubt, the finest weapon-makers in the Realms are the Gnolls

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Bladewind
Master of Realmslore

Netherlands
1280 Posts

Posted - 09 Nov 2011 :  15:02:28  Show Profile Send Bladewind a Private Message  Reply with Quote
Flindbars are quite devastating for a primitive nunchaku.

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Mantis
Acolyte

USA
25 Posts

Posted - 11 Nov 2011 :  00:27:59  Show Profile Send Mantis a Private Message  Reply with Quote
I feel that dwarves make the best weapons, I look at it as the overall weapon distribution as opposed to specific magical weapons.
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sfdragon
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2285 Posts

Posted - 11 Nov 2011 :  01:26:03  Show Profile Send sfdragon a Private Message  Reply with Quote
the moonblades would all have to be sentient or at least semi senitient to judge the wielder worthy of it, or kill him/her.



why is being a wizard like being a drow? both are likely to find a dagger in the back from a rival or one looking to further his own goals, fame and power


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Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
Moderator

USA
36798 Posts

Posted - 11 Nov 2011 :  04:42:17  Show Profile Send Wooly Rupert a Private Message  Reply with Quote
quote:
Originally posted by sfdragon

the moonblades would all have to be sentient or at least semi senitient to judge the wielder worthy of it, or kill him/her.






Not necessarily. They could function as a conduit to someone else doing the judging, like the Seldarine. Or they could have been simply programmed with a set of specific parameters, and assessing a new wielder is little more than a matter of checking that person's personality traits against a pre-set checklist.

I think if the blades were already sentient, Darkmoon wouldn't be notable for its sentience, and it wouldn't have been corruptible.

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Edited by - Wooly Rupert on 11 Nov 2011 04:43:22
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Dennis
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9933 Posts

Posted - 11 Nov 2011 :  04:51:13  Show Profile Send Dennis a Private Message  Reply with Quote
quote:
Originally posted by Mantis

I feel that dwarves make the best weapons, I look at it as the overall weapon distribution as opposed to specific magical weapons.

Mundane, maybe. But magical weapons? I doubt.

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Icelander
Master of Realmslore

1864 Posts

Posted - 11 Nov 2011 :  16:38:39  Show Profile  Visit Icelander's Homepage Send Icelander a Private Message  Reply with Quote
quote:
Originally posted by Thelonius

Don't think dwarves can use catapults.... under mountains... they just bash their heads against a door, and the elves... well why use a catapult when you can just simply hit anything with a bow


Because an arrow will do bugger all against a fortress wall.

What D&D is pleased to call a catapult (which is actually a catch-all term that applies to all weapons that throw a projectile) is a siege weapon. As such, it is not meant for point shooting and archery proficiency is rather irrelevant when it comes to evaluating the need for such weapons.

If elves conduct sieges, which they assuredly did during the Crown Wars, they would need something to batter down castle walls. Perhaps they relied exclusively on magic, but given a limited supply of spells and spellcasters, it would seem more efficient to build siege weapons on-site and employ those as delivery systems for enspelled projectiles.

The general lesson to learn here is that weapons are made for a particular role and even if the races may have different tastes, they most likely have very similar needs in terms of tactical and strategic roles for weaponry. No one race can afford to exclusively build examples of their most favoured weaponry, because all the races have complex civilisations where they need a whole range of weaponry.

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Banter Darkdirk
Acolyte

USA
18 Posts

Posted - 30 Nov 2011 :  20:59:26  Show Profile Send Banter Darkdirk a Private Message  Reply with Quote
IMO the ancient Netherese have crafted some of the most powerful swords I've read about (besides elven moonblades). So I'd have to rank them up near the top.

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Wolfhound75
Learned Scribe

USA
217 Posts

Posted - 30 Nov 2011 :  21:36:52  Show Profile Send Wolfhound75 a Private Message  Reply with Quote
quote:
Originally posted by Thelonius

quote:
Originally posted by Dennis


Catapults= humans [Do elves or dwarves make them as well?]


Don't think dwarves can use catapults.... they just bash their heads against a door, ...


Eh...I'd have to go with Dwarves don't use catapults. They use Battle Ragers trained by the infamous (and smelly) Thibbledorf Pwent.

Reference the scene laid forth in the Drizzt series where Pwent is training his group and Regis is in charge of lowering the gate to defeat the trainees....

As for the rest, I'd love to come up with a list of names of the best crafters to use in my campaign. In other words, why seek out just anyone capable of crafting you a magic sword if you have the option (and can actually afford it) of having a true master craft and imbue your blade/bow/armor etc.

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Ayrik
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Canada
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Posted - 30 Nov 2011 :  22:58:32  Show Profile Send Ayrik a Private Message  Reply with Quote
Well, some dwarves might rage around with marginal effect like the Bouldershoulders, and that's great if you like comedy over reality. Personally, I prefer my combat scenes to not involve Jar Jar Binks slapstick melee. Just draw a bead on idiotic fools of that sort and pull the trigger while they're exaggerating their banana peel antics.

According to FR11 Dwarves Deep and PHBR6 Complete Book of Dwarves, dwarves do indeed use and invent all sorts of highly effective siege machinery, including catapults (when not underground). There's plenty about dwarves that Drizzt has never seen.

[/Ayrik]

Edited by - Ayrik on 30 Nov 2011 23:01:59
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