Roohian Blade Smithery

The Roohians were and are still considered the ultimate masters of blade forging. Today, original roohian swords are very rare and overly hard to come by. Many of them are buried with their owners, some are under lock and key or displayed in museums, and most of them are likely lost somewhere far away in the Great Cold Distance, where they were dropped by dying warriors.
Roohian swords are easily identifiable, since these are the only weapons made of "Varbundtmetall", a special alloy created in the early days of mankind in Arranok. This special metal produced lightweight, hard yet flexible weapons, ideal for close combat, unrivaled still.

Utility

Roohian blades are the unrivalled perfection of a fighting blade. The alloy has all properties needed for a flawless sword: It is durable, can withstand time and elements rather unharmed and thus needs only little maintenance. It is lightweight, so even large swords can easily be wielded singlehandedly without excessive physical strength. It is hard and does not break easily, great force and weight are required to snap a roohian sword. Similarly, they hardly take any dents and nicks, which again makes for easy maintenance. It is also flexible and can withstand weight impact without bending permanently.

Social Impact

Quickly, roohian blades were sought after on the whole continent for their unique properties. In pre-Kataklysmic times, the possession of a roohian blade was something special already. Only few people of origin other than roohian had access to such weaponry, and they were not seldom traded for high prices. Today, the possession of a roohian blade is almost impossible and is perceived as a great status symbol.  Among roohian fighters, this technology had an influence on their native fighting style. Many warriors settled for double-wielded fight, able to perform the art of war with one sword in each hand. The weight of a roohian blade allowed for more elegant fencing techniques, and so the "Sword Dance" was invented for the use of a Varbundtmetall weapon by roohian swordmasters.  One of the best-known swordmasters, famous for wielding his twin blades in battle, was Izakar Mohalech, a roohian warlord and field commander in the first battles of Kataklysmos. Before the great war, he was a captain, sailing the eastern coasts and the southern seas, where he used his special training to conquer foreign lands. He died in battle when a manifestation of Kataklysmos ripped him in half and devoured his right arm and shoulder. Thus one blade was lost. The other is displayed together with his preserved remains in his burial vault in the Necropolis of Calunga.

Access & Availability

Original roohian blades forged from Varbundtmetall are extremely rare. The most important reason for this is the metal itself - it can not be reproduced without an existing item, since the alloy involves a metal that is nowhere to be found on all of Arranok.  Second, since the Roohians were the first to be conscripted to fight in the north against Kataklysmos - a war that only suffered losses - presumably the vast majority of Varbundtmetall weapons were lost on the first battlefields. Not all fallen warriors could be returned to their homes to be buried, and even less gear could be salvaged from the battlefields. Today, most of the existing blades are secured in private collections, displayed in museums or rest in their former owners graves as burial objects. Only a handful of original roohian blades is currently in use by a fighter.

Complexity

The special Varbundtmetall-alloy, which requires the combination both arraki and foreign metals, is only one key to produce a true roohian weapon. Normally, smelting and re-using material wears it down and weakens its integrity. The roohian blacksmiths invented a process to inhibit and circumvent this phenomenon - a technique that was the most sacred secret to the guild of the blacksmiths. It was only passed on by spoken word, from the master to the apprentice, and never written down. Since no Roohian survived the war, the secret of unlimited reuse of Varbundtmetall is lost to time.  True roohian blades are irreproducable.

Discovery

When the first humans arrived in south-western Arranok, and started to settle in what would later be named "The Bay of Rooe", they had brought many items - weapons, tools and household items - made from a metal native to their origin land, which is not to be found on Arranok. Upon the discovery of local metals and the arising trade and convergence with the Great Ones, roohian blacksmiths tried to find a new alloy for weapon- and armor production. For this, they smelted and disassembled their old items and mixed the metals with the arraki ores. After many years of experimenting and studying, the fabled "Varbundtmetall" was created. This resource was fairly limited, since only a small amount of old metal was available from what they had brought on their voyage, so this alloy was only ever used for weapon crafting. Whenever a new sword was forged from Varbundtmetall, another item had to be disassembled and smelted to provide the necessary ressource.