Ebony Blade

According to legend, the Ebony Blade was forged by Merlin from the Starstone and gifted to Percival of Scandia, a cousin of King Arthur and one of the knights of the Round Table.

Merlin is said to have created four items from the Starstone - the Ebony Blade, the Ebony Chalice, the Ebony Shield, and the Ebony Staff. Of these, only the sword and the staff (which was broken and the pieces reforged into the Ebony Dagger) survive. Records of the chalice cease in the mid 1700s, and no evidence of the shield's existence beyond the myths has been found.

Sir Isaac Newton, the last known owner of the Ebony Chalice, wrote that the sword was forged to be the dark counterpart to Excalibur, although what exactly that means is unclear. While the sword is certainly cursed, and is believed to have originated in Camelot, no particular link to Excalibur in known.

The sword has been passed through the Garrett family, said to be direct descendants of Sir Percival, since at least the 12th century.

Origins and Dating

As with many relics claimed to have originated in Camelot, there are considerable questions as to the age of the sword. It's unknown material and enchantments make scientific methods of dating impossible, but the style of the sword (a longsword of the Oakshott XVIa type) suggests it was forged in the late medieval period, probably in the late 14th or early 15th century.

This morphological dating is complicated by the fact that the records of the Garrett family mention an ancestral sword with magical qualities being in their possession from at least 1190. Whether this is a different sword, the sword was repaired or reforged in a later style, or whether this ahistoricity is due to its magical nature is unknown.

Powers and Abilities

The sword carries a curse, and craves blood. It can influence the mind of its weilder, encouraging them to greater and greater violence in order to satisfy the sword's curse.

The origins of the curse are disputed - some sources suggest that the sword reacts to its use, and will only begin to crave blood if it has been used for evil. The legends of the Garrett family state that it was given to Sir Percival as he was the only one of Arthur's knights who possessed the strength of character and purity of heart to resist the sword's effects. However, other sources say that the sword seeks out those with evil already in their hearts, can cannot influence a truely good person to do evil deeds.

Its powers include absorbing energy, deflecting magical attacks, cutting doorways into Otherworld, the ability to hurt those who are intangible or astrally projecting, and the ability to cut through any substance. It is believed to indestructible, as several members of the Garrett family have attempted to break the curse on their line by destroying the sword, but all attempts have failed.

Taking up the sword manifests a suit of magical black armour around the weilder.

Weilding the sword increases the strength of the wielder. The wielder can be injured, but never killed, except by one of the other Ebony weapons. Once the sword has been taken up by a descendant of Sir Percival, a magical bond is formed. The current owner can be transported to the sword's location; this can be done via a ritual, but it can also be triggered either by the subconcious desire of the weilder, or possibly as a factor of the sword's curse. Several members of the Garrett family have claimed that when they attempted to resist taking up the cursed sword, they would find themselves repeatedly teleported to its location until they gave in and accepted the burden. With practise, the wielder can learn to control it with their mind, in a similar fashion to many Dwarven weapons.

The sword cannot be used against its current owner; if an enemy attempts to strike the true owner with the blade, it will not break the skin.

Creator(s)
Merlin

Item type

Unique Artifact

Creation Date

Unknown

Raw materials & Components

The sword has not been studied, however the Ebony Dagger, said to have been forged from the same material as the sword, has been examined by the Masters of the Mystic Arts. The metal it is made from is unknown to the science of this dimension, and it has been theorised that the Starstone came from Otherworld, or from one of the dimensions visited by Merlin via the Nexus of All Realities.

Former Holders
Nathan Garrett
Current Holder
Dane Whitman