Avasmus- The Flaming Shadow


DESCRIPTION
Unlike the rest of the items found in the Great Necromancer's fortress, Avasmus is not evil. It is a completly neutral weapon. It has a completly black handle and hilt with the design of a dragon engraved upon the handle with other ornamental designs. The hilt moves out into two sicle type horns. At the pommel, there is the dark jewel. This jewel changes color in certain circumstances to black, green, red, or blue but it always stays a dark hue. The blade is a very dark gray with many runes engraved on it, telling of the sword

"The dark flame which strikes fear into the hearts of mortals; may it burn through all thou foes. Its swiftness unknown, its power great. That which moves so quietly and unseen, when carrying the black flame, when wielding Avasmus- the Flaming Shadow."

When the blade is drawn, it is blazing with a black flame. The scabbard of the sword is completly black with and encasing of black gold. The sword is nearly indestructable and tends to cling to a single owner.




HISTORY
Avasmus was created in 110 A.C. by Kruglis the Great, the greatest wizard of his time from the kingdom of Chrundek in the east. It was one of the Three Great Swords of Power. Greklas, the Sun Beam, was made be Hornku the Holy- the greatest wizard of the west, from the kingdom of Numen. It was a holy sword(alignment is good) and the first Sword of Power, made in 108 A.C. In order to counter this holy power, Mulsa the Dark- the greasted wizard of the south, from the kingdom of Lismal- created Jognusa, the Void Caller. This was the evil Sword of Power(alignment is evil) made in 109 A.C. As the most powerful wizard, Kruglis saw that is was his duty to balance this rash powers. It was for this that Avasmus was made. This was the neutral Sword of Power(alignment is neutral). In order for this one sword to counter the power of the two other swords, Avasmus was made more powerful than the other two together. Avasmus, the most powerful of all swords, was wielded by Kruglis as he tried to stop the other wizards from destoying the world during their battle. For over 300 years, Avasmus was passed down from the head neutral wizard to his first apprentice. However, in 423 A.C., Avasmus was lost when Fomda, the head neutral wizard, died suddenly from a disease before choosing an apprentice. Chrundek was then attacked by and adjecent kingdom and the raiders took Avasmus. Avasmus continued to change owners until it was at last lost forever some where in the wild.

In 890 A.C., the Great Necromancer learned of the Three Swords of Power. Greklas was still guarded in Numen, and a holy sword was no use to the Necromancer anyways. It was Jognusa that the Great Necromancer really would have wanted, only it was carried over the seas to an unknown, distant land where it was cast into a valcanoe. It was not destroyed, but encased in lava and lost beyond recovery- where it will stay for eternity. The Necromancer then put all of his power into the finding of Avasmus, for he found that with a certain spell Avasmus's alignment could be change to evil and serve his purposes better even than Jognusa. In 901 A.C., one of the Great Necromancer's generals found Avasmus in a muddy bank of a dried river 800 mile south of Lismal in a hidden canyon. The Great Necromancer's general brought Avasmus back to the Necromancer's fortress in Sumanry(in the kingdom of Aula Draconaria). In the following week, the Great Necromancer prepared the proper dark glass casing and potions and incantations in his conjuring room for the great transformation. However, his plans were foiled. The past year, after learning the Necromancer's plans about Avasmus, the Mages of the Everlasting Sun(guardians of Greklas) planned to destroyed him once and for all. Just as the Great Necromancer was finishing the final preparations, the Mages stormed the citadel and overtook him. His was then obliterated and his soul destroyed. The Mages decided that is was better that Avasmus stayed "lost." This was so they could destroy all that opposed them without the intervention of a neutral person seeking balance.

It was 19 years later that one of Speardragon's scout told him of the abandoned fortress and Speardragon and his party raided the remains of the loot in the frotress. Just before Speardragon gave up on the worth of the raiding party, he came upon Avasmus- just as it was(in dark glass) when the Great Necromancer was about to transform it to an all powerful evil weapon. Thus it was that Master Speardragon came to be the master of Avasmus, the Flaming Shadow- the most powerful of the Three Swords of Power.




POWERS
DAMAGE: 3d10
BONUSES: +12 to move silently and hide in shadows, +7 against magic* users of of good and evil alignment
MAGIC: +14 fire ball, strike fear, beam of power**, balance powers***, power strike****, blinding, envelope in flame


* this includes clerics, druid and illusionists;
** the equivalent power of a +18 (all aspects) disentegration;
*** disables the casting ability of magic users, clerics, druids and illusionists for two rounds;
**** allows the sword to cut through most hard things without damage