Dyrnwyn
(Note: as with many legendary objects the details vary depending in the source. Creative liberties have been taken to make the item work better as an awakened item, though the description is generally in line with mythical descriptions of the item. Dyrnwyn is first described in the prose story Culhwch and Olwen.)
Dyrnwyn the white-hilted is one of the fabled thirteen treasures of Britain. The sword is said to have been forged by the mage-smith Gofannon and given to Rhydderch the Generous, a true Christian king of Britain in the days of Arthur. Rhydderch was descended from the Roman emperor Magnus Maximus (known to the Britons as Macsen Wledig) and it was he who fatally defeated Gwenddolau ap Ceidio, the cumbric king who was served by the enchanted chessboard Gwyddbwyll.
Dyrnwyn has the magical power to know the character of whoever touches it. It favours those of Kind and Strong character and disdains the Greedy and the Envious. When wielded by a worthy man the blade leaps with magical fire. If the wielder is of weak character the blade will remain inert. If a greedy or envious man tries to use the blade the very touch of it will burn his flesh.
Famously Rhydderch was known as ‘the Generous’ because he would offer the sword to anyone who admired it, but no man was ever sure enough of his own right character to dare take it for if the sword did not alight then all would know them to be a lesser man.
Magic Might: 9 (Ignem)
Characteristics: Int +2, Per +2, Pre 0, Com -2, Str +1, Sta 0, Dex 0, Qik +2
Size: -1
Season: Summer
Virtues and Flaws: Magic Thing
Magic Qualities and Inferiorities: Greater Power; Personal Power x2; Improved Soak x5; Gift of Speech; Reduced Might
Personality Traits: Sword* +3, Judgemental +3, Theatrical +2
Combat: n/a*
*Dyrnwyn never moves of its own accord, and can only act in combat if wielded by another character
It has the following statistics as a long sword of exceptional quality: Init +4, Atk +6, Dfn +3, Dam +8
Soak: +10
Wound Penalties: –1 (1–4), –3 (5–8), –5 (9–12), Incapacitated (13–16)
Fatigue Levels: n/a
Abilities: Concentration (Combat) 9, Arthurian Britain Lore (Alt Clut) 2, Penetration (Ignem) 5, Folk Ken 4, Common Britonnic (Cumbric Dialect) 5, Latin (Insular) 4
Powers:
Know the Heart and Mind, 0 points, Init -1, Mentem
R: Touch, D: Momentary, T: Individual
This power allows Dyrnwyn to thoroughly probe the mind of the person holding it. Through this power it can tell their strengths and weaknesses and judge them accordingly.
(InMe 30, as per Peering into the Mortal Mind )
Blaze of Glory, 0 points, Init -1, Ignem
R: Personal, D: Concentration, T: Part
This power allows Dyrnwyn to blaze with light and fire. The fire is contained to the area directly around its blade and will never harm the sword or its wielder. The fire itself is as hot as red-hot metal. It increases the damage of the sword by +10 and anything even mildly flammable (such as leather or wet wood) struck by it is instantly set alight.
(CrIg 25, Base 10, Conc +1, Part +1, +1 Does not harm wielder)
Punish the Grasping Hand, 0 points, Init +1, Ignem
R: Personal, D: Concentration, T: Part
This power allows Dyrnwyn to make its hilt become hot enough to boil water. Anyone holding it without protection suffers +5 damage to their hand and a further +5 damage for each round they attempt to hold on to it.
(CrIg 10 Base 4, Part +1, Concentration +1)
Vis: 2 Ignem
Appearance: Dyrnwyn is a sword of burnished iron of an archaic design. Its hilt is made of purest silver, almost so bright as to be white, and fashioned in the shape of a human figure. If it chooses to the sword can speak from the mouth of this anthropomorphic figure.
Where is it now?
Rhydderch the Generous died without issue and the blade passed along with his kingdom into the hands of other powerful men in the Old North. His kingdom of Strathclyde did not long outlive him and soon the blade was truly lost. Seekers of the order have four main theories as to where it might have gone:
First, it may be buried in the tomb of one of the kings of the fallen kingdom of Strathclyde in what is now the Scottish borders.
Second, certain stories suggest that at some point the king of Strathclyde may also have been king of the Picts. It may be that the sword remained in Pictish hands and fell into the hands of the Gruagachan of Scotland. If so it may be kept in secret by them still, or else it might have been captured during the Spider war and moulders in the vault of some lost covenant of Stonehenge.
Three, it was carried of by norsemen in one of the many raids on Strathclyde in the Viking age. This would mean the blade is somewhere in the far north, perhaps in the hands of the order of Odin.
Last, and perhaps most curious, is the idea that the blade may somehow have found its way out of the British Isles and onto the continent. Some stories speak of Flambeau wielding a flaming sword at times, though its origin is never mentioned and it appears only in scattered accounts. Perhaps the founder came across the blade and found in it a kindred spirit? If so finding the blade means seeking after the ultimate fate of Flambeau himself…