Monday, December 2, 2024

d100 – Sentient Swords

Random Rolls on the Treasure Tables often produce Magical Swords. This is especially common with the Flat Distribution in some of the earlier presentations. Sometimes they might even result in the temptation to place a Sword with a Special Purpose or Intelligence. These Swords often have a slew of additional abilities and some can even communicate via various Languages. I usually assign a Sentient Sword a number from 1-20 (more talkative ones receive a lower number) when this number is rolled on a die in Play, it can serve as a reminder to me to make a comment or quip if appropriate.

The same rules for making NPCs Memorable generally apply to these Treasures. Should a Sword be Sentient, I do like to dress them up a little further by applying a Personality and it is often hard for me to resist adding a few pertinent Powers. They do say that all Magic Swords deserve Names, but I feel that the ones that the Players can communicate with deserve this doubly so at least.

Here's a table of a hundred Swordbound Souls. While lately I’ve been cleaving a little closer to only applying this quality to Magic Swords exclusively, it is often nice to graft them onto other Weapons as well (a Snarky Dagger or Belligerent Battle Axe can be a nice change of pace!)

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