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ShortQuests -- Pocket Sized Adventures! An all-new collection of digest-sized D&D adventures designed for 1-2 game sessions.

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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Edena_of_Neith" data-source="post: 1881525" data-attributes="member: 2020">Beautiful, Anabstercorian!  Way to go!  <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile    :)"  data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" />  Remember, the Sword's fury lasts for 6 to 36 minutes, or 3 times the thrower's level (in 3rd Edition, use Character Level), whichever is longer.  It must continue to attack and kill something, for the full duration of the fury.  It will attack the foes of the thrower/wielder first, but once they are dead, the Sword must continue to kill, and ... well, a harsh fate is thus decreed.  If you average 6 to 36, that's 21.   Or 21 minutes:  210 melee rounds in 3rd Edition.  A 7th level Character in 3rd Edition would similarly generate a fury lasting for 21 minutes, or 210 melee rounds.  This is the average minimum time for the fury of a Sword Berserk.  It can last much longer than that:  a 20th level character invoking the fury would cause the Sword to fury for 60 minutes, or 600 melee rounds.  So if a party of adventurers hurls a Sword Berserk and invokes it's fury, they had better hope that there are a lot of enemies out there, or have a teleport ready for the lot of them.  If the Sword finishes the enemy and then comes for them, they certainly won't outrun it, and the Sword is quite adept at cutting through obstacles to reach characters trying to hide from it's wrath.  As I said in my initial description, quite a number of TPKs (Total Party Kills) have occurred when foolish adventurers dared the power of the orcish Sword Berserk.  Incidentally, as I said certain spells (the 2nd Edition Rope Trick, if held completely closed, for example) will thwart the wrath of a Sword Berserk.  In cases such as this, the Sword will flash away and attempt to trick the party into leaving their refuge.  If, after a few minutes, the Sword cannot trick (or talk - see below) the party out, it will flash away at top speed towards the nearest and largest group of sentient beings, and when it reaches them, the bloodbath will start anew.  The Sword Berserk does not normally speak, but in this special case it will, informing the adventurers in hiding that if they refuse to come out and accept their fate, MANY other innocents will take their place.  This should be especially pleasant hearing for paladins, cavaliers, bladesingers, noble defenders, good clerics, and other such types, and the Sword will play the ethics card to the hilt.  The Sword will be quite merciless in it's taunting in general, knowing full well it can back up each and every threat with action.  Once it's fury is over, the Sword is quite harmless once more, and it reverts to being non-communicative.    Whether Swords Berserk hold grudges or not is not known, but since they were made by orcs, tis best to assume they do.  - - -  On a special note:  Orcs are not native to Krynn, and no Swords Berserk have ever been reported there.  So, among other things we wouldn't want to happen, no kender has ever picked up a Sword Berserk and tried to use it, and no tinker gnome committee has yet examined and tried to modify and/or improve a Sword Berserk.  Conversely, the Conclave knows nothing of these weapons, and most certainly would not be on the watch for one should a Sword Berserk come to Krynn.  And one nitpick to Anabstercorian:  The Sword is not clumsy when it is moving at full speed.  It isn't perfect, but it isn't clumsy either.  (whatever orders of flight control exist in 3.5, you might want to bump the Sword up a notch or two for it's full speed.)</blockquote>

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