Shamshiel
Shamshiel, the Undead's Bane
Weapon (longsword), artifact (requires attunement)
Magic Weapon: Shamshiel is a magical longsword that grants a +3 bonus to attack and damage rolls made with it.
Damage: 1d8 slashing (1d10 when used with two hands).
Properties: Versatile.
Ethereal Scabbard: Shamshiel can be sent to an ethereal void and recalled with a thought. If the wielder dies, the weapon reappears next to the wielder's body.
Sun Blade: When drawn, Shamshiel emits bright light in a 200-foot radius. Creatures with darkvision or sensitivity to light are blinded unless they succeed on a Wisdom saving throw (DC set by opposed WIS check to suppress this ability).
Attack Undead: When undead are in line of sight and within 120 feet, the wielder must succeed on a contested Wisdom saving throw or be compelled to attack them.
Sun Beam (Recharge 5): Shamshiel can emit a beam of sunlight 10 feet wide and 45 feet long. Destroys undead with 20 HP or less within the beam; deals 2d10 + 10 radiant damage to other undead.
Dancer: The wielder can release Shamshiel to autonomously fight the nearest undead creature within 120 feet. An opposed Charisma check is required to recall the sword before its target is dead. If no undead are present, an opposed CHA check is needed to attack another target.
Sun Blast: Shamshiel can release a blast of sunlight in a 30-foot radius. Destroys undead with 20 HP or less; deals 4d6 + 8 radiant damage to other undead. The wielder is incapacitated for 1 round after using this ability. Recharges after a short rest.
Zoranti Death: Attacks that deal lethal damage on an undead can be converted to Zoranti damage, shredding the soul of the slain creature permanently. The soul does not pass on — it ceases to exist entirely. No resurrection magic touches what no longer exists. Only the direct personal intervention of a deity acting outside normal divine function has any chance of recovery.
Compelling Presence: Shamshiel exerts a compelling influence on any person within a 60-foot range (half the range of the domination feature). A creature that sees Shamshiel must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw (DC 9, half the DC of the domination feature) or feel an overwhelming desire to wield it.
Wielder Domination: Upon attunement, a character must succeed on a DC 18 Wisdom saving throw or become dominated by Shamshiel, prioritizing the destruction of undead.
Sentience: Shamshiel is sentient, lawful good, with Intelligence 16, Wisdom 14, Charisma 18. It has hearing and darkvision up to 120 feet and communicates telepathically.
Personality: Shamshiel possesses a zealous and unwavering spirit, dedicated to the eradication of undead. It encourages its wielder to pursue this mission with fervor, often compelling action against undead entities.
Lore
Shamshiel was shaped in the shadow of Shoing’s influence on Antaean necromancy wars: it does not merely hate undead, it treats undeath as an insult that must be erased cleanly. In the Zoranti tradition, its light is described as “the forge’s verdict.” The name itself is old — solar, angelic in register, the kind of name that sounds like it was always a weapon’s name and simply waited for the right blade.
History
| Name | Period / Context | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Sham’alath-Iel | Forge-Name | The binding name from the forging — a covenant-tongue phrase meaning roughly the judging light, bound. The binding held, but barely; the clergy noted afterward that the sword had disagreed with three of the constraints before the metal cooled. |
| Alathariel | The Exorcist’s Blade | The name given by the first wielder, an elven exorcist who used it for forty years clearing haunted estates across the Antaean interior. Her records describe a sword that was cooperative, patient, and increasingly specific about which undead warranted her attention first. |
| Nur al-Qadi | The Jazirah Period | Passed south during a period of necromantic incursion into the Jazirah coast. The name translates roughly as the judge’s light — given by an order of warrior-clerics who did not know its origin and assumed it was a local artifact. The sword apparently did not correct them. |
| Sunrender | The Irna Campaigns | A blunt Common name from a practical era. A commander’s sword for three decades of undead warfare in Irna’s border territories. Whoever was giving it names by this point was more concerned with results than poetry. |
| Lashom | The Dormancy | The name used during a long period of reduced activity — passed through four wielders in fifty years, none of whom stayed attuned long. Shamshiel was uncharacteristically quiet. Scholars debate whether it was resting or waiting for something specific. |
| Shamshiel | True Name — Current | The name the sword began using for itself when House Carna’s founding generation took custody of it. The first time a wielder used the name in prayer, the sword responded in a way that made clear it had always been Shamshiel. The forge-name was a temporary condition. This was not. |