Axe of the Dwarvish Lords (Eberron)

In the year -10,000 YK a young dwarf prince from Clan Noldrun set out to forge a weapon that would be regarded as a symbol of unity among his people, but it threatened the dwarf Lord Kordran Mror of the Deep Kingdom.  Venturing deep under the Ironroot Mountains, deeper than any dwarf had ever delved, the prince came to the blazing heart of the great volcano Onatar’s Fist.  With the aid of four other clan lords, he had borrowed four mighty tools: the Starmetal Pick, the Earthheart Forge, the Anvil of Songs, and the Shaping Hammer. With these tools, he forged the Axe of the Dwarvish Lords.

Armed with the Artifact, the prince returned to challenge Lord Mror’s right to rule the Deep Kingdom.  This spawned great debate among the clans, with 11 clans siding with the prince of Clan Noldrun, and the others siding with Lord Mror.  The axe was lost in a brief yet bloody civil war fomented by greed for its power and the status it bestowed.  It finally resulted with Lord Mror exiling twelve of the leaders of the unrest to dwell in the surface areas of the mountains. Upon their banishment magical seals and wards were set in place to prevent the banished leaders from returning to the deep domains and a clan of wardens (Clan Kundarak) were sent to ensure the magical wards remained in place until the dwarves had proven they were worthy of the kingdom below. The twelve exiled would become the twelve clanlords of the Mror Holds.

The clanlords spent thousands of years trying to prove their individual worth. It is said that at this time the mighty face of Lord Mror was constructed. Eventually the competition to prove which clan was most worthy of the deep domain lead to infighting amongst the clans drawing out into longstanding feuds.  When the humans first spread out across the reaches of Khorvaire they paid little attention to the feuding dwarven clans in the mountains. However, as time passed it wasn't long before Karrn ir'Wynarn son of King Galifar I saw the mountains and their riches as a possible boon to the empire. With his father's permission he set out to raid the dwarven strongholds. Weakened by their own feuding the dwarves fell to Karrn's forces and were soon subjugated under the Kingdom of Galifar and the lands were added to Karrnath's territories. However, this was actually a boon to the dwarven population who were now forced to work together under the peace of the king.

In 800 YK, finally having put away their petty squabbling the Kundarak dwarves, the keepers of the Wards protecting the kingdom below, released the magical seals and allowed passage to the kingdom below. Unfortunately, all was not well in the kingdom below. Over the centuries the inhabitants had fought a long war with the daelkyr and had lost. With much of the ancient cities now claimed by the daelkyr the dwarven clan lords set to reclaim the former glory of their people.

in 600 YK, Clan Noldrun, determined to recover the artifact lost during the uprising, sent an expedition into the ruins without informing the other exiled clans.  This clan was based at Noldrunhold, near the southern end of the Ironroot Mountains, but now Noldrunhold lies abandoned and its capital, Noldrunthrone, southeast of the Goradra Gap, is in ruins.  Their lands are widely believed to be haunted and are thus shunned.  Noldrun's rivals—Mroranon, Toldorath, and Tordannon—did not mourn their passing.  Some say the derro of the Vale of the Inner Sun are descended from the warped progeny of Clan Noldrun, who were trapped underground following the fall of Noldrunhold four hundred years ago.  (Keith Baker has suggested on his website that the dwarves of Noldrunhold degenerated into derro in a manner similar to the transformation of the goblins into dolgrim. This change would have been at the hand of a daelkyr they disturbed in Khyber in search of the axe.)

*Note that this home brew is an adaptation of the original artifact to the Eberron campaign setting, drawing from both Canon and Kanon (Keith Baker’s extra-WotC writings).

 

Magic Weapon. The Axe of the Dwarvish Lords is a magic weapon that grants a +3 bonus to attack rolls and damage rolls made with it.

When you attack a creature with the axe and roll a 20 on the d20 for the attack roll, the axe deals an extra 20 Slashing damage.

The axe has the Thrown property with a normal range of 20 feet and a long range of 60 feet. When you hit with a ranged attack using this weapon, it deals an extra 1d8 Force damage, or an extra 2d8 Force damage if the target is a creature of the Giant type. Immediately after hitting or missing, the weapon flies back to your hand.

Blessings of Onatar. While attuned to the axe, you gain the following benefits:

Darkvision. You gain Darkvision with a range of 60 feet. If you already have Darkvision, its range increases by 60 feet.

Fortitude of Stone. Your Constitution increases by 2, to a maximum of 20.

Gifts of the Creator. You have proficiency with Brewer’s Supplies, Mason’s Tools, and Smith’s Tools.

One with the Forge. You have Immunity to Poison damage and Resistance to Fire damage.

Sunder. When you hit an object with the axe, the object takes the maximum amount of damage possible.

Conjure Brass Dragon.  While holding the axe, you can take a Magic action to summon a Young Brass Dragon. It appears in an unoccupied space you choose within 30 feet of yourself, understands your languages, obeys your commands, and takes its turn immediately after you on your Initiative count. The dragon disappears after 24 hours, when it dies, or when you dismiss it as a Bonus Action. You can’t use this property again until the next dawn.  This is a true dragon, and not a spirit, and serves as an avatar of Onatar’s will, and is sentient, thus not following direction blindly or to its wanton destruction.  It is under the control of the GM, but follows the rules as previously stated.

Random Properties. The axe has the following random properties:

• 2 minor beneficial properties
• 1 major beneficial property
• 2 minor detrimental properties

Travel the Depths. You can take a Magic action to touch the axe to a fixed piece of dwarven stonework and cast Teleport from the axe. If your intended destination is underground, there is no chance of a mishap or arriving somewhere unexpected. You can’t use this property again until 3 days have passed.

Destroying the Axe. The only way to destroy the axe is to melt it down in the Earthheart Forge, where it was created. It must remain in the burning forge for 50 years before it finally succumbs to the fire and is consumed.

Proficiency with a Battleaxe allows you to add your proficiency bonus to the attack roll for any attack you make with it.

Notes: Bonus: Magic, Immunity: Poison, Sense: Darkvision, Proficiency: Brewer's Supplies, Proficiency: Mason's Tools, Proficiency: Smith's Tools, Bonus: Constitution Score, Resistance: Fire, Versatile, Topple