Amara’s Dogma (Hugh’s halberd)

Hugh found his halberd behind a damaged false wall in the burned remains of a home in Saliran shortly after The Saliran Massacre. He was drawn to the weapon when he saw it was in surprisingly good condition even after the fire that exposed it.

The halberd has some fine runes that run the length of the shaft to the tip of the spear. Hugh isn’t equipped to discern the style or origin of the runes, but it seems to him to be decorative.

The smith at Jorand’s Forge discovered a surprisingly decorative talon for the halberd while restoring and balancing the weapon. Nearly a foot long, it is slender, curved, and ends in a detailed casting of a snarling tiger’s head. The fanged mouth holds a black stone and the eyes are sapphires. Hugh asked the smith to restore the talon to the halberd, it apparently being the weapon’s original form. He also asked Jorand to craft a cover for the blade to avoid showing it off like some peacocking lordling or wealthy merchant.

History

Hugh has not learned the full story of the weapon’s past, but that doesn’t mean it has none.

The weapon was named Dogma by its creator, Amara Dalharen of Amn. Amara was a renowned blacksmith who made her fortune crafting arms and armor for Amnian merchant guild guards.

Amara’s lifelong association with Amnian merchants developed into a deep resentment of those who corruptly take and consume rather than those who build and create. Sick of their corrupt predilections and abuses of wealth, Amara decided to quietly reserve her best arms and armor for people who would challenge the power of the merchant rulers of Amn.

One client Amara befriended was named Marco Rossi. Marco was a young firebrand who traveled from Riatavin to Amn to weed out corruption within the Amnian Sapphire Syndicate that had wronged him at home. Marco’s demeanor allowed him to dress and masquerade as a city guard in Amn, carrying a halberd without attracting attention, so Amara created a masterful halberd for him to use in his crusade.

Amara named the halberd “Dogma” to reflect her unwavering opposition to corruption, and her belief in the power of retribution.

Marco used the halberd to assasinate a number of corrupt merchants, but his identity was soon discovered by members of the guild, forcing him to flee the city with the halberd. The Amnian Sapphire Syndicate’s power had spread like tendrils throughout the neighboring countryside and Marco ultimately found himself hiding the the home of a distant cousin in Saliran. The residence served as a waystation for black market smuggling of fine gemstones and jewelry that should have only been available via the cartel.

Marco, concerned that the guild would capture him and turn the weapon to their own ends, hid it behind a false wall that his cousin used to stash crates of illegal goods. Marco again fled, but his cousin kept the weapon hidden, awaiting Marco’s return. By the time the house burned down in The Saliran Massacre, the occupant wasn’t even aware of the false wall.

Amara’s Dogma: Enhancement Plan

The weapon was masterfully crafted, but its fine balance, enhanced capacity for damage, and capacity for enchantment have fallen dormant over the years of disuse.

Step 1 A moderately skilled smith should be able to restore the weapon’s specially balanced nature (providing +1 to attacks)

Step 2 It will take a skilled smith to see how Amara designed a superior weapon to do increased damage (1d12 instead of 1d10). When the weapon’s damage is enhanced, the smith that does so will discover that the weapon was originally silvered. They will restore the corroded, degraded silvering in the blade at the same time the damage is enhanced.

Step 3 Amara had connections to black market enchanters in Amn and she had enchanted the blade to be magical for the purpose of overcoming resistances. Once the silvering is restored, it will once again be possible to make the weapon magical for the purpose of overcoming resistances.

Step 4 The final enhancement step would finish honing the weapon and apply the Masterwork modifier as described in the Complete Armorer’s Handbook.

Thoughts for the DM

Applying Steps 1-3 above will make the weapon approximately equivalent to a normal +1 weapon (where the main difference is rolling a 1d12 instead of rolling a 1d10+1, both of which have the same average damage).

Step 4 will make the weapon effectively a +2 weapon, presumably near the end of the campaign.