Masterwork Dwarven Handaxe

The Masterwork Dwarven Handaxes are a pair of identical magic hand axes of dwarven make. Iva and Temerity each took one from the sealed Underforge Vaults on 30 Coldrise, 1714 PSF.¹

Description

Appearance

Each axe has an ebony handle inlaid with gold, and a blade of an unusual dark, almost black, glassy metal with gold inlaid in intricate geometric patterns. Golden Dwarvish runes are inscribed on the blades.¹

Properties

The runes are an enchantment, not writing.¹ It is a modest one, not an ancient artifact of the dwarves.¹ The axes are especially good for breaking through objects such as doors.² They give no outward sign of magic.¹ They survived whatever destroyed the vault they lay in, the living fire that wielded them, and the rust monsters that ate every other piece of metal nearby.¹ They are not a matched pair and lose nothing by being separated.¹

Each is the finest weapon Iva has ever touched. Temerity has seen one finer.¹ Luma judged that whoever made Dorian Draken's rapier made the axes’ smith look like an amateur.²

Mechanics

Weapon (Handaxe), Uncommon

This weapon is crafted from an unusual dark metal and inscribed with golden Dwarvish runes. You have a +1 bonus to attack and damage rolls made with this magic weapon. Additionally, whenever this weapon hits an object, the hit is a Critical Hit.

Each axe is a +1 weapon that is also an adamantine weapon.²

History

Session 10

The axes lay beside a melted suit of dwarven armor in Vault 16 of the sealed vaults. The survey’s work order forbade taking anything from the vaults.¹ When Luma identified one, the Living Everfire rose into the armor and took up both axes.¹ After it was destroyed, Luma described the axes as dwarven work with strengthening enchantments, and Iva and Temerity each took one. Luma told them not to tell anyone where they had found them.¹

Session 11

The axes had not been found when the foundry vaults were surveyed and sealed.² The Masterwork Dwarven Pistol that Luma found in a hidden workshop in Vault 18 proved to be much like them.² Luma argued that the axes did not count against the work order, since they had come from the monster rather than the vault.²

Session 13

Iva killed a phase spider with hers beneath the Fardrimm Gate.³ The gate’s doors are of the same dark metal as the axes, adamantine.³

Trivia

• In Session 10 the axes were described as keeping their edge and helping them bite through armor. The Dungeon Master revised their properties at the start of Session 11.²

References

Footnotes

1. Session 10 ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰ ↩¹¹

2. Session 11 ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷

3. Session 13 ↩ ↩²