[Ironworks] Weapon or Art? (Solo)

[Marcus Braeden]

4 Winter 2011AV

A thin layer of snow covered the ground and surrounding rooftops as Marcus trudged toward the Ironworks. The crowds of Syliras had already compacted the snow on the street, making the journey a little bit more bearable for Marcus. He was wearing his usual attire along with his cloak, which was securely fastened to minimize the contact with the cold winter air. His breath was clearly visible when he exhaled, but luckily for the young weaponsmith the Ironworks was not too far off in the distance. He could clearly see the smoke from the flames within rising above the rooftops. Marcus quickened his pace as he grew more excited to feel the warm blast of air upon entry to the forge. When he did finally enter the forge, he closed his eyes and slightly smiled as the warm air surrounded him.

Marcus grabbed a leather apron and a set of tools before walking over to his desired work space. After his work space was completely set up and ready to go he walked over to his superior to acquire the days project. He just prayed it would be something a bit more substantial then simple spear heads. He calmly approached the bearded man who stood with an order list firmly gripped in his hands.

Marcus calmly asked, "Ok, what have you got for me today?"

The man looked at Marcus and slightly chuckled. "Hmmmm let's see, perhaps you could go ahead and make some spear heads or..." I swear if he makes me do spear heads... Marcus thought to himself. "...or maybe you can just assemble some farming tools..." Marcus sighed, as it looked like it was to be an uneventful day. "...but I am not going to have you do any of those things, let's give you a challenge. Here you go," he handed Marcus a slip of paper with the details of the project written on it, "You are making a battle axe for a Syliran Knight who dropped by yesterday. Now here's the fun part, the knight gave whoever happened to construct the weapon creative license on it, as long as it adheres to the basic specs written on that paper. So consider this a test of what you can do." Marcus smirked, and nodded, and then returned to his anvil with the metal he needed to finish the project.

Ok let's see these basic specifications...two handed grip, fine, steel blade, check...and that's it. Well this one is gonna be fun, I can already tell. Marcus decided that it would be a double bladed axe, with each blade sprouting off of the shaft. At the top of the shaft, he planned on having a metal spike spring out. The handle would be made of iron and be bound with a red cloth. As for the shape of the blades, Marcus decided to just start smithing and go wherever he decided to go with it.

[Marcus Braeden]

All smith's started their projects the same way, time and time again. They retrieved the appropriate metal, heated it in the fire, and then finally began shaping the metal with the use of a hammer and other tools. Marcus was no different from the other smiths who shared the Ironworks with him. Steel was the requested material that was to be used, but even if it was up to Marcus to choose the material, he would have selected steel. Steel was the quintessential material used for any type of blade. It was stronger and lighter than pure iron, perfect for the blade of a weapon.

Marcus watched as the steels external color changed from a light grey to a glowing white hot. Once the desired temperature was achieved, Marcus used a pair of smithing tongs and pull the metal from the flames and carry it back to his anvil. The next step was to simply begin shaping the metal, which was easier said than done. If one was to make a quality blade, it would be a long process, gradually shaping the metal from a brick of steel into a blade. Marcus began to pound the metal with the hammer that used to belong to his father. The metal's exposure with the air also gradually cooled the metal, reheating the metal over and over again was another part of the process. Marcus' own metal changed from the glowing white hot metal back into the gray metal after a few minutes of pounding the weapon. He reheated it, and he continued on, gradually making the shape of the metal closer to that of an axe head.

[Marcus Braeden]

By the time the blade had been fully shaped and forged, Marcus had reheated the metal many times. But now, this was not a simple hunk of metal as it once was. Now, it was an axe blade meant for one of the Syliran Knights. Marcus paused and gazed around the forge, just get a glimpse of the other weapons and tool being created that day. He saw elaborate weapons such as swords and axes, but also simple tools such as chisels and sheers being crafted by the various smiths working the massive forge. He remembered on day one, when he first started working in the Ironworks, back when he was making simple spearheads on a near daily basis. He looked around on that day and hoped to one day be working on the same scale of projects he saw that day. Now, here he was, crafting a battle axe for one of the Syliran Knights.

The blade that was set before Marcus was double bladed, with a spike that rose to about half the height of the height that the blades eventually extended to. The curve of the blade was smooth and elegant and ever so slightly curved inwards toward the top of the axe head. Toward the bottom of the axe head two elongated pieces of steel, one for each side of the blade, extended both away from the main axe head, towards the users hands, and slightly away. The overall design was something that was more likely to be seen hung on display, however unlike many display pieces, Marcus was going to make sure this axe was battle ready.

His next step was to grind out any excess metal on the grinder. Marcus walked the blade over and sat down. When the wheel began spinning, Marcus lightly held the blade to the stone and added more pressure over time. Sparks flew into the air and quickly disappeared, but Marcus made sure to keep his face clear of the incoming sparks. One Marcus had gotten rid of all of the extra metal, he rand his finger along the blade, testing the smoothness. He would sharpen it after it was properly hardened and tempered, so the blade posed no threat to his skin. He felt no jaggedness to the metal and prepared for the next step.

[Marcus Braeden]

The process of hardening and tempering the metal did not look like much those new at the craft. It looked simple, simply heat the metal, and quench it, rapidly cooling the metal. But it was much more than that. There were many details that one had to be wary of when hardening and tempering. When hardening one had to be careful of how many times they quenched the metal, as too much and the metal will become brittle. Tempering was much more complicated in regards to details. The smith would have to carefully watch the properties of the metal as it interacts with the fire. These properties would dictate when the blade would be pulled from the flame and the timing was everything. The difference between a well tempered weapon and poorly tempered weapon was a weapon that would last years, and a weapon that could potentially shatter during its first use. Luckily for the knight who ordered this axe, this was a process that Marcus knew quite well, as should any other smith of decent quality.

Hardening the metal came first, and Marcus placed the blade in the fire and waited. The heat surrounded the metal within the fire and eventually the metal became a glowing white, and then finally it was drawn from the fire by Marcus. Temporarily the metal hung in the air before being submerged in a cool tank of water. A sizzling sound surrounded Marcus, and steam quickly rose into the air and disappeared. Marcus repeated the heating and quenching of the sword several times until he was ready for the tempering to begin.

Tempering was similar yet different. When hardening the metal reached extremely high temperatures, before being quenched. When tempering the metal would still be quenched, but the temperature that the metal reached would be much lower. Marcus would also be peering into the fire to watch the metal. He gazed, identifying in his mind the various reactions occurring on the surface of the metal. Colors, bubble formations, and other various properties all offered clues as to when to draw the sword. Marcus found the right moment, and he drew the weapon from the fire and quenched it in the tank. Now he needed to do it again, and then again, until the metal was battle ready.

[Marcus Braeden]

Now that the blade was complete, apart from the touch up, and etching that he would possibly do. What remained was the handle of the axe. Marcus set the unique looking blade aside and fetched himself another bar of metal, this time the metal being iron. He placed the iron into the fire, just as did with the steel before, but this time he was intent on crafting a handle, not a blade. When the metal was brought back to his anvil, he began to strike it with the hammer gripped in his right hand. After each reheating, the metal gradually became more drawn out and lengthy. Marcus made metal cylindrical once the metal had reached an appropriate length for a handle. Toward the top, where the handle would meet the blade, he had created two sharp pieces of metal sprouting off of the handle in opposite directions.

Marcus once again gathered the blade that he had set aside before in order to attach the two halves of the axe. The tang on the blade fit neatly into the gap Marcus had left for it in the handle. Once inside Marcus walked it over to the fire and welded the two together, to solidify the bond between the two parts of the weapon. As a final touch Marcus grabbed some red cloth and wrapped it around the hilt both for added grip and decoration.

[Marcus Braeden]

The base axe was done, leaving only decorative work and sharpening left. Marcus could easily have simply sharpened the weapon, polished it, and then placed it on the rack and called it day. But he wanted to add a little more flair to the axe. He was going to etch something onto the blade. Etching was something he didn't have too much practice with since he didn't have the resources for acid resources where he had previously worked, and it was something he wanted to better himself at. From any experience gained through working at the Ironworks, he knew how to do basic lettering, a few basic patterns, and the symbol of the Windoak, which was commonly requested to be etched onto the knight's weapons, so he had gotten practice with that particular design. He paused temporarily, thinking of the design that would adorn the blade.

It was decided that the blade would have the Windoak symbol in the center, where the two blades met. The rest of the design was extremely simple. Roughly an inch from the edge of the blade would be a simple line that followed the shape of the blade. These two designs would be adorned on both planes of the blade.

Marcus' plans were executed to the best of his ability. The proper parts of the blade were shielded from the acid while the exposed parts, the designs, were ready to be carved into the steel. He plunged the blade of the axe into one of the acid tanks and held it, allowing the acid to cut into the metal. Finally, enough time had passed and Marcus drew the weapon from the tank. Drops of acid dripped from the blade yet, only the designated parts were effected by the acid. The etching was complete, and Marcus gave the blade a quick drying with an old rag.

Marcus brought the axe back to the grinder, this time to sharpen the blade. He firmly held the edge of the blade to the large spinning chunk of stone. Marcus dodged the sparks produced from the friction between the steel and stone. Marcus stopped, and ran his fingers across the blade. Dissatisfied with the sharpness, he continued once again and allowed sparks to fly. He stopped once more and lightly ran his fingers along the edge. This time he was pleased, as applying too much pressure with his fingers would have surely drawn blood. Before bringing the axe to the rack, he polished the weapon, allowing for the steel to shimmer as if it were silver. The etchings shown brilliantly after the polishing. Carefully, Marcus placed this weapon on the rack and gazed on.

[Marcus Braeden]

A smile stretched across his face as he stood there, arms folded, peering at his work. The blade's design was complimented by the etchings, which were simple but also unique. While it reminded the user of ones own affiliation with the Syliran Knights, it also remained personal to the wielder. It was a balance of who the Sylrian Knights were, and who the wielder was.

Marcus could not help but wonder the sights that this weapon would see. The adventures that it could possibly go on. In his mind he pictured a Syliran Knight, wearing heavy plate armor, with his face concealed by a helmet. On his back was fastened his axe, a weapon created by Marcus Braeden. Perhaps the knight was hunting bandits, or just scouting the countryside, or maybe even discovering lost knowledge. Marcus also hoped to step into the knight's shoes, wearing a hand crafted Marcus Braeden sword at his side. He planned on stopping by the recruitment office in a few days times, to finally make that dream reality.

Marcus finally turned his back to the axe and began walking toward the door. He had completed the day's task at hand, now all he could do was hope that the knight who ordered this weapon, or was it art, would be pleased with Marcus' work.

[Chevalier]

Marcus

LORE

• Creative License
• Understanding Sharpness
• Weaponsmithing: Battleaxe Construction

EXPERIENCE

Skill	XP Earned
Weaponsmithing	5
Etching	3
Observation	2

Storyteller Notes

Secret :

You are a most dedicated weaponsmither. Keep yourself challenged as you rise into the highest levels of your craft, you're starting upon the path of the expert after all.