Second Passage of the Autumn Moon

It was first marketed by The Cutting Edge, a swordmaking shoppe in the River District of Aranor. Now it’s gracing the belts of noblemen throughout the city, and even beyond.

"I first developed the style over three years ago," I was told by Seljin, the creator of the blade. "I was designing something for myself, looking at all the modern and ancient sword styles, and trying to dream up something that would prove superior to all other designs."

A difficult task when warriors unanimously agree that there is a specific sword that will be most effective for each person.

"Difficult, but not impossible," Seljin replied. "My challenge was first to create the design – luckily, in this age, a certain design is not as weight-restricted as it was in the past. There was a time when all blades that were called a ‘hand-and-a-half’ were of a certain length and weight. If too big or small, they’d be typified as another sort of blade. But today hand-and-a-halfs are routinely custom made for people of various strengths. So some are longer and heavier, some shorter and lighter. So I knew I could make a certain style that could be made to various scales, thus fitting different wielders. Secondly, I had to break into the realm of tradition. Everyone knows the traditional sword styles – how was I to get people to recognize this type of blade as a new style, instead of just a piece of custom work? That turned out to be more of a social problem than a forging problem – just a matter of getting the right people to wield my blade!"

He named the sword a ‘kaenen’, after the canines of a dire wolf. The blade has a handle long enough for two-handed wielding, but is primarily a single-handed sword. Seljin took advantage of modern metallurgical advancements to make the sword lightweight, but long enough to make it compete against the rapier. Finally, the kaenen sports a slight curve that beings about two thirds down its length.

"The kaenen has the versatility of a hand-and-a-half, the speed of a rapier, and enough strength to stand against a saber or broadsword. Its slight curve makes it perfect for slashing attacks, but the curve isn’t so pronounced that you can’t stab with it as effectively as you would with a rapier. And the long handguard can be used, by an advanced wielder, much in the way that a parrying dagger is – to lock up another blade."

Kaenens are slightly more expensive than other blades in the shoppe, and so far haven’t been well reproduced by other swordmakers. Seljin said that getting the proper weight to balance ratio is ‘particularly tricky’. You’ll see the blades more and more often, though, on the belts of city nobles.

Tania

Mina’s Quay, one of Masalla’s major ports, saw some excitement last moon when a group of pirates and a group of bandits who reportedly were under a single leader in the past, clashed down by the docks.

"It was just unlucky," we were told by Alara, a merchant captain who sails between Masalla and the Old World. "They happened to meet each other down on the docks – both groups were coming into the city to relax for a bit and feel out their current standing with the authorities. They recognized each other, probably traded a few heated remarks, and then the swords were flashing!"

Such outbreaks of violence are rare in Masalla, where laws are strictly upheld. But the passion of the battle was too great, and over thirty men engaged in a vicious melee, sending citizens scattering.

"It was spectacular, actually," Alara said. "And when the Mina’s Quay guards came pouring in, the fighting didn’t stop – it just grew more ferocious. The pirates finally retreated to their ship and the bandits scattered, but there were seven men dead on the street and eight more were arrested by the authorities, most with pretty bad wounds."

The word from the guard of Mina’s Quay?

"We’re thankful, actually. If they want to cull their numbers, all the better for us."

Well and plainly said.

Lord Kieran