The Blade
The Blade is an Elder Artefact created to better shape the other creations of the Elder Gods.[1] It played a large role in the history of Guthix and Gielinor; it was what turned Guthix into a god and enabled him to discover Gielinor along with many other realms and dimensions.
It is now shattered and placed on a table in the main entrance of Guthixian ruins.
History
[edit | edit source]The sword was first seen being wielded by Skargaroth. Later on, Skargaroth found the Naragi plane, along with Tuska, a boar-like goddess, and managed to blind her in one eye. In retaliation, Tuska gored Skargaroth with force enough to push him onto the storm cellar that sheltered Guthix's only daughter, Aagi, forcing Skargaroth to drop the sword in the process.[2] In his rage over Aagi's death, Guthix grabbed the fallen sword, which he used to blind Tuska's other eye. After that, he took the sword and impaled it deep in Skargaroth's back, killing him and unintentionally stealing his powers and some of his memories, becoming a god.[3][4]
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Guthix then discovered that with cuts from the sword, he could open gateways to various dimensions and planes. For many centuries, he travelled through dimensions until he found Zanaris, and its planet Gielinor. At some point Guthix discovered the planet Renmark, which had a parasite feeding on its core. Seeking to destroy the creature, Guthix struck at it using the Blade but inadvertently shattered the planet instead. The parasite survived the destruction, as did several fragments of the former planet.[5] Guthix, however, discovered that the cuts he made using the Blade caused the fabric of time and space to fray, which meant he was forced to be much more careful when using the Blade; he also feared that the parasite, Mur, might have been able to latch unto the pathways he created.[6]
Guthix accidentally shattered the Blade when he cut too deep into the fabric of time and space and pierced the Void, which caused the Void pests to swarm unto Gielinor. Guthix placed Valluta as a guardian to defend against the pests.[7]
Although the Blade was destroyed with no known way to repair it, Guthix found some use for the pieces. He used the shards of the broken Blade with the Stone of Jas to create the World Gate,[8] which would allow its user to travel over immense distances to many different worlds. Guthix used the gate to stabilize the gaps he created as well as populate the realm of Gielinor.
The Blade currently lies broken on a table in the entryway to Guthix's chamber complex, too broken and incomplete for any use and too dangerous to touch. It was eventually found by an adventurer, who would later become Guthix's World Guardian. After discovering the theoretical blueprints of an Aviansie inventor called Howl, the World Guardian returned to the chamber and managed to salvage a fragment of the Blade, which they made into The Subtle Blade, an artefact which would allow them to cut through the fabric of reality and travel into the Abyss.
Abilities
[edit | edit source]The sword has various special abilities. It is naturally electrified, powerful enough to injure and slay gods, and it can open portals. It also has the potential to destroy planets by shattering them into fragments, which is how Guthix accidentally destroyed Renmark.[5]
Trivia
[edit | edit source]- The sword being able to open dimensional doorways by swinging it through the air is similar to how the eponymous Subtle Knife of the His Dark Materials trilogy works. This is referenced again by The Subtle Blade, which is created from a shard of the Elder Blade.
References
[edit | edit source]- ^ Guthix, "Guthixian Memories", RuneScape. "But this I knew: there were artefacts, left by elders who came before. These items were conduits for their power, used to refine, to create on smaller scales, to create perfection." (ninth memory)
- ^ Tribute to Guthix, memory 7, written by Guthix, RuneScape. "...a new creature set upon Tuska. Tall and muscled, he was a great warrior, wielding a sword that crackled and sparked. Tuska's warband of squat, purple creatures screamed 'Death to Skargaroth!' as if they had met the hulking warrior before. They piled onto him, biting and stabbing. Blood poured from one of Tuska's eyes, and she careened wildly, wounded in the melee. Still, Tuska spun around and gored Skargaroth's side with her tusks. Skargaroth bellowed and dropped his sword, madly tumbling. I moved out of the way, and Skargaroth crashed into my homestead..."
- ^ Tribute to Guthix, memory 8, written by Guthix, RuneScape.
- ^ Tribute to Guthix, memory 9, written by Guthix, RuneScape.
- ^ a b Elder Sword (echo), written by Guthix, RuneScape. "Calamity! I underestimated the ability of the Blade. I have sundered a planet. It was a world of divine beauty and fabulous magic, a realm of wild nature where four ruling courts of the seasons were in constant conflict, yet maintained a tumultuous balance of power. Yet, at the core of this world of light, I witnessed a great darkness. A corrupt, ravenous presence; a bloated parasite that fed voraciously on the living, whose appetite could never be satisfied. Arrogantly, I sought to cut that devouring corruption from its host. Instead, I destroyed the planet, shattering its fragments across the cosmos."
- ^ Elder Sword (echo), written by Guthix, RuneScape. "Worst of all, I fear my actions have released corruption from its prison. Its tendrils entwine the threads of mortality. It has taken root in pathways I have opened. There are many places I now dare not travel, for fear that corruption may probe deeper into the cosmos, and find a new host."
- ^ Mod Slayer. Fate of the Gods - FAQ. Recent Game Updates Forums. (Archived from the original on 3 April 2014.) Mod Rowley: "He later used the sword where the Valluta is now, but cut too deep, piercing the void (and shattering the sword in the process)."
- ^ World Gate (echo), written by Guthix, RuneScape. "By manipulating the stone of power I found on Gielinor, I moulded many of the broken Blade's fragments into gateways, portals through which mortal life could travel to my perfect world and share in its beauty."