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Elder Scrolls

For other uses, see Umbra Sword.
"The Umbra Sword was enchanted by the ancient witch Naenra Waerr, and its sole purpose was the entrapment of souls. Used in conjunction with a soul gem, the Sword allows the wielder the opportunity to imprison an enemy's soul in the gem. Naenra was executed for her evil creation, but not before she was able to hide the Sword. The Umbra Sword is very choosy when it comes to owners and therefore remains hidden until a worthy one is found."
―Umbra Sword entry in Tamrielic Lore[src]

The Umbra Sword is an enchanted blade that was created by the witch Naenra Waerr in an unknown Era. The sword possessed the ability to ensnare the soul of any living creature it encountered, trapping that soul within a Soul Gem. While this was the sword's primary enchantment, it also seemed to possess a form of sentience, that was either implemented by Naenra herself or was developed over time.

History

When her creation was discovered, Naenra was slain, though she managed to hide the sword before her execution. Eventually, the Umbra Sword would be found, and thus begin its long history of bloodshed. At length, the sword came into the possession of an Orc, a warrior who in taking the sword also decided to take its name, calling himself Umbra, after his weapon. It is unknown if this was the first instance of a warrior taking the sword's name, yet it is highly plausible that it was not. The Orc Umbra went on to become one of the fiercest warriors of his day, slaying any and all enemies that challenged him. Eventually he became weary of his success, wishing for nothing more than a noble warrior's death. He hid for a time near the city of Suran, in the mountains of Morrowind. There he was discovered by the Nerevarine, who consented to duel him and grant him his warrior's death. Somehow, through time, the sword ended up in Cyrodiil, in a Bosmer woman's hands.

Powers

The Umbra Sword is capable of capturing a creature's soul upon killing it, provided that there is an appropriate Soul Gem to capture the soul in. Beyond this, it would seem that the sword gains some strength from the souls of those it kills, regardless of the presence of a gem.

The two individuals known to have used the sword after its creation both took the name Umbra after the blade. It would seem that the sword exerts some power over its wielder, influencing them to kill in an effort to satiate the blade's thirst for souls. In the case of the Orc warrior, it appears he was able to break the sword's hold on him and tire of his career of killing. In the case of Lenwin, however, the sword consumed her almost completely.

Using Azura's Star in conjunction with Umbra makes the pair a soul capturing team to behold.

Quests

Umbra (Quest)

The Orc named Umbra challenges the Nerevarine in a duel, in order to fullfil his wish of a having the death of a warrior. After he is killed, the blade can be looted from his body.

The Museum TR

In Tribunal, this sword can be donated or sold to the Museum of Artifacts in Godsreach. Torasa Aram, the curator of the museum, offers a sum of 30'000 Gold for the sword, which is the maximum amount of gold she is willing to pay for one artifact.

Trivia

  • In Morrowind, the sword is a claymore, whereas in The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, the sword is a longsword. The two are the same in appearance, however, despite Oblivion's different ebony look.
  • Despite what it does to the NPCs that wield it, the sword will never affect the player character's mind.
  • In Latin, Umbra means shadow.

Appearances

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