Comments from the Writer: For our revision of Dark Matter, we’re not only revising the old list of magic items, but also expanding it with new categories! Meet living weapons: weapons that scale with your level. These have been so obvious an inclusion to the game that D&D 3.5 included them as “relics” in the Magic Item Compendium, so it’s a wonder that it took us this long to implement them!
Ancestral Laser Sword
Weapon (antimatter dagger, laser halfsword, laser sword), uncommon (requires attunement)
Passed from generation to generation, this blade remembers each master who has wielded it. When you roll a 1 on an attack roll using this weapon, you can reroll the die and must use the new roll.
Living Weapon. This weapon grows in power as you gain levels. At 5th level, you gain a +1 bonus to attack and damage rolls made with this magic weapon. This bonus increases to +2 at 11th level, and +3 at 17th level.
Ancestral Property. When you find the laser sword, it has a property determined by the wielder that carried it previously. The GM chooses the sword’s property or determines it randomly.
| d6 | Property |
| 1 | Blindsight. While attuned to the sword, you have blindsight with a range of 20 feet. Within that range, you can effectively see anything that isn’t behind total cover. Moreover, you can see an invisible creature within that range, unless the creature successfully hides from you. |
| 2 | Communion. You can spend 10 minutes communing with the spirits of the sword’s previous wielders. Choose the Arcana, Data, History, Investigation, Nature, Religion, or Technology skill. You gain proficiency with this skill until the next dawn, and your proficiency bonus is doubled for any ability check you make that uses this proficiency. |
| 3 | Covert. White attuned to the sword, when you are hidden and a creature discovers you with a successful Wisdom (Perception) check, you can reattempt your Dexterity (Stealth) check to hide. On a success, you silently reposition yourself and the creature doesn’t notice you. Once you use this trait, you can’t use it again until the next dusk. |
| 4 | Leaper. While attuned to the sword, your jump distance triples. |
| 5 | Telepathy. While attuned to this sword, you can telepathically speak to any creature you can see within 30 feet of you. You don’t need to share a language with the creature for it to understand your telepathic utterances, but the creature must be able to understand at least one language. |
| 6 | Returning. While you are attuned to the sword, it has the Thrown (range 40/120) property. You can use a bonus action to call the sword to you if it is within 60 feet of you and isn’t being carried, causing it to fly into your open hand. |
Axe of the Mother Tree
Weapon (battleaxe or greataxe), uncommon
This traditional skathári axe is carved from rough-hewn ironwood. When you miss by 3 or less with an attack using the axe, you deal 1d8 slashing damage to the target.
Living Weapon. This weapon grows in power as you gain levels. At 5th level, you gain a +1 bonus to attack and damage rolls made with this magic weapon. This bonus increases to +2 at 11th level, and +3 at 17th level.
Ballistic Sledge
Weapon (rocket hammer), uncommon (requires attunement)
Whenever you make a melee attack on your turn against a creature you can see and you engage the hammer’s thrusters, you can lunge up to 15 feet toward your target before making the attack. Doing so doesn’t spend movement or provoke opportunity attacks. You can perform this movement even if it causes you to travel through the air, though you fall after making the attack if you have nothing holding you aloft.
Living Weapon. This weapon grows in power as you gain levels. At 5th level, you gain a +1 bonus to attack and damage rolls made with this magic weapon. This bonus increases to +2 at 11th level, and +3 at 17th level.
Brass Repeater
Weapon (repeater), uncommon (requires attunement)
When you hit a target with this weapon and roll the same number on two or more different damage dice, you can add your Dexterity modifier to the damage roll.
Living Weapon. This weapon grows in power as you gain levels. At 5th level, you gain a +1 bonus to attack and damage rolls made with this magic weapon. This bonus increases to +2 at 11th level, and +3 at 17th level.
