Many magical artifacts appear in Terry Brooks' epic fantasy Shannara series.
Blue Elfstones[]
The Blue Elfstones, or seeking stones, were given to Shea Ohmsford by the Druid Allanon, for guidance and protection whenever all else failed. They were meant as a last resort, for when the magic activated, beings of magical power could sense their use and location. Shea used them several times, though he lost them temporarily twice: once to a patrol of Gnomes and the thief Panamon Creel, and next to the Northland while he fled Skull Mountain, but he recovered them again both times. The Elfstones were later given to Wil Ohmsford, who used them to aid the Chosen Amberle in the search for The Bloodfire. He succeeded, but the effect of his thin Elven blood resulted in part of the magic being transferred to his descendants. After several decades, almost all the Elven blood was bred out of the Ohmsfords, making it impossible to use the Elfstones. The current generation decided to return the stones to those who could use them, and they passed to the parents of Wren Elessedil. When Wren was to be left with the Ohmsfords, she was given the Elfstones, but they were disguised to look like painted rocks. She later discovered their nature while battling a Shadowen, and used the stones in the war against the evil magic. The stones were later taken on an expedition to the land of Parkasia, where they remained for years until their recovery by Ahren Elessedil. They later passed to his niece, Khyber Elessedil and used in the quest to find the missing Grianne Ohmsford.
When used as a weapon, the stones create a blue flame, whose form and strength is controlled by the wielder, and can instantly destroy all but the largest magical creatures and spells. Like most forms of magic, they exert a great toll on the wielder and when using them, the wielder must always be on guard against their destructive powers. Furthermore, against non magical foes (like soldiers or airships), they are nothing but a distracting light show with no tangible damage inflicted, as Ahren Elessedil discovered when attempting to use them versus a flock of quite normal Shrikes. One way that this may be circumvented is if the wielder uses the stones to attack a large group of magic and normal foes at once, the sheer strength of the elfstones may destroy the normal opponents as well. Also, if shielding spells are placed on something, like the Druid Warship Galaphile, the stones can be used against the guarding magic, as well as the protected artifact.
Loden[]
| The Loden | |
|---|---|
| Purpose | to move the entire city of Arborlon; was used three times. |
| Used by | Elves |
| First appearance | The Heritage of Shannara, The Elves of Cintra, and The Gypsy Morph |
| Creation | prior to The Elves of Cintra |
| Destruction | The Talismans of Shannara |
The Loden was the object of a search undertaken by a group of elves protected by a Knight of the Word in The Elves of Cintra. It was found by the end of the novel by Kirisin Belloruus and his sister Simralin. They narrowly escaped an ambush by a demon who had been disguised as the Elf Culph shortly after recovering the Loden. In The Gypsy Morph, Kirisin used the Loden to relocate the city of Arborlon into an area of protection created by Hawk in his final act of magic as the Gypsy Morph. It is currently unknown whether or not Arborlon was moved again prior to The Sword of Shannara, at which point it was situated in the Westland.
During their later efforts to recover the magics of the Old World, the Elven people rediscovered enough magic to wield the Loden. It had remained hidden away and kept secret until the Elves decided to migrate from the Westland to the island of Morrowindl. The Loden was also used in Morrowindl to ward off the horde of Shadowen monsters. It was then used to carry Arborlon back to the Four Lands, and after it released the city, its magic was expended, and it became a common rock.
Sword of Shannara[]
| Sword of Shannara | |
|---|---|
| Purpose | To make people see the truth about themselves |
| Used by | descendants of Jerle Shannara (the Ohmsfords) |
| First appearance | The Sword of Shannara |
| Creation | The First King of Shannara |
- This section is about the fictional sword. For the novel by Terry Brooks, see The Sword of Shannara.
The Sword of Shannara is a well-known weapon in the Shannara universe with a long history. During the Second War of the Races, the sword was forged by Urprox Screl at the behest of Bremen. Rumored to be the finest smith in all the Southland, Screl put that to the test during the forging, and with aid from an Old World formula provided by the outcast Cogline and the magic of the Druid Bremen he managed to forge it. The Eilt Druin medallion was fused into the hilt, and the truth of Druids past was infused within the weapon. The sword's power confronts any who touch it with the absolute truth about themselves; this power has been derided as weak because "it does nothing but compel truth-telling". This power destroys the Warlock Lord since he is only alive because of the depth of his belief that he is immortal. This is however not possible, the Sword forcing him to see and acknowledge this truth thus killing him. It was first carried by the Druid Bremen. Bremen gave it to the Elven King Jerle Shannara, who used it in the Second War of the Races against the Warlock Lord. He was unable to wield the talisman properly and could not garner the Sword's full power. As a result, the Warlock Lord was defeated but not killed, only forced to flee. The Sword was placed in a block of Tre-Stone and taken to Paranor for safekeeping. It was later stolen by the Warlock Lord's minions but recovered once more by Shea Ohmsford, who finally managed to defeat the Warlock Lord for good. Shea then gave it to the city of Tyrsis where it was kept in a vault for the next 300 years. After again disappearing, it was recovered by Par Ohmsford whose brother Coll used it to free Par from the power of the Shadowen. Par came to use it in battle with the Shadowen. The Sword was used next by Bek Ohmsford, who carried it during his journey to Parkasia. The Sword of Shannara is an artifact originally of the elven line of Shannara. Unlike the Elfstones, which require a strong elven bloodline , it depends upon the specific ancestry of Shannara. In addition to this, the nature of the sword makes it possible to undermine the user's ability to wield it properly> unless properly trained in the weapon. As a protection against this, it is actually important not to be told of the sword's power until after coming into possession of it.
Faerie Talismans[]
- This this section includes artifacts of Elven magic and Demon magic, as both Elves and Demons are creatures of Faerie.
Staff of Power[]
The Staff of Power was wielded by the Dagda Mor. He always had it with him, and with it rivalled Allanon in magical force. It could burst flames from its tip, and also allowed the Dagda Mor to see what his minions, the Changeling and the Reaper, were seeing. Because the Dagda Mor had the Staff of Power, he could sense whenever Wil Ohmsford used the Blue Elfstones. The Staff of Power was destroyed at the final battle of the Demon Wars by Allanon. Using the Staff as a conduit, Allanon unleashed Druid fire in it that worked its way to the Dagda Mor, killing the demon. Allanon then broke the Staff of Power in half.
Also, in "The Elves of Cintra", the staff held by a knight of the word was referred to as a staff of power, though because it was not unique, may have just been a term to describe the nature of the weapon, as more than just a symbol of office.
Ruhk Staff[]
The Ruhk Staff is a magical wooden staff with the Loden affixed to its tip. It was used to channel and direct the magic of the Loden. The Loden and the Ruhk Staff were used to carry the city of Arborlon to Morrowindl, and was passed down through the Elessedil family. The last to carry it was Wren Elessedil, and after the Loden became an ordinary stone, its magic expended, she broke the staff over her knee.
Phoenix Stone[]
The Phoenix Stone is a magical stone that was given to Bek Ohmsford by the King of the Silver River in Ilse Witch. The King of the Silver River told Bek to throw it to the ground when he was in danger, however, it would shatter on impact, thus it could only be used once. On the journey to Parkasia, Bek gave the Phoenix Stone to Ahren Elessedil because at the time Ahren had no magic of his own to rely on. Walker Boh warned Bek that he should not have done this and to try to get the stone back as soon as possible. However, Bek forgot about it and soon he and Ahren were separated. But in the end Ahren used the Phoenix Stone to save himself and the seer Ryer Ord Star from the maniacal computer entity Antrax. After Ahren used the Phoenix Stone a cloud of mist surrounded himself and Ryer, making them invisible and intangible as the stone ceased to exist. Instead of escaping, Ahren and Ryer chose to look for Walker Boh and save him and as a result, Walker was able to destroy Antrax.
Miscellaneous[]
Mirrorshroud[]
The Mirrorshroud was made by Rimmer Dall for use by the Shadowen. It is believed to have been woven from pure darkness although little is known of its history. Its original use was to allow a shadowen to get close to a target without detection by giving the victim the impression that the wearer was a friend. The negative aspect of its use is to corrupt the wearer so that they are unable to remove the cloak and they will become a Shadowen. Coll Ohmsford used the Mirrorshroud to escape Southwatch after his imprisonment and it is believed that it was later destroyed by the Sword of Shannara, although this was not confirmed. During the period he wore the cloak he was described as "enslaved" and had been allowed to wear it by Rimmer Dall with the intention that Coll would kill Par Ohmsford.