Ghostly Blade (Patreon)

Weapon (longsword), very rare (requires attunement)

This fractured sword is inhabited by the spirit of its previous wielder. While grasping the hilt, you can use a bonus action to cause a blade of ghostly energy to spring into existence, or make the blade disappear. While the blade exists, this magic longsword has the finesse property. If you are proficient with shortswords or longswords, you are proficient with the ghostly blade.

You gain a +1 bonus to attack and damage rolls with this magic weapon, which deals force damage instead of slashing damage. While holding the sword, you can use a bonus action to see up to 30 feet into the Ethereal Plane until the start of your next turn. Further, your attacks with this weapon can hit any creature you see on that plane; if you're on the Ethereal Plane, you can use this weapon to attack targets you see on the plane you originated from, although the attack rolls are made with disadvantage.

Blink Step. You can use a bonus action to step into the Ethereal Plane, where you remain until the end of your next turn. At the end of the effect, you reappear in an unoccupied space of your choice within 10 feet of you on the plane you originated from. This property of the weapon can be used twice, and it regains all expended uses of it daily at dawn.

While on the Ethereal Plane, you can see and hear the plane you originated from, which is cast in shades of gray, and you can't see anything there more than 60 feet away. You can only affect and be affected by other creatures on the Ethereal Plane. Creatures that aren't there can't perceive you or interact with you, unless they have the ability to do so.

Possession Immunity. While you're attuned to this weapon, you can't be possessed by another creature. If you are already possessed by another creature, you can't attune to this item.

Sentience. While the weapon itself isn't sentient, it's haunted by the spirit of its last wielder. The spirit is neutral with an Intelligence of 15, a Wisdom of 12, and a Charisma of 17. It can hear and has darkvision out to a range of 120 feet. It can speak, read, and understand any languages it knew in life, and can communicate with its wielder telepathically. Its voice echoes in a loud whisper.

Personality. The spirit seeks to slay the creature who killed it in life. It patiently asks the sword's wielder to avenge its death. It shares stories with the wielder in order to feel a semblance of life even after death. If its requests are ignored for long enough, the spirit may prevent the wielder from using the sword's properties.

Curse. This weapon is cursed, and becoming attuned to it extends the curse to you. As long as you remain cursed, you are unwilling to part with the sword, keeping it within reach at all times. You also have disadvantage on attack rolls with weapons other than this one, unless no foe is within 60 feet of you that you can see or hear.

This portion of the curse is only revealed when you die. If a creature slays you while you're cursed, you must make a DC 16 Charisma saving throw. On a failed save, your spirit is shunted into the blade to replace the previous one, becoming the new sentience within the weapon. For the duration, you can't be returned to life by any means other than a wish spell, unless the sword is used to slay the creature that killed you. If you're returned to life by wish in this way, the weapon becomes a nonmagical sword handle.

When your spirit is shunted into the sword, the original spirit appears as a ghost within 5 feet of the weapon. The ghost can wield this sword and use its properties, although its disposition depends on how you treated it.

Once the sword has slain the creature that killed its inhabited spirit, the spirit leaves the blade (and can be returned to life), and the weapon transforms into a sun blade that has the Blinkstep property. Using this version of Blinkstep allows you to cast misty step from it, instead of its usual properties; when you do, you reappear in a flash of bright light.

It had been her grandfather's blade, shattered in his final hunt. Returned in spite by the sanguine duke who'd slain him, it had long waited for one who could match his will.

Now she bore his mantle, inheritor of skill, sword, and soul alike. Her spectral blade locked against her grandfather's foe, his undead strength overrun as she slipped away, striking from where he couldn't follow.

Yet pluck and guile were an ill match for ancient malice; she fell, bloodless, drained of life. Despite his own grievous wounds the duke sneered, turning to—

He stared at the azure spike emerging from his chest, unable to believe his end until the light's hue bled to sunlit gold.

In the silence, ash fell around the blade held now in the old hunter's ghostly hand.