Any warrior worth their salt is never without their trusty weapon in order to slay the various beasts and monsters in their wake; and an Apostle is no different. All the various super powered fighters in the roster have their own weapons in order to vanquish the myriad of shadows they come across, releasing the tortured soul from its demonic shell in the process. “But what makes these weapons so special” you may ask. Well these weapons are vital in slaying the dark beasts as conventional weapons have no effect on the demons. If on a character spotlight pic you see the words “Weapon contracts”, then those are the weapons specifically tailored to each Apostle. However, I feel there is bit more that can be said for these divine instruments, so like with everything else, let’s explore, shall we?!

Soul Shards: Soul Shards, also known as a “Guardian’s Tool”, is a specially crafted weapon that is given to an Apostle upon their induction into Oblivia’s forces. Similar to the soul shroud, a soul shard is created by Oblivia; but in order to craft the instrument, she requires a piece of the Apostle’s soul. By reaching into the Apostle’s chest, Oblivia carefully plucks a portion of the person’s soul from their body, being sure not to harm them in the process. After doing so the piece of the soul will morph into a weapon that fits the look and design of the Apostle’s soul shroud, after which Oblivia will place the piece back into the warrior’s chest. Upon doing so the Apostle gains the knowledge of their soul shard as well as its capabilities. After their soul shard has been created, an Apostle can call upon their weapon at any point, having it appear in their grasp at a moments notice, with the added benefit of being able to reseal the weapon back into their body at will. The reason these particular weapons are efficient at injuring/killing shadows is due to the weapon being part of the Apostle’s soul, hence the name; as such the result of damaging a shadow with a soul shard is the same as using a sparra related power. Soul shards can bypass a shadows’ natural regeneration, with any damage or dismemberment caused being permanent. Despite only one piece of the Apostles’ soul being needed for the creation of a soul shard, the weapon has the ability to morph into various other weapons the Apostle is skilled with. The Apostle gains knowledge of what forms their soul shard can take after receiving it, being able to summon their weapon in any form they choose or being able to change it while drawn. The amount of forms a soul shard can take is contingent upon the individual, similar to that of soul shrouds. Mastery and skill will determine the forms a soul shard takes, as such not every Apostle will have the same weapon type or amount of weaponry at their disposal. It is possible for the soul shard to increase the amount of forms it has, but only when an Apostle masters a new weapon.

Aside from its intended function, each soul shard has a secondary benefit that only the Apostle will know of, and with each form, the ability can change to something different. Soul shards cannot harm their owner regardless of who is using it. The weapon will harmlessly phase through its owner should someone else try to injure them with it. Soul shards are virtually unbreakable by normal methods, being able to withstand extremely powerful blows without so much as chipping. However, similar to soul shrouds, the weapon is intertwined with the user, being a clear representation of their current sparra level. The more sparra an Apostle expends, the more their weapons effectivity will decrease, causing it to dull, crack, and chip. If the Apostle uses too much sparra, the soul shard will grow more and more damaged as its used, eventually shattering and forcibly sealing itself. The weapon will repair itself in tandem with the Apostle’s naturally recovering sparra. When an Apostle strengthens their soul, the weapon will grow stronger as well, increasing its durability and effectiveness along with its master.

And there you have it folks, another tidbit of information for you, so you can understand the world in which these characters protect. The weapon you see here is actually Orion’s soul shard, the other sword was a gift to him by Oblivia, hence why he has two. There will more than likely be a pic of him using his weapons in the future, but for now enjoy this awesome pic done by my good buddy  A_Blue_Deer! I hope you all enjoy, and remember to keep those blades sharp!

*TRIVIA: Orion is the only Apostle to have access to a weapon other than his soul shard that is capable of slaying shadows.