The Story of Amne Ath Tel:

The elven kingdom of Laime lies North of Tarth and far to the east of the wastes of Illantul.  There it is nestled in a vale amongst a grove of colossal oaks, the likes of which few outside the elven race have ever laid eye upon. It is said that these trees protect their kingdom from outsiders and that the oaks can communicate with one another and move about on their own accord. But the mighty oaks alone were not enough protection for the elves to feel completely secure in Laime, which is why the eleven smiths forged Amne Ath Tel, “Shade of the Vale.”  This magical blade is the protector of Laime, passed down for generations from one captain of the elven guard to the next.  The Shade of the Vale endows the wielder with the power to command the trees as well as being a blade that inflicts wounds that will never heal.  It is said that any wound inflicted by Amne Ath Tel will bleed like tree sap running in the spring. 

Actual Design and Construction:

The original blade blank was forged by Windlass Steelcrafts using 1085 high carbon steel.   I dramatically altered both the shape and the taper of the blade.   Each side of the blade is hand etched with an oak sprig, acorns, and the elven script for “Shade of the Vale” set inside a darkened shield.  The cross guard is fashioned from ½ inch solid brass and the quillons are acorns carved from solid brass and threaded and secured to the cross guard.  The first spacer was carved from Central American Katalox with a brass inlay of the eleven word for “shade” on each side.  Next is a carved brass spacer before a handle carved from alternating pieces of African Blackwood and Katalox.  The entire handle assembly is fitted with hardened steel lineup pins and is secured to the through tang with a threaded pommel nut carved in the shape of a large acorn.   All the brass fixtures are treated with a patina.

Specifications:

Blade length: 12 inches

Overall length: 18 inches

Hand grip length: 4.125 inches

Blade width at widest point: 1.625 inches

Guard width: 6 inches

Weight: 17.2 ounces

Balance point: 0.75 inch in front of the guard

Sheath Construction:

The sheath is constructed of 4-5 oz premium veg tan leather and wet formed to the blade with hand stitching down the back spine.  The body of the sheath is tooled with a similar sprig of oak adorned with acorns to the one on the blade and stained light brown with black antiquing.  The leather throat is also tooled with oak leaves and acorns.  The throat and midsection that frame the body are hand stitched to the sheath and stained dark brown, as is the chape.