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The Dawn Sword


LynnS

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21 hours ago, LynnS said:

I'm not sure of this claim.  They may be a form of life changed by ice magic in the same way that Mel is changed by fire magic.  They are made of ice and snow and cold according to Mel.   Martin said that they are held together by a spell.  But he has also said they represent death and darkness and hate.  I think they are the souls of the dead re-purposed long ago by the COTF  and their greenseers.  I think originally the WW's were an army of COTF defending their land and gods from the First Men.  The defense of which was later given over to the First Men; who then provided human greenseers as part of the Pact.  

The Wall is one of the Hinges of the World and the magic that raised it is old magic and powerful.  What is it's purpose? Why does it stop Coldhands?  Why can't wights pass on their own accord?  What do the wildlings know that makes it imperative that they get south of the Wall before the WWs show up?  

Well, I don't know about all the rest, but Martin has said they are not dead but are a "different sort of life, inhuman, elegant, dangerous."

A Game of Thrones: The Graphic Novel. Volume 1 - Daniel Abraham, George R. R. Martin, Tommy Patterson, Ivan Nunes, Marshall Dillon - Google Books

And yes, Dalla thinks the Wall will stop the Others, but how can she know for sure? And again, why would it be the ice that stops them and not the magic and the wards?

 

IMO, there's just not enough evidence yet to draw any firm conclusions about any of this.

 

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28 minutes ago, John Suburbs said:

Well, I don't know about all the rest, but Martin has said they are not dead but are a "different sort of life, inhuman, elegant, dangerous."

And yes, Dalla thinks the Wall will stop the Others, but how can she know for sure? And again, why would it be the ice that stops them and not the magic and the wards?

IMO, there's just not enough evidence yet to draw any firm conclusions about any of this.

I don't disagree with the sentiment and uncertainty principles always apply when trying to figure this stuff out.  The definition for alive and dead in this story is pretty open-ended.  The most I can say about the WWs is that they are a cold-blooded form of life.

It doesn't mean we should stop asking questions or testing assumption while trying to make sense of it.  I wonder if the 'different form of life" to which Martin refers are the COTF.  Whether the original WW are more related to their species and if they have been replaced with a new form of WW.  Specifically humans after the Pact.

As far as what the Wildlings know; their legends may contain a more complete picture of the Long Night and the Night King.  His name may not have been erased everywhere.  Their knowledge of the Others goes back thousands of years and in repeated stories of successive Kings Beyond the Wall.  The story we have now is just the latest in a repeating cycle.  Dalla, Borroq and even Morna the Wood's Witch may supply more information at some point.  We can't discount Melisandre either for knowing more than she is telling.   

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10 hours ago, Stormy4400 said:

Is it opaque though? Some milk glass can be translucent and based on Ned's memory of it being "alive with light", I tend to think that Dawn was honed to a point where it has a translucent quality. If it was fully opaque, it couldn't be alive with light. 

This is a very good point.  It has an extremely sharp edge which would make it very thin indeed and light playing across it's edge may look something like this:

Quote

 

A Game of Thrones - Prologue

The Other slid forward on silent feet. In its hand was a longsword like none that Will had ever seen. No human metal had gone into the forging of that blade. It was alive with moonlight, translucent, a shard of crystal so thin that it seemed almost to vanish when seen edge-on. There was a faint blue shimmer to the thing, a ghost-light that played around its edges, and somehow Will knew it was sharper than any razor.

 

 

10 hours ago, Stormy4400 said:

I could be wrong, but I suspect that most of the scenes you reference as being like Dawn's description most likely occurred at either sunrise or sunset for the reasons I reference. George is always consistent in his symbolism. 

I agree.  It would make sense that the confrontation takes place at Dawn.

10 hours ago, Stormy4400 said:

To me, "alive with light" suggests that Dawn’s blade is almost like a prism that bends the light of the sun at either sunrise or sunset. The light that Ned saw were likely pinks and reds and yellows of sunrise, not blue.

Yes, I can see this as well.  Pink is a color of sunrise and sunset.  The band of pink is called the belt of venus.

Belt of Venus - Facts and Information - World of Phenomena

10 hours ago, Stormy4400 said:

To me, "alive with light" suggests that Dawn’s blade is almost like a prism that bends the light of the sun at either sunrise or sunset. The light that Ned saw were likely pinks and reds and yellows of sunrise, not blue.

Dawn is symbolic of the dawn and the fire of the returned sun. I don't think that we will ever see it described as shining with blue light. That wouldn’t fit its symbolism. For it to be alive with blue light, its name would have to be "Afternoon" or "Day?"

For this reason, while I think that its color is like that of the Others, I don't think that it was their sword. I do however think that it might have been the sword of the Nights King from before he made or led the Others.

As crazy as it sounds, I think that the description of Dawn being "alive with light" opens the possibility that its purpose is not to be wielded during a great Long Night battle but rather to be used at the dawn. It can't be "alive with light" during the Long Night. It would be “pale with moonlight” as the Others and their swords are described.

As George describes it as "alive with light", it means that at some point, we the reader will see such a scene play out on the page and so for this to happen, I think that the battle must occur at dawn or sunset. Again, considering the name, it must be at dawn.

This is a good explanation.  Not crazy at all.

10 hours ago, Stormy4400 said:

I think the theory that Dawn was forged from a piece of moon rock is quite likely correct. George is a child of the 60s-70s when trips to the moon were a big part of American life. If I had to guess, I would say that he was visualizing Dawn being made from one of the rocks astronauts brought back from the moon during the 60s and 70s.  Moon Rocks like the ones shown on Wikipedia. This means that there is a duality to Dawn in that it's a tool of the night that is potentially stronger during the day.

I haven't heard this before.  I'm more inclined towards a metallic meteorite and a metal that is used to make Damascus-like steel for it's whiteness and patterns.  I'm still intrigued by the potential for a semi- translucent sword that reflects and refracts light.

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1 hour ago, John Suburbs said:

And yes, Dalla thinks the Wall will stop the Others, but how can she know for sure? And again, why would it be the ice that stops them and not the magic and the wards?

I'm not sure that it is ice that stops them.  Ice is a physical manifestation of the magic that is used.  But do we know what magic was contained in the great lore.  Is it only ice magic.  Why is Mel's magic strengthened at the Wall.  Why is her power growing?  If Jon can use the magic if the Wall, who else can use it? Bran?  Bloodraven?  Is it the source of the magic spell that binds the WWs together in their icy form?

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1 hour ago, LynnS said:

This is a very good point.  It has an extremely sharp edge which would make it very thin indeed and light playing across it's edge may look something like this:

 

I agree.  It would make sense that the confrontation takes place at Dawn.

Yes, I can see this as well.  Pink is a color of sunrise and sunset.  The band of pink is called the belt of venus.

Belt of Venus - Facts and Information - World of Phenomena

This is a good explanation.  Not crazy at all.

I haven't heard this before.  I'm more inclined towards a metallic meteorite and a metal that is used to make Damascus-like steel for it's whiteness and patterns.  I'm still intrigued by the potential for a semi- translucent sword that reflects and refracts light.

I think it comes from the in-world legend that Dawn was forge from the heart of a fallen star. Being that it's white, the moon seems most obvious. It may also tie into LML's moon meteor theory...although I'm not sure that he is the first to suggest that it's made from a piece of the moon.  The part about George being a child of the NASA era and possibly the moon rocks brought back to earth being his inspiration for why the sword is white is me.

The fact that there have been both Swords of the Morning and Evening House Dayne's past is another clue that the sword has both night and day properties. And of course we have a wannabe wielder in Darkstar who styles himself as being of the night. 

However, as we both think that the sword will be wielded at dawn, who do you think will be on the opposite side of the confrontation. It can't be an Other because if it's dawn, the Long Night is over. If we assume that Jon will be wielding Dawn, who do you think he will be up against. My money is on Euron wielding Blackfyre. The two most famous swords in the story seem destined to face off against each other at some point.

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12 hours ago, Stormy4400 said:

However, as we both think that the sword will be wielded at dawn, who do you think will be on the opposite side of the confrontation. It can't be an Other because if it's dawn, the Long Night is over. If we assume that Jon will be wielding Dawn, who do you think he will be up against. My money is on Euron wielding Blackfyre. The two most famous swords in the story seem destined to face off against each other at some point.

No way, it's gonna be fAegon that wields Blackfyre. The Golden Company is the best candidate because Bittersteel had it when he died, and fAegon is a Blackfyre through the female line. But I agree Aejon will fight agains that sword, with his own Targaryen ancestral bastard sword, Longclaw aka the sword Bloodraven took with him to the wall; Dark Sister.

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3 hours ago, Targaryeninkingslanding said:

No way, it's gonna be fAegon that wields Blackfyre. The Golden Company is the best candidate because Bittersteel had it when he died, and fAegon is a Blackfyre through the female line. But I agree Aejon will fight agains that sword, with his own Targaryen ancestral bastard sword, Longclaw aka the sword Bloodraven took with him to the wall; Dark Sister.

I am curious about Dark Sister.  I think that sword is yet to be found.  If Bloodraven disappeared on a ranging, did he have it with him?  That seems likely to me.  Dark Sister always conjures up images of Arya, another dark sister.

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On 6/3/2021 at 12:39 PM, Stormy4400 said:

The fact that there have been both Swords of the Morning and Evening House Dayne's past is another clue that the sword has both night and day properties. And of course we have a wannabe wielder in Darkstar who styles himself as being of the night. 

There does seem to be a cycle in the words: now it begins/now it ends.  Which relates to dawn and dusk and whomever wields the sword will be known either as the Sword of the Morning or Evening.  I think the Dawn Sword is going to change hands several times in the story.  At this point, the dawn cycle is ended with the death of Ser Arthur and the next person to claim the sword will be the Sword of the Evening.  That cycle will end with the Battle for the Dawn and the return of the next Sword of the Morning. The sword will change hands again.  Who will claim the sword is up for grabs.  Traditionally, it would seem that the Daynes have the only claim.  However Martin has said the one who claims the sword must be worthy of it.  That tells me that the sword will pass to the hands of someone who is worthy of it.  We might be getting a preview of things to come in Brienne's story of the Just Maid and the Perfect Knight.   So I'm not counting my chickens before they are hatched as far as Aegon or Darkstar are concerned. :D

For a long time we have discussed the TPWIP and AA prophecies.  Some have asked  if the TPWIP and AA prophecy are the same since Melisandre, Aemon and Rhaegar conflate the two.  I think they are different but related and refer to two different characters.  Dany is the PWIP.  Aemon says that return of dragons is the proof they were looking for and didn't get at Summerhall.  Rhaegar is looking for the comet that didn't appear at his birth.  Aemon says they thought salt tears and the smoke of fire at Summerhall fit with the AA story 'born amidst salt and smoke'.  

So Aerys believing that his first born will be TPWIP; takes everyone off to Summerhall to await Rhaegar's birth and when Elia goes into labor; his pyromancers attempt to hatch dragons eggs, which fails. This was the 'proof' they were looking for and it didn't happen.  Rhaegar then says that a comet did not appear at his birth so he can't be the one who brings back dragons; that he is instead the warrior.  This fits with Mel's story of the warrior of light.  So Rhaegar also contrives to sire the PWIP.  On the night a comet appears, he makes his way to Elia's bed and says that a comet appeared at his son's conception.  He thinks the comet is the proof.  He ensures that Aegon is born at Dragonstone, a place of salt and smoke.  But this doesn't quite fit with a comet appearing on day that TPWIP is born or the birth of dragons.  Rhaegar believes Aegon is the PWIP, but he isn't. 

Melisandre also conflates waking dragons from stone with AA, the warrior of light and thinks she is the one to hatch dragons.  She is also trying to make the prophecy happen with Stannis as the stand-in for AA.  She is wrong as well.  

Dany fits all the requirements and the proof is the red comet and the dragons.  But this doesn't make her AA.  I think the interesting part of Rhaegar's story is that he thinks that Aegon is TPWIP and Rhaegar himself is the warrior .  So the PWIP is the herald for the coming of the warrior.  Which is why he was confident about the outcome of Robert's Rebellion and that he would win at the Trident.  It's also why he names Aegon the PWIP before he is born and not on the day he is born.  Since Rhaegar failed, he is not the warrior of light.  It's also why he says a comet appeared at Aegon's conception and not his birth.

So these two things go together, one the return of dragons with it's red comet/The Red Messenger announcing the birth of dragons; which in turn heralds the return of  AA. the warrior to come.  We know who the PWIP is now.  We don't know who the warrior of light will turn out to be.  That's not Dany.  She is on the path of the crones.  The one who leads the way, lights the path and gives strength to the warrior of light.  I think that will turn out to be the person who becomes the next Sword of the Morning.

 

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22 hours ago, LynnS said:

I'm not sure that it is ice that stops them.  Ice is a physical manifestation of the magic that is used.  But do we know what magic was contained in the great lore.  Is it only ice magic.  Why is Mel's magic strengthened at the Wall.  Why is her power growing?  If Jon can use the magic if the Wall, who else can use it? Bran?  Bloodraven?  Is it the source of the magic spell that binds the WWs together in their icy form?

not to belabor the point, but this is exactly my point. The Wall is ice, the wall is magic. Who wields magical ice weapons? Not humans, not children, but Others. Who comes from a land of ice? The Others. Who embodies ice magic? The Others.

So it only stands to reason that the Others are responsible for a giant magical wall of ice. It's like saying there was a great wall of fire around Valyria but it was built by men in order to keep the Valyrians and their dragons contained. If you want to contain magical ice creatures, the last thing you would do is build a magical ice wall.

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6 minutes ago, John Suburbs said:

not to belabor the point, but this is exactly my point. The Wall is ice, the wall is magic. Who wields magical ice weapons? Not humans, not children, but Others. Who comes from a land of ice? The Others. Who embodies ice magic? The Others.

So it only stands to reason that the Others are responsible for a giant magical wall of ice. It's like saying there was a great wall of fire around Valyria but it was built by men in order to keep the Valyrians and their dragons contained. If you want to contain magical ice creatures, the last thing you would do is build a magical ice wall.

Well you can stop a fire with another fire. What if the Wall traps ice magic and that is reflected in it's basic material from which it's built.  What we don't know or can't see is what magic or spells went into it's construction.  I'm guessing it's equally fire and ice and this is why Mel's power is growing at the Wall.  Storms End seems to be warded against fire and/or shadow assassins. Bran the Builder is responsible for both the Wall and Storms End.  Mel has to be brought across the ward in the same way that Othor and Jafr have to be  brought through the Wall.  The Wall interferes with a warg bond.  Orell's eagle bursts into flames when it flies too high over the Wall.  Mel takes credit for that but was it her casting fire into the Eagle or was she just taking credit for it?  Dragons will not cross the Wall.  The Wall falls if the wards fail.  

 

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Darkstar could end up using Dawn. He is both light and dark, as well as being of the night. His dark hair is part white part black. Who says every hero has to be nice. 

Dawn looks unusual because the metal is not of this world. Maybe it's glass, aka glass candle. The candles probably came from the same meteor. The Others have no power over a space rock. 

 

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1 hour ago, Moiraine Sedai said:

Dawn looks unusual because the metal is not of this world. Maybe it's glass, aka glass candle.

I'll go with metal from a meteorite.  I'm puzzled by the second choice.  Why do you think it could be obsidion?

Some form of desert glass formed from a meteor impact perhaps?

Libyan desert glass - Wikipedia

633b4add74467be0f28737d9d4467b29--conch-deserts.jpg (640×500) (pinimg.com)

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10 hours ago, LynnS said:

I am curious about Dark Sister.  I think that sword is yet to be found.  If Bloodraven disappeared on a ranging, did he have it with him?  That seems likely to me.  Dark Sister always conjures up images of Arya, another dark sister.

If bloodraven doesn't have it with him then Longclaw is the best candidate to be it. it is the sword used by the last two lord commanders. both are bastard swords. lord jeor mormont said it was "once" called longclaw, and jorah never mentions it. if the raven on Mormons shoulder was bloodraven, then its not much to assume he knew more than he let on.

I also love the conjured image of Arya as jons dark sister. every man of the watch has a brother, but only jon has a dark sister.

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54 minutes ago, Targaryeninkingslanding said:

If bloodraven doesn't have it with him then Longclaw is the best candidate to be it. it is the sword used by the last two lord commanders. both are bastard swords. lord jeor mormont said it was "once" called longclaw, and jorah never mentions it. if the raven on Mormons shoulder was bloodraven, then its not much to assume he knew more than he let on.

I also love the conjured image of Arya as jons dark sister. every man of the watch has a brother, but only jon has a dark sister.

I suppose it could be Dark Sister but I thought Mormont brought Longclaw to the Wall with him when Jorah left it behind.

I also like the idea that Longclaw is a Great Bastard sword:

Quote

A Storm of Swords - Jon II

And even more telling, only one in a hundred wildlings was mounted. The Old Bear will go through them like an axe through porridge. And when that happened, Mance must give chase with his center, to try and blunt the threat. If he should fall in the fight that must follow, the Wall would be safe for another hundred years, Jon judged. And if not . . .

He flexed the burned fingers of his sword hand. Longclaw was slung to his saddle, the carved stone wolf's-head pommel and soft leather grip of the great bastard sword within easy reach.

 

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On 6/3/2021 at 4:20 AM, Pontius Pilate said:

Milkglass!  Semen in a glass tube!  Jk.  Those old style tubes of fluorescent light.  Lightbringer is not a sword.  It's a light emitting device.  The darkness retreated before the device as the saying goes.  The Others shun the light.  Only light can conquer darkness.  

:D

On 6/1/2021 at 5:21 PM, Curled Finger said:

The idea that a sword's color or brightness could be a reflection of the bearer is a lovely concept.  I have long held that these swords will all be called into play with chosen, proven or even forged heroes to wield them.   This is an integral part  of the magic in our tale and makes a lot of thematic sense to me.   The Lightning Lord seems to truly be the only character we've actually seen put a sword to flame by touching his blood--albeit filled with the fire of life--still, the only one to light a sword er organically.  We know Stannis' Lightbringer is enchanted, but that doesn't count it entirely out of the running as magic swords go.    This could be a good place to go into our various magical swords' origins and what it could mean, but better to stay on topic.    The magic in any of these swords is a wonder.  15 named Valyrian Steel swords of unequal balance and weight.  They act of their own will. Enchanted or just part of the overall magic process?  Legendary ancestral Ice of House Stark, Kings of Winter--mysteriously disappeared in the mists of time to be "replaced" by Valyrian Steel?  What does that say about Ice?  We have a doozie of an origin legend in Dawn and Starfall.  I think white=purity and have to remind myself that the good guys wear black here so what do these beautiful descriptions of Dawn speak of if it is all bad?   I can't accept a simple Other-- with all it's depiction Dawn may be telling the origin story or part of one, of the Others.  In which case I throw in completely with the moonstone crowd--Dawn is not of this world, only it's Heavens and their sundering.  This sword really is Other.  The Other's swords speak as much to their ability and skill as the arakh does the Dothraki.  They look like children's aluminum foil swords.  Where Dawn appears to display light The Others' sword seems to trap it.  Are the Others we have seen Swords of the Morning or Evening even?  It's a fun thing to weigh.  Lightbringer could be a sword or only part of an idea containing many parts and people.   May never be 100% clear on that.  Stannis' sword has a reputation--even stupid Ramsay Bolton wants a look at it.  I think there is lots of room in this story and its magical items inventory to allow some speculation on where we will be duped and all these swords really are for in the magical landscape.   

These swords are made of elements which have magical properties.  I am going to say each magical element has properties unique to it.  The ice swords of the White Walkers can shatter iron.  The Light sabers of the Targaryens can illuminate.  The Dawn of the Daynes are Lightsaber Lites.  They don't quite shine with the same amount of illumination but it is in between dark and light.  It's not as powerful as the Targaryen swords.  

The elements have properties which oppose the effect of another.  The black stones of Asshai soak up the light.  The swords of the Targaryen rulers illuminate.  The ice sword of the others and the Dayne's sword may oppose one another. 

Iron is man's tool.  It is the element which gives man advantage over nature.  The swords of the white walkers destroys man's creations.  Dawn is the opening act for daytime.  The Daynes will keep the Starks and their darkness in check until Daenerys brings daylight back to Westeros and puts the nail on the coffins of the cold bad guys.  

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20 hours ago, LynnS said:

I'll go with metal from a meteorite.  I'm puzzled by the second choice.  Why do you think it could be obsidion?

Some form of desert glass formed from a meteor impact perhaps?

Libyan desert glass - Wikipedia

633b4add74467be0f28737d9d4467b29--conch-deserts.jpg (640×500) (pinimg.com)

I'm with you on the celestial material being what Dawn is made from, Starfall, too.  It has been long held that obsidian may be a constituent of Valyrian Steel.  Going back to dragon glass and dragon steel I think there is a decent chance this is true.   Surely in Valyria there was an abundance of it.   The COTF used this valuable resource and I see no reason the Valyrians wouldn't do the same.   The legends of Damascus Steel in our own world speak of the very specific regional wootz materials produced as well as the very specific regional forging processes.   (Among the legends are forging in urine or stabbing red haired slaves in the heart--not kidding!)  In that obsidian is legendary in its ability to what?  Repel? Harm? Others the implication is clear.   We know of the ultimate outcome of the Long Night and Battle for Dawn the Others are only pushed back presumably to the Lands of Always Winter.  Dragon glass, indeed Dragon Steel was not enough to defeat the Others.   If Team Ice has all this strange power it makes absolute sense to me that Team Fire would have some equal sort of power. 

I think the importance of a story of a family following a falling star is often overlooked.  There are otherworldly alien things in Westeros.   Dawn and Starfall and possibly even the Daynes possess some magic we don't yet know or understand...curiously like our Others.   

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15 hours ago, Rondo said:

:D

These swords are made of elements which have magical properties.  I am going to say each magical element has properties unique to it.  The ice swords of the White Walkers can shatter iron.  The Light sabers of the Targaryens can illuminate.  The Dawn of the Daynes are Lightsaber Lites.  They don't quite shine with the same amount of illumination but it is in between dark and light.  It's not as powerful as the Targaryen swords.  

The elements have properties which oppose the effect of another.  The black stones of Asshai soak up the light.  The swords of the Targaryen rulers illuminate.  The ice sword of the others and the Dayne's sword may oppose one another. 

Iron is man's tool.  It is the element which gives man advantage over nature.  The swords of the white walkers destroys man's creations.  Dawn is the opening act for daytime.  The Daynes will keep the Starks and their darkness in check until Daenerys brings daylight back to Westeros and puts the nail on the coffins of the cold bad guys.  

Light sabers of the Targaryans?  Valyrian Steel?  The only swords I know of thus far to illuminate are Thoros' and Beric's flaming swords, Jamie & Brienne's blue dream swords,  Jon's dream sword, Stannis' Lightbringer, legendary Lightbringer, Dawn and the Others' weapons.   VS is dark--it does not shine.   VS, Blackfyre specifically, darkened even more in Aegon's funeral pyre.   So yes, VS no doubt drinks in light or heat.  Perhaps I misunderstand.   

I think you're on to something with opposing elements affecting each other when it comes to sword talk.   There are light and then there are dark swords and I believe they do represent some equal and opposing force to each other.  All these swords are exquisite and unique.   Elder Brother on the Quiet Isle mentions rusted helms and shining swords and aye, rubies... Though I am inclined to agree that magical swords are designed to vanquish mans' swords I think there has to be something to weapons made entirely of the natural world having some capacity to overcome in all this.   After all, Old Nan, a reliable source told us:   "In that darkness, the Others came for the first time," she said as her needles went click click click. "They were cold things, dead things, that hated iron and fire and the touch of the sun, and every creature with hot blood in its veins.   Perhaps a common castle forged sword alight with wildfyre can defeat the Others?  

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19 hours ago, Targaryeninkingslanding said:

If bloodraven doesn't have it with him then Longclaw is the best candidate to be it. it is the sword used by the last two lord commanders. both are bastard swords. lord jeor mormont said it was "once" called longclaw, and jorah never mentions it. if the raven on Mormons shoulder was bloodraven, then its not much to assume he knew more than he let on.

I also love the conjured image of Arya as jons dark sister. every man of the watch has a brother, but only jon has a dark sister.

It's been way too long since I had a good sword conversation!   I will be the first to give you that Longclaw is something other than it appears to be.   I am inclined to believe it may be ancestral Ice which means it is not VS.   But we are told repeatedly that it is, so wonky history.   Jeor Mormont is hinky about the name of his ancestral family sword and his mention in the past tense is very strange--it's not a long jump to conclude that Longclaw is not the real name of this sword as Cat of the Canals is not the real name of Arya.   Longclaw and Darksister have very specific descriptions.   Longclaw is much bigger and broader and longer than Darksister.   A normal woman would have a rough time wielding Longclaw.   Brienne might be able to handle Longclaw with no problem, but the sword itself is likely bigger than Arya.  

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21 hours ago, Curled Finger said:

I'm with you on the celestial material being what Dawn is made from, Starfall, too.  It has been long held that obsidian may be a constituent of Valyrian Steel.  Going back to dragon glass and dragon steel I think there is a decent chance this is true.   Surely in Valyria there was an abundance of it.   The COTF used this valuable resource and I see no reason the Valyrians wouldn't do the same.   The legends of Damascus Steel in our own world speak of the very specific regional wootz materials produced as well as the very specific regional forging processes.   (Among the legends are forging in urine or stabbing red haired slaves in the heart--not kidding!)  In that obsidian is legendary in its ability to what?  Repel? Harm? Others the implication is clear.   We know of the ultimate outcome of the Long Night and Battle for Dawn the Others are only pushed back presumably to the Lands of Always Winter.  Dragon glass, indeed Dragon Steel was not enough to defeat the Others.   If Team Ice has all this strange power it makes absolute sense to me that Team Fire would have some equal sort of power. 

I think the importance of a story of a family following a falling star is often overlooked.  There are otherworldly alien things in Westeros.   Dawn and Starfall and possibly even the Daynes possess some magic we don't yet know or understand...curiously like our Others.   

It's hard to get past my bias that the sword is made of metal. Obsidian is volcanic glass and it's brittle and easily broken by iron.  The story that the Others hate cold iron is more consistent with the Others being the COTF, since they had no defense against it.  Until the WWs were conjured out of snow and ice an cold.

The Dawn sword could be the exception and there is such a thing as desert glass which looks like milkglass.  This is a material the COTF could work since it is similar to obsidian, but extraterrestrial with all the magic properties the story gives such things.  That could make desert of Dorne its place of origin.

However, we do have Dany's dream:

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A Game of Thrones - Daenerys IX

"… want to wake the dragon …"

Ghosts lined the hallway, dressed in the faded raiment of kings. In their hands were swords of pale fire. They had hair of silver and hair of gold and hair of platinum white, and their eyes were opal and amethyst, tourmaline and jade. "Faster," they cried, "faster, faster." She raced, her feet melting the stone wherever they touched. "Faster!" the ghosts cried as one, and she screamed and threw herself forward. A great knife of pain ripped down her back, and she felt her skin tear open and smelled the stench of burning blood and saw the shadow of wings. And Daenerys Targaryen flew.

 There is a good chance that the sword of pale fire is the Dawn sword handed down from king to king in Dany's line of ancestors.  With their gemstone eyes, it would place the origin of the sword in Essos.  So I'm still inclined to think the pale sword is some kind of metal.

One bias that Martin sets up from the beginning is the notion that Starfall is the place where this star fell and so it's also the place where the sword was forged.  I like the idea that a falling star or comet was followed in the same sense that Dany thinks the red comet is showing her which direction to travel.  

I'm starting to think that Starfall is more akin to the word landfall and there is a connection between the early religion of the Andals; the iconography of the Stars and Swords and House Dayne.  I think the Dawn sword came into their possession at some point and was brought to Westeros eventually landing at Starfall.  House Dayne being the ancestral house of the last fallen star.    

This would be consistent with the story of the wanderers, the seven stars of the Andal religion that came down from the sky to walk the earth - the stars that fell to earth.  Potentially, the heroes of various legends. 

It's interesting to note where Melisandre conflates the prophecies of the PWIP and AA.  The original prophecy said:

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A Clash of Kings - Davos I

Melisandre was robed all in scarlet satin and blood velvet, her eyes as red as the great ruby that glistened at her throat as if it too were afire. "In ancient books of Asshai it is written that there will come a day after a long summer  when the stars bleed and the cold breath of darkness falls heavy on the world. In this dread hour a warrior shall draw from the fire a burning sword. And that sword shall be Lightbringer, the Red Sword of Heroes, and he who clasps it shall be Azor Ahai come again, and the darkness shall flee before him." She lifted her voice, so it carried out over the gathered host. "Azor Ahai, beloved of R'hllor! The Warrior of Light, the Son of Fire! Come forth, your sword awaits you! Come forth and take it into your hand!"

I don't think this is about the red comet, but rather the Poor Fellows:

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A Feast for Crows - Brienne I

"And you, brother," said Ser Illifer. "Who are you?"

"Poor fellows," said a big man with an axe. Despite the chill of the autumnal wood, he was shirtless, and on his breast was carved a seven-pointed star. Andal warriors had carved such stars in their flesh when first they crossed the narrow sea to overwhelm the kingdoms of the First Men.

However, I do think the red comet has made more than one appearance over Planetos, as comets usually do.  In this case causing the Andals to see it as a sign and portent, something they followed to Westeros.  We don't know exactly when they first landed, possibly 6,000 years in the past.   So the bleeding star or comet makes it into their religion expressed by carving a star into the flesh.

It's not really clear to me if the sword that AA forges and the Dawn sword are the same item.  AA is perhaps just one of the heroes with his own legendary weapon.  The Dawn sword seems to come down from the line of the gemstone kings/emperors rather than from the red religion.

Potentially we can track the ownership of the Dawn sword in Brienne's to Galladon of Morne.  It seems that the sword was once held by one of her ancestors.

 

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