Research Notes on the True Nature of Spellbreaker [Revised]

Written By Eis Vuur Warden, Historian and Scholar of the Imperial Geographical Society Circa 4E 1

The first time I was able to examine this legendary Daedric artifact was when I was personally rewarded it by the Taskmaster himself after performing a service for him. I had been a worshipper of Peryite since the dawning days of the Second Era and this had been my first time receiving an item from him. Of course, that was before I became afflicted with my current condition and expelled from the Blighted Lord’s service.

Nevertheless I returned to my small alcove in the swamps of Murkmire to begin sketching the shield in order to study it’s intricacies, for even in my youth I was a fledging scholar. Any true historian worth his credentials knows about the infamous Battle of Rourken-Shalidor in the First Era, where the Spellbreaker was first purportedly sighted. I was intrigued by the thought of how much raw magicka this seemingly ordinary Dwemer shield contained, and so I devoted almost all of my time examining. I nearly starved myself conducting these studies and probably would have if my fellow cultists hadn’t checked on me every now and then. I was glad, however, when I developed some interesting results from my observations.

Just by looking at the shield’s appearance one can tell something is different about it. Many other Dwemer shields are rather dull in design; Spellbreaker however has an intricate and unique design that radiates both authority and prestige. Despite being one of the more ancient relics in Tamriel, it bears no visible signs of wear on its surface and any attempts to mark it any shape or fashion fail.

Spellbreaker’s most interesting feature however – and the reason why it is so widely sought by both mages and warriors alike – is that it has the ability to generate a shield of pure magicka, similar to a traditional Ward spell. This magicka shield can absorb spells cast by enemies effortlessly. It can also silence mages before they can utter a single word for spellcasting if it is facing them. These attributes makes this shield extremely proficient and valuable.

The Ward that the shield generates seems to emit directly from the shield itself, which is similar to how the other Daedric artifacts use the power of their patron Daedra Lord. It also seems to be able to withstand incredible amounts of magicka. I tested this strength by using spells from both the Schools of Destruction and Conjuration to no avail. I went to sleep for the first time in days, and when I woke up Spellbreaker was gone. Perhaps it had gone off to look for its old owner? Regardless, shortly afterwards I was released from Peryite’s ‘employment’ when I received my curse. My Spellbreaker research was postponed while I searched for new place to live where I wouldn’t be persecuted for my new status in society.

It was centuries later when I came across Spellbreaker again. I was approached by a mysterious gentleman, who gave me the magical shield with little comment. Of course, I was skeptical about this ‘Spellbreaker’ and tested it to see if it was the same shield I had the pleasure of holding so many years go. I was surprised to see that it was, and immediately began to conduct secondary observations.

I seemed to unlock another of Spellbreaker’s unique abilities during these experiments. It was now possible for the Ward to split into two smaller Wards during battle for greater diversity and strategic movement. This however caused the Wards themselves to be weaker in comparison to the unified Ward and so I reverted the shield back to its original setting.

Because the shield was crafted by the Dwemer Rourken Clan, I traveled to Hammerfell to study the Dwarven ruins scattered there. In one ruin I was able to find what seemed to be blueprints for a shield that resembled Spellbreaker, but before I was able to copy them they deteriorated from old age. I was amazed at how long the shield had decided to stay with me (only a fool doesn’t know that Daedric artifacts don’t have a mind of their own) and realized this was a great opportunity to test it in a real combat situation. I paid a Sellsword to attack me with any spell she had memorized once I returned to Sutch. Armed with both the shield and a spear, I was able to quickly bring my opponent down without much difficulty. During the battle I discovered that the shield was able to reflect curses and I was amazed when the Sellsword’s Fear spell backfired, literally. Contented with my current notes, I returned to home in the Imperial city and hung the shield on the wall. There was still one question that remained, however. What did Peryite have to do with the Rourken?

Some theories suggest that the Rourken made blasphemous claims about Peryite and in retaliation the Taskmaster cursed them all with a terrible plague. Growing desperate, the Dwemer shamefully built the Spellbreaker to appease the Daedric Prince and so the curse was lifted. Another popular theory starts similar, but branches off by stating that the famous Archmage Shalidor was given the stolen shield by Peryite so he could he destroy the Rourken for him unknowingly. Some scholars believe that Shalidor was a worshipper of Peryite, but that has yet to be confirmed. The most bizarre theory is that the Spellbreaker was just an ordinary shield that Peryite enchanted during the Battle of Rourken-Shalidor to seek vengeance on Shalidor himself. Whatever the case, no one truly knows why Spellbreaker is Peryite’s chosen artifact. Perhaps it will always be a mystery.

I awoke the next day and discovered that Spellbreaker had once again taken its leave from my possession. Fortunately, I don’t think I will need it again. I have written quite the notes on the artifact, and I think the shield itself knows that too.

(Note by Ancestor Moth Brother Quintus Nerevelus: Is there something wrong with the printing presses as of late? There seems to be a number of books with publishing dates from beyond the Second Era in our library. What is increasingly odd about this one is that I have met it’s author before. In fact, he is still alive today. But Eis refers to many things that I have not heard of in the past tense. Did he write this as a joke? I hope not, for he isn’t the type to joke around with his scholarly work. Or is there something even stranger going on…)