Tychoprian Blast Sword

The Gifros AAS-51H, more simply known as the **Tychoprian Blast Sword**, is a prodigiously large melee weapon developed by the Akybi Dynasty during the Second Tychoprian Dynasty War. Created through the cooperation of the Akybi Wartime Research Department and the talented weapons designer Mesimiarr Sul-Gifros, the Tychoprian Blast Sword is a very unique weapon, incorporating traditional Tychoprian swordfighting techniques with advanced technology to make it viable in modern warfare.

## Development

The creation of the Tychoprian Blast Sword came out of necessity rather than random experimentation. Though the Akybi Dynasty had secured many victories in the earlier periods of the ongoing Second Dynasty War, their primary combatants, the Rhukib Dynasty, were starting to escalate their involvement in the conflict, and were rapidly gaining an advantage. As the Akybi Dynasty began to suffer routine defeats, being pushed back by the Rhukib Dynasty more and more, they realized that even the most skilled Akybi warriors would not be enough to fight the larger, technologically advanced Rhukib army. The Akybi Dynasty needed to upgrade its weaponry so that it was on-par with that of the Rhukib Dynasty, and this is where specialty weapon designers like Mesimiarr came into play. Originally an engineer that designed custom weapons as a hobby, Mesimiarr quickly became a famous weapons designer thanks to the unorthodox, yet effective design of his armaments. His fame reached all the way to the Akybi Wartime Research Department, who offered Mesimiarr the chance to work for them in exchange for considerable payment and prestige. Obviously, Mesimiarr agreed to this exchange, and his skills were quickly put to work. A selection of iconic Akybi weapons, including the Turret Mine and Clot Bomb, were the work of Mesimiarr's cooperation with the Wartime Research Department. However, none were as notable as the Blast Sword, a tremendous melee weapon intended to be used against heavily-armored spacecraft. Taking inspiration from ancient Tychoprian sword design, Mesimiarr designed Blast Swords to counter Rhukib cruisers and frigates in space combat. One of the most significant advantages the Rhukib wielded over the Akybi was the potency of their spacecraft weapons. Akybi ships, which were slimmer and often less armored compared to Rhukib ships, couldn't survive for long under continuous bombardment in space conflict, preventing them from doing much structural damage to Rhukib fleets. The Blast Sword allowed skilled Tychoprian combatants, colloquially known as Starslicers, to engage large Rhukib ships directly. Too small to be hit by the weapons of larger ships, Starslicers could fly up close to Rhukib ships in flexible power armor suits, destroying weapon hardpoints, exposed machinery and any other critical systems they could reach with their Blast Swords. This damage would cripple the offensive capabilities of Rhukib fleets, allowing Akybi fleets to last longer and deal more damage without fear of being destroyed. While it was a very audacious idea, the Akybi Dynasty was desperate, and gave Mesimiarr the resources he needed to bring Blast Swords out of prototyping and into the Akybi military.

At first, Blast Swords were deployed very hesitantly by the Akybi military. The explosive clip technology incorporated into the swords was still in its infancy, as was the power armor worn by Starslicers. In addition to this, teaching individuals how to wield Blast Swords in zero-gravity environments took a long time, and even the few that managed to become Starslicers still had a long way to go before they would be experienced enough with the weapon to use it effectively. However, the few preliminary battles in which Blast Swords saw action had greatly reduced casualty rates compared to ordinary ship battles, and several of them resulted in victory for the Akybi fleets. The Blast Sword fit its intended combat role very well, and once the Akybi Dynasty realized this, they poured more resources into the creation of Blast Swords and training of more Starslicers. In response to the proliferation of this new technology, the Rhukib Dynasty took steps to develop zero-g warriors of their own that could defend their ships against Akybi Starslicers. This ultimately led to the creation of the Rhukib Void Corps, who, much like the Starslicers, were trained in zero-g combat and equipped with similar suits of power armor that let them navigate this environment. These fighters helped equalize the odds in space combat, and gradually diminished the overall effectiveness of Starslicers in Akybi fleets. Blast Sword technology matured quite a bit before its usefulness expired, however, with further refinements being made to its core design constantly. A slightly smaller variant of the weapon was developed for use against heavy Rhukib land vehicles, as well, though its prevalence was much lower compared to the original Blast Sword. A unique Blast Sword variant equipped with an MDF generator was also in the works during the later stages of the war, but it never exited prototyping, and was never used in combat by the Akybi Dynasty. A select few models of this specialty Blast Sword prototype are said to still exist in the eastern portions of the Spur Trinity, which has garnered the attention of many collectors and historians looking to get their hands on one.

Following the destruction of the Akybi Dynasty, Blast Swords were never commercially produced by any subsequent civilization in that region of space. The Rhukib Dynasty neglected to use them as the technology of their Void Corps was vastly superior, and most of the Blast Swords that were once used by the Akybi Dynasty were abandoned and scattered among Tychoprian space. Later on, when the Rhukib Dynasty was absorbed by the Coalition of Intelligent Organisms, Blast Swords resurfaced as a popular item among weapon collectors and Tychoprian history enthusiasts. A select few artisans revived the art of Blast Sword manufacturing to capitalize on this newfound popularity, but they were few and far between, as the lack of any militaristic value compared to modern military technology prevented most corporations from manufacturing the weapons on a commercial scale. Likewise, the rarity (and market price) of Blast Swords always remained high, which allowed the businesses of the artisans that manufactured them to survive.

## Design

Owing to the nature of its creator, the Blast Sword is a very unconventional weapon. Melee weapons, as a whole, are rarely found in the arsenals of most spacefaring civilizations, beaten out easily by advanced firearms. This dilemma is avoided by the Blast Sword through the sheer size and power of its design, which make it suitable for use against armored spacecraft. At its core, the Blast Sword is a 50 ft (15.2 m) long slab of ultra-dense metal alloy, cut and sharpened so as to resemble a sword. The blade of a Blast Sword is more than 7 ft (2.1 m) thick on one side, but it gradually tapers off into a fine edge on the other end. The sharper edge of a Blast Sword rises higher than the dull edge, forming a right triangle at the top of the weapon that gives it a fine point. The sharpness of a Blast Sword's blade has no bearing on its usefulness in combat, however. This is because Blast Swords are not designed to cut through the hulls of enemy ships, but rather, to blast through them. Lining the sharp edge of the Blast Sword is a series of triangular grooves, angled so as to face outward towards the edge of the blade, and inside each of these grooves is a high-yield shaped explosive. In combat, an individual can swing a Blast Sword towards an enemy ship, sinking the entire width of the sword into the ship's hull to then detonate the shaped explosives via a trigger mechanism built into the handle. The resulting explosion can cause massive pinpoint damage to a specific area on an enemy ship, and is strong enough to detach the sword from whatever armor it is embedded into. The shaped explosives can be replenished via the sword's explosive clip, which stores extra charges inside of the blade and feeds them into its grooves when necessary. A Blast Sword's exterior is almost impervious to damage, which allows the sword to be swung and detonated numerous times without having to be repaired. Due to the weapon's considerable weight, small thrusters are attached to the dull edge of the blade to make it easier to swing. These thrusters make use of a special octaazacubane-based liquid fuel, and can produce tremendous force with just the push of a button, allowing the blade to be swung faster and penetrate armor it otherwise would barely scratch. The most experienced Starslicers learned how to use these thrusters to aid their own movement through space, generating incredible momentum that they can use to slice through the thinner components of enemy ships with ease.

Obviously, no matter how much training they receive, ordinary people cannot wield Blast Swords on their own, especially not in the frictionless, zero-gravity environment of space. In order to keep up with the weapon's destructive potential, those that wield Blast Swords must encase themselves in advanced power armor suits that improve their physical abilities and allow them to freely navigate space. Blast Sword power armor usually conforms to the body shape of its wearer very well, offering them as much freedom of movement as possible. Powerful thrusters, much like those found on the Blast Sword itself, cover the exterior of this armor, finely-attuned so as to allow motions as fast as the wearer's reaction time while still remaining efficient thanks to their high-power fuel mixture. This, combined with the suit's very reliable life support system, allow users to remain in space for prolonged periods of time without having to resupply. Heavier variants of these suits include explosive clip extensions that can link up with the user's Blast Sword, increasing the number of times it can be used. While such suits were originally designed for Tychoprian occupants, there have since been derivative versions, known collectively as MIC Suits, created in the Coalition of Intelligent Organisms that can accommodate multiple different species and serve a variety of combat roles.