Blackguard's Sword

Blackguard's Sword is a rare +2 longsword in Baldur's Gate 3 whose additional necrotic damage and Smite-triggered Dazed effect make it especially relevant to Paladins, including Oathbreakers. It is a late-Act 3 weapon obtained from the enemy guarding the Murder Tribunal's entrance.

As a martial melee weapon, Blackguard's Sword occupies the familiar longsword role but adds a more specific combat identity than a conventional enchanted blade. Its defining feature is Dazing Smite: when the wielder hits with a Smite, the target must succeed on a Constitution saving throw or become Dazed. That effect makes the sword's value depend on access to Smite abilities rather than enchantment alone.

The sword also deals additional necrotic damage on successful hits, giving ordinary attacks a damage component beyond the weapon's normal longsword damage. It retains the standard longsword actions Pommel Strike, Lacerate, and Rush Attack, so it does not replace the class's normal melee options with an entirely separate moveset. Its distinction comes from the combination of a +2 enchantment, necrotic damage, and a conditional control effect.

Blackguard's Sword appears during Act 3, when the party can find it on That Which Guards, the enemy stationed at the entrance to the Murder Tribunal within the Bhaalist Crypt. This places it in late-game progression rather than among early or mid-game longsword choices. The acquisition context also gives the weapon a clear association with the Bhaalist Crypt and the Murder Tribunal without making it a general-purpose reward available throughout the campaign.

For a character who regularly spends spell slots on Divine Smite, the sword's special ability offers a practical reason to choose it over a plain longsword with a similar weapon profile. Oathbreakers are a particularly natural fit because they remain Paladins and can use Smite abilities, although the weapon's suitability still depends on the character's wider equipment and spell-slot economy. It is a normal, obtainable campaign item rather than a separate variant, DLC weapon, or inaccessible story entry.

Damage is the dice expression; weight and value are the game’s own figures. From Consolidated Game Weapons Database.

1. 01Act 3 — reach the Bhaalist Crypt and locate the entrance to the Murder Tribunal. The Blackguard's Sword is carried by the enemy named That Which Guards, who is stationed there as a guard.
2. 02Defeat That Which Guards, then loot the enemy's body. The sword is obtained as loot rather than purchased from a vendor or awarded through a separate quest.
3. 03This route is tied to the Act 3 Bhaalist Crypt and Murder Tribunal area; no separate DLC, New Game Plus, or difficulty requirement is associated with the weapon. Major story-area spoilers apply.

The Blackguard’s Sword has limited documented lore beyond its item text. That text characterizes the blade as suffused with deranged energy and connects its history to a former wielder who abandoned all bonds of friendship. It establishes an ominous history for the weapon, but does not identify that wielder or confirm a broader relationship to a named character, faction, or event.

No official design commentary or development history is documented here. The weapon’s name and sinister flavor support its presentation as a corrupted or villain-associated longsword, but they do not by themselves establish a real-world inspiration, creator intent, or a canonical connection to the term “blackguard” beyond the item’s naming.

• The sword’s flavor text connects its name with a former wielder who “forsook all ties of friendship,” while describing the blade as filled with deranged energies. It offers atmosphere rather than a confirmed biography: the text does not identify that former owner or establish a broader relationship to a named character.