I have long since played Elder Scrolls, going back as far as Arena and Daggerfall. I really fell in love with Morrowind and Skyrim however. I wanted a replica sword from the games to display in my man cave. One of the most iconic swords from the game is the Steel Longsword. Below you can see a screenshot from the in game sword. This would be the basic shape/design I will be going after. I’m going more for functionality over realism to the game. This means all metal and sharp.

I took a sheet of 3/8″ metal stock and used a cutting torch to cut a long section to start with. This is a medium carbon steel and can be quenched, but will not hold the sharpest blade. For a display sword, that’s fine.

Getting the basic profile is fairly straightforward. I used an angle grinder to grind the sides and top to the desired shape. I also began cutting a rough edge on the blade. You can see near the tip of the blade where the metal got very hot due to grinding.

I used different reference pictures from the game to get the profile closer to the in-game sword.

The handle of the sword is made from a cutoff section of a VW axle. I’m using what I have on hand, and this resulted in a very heavy handle. This did also help balance the weapon since the blade is very heavy.

The next piece is the guard for the handle. I cut off another section of metal stock and used a grinder to cut the basic shape out. I also cut a groove in the blade to match the guard. This will help strengthen the joint between these two pieces.

Then I simply welded the pieces together. I built up the weld a bit so I could grind the edges smooth to create a near seamless joint.

Same process for the lower guard as well. I used a thicker piece of stock for this though. I cut the piece out and then welded it to the bottom of the handle. Then I grinded down the edges.

After getting everything finished up, I used a file to put a basic edge on the blade. I also used a leather strap to wrap the handle. The finished design looks pretty good up on the wall. Especially next to my Daedric Dagger.