Twelve Swords of Power - Wayfinder

Wayfinder is also called the Sword of Wisdom. It has an arrow engraved in white on its hilt.

Wayfinder's verse in The Song of Swords describes its power as follows:

Who holds Wayfinder finds good roads

Its master's step is brisk.

The Sword of Wisdom lightens loads

But adds unto their risk.

Wayfinder's chief power is guiding its bearer to whatever it is they seek. Not only will it lead one to their ultimate goal, it will also intelligently guide them to things that are required to successfully accomplish its mission. Wayfinder seems to do better and be more kind to its user when the request is broad and general, and less so the more specific the user is. Its main drawback is that while it picks routes that will eventually lead its master to success, it never picks the safest route, if one exists. It is the opinion of many of the past owners of the Sword that it actually picks the worst, most dangerous path for its user to follow. Thus the Sword does indeed "add unto their risk."

Wayfinder's other weakness is that it only will lead someone to one thing at a time. Many times, the wielder will change his mind or have confused priorities that cloud the usefulness of the weapon.

For example, if one were to seek great wealth, Wayfinder might lead one to a bank vault. But before doing so, it would lead one to the world's best safe cracker, and then the equipment he would need to break into the vault. If the safe cracker would need some sort of special compensation to cooperate, it would help one find that as well. Also, because of Wayfinder's tendency to seek risky paths, it would most likely lead one to a heavily guarded and protected vault. When it is operating in this type of "seeker" mode, it quivers when it is being pointed in the right general direction, also subtly steering its possessor's arms as a kind of divining rod.

In addition, Wayfinder can also act as the ultimate Magic 8-ball, answering questions such as, "Which of these plates of food is poisoned?" or "Which of these men is lying to me?" It is unnecessary to vocalize these questions; a mental query is sufficient. Just like when it is in seeker mode, it indicates the correct answer by quivering when its blade is pointing in the correct direction. This is the chief reason Wayfinder is also dubbed the "Sword of Wisdom".