Officially Licensed Wheel of Time Heron Mark Sword

They should have done their research. This sword barely resembles any description of the sword in the WoT series. The only aspect of this sword (other than they etched a bird on it)is that the blade is curved.I feel as if the manufacturers of this product used the pieces left over from other projects.Over all, I feel this is a very lazy attempt at producing a fantasy blade.

Wasn't the heron on the hilt? I seem to remember it branding some hands...why would he be holding the blade?

I purchased this sword directly from Windless Cutlery several years ago. As a great fan of Robert Jordan's WOT series, I had a nearly immeasurable amount of anticipation and anxiety upon receiving my sword. First off, you get what you pay for: What you get is a plain katana blade that does not resemble a great work of art. Meaning: the blade is rather thin, extremely springy, and my "version has a "heron mark" on one side and a, ahem, made in "India" engraving on the other. Up on the wall, away from close inspection the shiny sword is a bit impressive, with a nice unique brass hilt/tsuba and pommell. This blade should have definitely been made with a damascus technique or a dull, traditionally forged katana-look and perhaps a blood groove along the (broader) spine. Then compliment it with a lazered heron-mark, if-you-will. Is it worth mentioning that you get a marginal stiff leather sheith (sword rattles around in it loosely), without metal accents or hardware (you will need a frog)? No, it isn't.My blade has a slight, however distinct bend to the left, and I was instructed to pound it out with a rubber mallet by the Windless staff. Very difficult without removing the pummel, handle and hilt, which I was advised with caution. I tried to clarify whether the sword was a full-tang "combat ready" sword, as any discerning Warder would like to know, and I never got a clear "Yes" or "No". Apparently this design is open to interpretation. The sword I received certainly has the subtle broad ping marks of a "hand forged" sword, and does hold up very, very well to oxidation. Oh yes, did I mention that I got a copied certificate of authenticity with Robert Jordan's signature on oiled looking parchment paper, similar to the type you use for Curriculum Vitae?I must close with the assertion that I believe myself or anyone other Dedicate fan would spend one or two, three hundred, or more.. $$ for a more refined version of a blade-masters heron-marked-sword.

I have owned this sword for at least a dozen years, well before such things were ordered on Amazon or even the internet in general. If you're expecting this to be Rand's original blade (i.e. Tam's blade), you're just wrong. If you want that one, I suppose you should be looking for a hilt with the blade melted off. After all, that's how it ends up. This is just 'a' heron-marked sword and I always took it to be one of the more plain "power-wrought" soldiers swords that is spoken of in the series. I am pretty sure that at the time this was advertised as having Robert Jordan's blessing on the design.The blade is sturdy and definitely hand-forged, as indicated by the minor imperfections that can be seen in the shaping of the blade upon close examination. On a high-quality Japanese sword, these imperfections would have been removed by meticulous polishing, but you get what you pay for and this hasn't ever bothered me in the least.The blade curves along its entire length, and is more curved than the most commonly-known katanas today. However, it is very similar in profile to the naka-zori type swords of the Muromachi period.There is a heron on each side of the blade, and under one it says simply "INDIA", which I believe was somewhere south of Shara in the novels. Oh well. It is too deep and large to be ground out without leaving a mark.At one point after moving I forgot to remove the sword from it's scabbard and it did get some minor rust on the surface, but nothing that some steel wool and gentle polishing couldn't remove. Otherwise, I have always stored the sword out of the scabbard with the blade oiled (WD40, actually). I refresh the oil every 1 to 2 years.The blade came relatively sharp, though I cannot remember if we paid for the extra sharpening available at the time, and it will certainly cut well.The sword is unusual in that it has both a tsuba and quillion (crossguard), both brass. I am not personally a fan of the crossguard design, and having both a tsuba and crossguard is a little weird. The hilt is wrapped in blue-dyed leather, which is further wrapped with brass wire. The wire is wrapped somewhat loosely and with heavy cutting I suspect it would not last long. I have considered doing my own wire wrap, but the hilt has never loosened in all this time, so I've leve it alone. The pommel is also brass, with a flower design on the very bottom. I haven't had it apart, but I believe this was described as a full-tang sword, or I never would have purhased it. Overall, the hardware is ok, but probably less impressive than the blade.Overall, I give this 4 stars as it's not bad for the price. It's a functional sword that can cut things if that's what you want to do, and it's a better sword than most other replica fantasy swords. If you like the idea of a owning a sword from WoT, this is not a bad way to go -- assuming you can find one to buy.

In case you missed my opinion, this sword is amazing. I thought long and hard before deciding to order this. I have loved wheel of time since I read the Wheel of Time in 1989, I've been in love ever since. I only recently discovered this sword existed. I can see it on Rand's hip. To make things easier I'll do a pro/con review.First however I must address the ignorant 1 star reviews; the Herons that burnt Rand's hands were from Tam al' Thor's sword. The sword this one is modeled after, was given to him by Avehinda. It is the tree killers sword. He had gems and Jewels removed, and a black scabard crafted for it.Pros: very well made, this is a carbon steel blade, its longer than a Katana blade, also the curve is more dramatic than, the curve in a traditional katana(in response to the idiots claiming its a cheap Katana blade), blade is very light weight, going through a couple routines I was shocked how fast and graceful it is, very, very well balanced.Cons: One nit picky thing, a plaque for wall mounting would have been nice.

I find that I am in agreement with Mr. Crandall. There was a bronze-like metal heron on the hilt that branded the palm of Rand's hands, one at a time on 2 separate occasions. The missing Heron on the hilt of this "Official WOT" sword makes this item a No-Sale for me. This is a crucial detail to leave out, what non-fan bureaucrat authorized this item?