Unlocking and Restoring the Dormant Relic Weapon
The 
Dormant Relic is an ancient unique weapon in Simply Swords that reaches a player through the loot the mod attaches to village and ruined portal chests, and it functions as an unawakened blade ready for salvage or purification.
Characteristics of the Dormant Relic
Unlike standard craftable weaponry such as the 
Diamond Claymore or 
Diamond Longsword, the Dormant Relic cannot be manufactured at a crafting table using raw ingots and sticks. It belongs exclusively to the unique weapon tier, featuring customized item models and innate combat characteristics.
When retrieved from a treasure chest, the Dormant Relic is in an unawakened state. In this baseline form, it functions as a fully usable sword with offensive stats that rival standard diamond-tier armaments. Its attack speed and swing animations make it an effective primary weapon for players who have not yet assembled Netherite or runic gear.
Because it cannot be crafted, obtaining one requires active exploration of dangerous structures across the Overworld, Nether, and End dimensions.
Smelting for Empowered Remnants
If your armory already possesses endgame weaponry, the Dormant Relic serves as a vital component source. Any Dormant Relic can be recycled inside a furnace to recover an 
Empowered Remnant.
The smelting process requires:
- 1 Dormant Relic in the input slot
- Any standard furnace fuel (coal, charcoal, blaze rods, or lava buckets)
- Smelting device: Furnace, Blast Furnace, or Smoker
Upon completing the smelting cycle, the furnace outputs exactly one Empowered Remnant. This remnant can then be used at a 
Smithing Table with a 
Runic Tablet and 
Netherite Ingot to create a 
Netherfused Gem, or with 
Crying Obsidian to forge a 
Runefused Gem.
Smelting is irreversible. Once melted down, the weapon is permanently consumed, leaving only the remnant in the output tray. Players should verify that they do not intend to keep the weapon before placing it into a furnace hopper line.
The Relic Weapon Family
The Dormant Relic is closely linked to several other unique blades in Simply Swords:
- Dormant Relic: The resting, neutral blade recovered from ancient ruin chests.
Tainted Relic: A corrupted variant pulsing with dark status effects and high burst damage.
Righteous Relic: A purified counterpart infused with radiant offensive buffs.
Decaying Relic: An ancient, weathered blade that carries lingering corrosive magic.
Each variant reflects a different state of ancient weapon preservation. While the Tainted Relic and Righteous Relic feature active combat powers, the Dormant Relic acts as the quiet progenitor of the set. However, because all four blades share the unique weapon classification, any duplicate or unwanted version can always be placed into a furnace to reclaim an Empowered Remnant.
Combat Application and Enchanting
Players choosing to wield the Dormant Relic rather than smelt it should enhance its performance using an anvil or enchanting table:
- Sharpness: Increases the direct damage dealt per strike, boosting its effectiveness against common hostile mobs.
- Unbreaking: Significantly reduces the rate of durability loss during prolonged exploration runs.
- Mending: Uses collected experience orbs to repair weapon durability, ensuring the rare relic never breaks in combat.
- Looting: Increases the drop rates of rare items and mob heads when defeating monsters.
- Smite: Excellent alternative for players exploring the Nether or deep dark ancient cities where undead monsters dominate.
Preserving Rare Relics
Because the Dormant Relic cannot be re-crafted once lost, store spare relics in secure ender chests or organized vaults. If you decide to smelt the relic, double-check that you do not have valuable enchantments applied, as smelting destroys the weapon and all attached enchantments, returning only the single Empowered Remnant.