The Legend of Talbard Von

According to family legend, Stergen's  great, great grandfather, Talbard, learned the secret of how to smith adamantite. The story goes like this: Talbard created a great sword for the paladin, Brendan Stoutheart. A few months later, Talbard was traveling through the mountains north of his home to negotiate with the dwarves for some ore. There was an unexpected storm and Talbard found refuge in a shallow cave, to wait out the weather. As he sat there, he saw, out in the rain, a ghostly figure. It stood there in the downpour, arms outstretched and head thrown back, oblivious of the rain. As Talbard watched, it became clear to him that the figure was not getting wet.
Cautiously, the smith crept from the cave, curiosity overcoming his desire to stay dry. As he approached the figure, it raised its head to look at him and smiled. Talbard was overcome with a mix of fear, delight, and awe. The figure was beautiful and Talbard dropped to his knees before it.
The figure spoke to him, in a melodic, otherworldly voice, “Greetings great smith,” it said. “I bring you thanks for practicing your craft so well. The sword you forged for Brendan Stoutheart has cleansed the lands of a terrible evil, at his hand. Were it not for your skill and your care, the sword would surely have faltered before such foes.”
Talbard knelt there in the rain, silent and agape at the majestic figure.
It smiled kindly and continued, “Your skill for metalwork is great and thus have you given to the world a surpassing gift. Likewise, then, shall I bestow a gift in kind.” The figure extended its arms out in benediction and murmured in its resonant, melodic voice, a song or poem in an ancient, alien tongue.
Talbard bowed his head, terrified yet joyous. When he raised his head the figure was gone. Talbard was alone in the clearing, tears losing themselves on his face among the rain.
When the smith later met with the dwarves, he was surprised—but delighted—that they offered him an ingot of precious black adamantite in addition to his request. Talbard returned home with a growing desire to work the rare and wondrous metal.
To his delight, he found that he somehow knew the ways to work the metal! Unfortunately, as time passed, he became obsessed with smithing black adamantite items. Luckily, he retained enough presence of mind to pass the knowledge to his son, Würner, before his obsession completely possessed him. Ten years after he returned from the mountain on that fateful night, Talbard ran off to the mountain once more. Though his family never saw him again, some say he spent the remainder of his life scouring the mountainside for black adamantite and shouting at the sky.
Happily, Würner was not overcome with his knowledge. He became a respectable smith and was renowned for his skill and delicate work. He continued the tradition of passing the knowledge of working black adamantite to his son, but seldom used the knowledge himself. He started a different tradition, that of the the Von Blood Sword , that father and son created together.
Although the story of Talbard Von has never been proven, it is a cherished story of the Von family.