Thou must choose either the Amulet or the Sword...Life or death -- For thee... And, mayhaps, for thy world, as well! 
Along with the Amulet of Right, the Sword of Might is one of the two items offered to the potential candidates for the Captain Britain Corps.[5]
History
According to Mastermnd, the Sword of Might was forged in the fires of creation and tempered by the power of the universe.[3]
Brian Braddock choosing between the Amulet of Right and the Sword of Might
When a new Captain Britain was chosen, Merlyn and Roma offered the choice between two items: the Sword of Might and Amulet of Right. Which item they choose will affect their overall powers, as well as general costume. Choosing the Amulet represents the path of reason while the Sword represents the path of violence.[6][7][5] Generally, Merlyn and Roma seek those who choose the path of the Amulet, but, on occasion, one who chooses the sword may become a Captain Briton.[8]
When Brian Braddock was initially offered the choice by Merlyn, he chose the Amulet of Right.[9][7]
Following the death of Merlyn, control of Otherworld fell to Roma. Unfortunately, Mastermind impersonated Roma to seized control and obtained the Amulet of Right with plans to concur the cosmos.[6] Mastermind was even able to steal the Sword of Might from Captain Britain.[3] Mastermind was eventually defeated by Captain Britain and Excalibur.[10]
Kelsey Leigh choosing the Sword of Might
When Kelsey Leigh, a single mother, died protecting Captain America from Thunderball of the Wrecking Crew, Brian Braddock chose to resurrect her and offer her the choice between the pendent and the sword. Unfortunately, Kelsey chose the sword and could not be reunited with her children.[2] Following her sacrifice, Kelsey was invited to join the Avengers and live at the Avengers Mansion.[11] Not long after Kelsey joined them, the Avengers disbanded.[12] When Brian Braddock returned to Earth from Otherworld, he reclaimed the title and powers of Captain Britain. This left an embittered Kelsey to be taken in and trained by Albion, a villainous Captain Britain who also chose the path of the sword.[13][14] Ultimately, Kelsey betrayed Albion to save the United Kingdom. She also seemingly chose to relinquish her powers and was finally reunited with her children.[15]
During the Skrull invasion of Earth, Skrulls raided Otherworld stealing the Amulet of Right, the Sword of Might, and the Holy Grail. These and other magical items were converted into a chain to be worn by one of their mystics.[16] Using Excalibur, Captain Britain was able to defeat and decapitate the Skrull mystic. He also destroyed the magical, converted chain restoring magic.[17]
Kid Briton with his framing Sword of Might
When Kid Briton and fifteen other superpowered teens were captured and brought to Murder World by Arcade, Kid Briton was armed with his version of the Sword of Might which could magically alight with flames.[18]
While visiting Avalon in Otherworld, Captain Britain was infected by Morgan Le Fay's magic becoming her dark champion and giving up the Amulet of Right to his sister, Betsy Braddock, who donned the Amulet to become the new Captain Britain.[19] Betsy was eventually able to free Brian from le Fay's control, but because of his trauma, Brian chose the Sword of Might over the Amulet of Right when he was offered the choice again by Merlyn and Roma in a dream. Distraught about his choice, Betsy offered to return the Amulet to Brian, but ultimately she retained the powers and title of Captain Britain.[5]
When Saturnyne forced the mutants of Krakoa to face off against the mutants of Arakko in a tournament of swords, both Brian and Betsy were chosen as Swordbearers of Krakoa. Secretly planning to make Brian the one true Captain Britain, Saturnyne had secretly created the Starlight Sword for him to wield as her own knight. However, the Braddock siblings were able to deceive Saturyne and allow Betsy to wield the Starlight Sword while Brian kept the Sword of Might and donned the mantle of Captain Avalon.[4]
Trivia
- Some of the Captain Britain Corps members to choose the Sword of Might over the Amulet of Right include Albion,[8] Lionheart,[2] and Kid Briton.[20]
- On Earth-98125, Brian Braddock chose both the Sword of Might and the Amulet of Right to become Captain Britain and his world's greatest champion.[21]
- Occasionally, the Sword of Might has been referred to or confused with Excalibur[1][2] or the Ebony Blade.[22][23] This may be because each were magical blades with strong associations to Merlyn. Additionally, the Sword of Might was usually lodged in a stone when presented to potential Captain Britains,[9][7][24][2][5] while the Black Knight occasionally drew the Ebony Blade from stone as well.[25][26] However, it has been confirmed that these are indeed three different and distinct swords.[16][27]
See Also
- 39 appearance(s) of Sword of Might
- 7 minor appearance(s) of Sword of Might
- 5 mention(s) of Sword of Might
- 51 image(s) of Sword of Might
Links and References
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Excalibur Vol 2 #2-4
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 Avengers Vol 3 #80
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Excalibur Vol 2 #3
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 Excalibur Vol 4 #13
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 Excalibur Vol 4 #6
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Captain Britain #1-2 Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; name "2-2" defined multiple times with different content - ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Marvel Team-Up #65
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 New Excalibur #18
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Captain Britain #1
- ↑ Excalibur Vol 2 #4
- ↑ Avengers Vol 3 #81-82
- ↑ Avengers #500-503
- ↑ New Excalibur #4-5
- ↑ New Excalibur #18-23
- ↑ New Excalibur #24
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 Captain Britain and MI-13 #2
- ↑ Captain Britain and MI-13 #4
- ↑ Avengers Arena #1-6
- ↑ Excalibur Vol 4 #1
- ↑ Avengers Arena #5
- ↑ Timeslip Collection #1
- ↑ Avengers Unplugged #6
- ↑ Quicksilver #6
- ↑ Excalibur Vol 2 #2
- ↑ Marvel Super-Heroes #17
- ↑ Avengers Annual #22
- ↑ Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Mystic Arcana: The Book of Marvel Magic #1
