Longclaw is a sword that is used by Jon Snow in the Game of Thrones book series and television show created by George R.R. Martin. The sword is known for its unique appearance and for its importance to Jon’s life.
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The sword was given to Jon Snow by Lord Jeor Mormont. After retiring from being a lord, Jeor gave it to his son Jorah. Jorah sent it back to him after going into exile. Jeor eventually have Longclaw to Jon after saving him from a wight. The Longclaw name was drafted as a reference to the bear head on the pommel.
Legend has it that the sword, like other items made with Valyrian steel, was forged from a dragon’s fire with magical spells. Not much is known as to how this steel can be created or even how Jeor got the sword in the first place.
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Longclaw is made out of Valyrian steel, a strong and sharp form of metal that is amazingly light in weight and does not need much maintenance in order to stay sharp. It is unclear as to how this metal can be forged any further as the process for how to forge it was lost in the Doom of Valyria.
The sword is a bastard sword; this means that it is of a length in between a longsword and greatsword. It may be handled with one or two hands although it is best to use both hands for the best possible grip.
The sword has a direwolf head on its pommel. This is the sigil of the House Stark and was added to replace the old bear head that Jeor once had.
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The key ability that Longclaw has is that it, like other Valyrian steel swords, will always stay sharp and will not have to be ground or sharpened on a regular basis. The steel is also light in weight, thus making it easy to hold onto while using a shield in tandem with the sword.
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Jeor was the original user of the sword. In fact, House Mormont had it in its possession for five centuries. Jorah used it for a brief period but it has since been used by Jon ever since. Jon did lose it to Craster for a brief period of time and was admonished by the House Mormont for this.
Jon also gave the sword to Samwell Tarly. However, this was done as a means of ensuring that the sword would be kept in safe hands.
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Longclaw had been used to kill Qhorin in order to get Jon into a wilding camp. However, Qhorin had staged the death as he intended to have Jon kill him. The first time when Jon actually killed someone with Longclaw came at Queenscrown when he killed Orell.
Jon also used the sword at the Raid on Craster’s Keep. He killed Karl and a number of other people who declared mutiny with the sword. He also used it in a duel with Styr but the sword was knocked out of his hands. Jon still found a hammer and killed Styr with it before recovering Longclaw.