Weebish question, so sorry if that's frowned upon here but

>>2946651
I'l just guess you've watched game of thrones and are reffering to european medieval times. In that case you need to rethink of what those swords were - you could cut with them, but you wouldn't use them. They were family heirlooms, ceremonial weapons that the nobles would hang on their walls and wear at coronations and all that shit. They're no different from scepters, jewelry and crowns - you'd wear them to look cool next to other nobles, not to fight enemies. They'd be passed down and taken from one dynasty to another but it really didn't make any difference in combat, where the nobles would get the most expensive and practical arms, armor and horses to ensure they could beat the average sir knight.

>>2946692
Ah thank you, game of thrones was part of my inspiration but it was an anime that did some ridiculous katana stunt that brought it to the forefront of my mind.

I figured they would be treated as you described but everything I've seemed elsewhere made them look as if they had some practical battle usage

Thanks for clearing this up man.

>>2946706
No problem, keep in mind game of thrones is fantasy and most of the shit that's shown there doesn't represent actual medieval society. In feudal japan things might be different with ceremonial weapons, I really don't know much about it though.

>>2946651
Ceremonial swords are typically like ceremonial armors and such, you put them in display but don't wear/use them on the battlefield (even though you probably could).
Each weapon/armor should be tailored to the user anyway, so a good sword for one person doesn't mean it'd be good for another, so there's no point in using your father's sword just because it's his sword.

Swords in Japan and weapons in general broke regularly, and there's no way that they'd risk their family heirloom being broken or taken away.

>>2946760
>Swords in Japan and weapons in general broke regularly
yeah this is a point that's often overlooked. A longsword isn't just a long sharp bit of metal, its a very precise bit of technology. It has to be hard enough to take an edge, while at the same time not being brittle. It has to be flexible or else a good hit will shatter it, and swords did break in battle all the time. That's why knights often carried backup weapons.

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>>2946706
>ridiculous katana stunt
You mean this?

Most likely, the sword got reforged, the hilt changed, it broke and was repaired, and so on and so forth. In the end your great-grandson would carry something that was the family sword in name only.