» Thu Feb 25, 2010 1:32 pm
The shadow will use the best equipment the player has, and if the player's sword/axe is "better" than Shadowrend, then they just won't have it to drop. So if you don't get one, you already have something better, and it's no major loss, except as a trophy (it's always priced way above what you can sell it for).
If you really want the trophy, you need to drop any "better" sword before triggering the shadow (and then pick it up again if you can't fight effectively without it). I generally do that quest with as much reflect damage as I can get, and summon creatures to do the work for me.
If you found a sword on the body that you couldn't take, it would be the clone of your own, rather than Shadowrend.